Reminiscences of a Private, Company "G", First Arkansas Regiment Infantry: May, 1861 to 1865

In Short

William E. Bevens’ memoir records the harrowing journey of Company "G," First Arkansas Regiment Infantry, from its enthusiastic formation in Jacksonport in 1861 through relentless campaigns across the Confederacy. The narrative details camp life, blockading the Potomac, the heavy losses at Corinth, Perryville, and the Atlanta campaign, concluding with the arduous trek home after the surrender and the eventual 1877 veteran reunions. It endures as an unvarnished, firsthand account of ordinary soldiers enduring extraordinary hardships during the American Civil War.

The Story

The narrative opens in 1861 in the bustling river town of Jacksonport, Arkansas, where young men enlist with high spirits and form Company "G" of the First Arkansas Regiment Infantry, proudly called the Jackson Guards. Sent eastward to Virginia, the raw recruits experience their initial taste of military life, camping near Richmond and enduring grueling drill sessions under cadet instructors at Brooks Station. They display their silk flag at Marlboro Point and actively participate in building secret batteries at Evansport to blockade the Potomac River, capturing enemy vessels, burning schooners, and exchanging heavy gunfire with Union forces across the water.

Following a formal reorganization at Corinth, Mississippi, in March 1862, the regiment faces the grim realities of active combat. They participate in frontline skirmishes, retreat through densely wooded roads amidst exhausted confusion, and move into Kentucky to fight fiercely at the Battle of Perryville, where soldiers on both sides contend desperately for water springs. They subsequently push through Tennessee, engaging in the brutal winter battle at Murfreesboro on Stone River. Throughout these campaigns, the soldiers invent various pranks and smuggle contraband, maintaining morale despite mounting casualties and strict military discipline.

As the war grinds on, the regiment navigates a punishing cycle of marches, fort-building, and retreat across the Cumberland Mountains and Georgia. They endure the legendary seventy-four-day campaign from Dalton to Atlanta under General Joseph E. Johnston, facing constant skirmishing, torrential rains, and meager food supplies while constructing breastworks under fire. Following Johnston's removal, the army suffers devastating losses under Hood, culminating in the catastrophic Battle of Franklin, where sixty percent of the force is killed or wounded, leaving Company G reduced to a handful of men and a single surviving officer.

After the final surrender, the journey home becomes a desperate test of survival. Bevens and his companion Tobe Hicks walk the ties of destroyed railroads, trade labor on a flatboat down Cold Water, and construct a makeshift cedar raft to cross the swollen Mississippi River at night while dodging Union patrol boats. Finally reaching Arkansas, the narrative shifts years later to Jacksonport, where the surviving veterans of Company G gather at Colonel L. C. Gause's office in 1877 to establish annual reunions, cementing their shared bond and preserving the solemn memory of their fallen comrades.

How It Unfolds

The river port beginnings Young men enlist in Jacksonport, Arkansas, forming Company "G" amidst a prosperous river trade and lively steamboat activity. They leave their families behind to join the Confederate army, full of romantic notions about military service.

Virginia encampments and blockade duty The regiment arrives in Virginia, where they endure harsh drilling from cadets and construct secret batteries along the Potomac River. They successfully disrupt enemy shipping, capture a three-masted schooner, and experience their first winter in log huts.

Western campaigns and bloody battles Transferred to Mississippi and Tennessee, the troops reorganize and face intense combat at Corinth, Perryville, and Murfreesboro. They endure grueling marches, severe weather, and heavy casualties while grappling with the harsh realities of battlefield life.

The grueling retreat toward Atlanta Under General Joseph E. Johnston, the regiment participates in the relentless seventy-four-day campaign from Dalton to Atlanta. They build breastworks under fire, march through torrential downpours, and suffer immense strain as they retreat slowly against a heavily reinforced enemy.

The catastrophe of Franklin Against the urgent warnings of experienced commanders, General Hood orders a suicidal charge at the Battle of Franklin. The Confederate forces suffer staggering losses, decimating the army and leaving Company "G" severely depleted and demoralized.

The perilous journey home Following the collapse of the army, Bevens and fellow soldier Tobe Hicks undertake an exhausting trek back to Arkansas. They walk miles of railroad ties, act as deck hands on a flatboat, and cross the Mississippi River on a midnight raft to escape capture.

Postwar remembrance and reunion Years after the war, the surviving members of the Jackson Guards meet at a law office in Jacksonport. They formally establish an annual association, organize community dinners, and dedicate themselves to honoring their fallen comrades.

The People

William E. Bevens wants to record the authentic experiences of the private soldier. Obstacles include the constant threat of enemy fire, starvation, and extreme physical exhaustion. He ends up surviving the four-year ordeal and dedicating his later years to organizing the veterans' annual reunions.

George Thomas wants to fulfill his military duties while maintaining personal ties and romantic pursuits in Fredericksburg. Obstacles include strict military regulations and the relentless dangers of frontline combat. He ends up displaying exceptional bravery before being killed in action near Atlanta.

Dr. W. E. Arnold wants to advance his medical career within the military ranks. Obstacles include a lack of formal qualifications and medical books, which he overcomes by borrowing clothes and a textbook to pass his examination. He ends up transitioning from a private to a respected assistant surgeon.

Colonel Fellows wants to lead his men and uphold Confederate resolve. Obstacles include capture by Union forces and imprisonment on Johnson's Island. He ends up inspiring both fellow prisoners and guards with his eloquent speeches and unwavering defiance before eventually returning to his comrades.

In Its Own Voice

Describing the early enthusiasm of the recruits who deployed without understanding military realities:

We were lined up on the bank to defend our colors. This shows how green we were in knowledge of warfare and we realized it later.

Recalling the devastating human cost and desperate final charges ordered during the campaign:

To send soldiers against such a position was suicidal. Every man in the South available for service was in the field.

Highlighting the unyielding loyalty and defiance shown by young soldiers facing captivity:

If this lonely boy, away from home, away from comrades had taken the oath he would have been free, with loving kinsmen, with luxury and riches, but he said “No, no! I will die first.”

What It's Really About

The book explores the stark contrast between the romanticized notions of early enlistment and the brutal, grinding reality of modern warfare. It examines the unbreakable bonds forged among ordinary privates who shoulder the heaviest burdens while commanders make fatal strategic errors. Beneath the tactical descriptions lies a poignant inquiry into loyalty, survival, and the profound psychological toll exacted on men who give everything for a lost cause. Furthermore, it addresses the preservation of collective memory, arguing that the true history of the conflict belongs to the common soldier whose endurance and sacrifice outlasted the political and military structures they served.

Why Read It Today

History enthusiasts and readers fascinated by firsthand accounts of the American Civil War will find immense value in this unvarnished memoir. Reading it feels like sitting across from an aging veteran who speaks directly, balancing harrowing descriptions of combat with wry camp humor, practical jokes involving hidden jugs of whiskey, and affectionate ribbing between regiments. However, modern readers must navigate period attitudes, including the unquestioning Confederate loyalty of the narrator and casual period terminology like references to diverse opposing troops, which reflect nineteenth-century biases. What ultimately stays with you is the visceral depiction of physical suffering—wading through freezing sloughs, sleeping in mud without tents, and walking railroad ties home—alongside the profound human tragedy of young men mowed down like wheat. It is a vital, ground-level testimony to endurance, capturing both the absurdity of camp life and the sorrow of an irrevocably altered landscape.