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

1.862 BATTLE OF ANTIETAM. 701
vancing. Fire was reserved until he had come within close range, when it
was opened with terrible effect, sending him back in confusion. The loss in
the Sixty-ninth was one killed and two wounded.
From Chantilly the regiment passed through Maryland to South Mountain,
and after the discomfiture of the enemy, moved on in pursuit to the neighborhood of Keedysville. Resting here until the army had all come up, the division moved forward to the Antietam Creek, where during the 16th the artillery
was engaged in shelling the enemy on the opposite bank, to which he replied.
At six o'clock on the morning of the 17th the division forded the stream, and
advanced to the support of the troops already hotly engaged, the First Brigade
in advance, the Second following, the One Hundred and Sixth Pennsylvania
on the right, and the Seventy-second on the left of the Sixty-ninth. The lines
continued to move forward for nearly a mile, when the enemy made a determined stand, and the division was pushed forward to the front. The enemy
was again driven a quarter of a mile further back; but at a rise of ground
south of a narrow belt of woods, having received re-inforcements, and being
under cover of his intrenchments, he made another and successful stand. The
Second Brigade was now ordered to the front, but while passing a corn field
and before reaching the wood, the troops on its left gave way, the enemy fol.
lowing and his artillery pouring in a destructive fire. " We still kept on," says
Adjutant M'Dermott, " until within a few paces of the advanced line. The
fire from his batteries was here so destructive that we were ordered to lie down.
This fire was kept up on us for nearly half an hour, when General Sumner,
accompanied by a single aid, came up in our front, waving his hand for us to
fall back. It being impossible to hear what he was trying to say, the men
rose to their feet, and fixed bayonets, thinking that he wanted them to charge
the batteries on our left front, and it was not until this brave old man got in
front of our colors, when he took off his hat and waived it for us to get baCk,
that his order was understood. But it was now too late, as the enemy was
pouring down upon us from the rear, delivering a terrible fire of musketry.
The fire was coming from our rear, left, and front, and we were obliged to retire to the right." The regiment was now moved to the extreme right of the
lines, where it was placed in support of batteries, and remained until nightfall. The loss in the Sixty-ninth was three officers and eighteen men killed,
three officers and fifty-four men wounded, and one officer and nine men taken
prisoners. Captain Francis V. Bierwirth, and Lieutenants Joseph M'Hugh,
and James Dunn, were among the killed.
After assisting in burying the dead, the enemy having withdrawn, the regiiment moved across the Potomac and was stationed at Bolivar Heights. On
the 30th of October it marched to Snicker's Gap, where in a skirmish it lost
one wounded and one taken prisoner. By the middle of November it reached
Falmouth, opposite Fredericksburg, where it went into camp. While here Colonel Owen was made Brigadier General, and assigned to the command of the
brigade, Lieutenant Colonel O'Kane was promoted to Colonel, Major Devereux to Lieutenant Colonel, and Captain Martin Tschudy to Major. On the
afternoon of the 11th of December, the pontoons having been laid across the
Rappahannock, the brigade marched across, and forming in line moved forward a half mile. The enemy posted in the houses, kept up a desultory fire,
but were finally driven out. During the following day the regiment was moved
to different parts of the city which was subjected to vigorous shelling from the