History of Pennsylvania volunteers, 1861-5; prepared in compliance with acts of the legislature, by Samuel P. Bates.

1864 TRANSFER TO THE ARMY OF THE JAMES. 177
across the Pocotaligo River, burning the bridge as he withdrew. Here he took
a strong position, and. being largely reinforced from Charleston, held his ground
during six hours, in which the battle fiercely raged. TUnable to gain an advantage, the ammunition being nearly exhausted, the Union forces withdrew under
cover of night, and returned to Hilton Head. The Fifty-fifth lost in this engagement, twenty-nine killed and wounded. Near the close of the action, while
bravely leading his men against a masked battery, Captain Horace C. Bennett
was killed.
The regiment was now stationed at Beaufort, South Carolina, where it remained for more than a year, performing picket duty at Port Royal Ferry, ten
miles from the town, and also serving in the capacity of heavy artillery upon
the fortifications.
On the 1st of January, 1864, the majority of the men re-enlisted for a second
term of three years, and on the 22d departed for Harrisburg, where, upon their
arrival, they were dismissed for a veteran furlough. On the 23d of March, the
veterans and recruits returned to South Carolina, where the regiment, now nLmbering twelve hundred and fifty effective men, remained for three weeks, engaged in drill and guard duty. On the 12th of April, it embarked for Virginia,
and landed at Gloucester Point, opposite Yorktown. Here the regiment was
assigned to the Third Brigade,* Third Division, Tenth Corps, Army of the
James.
General Butler was here organizing his forces, consisting of about forty
thousand men, to operate against Richmond, by the right bank of the James.
Embarking upon transports, the Tenth Corps moved up the river, and landed
at Bermuda Hundred, with the design of seizing and fortifying the peninsula
between the Appomattox and the James, as a base of operations. Advancing
ten miles west, encountering little opposition, the troops were set to work
throwing up intrenchments across the head of the peninsula, and soon had the
neck of the ":bottle" closed.
On the 9th of May, Ames' Division moved out of the works, and destroyed
the Richmond and Petersburg Railroad for a distance of two miles. General
Ames then marched upon the turnpike towards Petersburg, as far as r aSwift
Creek, where he met the enemy well posted, and immediately attacked, the
contest continuing until evening. Early on the following morning, Ames
learned that Terry's Division, in his rear, had been attacked. Facing his columns about, and advancing, he soon encountered the rebel forces, and drove
them as far as Drury's Bluff, near Richmond. On the 13th, the Union forces
were again pushed forward towards Richmond, but found the enemy strongly
entrenched in a double line of works behind Proctor's Creek. The outer line
was carried, and Gillmore's troops continued the contest during the 14th and
15th, flanking the rebel position. But he had now been re-inforced by troops
from Charleston, and General Beauregard was in command. Seeing that the
Union lines were greatly extended, and, in many parts, thereby greatly weakened, the rebel leader moved out of his intrenchments at night, and early
on the morning of the 16th, under cover of a dense fog, fell upon the left flank
X Organization of the Third Brigade Colonel Richard White, Third Division General Adelbert
Ames, Tenth Corps, General Quincy A. Gillmore. Fiy-fty-fifh Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, Colonel Richard White; Fourth Regiment New Hampshire Volunteers, Lieutenaant
Colonel Frank W. Parker; Ninety-seventh Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, Colonel Honry
R. Guss; Eighth RegimenLt Maine Volunteers, Colonel John D. Rust.
23-VOL. II.