Perryville Battlefield Programming

2nd Regiment, Illinois Light Artillery, Battery “I”
(Barnett’s Battery)

BATTERY "I," 2nd REGIMENT LIGHT ARTILLERY is organized from units raised by Charles W. Keith, of Joliet and Henry B. Plant, of Peoria. Battery I was mustered into service at Camp Butler, some four miles east of Springfield. It was named for William Butler, then State Treasurer of Illinois. Originally located six miles east of Springfield on Clear Lake near Springfield, Illinois. The battery left Camp Butler for Cairo, Illinois, at the juncture of the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers, on February 7, 1862. Here the Battery trained until March 7 when it headed down river for the attack on New Madrid, Missouri, and Island Number 10. Captain Keith resigned on April 7 and Lieutenant Charles Barnett assumed command of the Battery. After New Madrid and Island Number 10 capitulated, the Battery went down the river to Ft. Pillow, but was recalled to participate in Major General Henry W. Halleck's advance toward Corinth, Mississippi.  After the evacuation of Corinth, the Battery went into camp at Rienzi, Mississippi for the summer under General Asboth's command.  On September 6, the battery moved, by rail, with General Gordon Granger's command to Cincinnati, arriving there on September 12, 1862. The battery then proceeded, also by rail, to Louisville where it was assigned to General Philip Sheridan's division.  The men of the battery had to unload and reload their guns five times on this trip.  The battery was armed with 2, 12 pounder Napoleons, 2, 6pdr M1841 guns, 3.8", retro-fitted with the "James" Rifling System, and two 10pdr Parrott Rifles that they received in Louisville, just before the campaign.  Some men were detailed from the different regiments to make up for the manpower shortage caused by the addition of the Parrotts.  These men were never mustered with the battery and stayed on the payroll of their individual regiments of the brigade, thus their names are not known. At Perryville the Center Section of Napoleons was sent to the rear to guard the ammunition train and was not engaged. The Left Section had the Parrotts and the Right Section had the “James” rifles.  The battery changed position four times during the battle.

Casualties of Barnett’s Battery at Perryville

BLACK      JACOB                    COR        DEAFENED

JONES      ISAAC       W.           PVT   49   DEAFENED 

2 other wounded men (“Deafened”?) and Sergeant Murphy’s Horse.

Partial Roster of Barnett’s Battery

Barnett, Charles M., 25, – Captain (Personally commanded the Left Section of Parrotts)

Plant, Henry B., 32, – 1st Lieutenant (unmarried; commanded the Right Section of rifled M1841 6pdr “James” Guns)

Haight, Charles D., 44, -  Jr. 2nd Lieutenant (Promoted from Quartermaster Sergeant on June 6, 1862)

Hayward, William Eugene, - Jr. 2nd Lieutenant (Compelled to resign on February 2, 1863 because he was ”totally unqualified”.

Brown, T.C.S. – Quartermaster Sergeant (Promoted October 1)

Kelly, John A., 25, - 1st Sergeant, (unmarried, resigned 12/6/1862 to join 100th IL Infantry, occupation; physician)

Rich, Judson, 23, - Orderly Sergeant (Commanded the Center Section of Napoleons, not engaged, would eventually make Captain)

Hill, Hiram W., 31 – Sergeant (In charge of one of the “James” Guns, right section, Born in Scotland)

Miller, Zachariah, 39, – Sergeant (unmarried; in charge of one of the Parrott Guns, Left Section, born in Germany)

Murphy, S. J. – Sergeant (In charge of one of the Parrott Guns, Left Section, Promoted October 1, had a horse shot from under him)

McDonald, Charles, 29, – Sergeant (unmarried; in charge of one of the “James” Guns, Right Section, born in Scotland)

Black, Jacob - Corporal (Deafened at Perryville)

Countryman, Peter, 29, - Corporal (unmarried)

Heath, Robert, 25, -  Corporal (unmarried)

Putney, W.G. – Bugler (Went on a water detail and was almost captured; out of 27 canteens he returned with one empty one)

Bradley, William, - Artificer

Privates

Allen, Thomas
Bedford, James R., 18
Betts, Thomas, 30
Blackstun, Henry
Black, Jacob (Deafened at Perryville)
Black, Neil J.
Blaizer, John
Brown, Thaddeus, C.S.
Cady, Horace
Collins, Frank
Cooper, David
Cunningham, Rogers, 34, (Unmarried, Born in Ireland)
Dougherty, William
Dibirt, Warren, 20 (Unmarried)
Dourgan, Robert
Dykiman, Alonzo S.
Eagan, Thomas
Earls, Robert
Fanning, Jahue
Farrell, Frank
Finnell, Thomas, 34, (Born in Ireland)
Gallagher, John F.
Gillett, Uri
Geyer, Christian G., 27, (Born in Austria)
Grant, Thomas
Grover, Nathan
Haines (Haynes), William H., 22, (unmarried)
Hallack, Stephen
Harvey, Joseph
Hobbs, Alan
Hodge, George N.
Hodge, Tarven C., 28
Hogan, Andrew
Jones, Hobert
Jones, Isaac W., 49, (Deafened at Perryville, Born in Wales, occupation; miner)
King, John Q.A.
Lamaster, Thomas
Linn, John, 24, (unmarried)
Lighthall, Robert W.
Logan, Andrew
Mather, George, 20, (would die from a scorpion bite on 9/4/1863 in Alabama)
McCallen, James
Meihlison, John J.
Mickles, Myron L.
Mitter, Henry
Myers, Charles P., 19, (unmarried)
Pennywell, Thomas, 25
Peterson, Marshall, 19, (unmarried)
Pratt, William
Riley, John C., 21, (unmarried)
Stolp, Rufus S., 29, (unmarried he was mustered as a sergeant but was reduced “due to a misunderstanding”)
Ward, George T., 23 (unmarried, would make lieutenant in 1864)
Whitman, Abraham, 26, (unmarried)