Notebook, 1864-1892
File — Box: 1, Folder: 1
Missing Title
- April 26: departs from Bulls Gap, Tenn.
- April 28: arrives at Charleston, Tenn.
- May 3: leaves for Cleveland, Tenn.
- May 4: marched 10 miles to Red Clay Depot, Ga.
- May 5: troops inactive.
- May 6: marched 6 miles toward Tunnel Hill and one mile toward Dalton, Ga.
- May 7: witnessed brisk skirmishing.
- May 8: inactivity.
- May 9: marched four miles and involved in a skirmish.
- May 10: skirmishing continues.
- ay 11: troop inactivity.
- May 12: marched through Tunnel Hill.
- May 13: marched near Resaca, Ga.; heard skirmishing and formed a line of battle.
- May 14: marched to where
heavy battle was fought.
- May 15: marched another day; unit avoided participating in the victory of the 20 corps.
- May 16: marched 10 miles while enemy retreated.
- May 17: marched 15 miles and crossed a river at night.
- May 18: marched 11 miles.
- May 19: marched 10 miles.
- May 20: marched 8 miles while skirmishing.
- May 21: inactive.
- May 22:
burnt and foraged
a mill on the Castanota River. - May 23: marched 6 miles.
- May 24: captured 23 wagons and burned them.
- May 25: marched through mud and encamped on the battleground of the 24th.
- May 26: marching.
- May 27: stayed encamped behind breastworks all day.
- May 28:
heavy skirmishing
andenemy shelling.
- May 29: more fighting at the
7 Days Breastworks
- May 30: repulses enemy charge, in Paulding County, Georgia.
- May 31: repulses two night charges.
- June 1-7: night march for one mile; charged and took two enemy breastworks; captured prisoners; barely avoids an artillery shell; rainy marches; engaged
bushwacking Rebels
and found retreating Rebels dead and wounded; guarded ammunition train. - June 8-15: days of inactivity; writes letters home; receives news of captured rebels in Greenville, Tenn.; rainy weather; claims Confederate Joe Johnson was arrested for retreating; writes of Confederate General Polk's death; cannonading and musketry all night long on the 15th.
- June 16-23: writes of enemy's retreat and the advance of Union forces; describes the death of Union soldiers; heavy battle on the 22nd, when Union troops built breastworks afterward and
tore down Negro houses;
more skirmishing. - June 24-30: expecting attack on 24th; Hooker's men burn 69 dead Rebels; men prepare for another battle with
bullets flying all around;
soldiers tired from building fortifications all day. - July 1-7: expecting another attack; marching toward Atlanta and finding evacuated entrenchments.
- July 8-15: crossed Chattahoochie River; Rebel gun captured; men built a pontoon bridge in two days; served picket duty on a bluff; played in the river.
- July 16-23: change of command; night marching; capture of Decatur, Ga.; heavy skirmishing all day (20th); Confederates constantly retreating; can see Atlanta from a tree limb on the 21st; the closer to Atlanta the more bullets fly around Blazer; regiment ordered to recapture Decatur, Ga.
- July 24-31: mentions the cavalry raids that destroyed Georgia's crops; estimates damage at $30 million; heavy skirmishing and cannonading near Atlanta for several days.
- August 1-7: on the 1st, heard a heavy battle; marched and built more earthworks where he eventually experienced heavy skirmishing and cannonading, approximately 100 shots in four minutes; his regiment, 8th Tenn. Lost 83 men in a charge on the 6th; wounded lied in a field all night during a rainstorm; mentions amputations and deaths of friends.
- August 8-15: skirmished on the 8th and 9th; captured Confederate cannon; camped in one place until the 16th.
- August 16-23: constant marching and foraging.
- August 24-31: sick for a few days; occasional skirmishing; almost captured a train; bought honey, sugar, and corn cakes.
- September 1-7: destroyed railroads while marching toward Macon; capture of Atlanta; Battle of Jonesborough; heavy rain fell on the enemy's abandoned dead and wounded; unpleasant marching back to Atlanta in mud and rain; heard of Confederate John Morgan's death.
- September 8-15: marched triumphantly through Decatur, Ga.; inactive until the 15th.
- September 16-23: marched a little; inactive until the 25th.
- September 24-30: does very little in camp; relates news of Union victories in other theaters of war.
- October 1-7: saw a horse race; did little until crossing the Chattahoochie on the 4th; while troops waited for a train, Blazer climbed to an overlook and was in awe by the sight of the bending river, marching troops, and rolling wagons; marching while dodging cannon fire.
- October 8-15: regrets seeing the horrible sight of amputated limbs on the ground; marching every day; camped near Rome, Ga.; fought Rebels near the Alabama line; comments on the poor condition of Confederate horses.
- October 16-23: while Union troops marched, the Rebels harassed them occasionally; band played songs of Alabama when the 8th crossed into the state; did little on the 22nd and 23rd.
- October 24-31: marched further into Alabama but turned back to Georgia; mailed letters home and ate Georgia apricots.
- November 1-7: marched to and passed Dalton, Ga.; tore down houses for firewood; days of inactivity; took a train to Chattanooga; enjoyed eating pies; took another train to Nashville.
- November 8-15: enjoyed himself in Nashville; comments on the selling of goods, the weather, and the ladies of the city; took a train to Franklin; traveled by train to Spring Hill; soldiers had some
good turns by a Lady;
received letters from home; marched to Columbia; comments on the burnt conditions of Linville; marched to Pulaski. - November 16-23: stayed in Pulaski until the 22nd, when troops marched to Nashville; marched without food to Columbia.
- November 24-30: enemy tries to cut off the rear flank as they march to Columbia; prepare for battle on the 25th; crossed a river and made a defense at a
ford
to prevent Confederates from building a pontoon bridge; shelled Confederates; loss of sleep; under constant shelling from enemy; traveled quickly to Franklin and prepared for battle; good description of the Battle of Duck River; Confederates charged seven times -a most desperate slaughter;
the 8th Tenn. captured Confederate prisoners and flags. - December 1-15: scenes after the battle of Franklin; need for rest; describes Hood's attempt to capture Nashville; a detailed description of the capture of a Confederate
fort
on the 15th; chasing retreating rebels, who formed a line of battle; description of how both sides prepare for another engagement. - December 16-31: a battle on the 16th; both sides firing away at close range; Union artillery was the deciding factor of the battle; Confederates retreat after an impressive Union charge; Union forces capture many Confederates; marched with difficulty in muddy conditions after the battle; stopped at a train on Franklin Pike to get rations; marched to Franklin, then Spring Hill; comments on battlefields; marched to Columbia; reports the number of prisoners in recent battles; camped near Columbia until January 2, 1865.
1865
- January 1-7: marching in very cold weather; crossed Tennessee and [Buffalan ? River]; marched near coaling grounds near Tennessee Iron Works; snow made marching difficult.
- January 8-15: inactive at camp for days; unloaded a steamboat in the Tennessee River; camped by river until the 16th.
- January 16-23: traveled on a steamboat which comprised a flotilla of 14 vessels (one gunboat); traveled by Paduccah, Louisville, and finally unloaded in Cincinnatti, where troops traveled by rail to Columbus, Ohio; snow was everywhere in Ohio; traveled by train through Virginia and arrived at Cumberland City, Pennsylvania on the 23rd.
- January 24-Feb 1: traveled by train to Alexandria, Virginia; on the 26th, Blazer was taken to a hospital in Washngton, D.C., where he stayed until Feb. 1.
- February: 23rd corps left Alexandria on the 4th. [No more entries for Feb.]
- March: list of gold prices.
- April: list of gold prices. [Entries are not in chronological order.] Records news of battles and surrender in and near Mobile, Ala, Montgomery, Ala., and Macon, Ga.; General Lee's surrender; President Lincoln's death; capture of John Wilkes Booth; General Johnson's surrender in North Carolina; and the honorable discharge of all wounded soldiers.
- May: Records news of more Confederate surrenders, cessation of transportation for refugees, Lincoln's funeral, announcement of reward for the capture of Jefferson Davis, capture of Davis; writes verses of a gospel song; describes journey back home.
- June: records cost of traveling back home from Washington, D.C. to Greeneville, Tenn.
1869-1892: [Entries are not in chronological order.] Inventory of crops and fruit trees; record of sowing and harvest dates; record of pension application process; record of receipts; record of doctor visits.
Dates
- 1864-1892
Conditions Governing Access
Collections are stored offsite and must be requested in advance. See www.special.lib.utk.edu for detailed information. Collections must be requested through a registered Special Collections research account.
Extent
From the Collection: 0.2 Linear Feet
Repository Details
Part of the Betsey B. Creekmore Special Collections and University Archives, University of Tennessee, Knoxville Repository