On March 15th, 1863, Nye was still in Baton Rouge trying to get all of the men who were on the West Point back to their regiments. Early that morning, a little past midnight, Nye wrote that all the troops were called out to hear the firing of shells at Port Hudson. A couple hours after they were sent back inside to go to bed, Nye went down to the river.
He wrote, “Remained there about 15 minutes watching a Bright fire which appeared to bee in the River when it Exploded and was the most magnificent sight I ever witnessed It aluminated the Heavens + Sent up the most splended sheet of fire I came witnessed then in about 30 seconds there came a report that Sounded like heavy Thunder and all was as dark as Night”
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| The USS Mississippi in 1863 |
The bright light turned out the be the explosion of the USS Mississippi, which, while coming down the river by Port Hudson with 5 other boats, grounded and was riddled with Confederate shots. To avoid the boat being captured, in Nye’s words, “when the Captain found he could not get her off he set her on fire + blew her up with all of the wounded on board”
When Nye finally got to his regiment at Camp Parapet, Louisiana, near Port Hudson, he was ecstatic. It isn’t hard to imagine what he was feeling at the time, after four months of separation, four months in which every day was spent trying to get to this very place.
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| What remains of Camp Parapet today |
He writes, “It is a beautifull Morning and I wonce more find myself with my Regt and company + it is one of the happiest moments of my life. I find the most of our men in good health altho the destroying angil has visited them 13 have gone to that land from which whose bourne no traveler can return”
That land from which whose bourne no traveler can return?
How awfully familiar!
More on that in the next installment.
