Reminiscences of service with the Twelfth Rhode Island Volunteers, and a memorial of Col. George H. Browne

In Short

This book offers a personal, ground-level narrative of the Civil War experiences of the Twelfth Rhode Island Volunteers, written by quartermaster sergeant Pardon E. Tillinghast. Tracing the regiment from its formation in Providence through grueling campaigns in Virginia and Kentucky, the account details the harsh realities of camp life, long marches, and military movements, interspersed with reflections on the soldiers' morale and regional civilians. It concludes with an extensive biographical memorial honoring Colonel George H. Browne, whose paternal care, integrity, and lifelong devotion to his men left an indelible mark on all who served under him.

The Story

The narrative opens during the stirring summer and autumn of 1862 in Rhode Island, where mounting national crises and the threat to the capital prompt the author to leave his teacher's desk and enlist. Following training at Camp Stevens, the newly formed Twelfth Regiment embarks for Washington, arriving near Arlington Heights to face a torrential two-day storm before settling briefly at Fairfax Seminary. Soon, the men are ordered forward to the Rappahannock, enduring a winter march that leads them into the difficult conditions and execrable water supply in front of Fredericksburg, shortly after the terrible battle has taken place.

Leaving Virginia behind in February 1863, the regiment embarks by steamer for Newport News, where boxes of perishable goods and fresh vegetables from home restore their spirits during a six-week respite. From there, orders dispatch the brigade westward to Lexington, Kentucky, initiating a festive rail journey through Pittsburgh and Cincinnati marked by warm civic receptions and lavish public suppers.

Once in Kentucky, the regiment begins a continuous series of counter-marches across the state to protect vulnerable points from guerrilla bands and Confederate forces under Morgan and Breckinridge. Tramping through Winchester, Richmond, and Crab Orchard, the men experience grueling marches over difficult terrain, subsisting on meager supplies and grappling with the logistical nightmares of muddy mountain roads and capsized mule trains. After reaching the southern border at Jamestown and enduring minor skirmishes and constant alarms, the nine-month term of enlistment draws to a close, bringing the operational chronicle to a retrospective close. The volume concludes with a dedicated memorial celebrating the public and private life, legal eminence, and profound human decency of Colonel George H. Browne, who guided the regiment with a father's watchful eye until his passing in 1885.

How It Unfolds

• The voyage begins: Leaving Providence after lively preparations at Camp Stevens, the regiment endures a seventy-seven-hour journey by rail, water, and foot to reach Camp Chase near Arlington Heights, where a violent two-day storm tests their resilience.
• Winter near Fredericksburg: After a brief stay overlooking Alexandria, the men receive sudden marching orders and travel over sixty miles through mud and snow to arrive at the Rappahannock lines just after the bloody engagement at Fredericksburg.
• Respite at Newport News: Leaving the wretched huts and poor water of Virginia behind, the regiment sails down the Potomac to Newport News, enjoying a welcome influx of vegetable barrels and boxed supplies sent by friends in Rhode Island.
• An ovation in the West: Embarking by rail and steam through Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati, the brigade receives enthusiastic public greetings and sumptuous feasts from local relief societies on their way into Kentucky.
• Marches in Kentucky: Moving through the Blue Grass region and across mountainous southern tracts, the regiment spends weeks pursuing guerrillas, navigating difficult mountain roads, and standing ready for attacks around Jamestown before concluding their service.

The People

Pardon E. Tillinghast serves as the observant narrator and quartermaster sergeant, whose daily duties managing provisions, rations, and mail bring him into close contact with the regiment's logistical hardships and daily triumphs.

Colonel George H. Browne commands the Twelfth Rhode Island Volunteers with a rare blend of firm discipline and deep, paternal affection, walking the camps to inspect quarters, visiting the sick, and retaining an abiding, lifelong pride in the prosperity of his former soldiers.

Sergeant Major Daniel R. Ballou, Commissary Sergeant Amasa F. Eddy, and Quartermaster's Clerk Erastus Richardson share cramped quarters with the author in a roofless negro hut adapted for winter, forming a tight-knit mess that weathered the uncertainties of army life together.

General Ambrose Burnside, General Carter, and opposing commanders like General Morgan shape the broader strategic movements and endless counter-marches that dictate the regiment's exhausting itinerary across Kentucky.

In Its Own Voice

The wind--it whirled, it roared, it got upon its giant legs, and fairly howled with rage as the weary hours of that first night in camp wore away.

This description captures the fury of the torrential storm that struck the newly arrived regiment during their very first night under canvas near Arlington Heights.

It was almost an impossibility to go three steps without causing some one to cry out, "Keep off from me!" or, "O, my fingers!" an oath generally preceding the expression, just for the sake of making it emphatic.

The author illustrates the extreme and humorous congestion of troops packed tightly aboard the steamer Long Island during their transfer toward Baltimore.

For the regiment had no more than fully settled down to housekeeping for the winter, when, on Sunday, November thirtieth, orders were received that Colonel Wright's brigade... would move to the front the next day at twelve o'clock.

This line marks the abrupt disruption of the men's carefully built winter quarters, demonstrating the unpredictable and fleeting nature of military plans.

What It's Really About

The book explores the tension between grand military strategies and the intimate, day-to-day endurance of ordinary citizen-soldiers who left peaceful civilian trades to preserve the Union. It examines the profound human cost of war, not merely through combat casualties, but through the chronic miseries of Virginia mud, foul water, inadequate shelter, and the complex tragedy of a divided nation inhabited by suffering civilian families. Beneath the chronicle of marches lies a secondary meditation on leadership: contrasting ostentatious ambition with the quiet, unselfish integrity embodied by Colonel Browne. Tillinghast questions the glamour often associated with military conflict, replacing it with a quiet celebration of duty, civic virtue, and the unbreakable bonds formed among men facing shared hardships.

Why Read It Today

Modern readers interested in the American Civil War will appreciate this text for its rare ground-level perspective, free from romanticized distortion or post-war mythmaking. Reading it feels like sitting across from a thoughtful, observant veteran who remembers both the dreary monotony of muddy wagon trains and the genuine warmth of civilian hospitality in Pittsburgh and Cincinnati. The narrative is honest about the grim realities of campaign life—the execrable water, the freezing marches, and the exhaustion of nine-month enlistments. While its late-nineteenth-century prose reflects period conventions and the respectful conventions of memorial writing, its patient detail and affectionate character portraits offer a deeply human window into a pivotal era. Anyone drawn to authentic personal narratives, local history, or the quiet study of principled leadership will find lasting value in these recollections.