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Civil War battles of Edward Francis Cashel

Battles that Edward Francis Cashel was in during the American Civil War 1861-1865.

Summary of the war:

• N side: Union, Federal. Anti-slavery. President Abraham Lincoln. Capital Washington, DC.
• S side: Confederate, rebels. Pro-slavery. President Jefferson Davis. Capital Richmond, Virginia.
• N won. Slavery abolished throughout S (and some remaining parts of N).
• Sometimes called the first "modern" war, a warning of the future WWI.
• 655,000 U.S. military deaths, more than in any war before or since (including WW2).

Battery M, 2nd U.S. Artillery, at Fair Oaks, VA, June 1862.
Not Cashel's battery, but gives you an idea what his battery would have looked like. He was at Fair Oaks in June 1862.
Public domain image. [LOC] call number LC-B815-433.
See larger and full size.
From [LOC] civil war photos (see here and here).

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List of battles

Edward Francis Cashel fought for the North (the Union, the Federal side).
He was a private in the Regulars, Company G (also called Battery G), 2nd Regiment, US Artillery.
He was in the following battles.
The quotes are from his letter of 1864.

1861 battles

• 1st Battle of Bull Run (or 1st Battle of Manassas), VA, 21 July 1861.
  The first major battle of the war.
  Not far from N capital Washington, DC.
  N lost.
  Site is now Manassas National Battlefield Park.
  Battery G was commanded here by Oliver Davis Greene. See order of battle.

  After this until Mar 1862 Battery G was commanded by Capt. Thompson.
  From Mar 1862 to Nov 1863 it was commanded by John Hartwell Butler. See [Simpson, 1896].

1862 battles

• "a skirmish in front of Yorktown", VA, "only 2 pieces engaged".
  This would be part of Siege of Yorktown 5 Apr - 4 May 1862.
  S forces finally abandoned Yorktown, pursued by N forces.

• Battle of Williamsburg (or Battle of Fort Magruder), VA, 5 May 1862 (Edward incorrectly says 4 May).
  S rear guard held off N forces to allow main S army to escape.

• Battle of Fair Oaks (or Seven Pines), VA, 31 May - 1 June 1862.
  Only 5 miles from S capital Richmond, VA.

• Battle of Glendale (or Frayser's Farm, or "Charles City cross-roads"), VA, 30 June 1862.
  "rebels charged our battery 3 times .. repulsed each time with great slaughter".

• Battle of Malvern Hill, July 1, 1862.
  Cashel's unit fought in daytime and retreated toward Harrison's Landing, VA at night for 7 days and nights.
  There was a general N withdrawal (by sea) from VA.
  S invades MD.

• Battle of South Mountain, MD, 14 Sept 1862 (Edward incorrectly says 13 Sept).
  N won.

• Battle of Antietam (or Sharpsburg), MD, 17 Sept 1862.
  The bloodiest single day in US military history. 4,800 dead in one day, and 18,300 injured.
  N has strategic win since S retreats from MD.
  See 2nd United States Artillery, Battery G at Antietam.

• 1st Battle of Fredericksburg, VA, 13-16 Dec 1862.
  N lost heavily.
  "we lost in this battle 2 men killed (heads blown off)".

1863 battles

• 2nd Battle of Fredericksburg, VA, 3-4 May 1863.
  This can be regarded as part of the much larger Battle of Chancellorsville, VA, 27 Apr - 6 May, 1863.
  N lost. N forces split in two and retreat. S invades N again.

• Battle of Gettysburg, PA, 1-3 July 1863. (Edward says he was there 3 July.)
  7,000 dead over 3 days. 44,000 injured or missing or captured.
  N won. Turning point, most important battle of war. S retreats from N.
  See the Gettysburg Address.

• "skirmish near Culpeper", VA, 13 Sept 1863.
  "2 men killed".

• "2nd skirmish near Culpeper", VA, 8 Nov 1863.
  "Battery Commander's leg shot off" (John Hartwell Butler wounded, necessitating amputation of the leg.)
  "This is the last fight I have been in".

  After this Battery G was commanded by William Neil Dennison until it was dismounted in June 1864.

Trailer for the movie Gettysburg (1993).

Men of Battery M, 2nd U.S. Artillery, at Culpeper, VA, Sept 1863.
Not Cashel's battery, but gives you an idea what his battery would have looked like. He was at Culpeper in Sept 1863.
See full size.
Public domain image. [LOC] call number LC-B817-7245.
From [LOC] civil war photos (see here).

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Battlefield sites

Battlefield site of 1st Battle of Bull Run (or Manassas), VA, July 1861.
Photo 2007. See larger and full size.
From Bethany L. King. See terms of use.

Battlefield site of Battle of Antietam (or Sharpsburg), MD, Sept 1862.
Photo 2007. See full size.
From here. See terms of use.

Battlefield site of Battle of Gettysburg, PA, July 1863.
Photo 2007. See larger and full size.
From here. See terms of use.

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Cashel's commanders

William Neil Dennison, Cashel's commander in 1863-64.
Detail of photo at Fair Oaks, VA, June 1862.
See full image.
[LOC] call number LC-B811-435A.
See him also in top RHS of similar photo (and alternative) at Fair Oaks, VA, 1862. [LOC] call number LC-B811-434.
Public domain images. From [LOC] civil war photos (see here and here).

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References

• Civil War family letters.
  • Letter of 1864. Letter from Edward Francis Cashel in Georgetown, DC, to his father George Cashel, Fri 20 May 1864.
  • Letter of 1869. Letter from William Kickham in Georgetown, DC, to George Cashel, Feb 1869.
  • Dispatch from US War Department to Blennerhassett Cashel in New York City, 9 July 1870.
  • John Lavelle had all of these in 2012, but they are now lost.

• Edward Francis Cashel entries in [US Army Enlistments]
  • Enlistment of 8 May 1861. See p.193 of vol.54 (1859-1863, A-D). From here.
  • Enlistment of 8 May 1861. See p.128 of vol.141 (1859-1862 duplicates, A-G). From here.
  • Re-enlistment on 27 July 1864. See p.192 of vol.58 (1864-1865, A-D). From here.
  • Re-enlistment on 27 July 1864. See p.139 of volume: 1864 duplicates. From here.
  • Re-enlistment on 27 July 1867. See p.152 of vol.65 (1867, A-O). From here.
  • These records incorrectly say he was born in Georgetown.

• Massachusetts Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in the Civil War (and search), 9 vols, 1931-1937.
  • Vol.9, 1937, is index.
  • Edward F. Cashel is listed in Vol.6, 1933, in list of Massachusetts Soldiers in the US Army.
  • See list header on p.779 and entry for Cashel on p.794.
  • It is unclear why he is listed among Massachusetts Soldiers. The preface of vol.1 says it lists soldiers with residence in Massachusetts "or credit to some town or city in Massachusetts". Not sure what this means. For Cashel it says "credit Boston" but his residence is in D.C.

• The Army Of The United States, ed. Theophilus Francis Rodenbough and William L. Haskin, 1896. Also here.
  • Chapter: "The Second Regiment Of Artillery" by Lieut. W.A. Simpson, pp.312-327. Also here.

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Sources yet to be consulted

• [NA.US] should have full military service and pension record.

• familysearch.org
  • Civil War Service Records of Union Soldiers, 1864-1866
  • Civil War Soldiers Index, 1861-1865

• Ancestry
  • Union Soldiers Compiled Service Records, 1861-1865
  • Civil War Pension Index, 1861-1934

• Compiled service records for Confederate and Union soldiers
• National Park Service site

• The War of Rebellion .. Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, 128 volumes, Washington, 1880-1901.
  • [CUL] North wing, 3rd floor.
  • This lists all soldiers, decorations, promotions, etc.

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• footnote.com
  • Civil War and Later Veterans Pension Index (pay to view), [NA.US] T289.

• Field artillery units of the United States Army
  • Field artillery in the American Civil War
  • Siege artillery in the American Civil War

• Antietam on the Web by Brian Downey
  • Edward Francis Cashel

• American Civil War films
  • The movie Glory (1989).
  • The movie Gettysburg (1993).
  • The movie Cold Mountain (2003).
  • The movie Gods and Generals (2003).