Some regiments from the Civil War
need no introductory eulogy. The mere name is testament enough to the
sacrifices made and the record of battle. One such unit is the 105th Ohio
Volunteer Infantry. Another is the 22nd Illinois Volunteer Infantry. From Belmont
to Perryville, Stones River to Chickamauga, Chattanooga to Atlanta... combined
these two regiments not only bore witness to, but played a part in most of the
major engagements in the western theater of the war. Initially in two separate
armies, they never served side by side in any of these battles. For a short
time in early 1863 they were both attached to the 14th Army Corps, but that's
the extent of their ties. The men that served in these two units would find
themselves intertwined in other ways though.
Ferdinand Francis Fobes enlisted in
Company I of the 105th Ohio Volunteer Infantry on August 21, 1862 at the age of
20. He hailed from the town of Wayne, in Ashtabula County, Ohio and was in
the middle of six other siblings. His ancestry came from Connecticut and he was
the grandson of a Revolutionary War patriot known as “Captain” Simon Fobes.
Clearly the stories of family lineage and the young country’s history were
instilled in Ferdinand early on and he carried them with when he joined the
Union war effort. It was also the opportunity for the adventure of a lifetime.
Ferdinand
was one of so many soldiers who also enlisted with one of his best friends from Wayne, 21-year-old Roderick M. Jones. The two had grown up together and
probably imagined they could conquer anything together. Quickly the reality of
the crisis at hand set in for these two greenhorn soldiers. Company I was
mustered into Federal service at Camp Taylor in Cleveland officially on August
21, 1862. Within hours the regiment was ordered to Covington, Kentucky and
arrived there the following day. They spent a significant amount of time at
Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky where the 105
By late
September, Braxton Bragg’s Confederate army had invaded the state and the 105th
as part of the Army of the Ohio was sent to stop any farther advance. Ferdinand
and Roderick saw their first action at the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky on
October 8, 1862. The regiment went into action 800 strong, one of the larger
regiments on the battlefield. By the end of the day 265 men were missing from
the ranks, but Ferdinand and Roderick were unscathed.
In late
November the regiment was dispatched toward Carthage, Tennessee to chase down
John Hunt Morgan and his contingent of cavalry. Luck was smiling upon the two
boys from Wayne, Ohio. This detachment kept the regiment out of the next big
fight at Stones River near Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The regiment arrived there
just days after the battle ended during the second week of January 1862 to
witness the suffering of the wounded and the battlefield cleanup. Murfreesboro
would become their home for much of the next year.
Major
General William Starke Rosecrans ordered his army to construct a massive fortress
to provide the Union army with a supply base for potential thrusts into the
heart of the south. When it was finally finished five months later, Fortress
Rosecrans encompassed approximately 200 acres and was the largest earthen fort
constructed during the war. The thousands of hours of back-breaking labor
proved invaluable to the coming Federal efforts.
The 105th
Ohio next embarked upon the Tullahoma Campaign and General Rosecrans was able
to maneuver his army in such a way that Braxton Bragg’s Confederate Army of the
Tennessee retreated to the south side of the Tennessee River and eventually
into the defenses of Chattanooga. At the successful culmination of the
campaign, luck finally ran out for the two boys from Wayne, Ohio.
Ferdinand
had taken sick and was moved to General Hospital Number 1 in Murfreesboro. His
best friend Roderick was by his side. It is unclear what ailment if any, or
wound, Roderick was suffering from since in most cases the only way he could
have joined Ferdinand is if he himself was afflicted. It was here that the two
were also introduced to Captain William Gregory of the 22nd
Illinois. Gregory had served with his regiment since 1861 and at the age of 36,
he must have been respected by his superiors to some extent. He was given command
of Lunette Rouseau at Fortress Rosecrans to which the general hospital was
attached, on the northeastern side of the massive fortification.
On
September 3, 1863, Ferdinand passed away from his affliction with Roderick
attending his death. Unfortunately, it was not until nearly two months later
that Captain Gregory was able to parlay the details homeward to Ferdinand’s
parents. The campaign that led to the battle of Chickamauga and the siege at
Chattanooga kept the army busy with more pressing concerns. None the less, on
December 1, Captain Gregory wrote to Mr. and Mrs. Fobes saying, “I did all in
my power to make your on comfortable while with me + I had him decently buried.
The whole company turned out + placed in his grave + paid him all the military
honors… I have marked your sons grave so that any time you wish to visit it,
you can knowes.” Even though Ferdinand was from a different regiment, he was a
comrade all the same and in another situation Captain Gregory probably only
hoped that someone might do the same for him.
Even
before Captain Gregory’s letter, Roderick had already communicated with his
friend’s family. Of course Mr. and Mrs. Fobes wanted any personal effects that
could be provided. This included a small sum of money that the captain sent,
but because of delays in the mail system it created concern about the honesty
of Captain Gregory. Not only did Roderick serve his late friend well through
regular communications with his family, but he also made sure nothing was lost
for Ferdinand’s distraught parents. He visited Captain Gregory in person and
wrote to Mr. and Mrs. Fobes that the captain may simply be “negligent rather
than dishonest.” Regardless, even Roderick could not get his friends personal effects
back to the family in a timely manner because “the Railroad is so busy with
Government business…”
Both
Captain Gregory and Private Roderick Jones had much fighting in the year ahead,
but together they had successfully reassured parents of another dead soldier
that their son was properly cared for and had the support system he needed in
his final moments. Even though bullets could not kill Ferdinand Francis Fobes,
the miserable living conditions so far from home did. His death was not the
glorious kind reported in newspapers across the country after a big battle.
Instead his sacrifice went unnoticed, except to his family and maybe most
importantly, to his friend Roderick.
Ferdinand’s
body was later exhumed and reinterred at the Stones River National Cemetery. At
home in Wayne, Ohio, the Fobes family erected a simple shaft in the town
cemetery with Ferdinand’s dates of life and his unit affiliation. Most
appropriately of all, to this day there is a G.A.R. star, which cradles the shaft
of a small American flag, the very flag he fought, suffered and died for.
Roderick M. Jones returned to Wayne and married Charlotte R. “Lottie” Wilcox.
He outlived his wife and was deeply involved in veteran’s affairs, attending
many of the reunions of the 105th Ohio. Surely his friend Ferdinand
was in his mind through all these commemorations. His longevity took him well
into the next century, finally passing away in the same year the U.S. entered
World War II. He was 99 years old.
