Journey of the German Fusiliers to Yorktown, VA as part of the South Carolina Battalion, Oct. 16-22, 1881

The following is taken from Anthony W. Riecke's book about his participation in the U.S. Centennial Celebration held on the 100th anniversary of the British surrender at Yorktown. Shortly prior to this celebration President Garfield was assassinated. Vice President Arthur had just assumed the presidency. As a result of the assassination the country was in mourning and the festivities were scaled down. None the less, military units from across the country were sent to Yorktown to participate, bringing together veterans from both the union and confederate armies as well as some soldiers of a generation too young to have fought in the war. For Anthony Riecke it was a journey of reconciliation and of healing.

My two former narratives of the Confederate War, and of the Reconstruction Days having been of war and strife I shall supplement the same with one of a better subject, an account of the journey of the German Fusiliers as a part of the South Carolina Battalion to the Yorktown Centennial, a veritable love feast of the states of the union; a fitting reunion of the Gray and the Blue. The German Fusiliers having been selected by the Adjutant General as one of the Charleston companies to represent the state at Yorktown, I, at the solicitation of Captain Schachte, joined the squad drilling in preparation for the trip, and though it cost us many a good sweat of a summer's night, still the martial fame of our state was to be upheld by us, and required some sacrifice, so its unpleasantness was overlooked... While we were arriving the steamer containing the President and his Cabinet and other high officials were also just coming up so that there was no end to saluting... The command "Forward" was given, supplemented by route step "with arms at will" and we took up ouir march for the historic field of Yorktown as the American and French armies had done just a hundred years before, and our own boys in gray more recently. As we marched to the town with our Palmetto Flag flying we were greeted by cheers on all sides, the most demonstrative being some of the old Veterans of the union army from the "Soldiers Home" at Hampton, Virginia who shouted: "Hurray for South Carolina". and then came up and offered us their hand, some their only one, saying: "Here boys give us your flipper, we're glad to see you!" After this the march seemed as if that of a victorious army instead of a body of soldiers from the much maligned state of South Carolina; it made by blood swell to my heart and I felt doubly proud again of being a South Carolinian an a late Confederate ... We had anticipated a very dusty road but we could hardly find an adjective sufficiently expressive of the true state of things; by the time we arrived in camp at 3 o'clock, our blue uniforms had been transformed into the to us more fitting garb of gray, a coat of gray dust covered us from head to foot ... Yorktown I found to be an old time worn place lying on a high bluff on the York River, of no importance whatever commercially, and only brought into notice by the historical events of first the Siege and Surrender in the Revolutionary War, a siege also during the Confederate War, and now the Celebration of the Centennial of the first named event. The town contains only about 20 or 25 houses, a number of which were built during colonial times, among them the Moore House, where the negotiations between Washington and Cornwallis which led to the surrender of the latter's army. On this occasion for business and speculation purposes all sorts of booths, stands and tents had been erected with out any regard for beauty or taste; everywhere was the Yankee predominant with his shrewdness for money making, everything that could tempt the money out of the pockets of the visitors could be foundimprovised there from a peanut stand to a printing office printing and selling facsimile copies of a colonial paper containing the account of the surrender or photograph gallery where for a small consideration one could get facsimilie of himself.... shows, negro minstrels, Yankee peddlers too were to be seen on all sides, the last named offering such things as silk handkerchiefs, beadwork, walking sticks cut from the battlefield, although I hardly think the largest number of them if any ever grew there, and a dozen or more kinds of medals and badges each and every one being styled "the only official one". Some men went about with buckets of Lemonade retailing the same at 5 cts a large glass or schooner as they called it, this was really good and found ready sale, others again had baskets of Ginger Snaps selling them at 5 cts a bag and also doing a thriving business.

On the morning of the 20th, early already, we began our preparations for the grand review to take place at 10 o'clock; uniforms were brushed, guns brightened and white gloves washed...By 9 o'clock our Battalion was drawn up in a line, awaiting our turn to wheel into the column; a grand sight it was to see the troops pass us ... their bands playing but in respect to President Garfield's death with their flags furled and draped in crepe... When after a half hours march the stand was reached from which the President and his Cabinet, the Foriegn Guests and also Gen. Hancock reviewed the troops, the men stiffened up and straitened their alignment and marched with a firm step; the appearance of the Palmetto flag caused repeated cheers and clapping of hands ... It must have astonished the Foreign Guests to see such a large body of well drilled and disciplined citizen soldiers. On arriving in camp there was an almost endless dusting and brushing all around, the dust completely covering our uniforms. Senators Hampton and Butler made their appearance at our camp on horseback, and were greeted with most enthusiastic cheers ... the men rushed up (to Senator Hampton) and completely surrounded him cheering and waving their hats over their heads and tried to get a shake of the Generals hand ... By this time the continued cheering had attracted the attention of other commands and soon the Marylanders rushed to have a shake of the Gen'ls hand followed soon by a large number of Pennsylvanians with whom he had to undergo the same process, till at last he said to the Carolinians that it was customary when any one called on you that you offered them something, but that we had neglected to do so, when the men taking the hint took the reins of the horses, escorted by the Senators to Headquarters followed still by the Marylanders and Pennsylvanians who seemed almost as enthusiastic as our men, calling them repeatedly by name.

The German Fusilliers, Charleston Captain Henry Schachte Acting 1st Lieut. C. H. Kershaw Acting 2nd Lieut. W. G. Jatho Orderly Sergt. H. A. H. Mensing Sergt. A. Janssen Corp. J. H. Heins Corp. Geo. Lunz, Acting Quartermaster Privates A. Amme , R. H. Lockwood S. Brillers , J. B. Morello W. Benedict , John Mahlstedt J. F. Dunne , A. W. Riecke T. Dubois , J. H. W. Scharfer W. B. Gross , A. Schachte W. C. Greer , A. Steinmeyer C. H. Hillen , A. Tamsberg Walter Hill , J. J. Williams Jules Huguelet , J. Williams Jacob Knobeloch , E. Iseman J. W. Klien

Secession Battle of Fort Sumter Creation of the Washington Artillery Battle with the Frigate "Pawnee" Battle of North Carolina/Surrender Journey of the German Fusiliers, Oct. 1881

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