8th Kansas Info

[unclefrank]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

Interesting photo. Besides the big sword bayonets, they also have the large bugle on the crown of their forage caps. Don't see that much.

[bushy chops]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

Also notice the lapels of their sack coats are turned down like modern suits. I've always loved this picture. Those guys look like "period farbs." I wouldn't be caught dead looking like that at an event.

[Mark Susnis]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

There is a regimental that was written on the 8th Kansas a few years ago but the problem is you can't find it on the usual suspects (Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Abe Books etc.) Title is "Keep the Flag to the Front"

I did contact the author Bill McFarland out of Topeka, KS. His e-mail is
mcfarwil@usd437.net and he does have copies available. Bill said the publisher went out of business

Regards,

Mark Susnis

[KSfusilier]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

Also notice the lapels of their sack coats are turned down like modern suits. I've always loved this picture. Those guys look like "period farbs." I wouldn't be caught dead looking like that at an event.

An interesting part of Bill McFarland's book is his focus on what happened to the soldiers in that image. If I remember correctly, I believe the gentleman in the front row, second from the right was a one of the many color bearers on that fateful day at Chickamugua.

[Jim of The SRR]

Federal Companies

Here are the companies scheduled for the Federal side for "Before the Breakout". The registration page will be updated soon. In the meantime, you can write in one of these companies.

Co. A: SCAR - Ken Giddens
Co. B: Doc Bruce/Dave Thomas
Co. C: Western Federal Blues - Chad Greene/Micah Trent
Co. D: 6th OH/Mess #1 - Joe Liechty
Co. E: Easterners company -Josh Mason/Bill Birney

Thanks,
Jim Butler

[PetePaolillo]

More 8th Kansas History

The below is a partial speech from Col. John A. Martin Who on the second day of the battle of Chickamauga, he was assigned to the command of the Third Brigade, First Division, XX Corps; and in November was present at the siege of Chattanooga and the storming of Missionary Ridge.

This speech was made at a reunion where surviving members of the Eighth Kansas Veteran
Volunteer Infantry, to the number of about one hun-
dred, assembled at Camp Pope, on the Fort Leavenworth
reservation, on the 10th, 11th and 12th of October, 1883.


"A brief, dull sketch this is of the services of the
Eighth Kansas, I know. But I am anxious to condense
it into as brief a space as possible; and, dull as it is, it
will revive in your memory a thousand thrilling recol-
lections ; meager as it is, it will give any soldier, or any
intelligent civilian who was an interested observer of
the events of the war, a fairly comprehensive idea of
thepart the regiment bore in that great struggle. This is
all I have sought to do. It would require volumes to ttll
the story in full. For this regiment not only saw all
"the pomp and circumstance of war," but all its
ghastly desolation, misery and despair as well. It
sounded all the notes alike of war's ptean and of its
dirge. The tramp of its swift and steady march echoed
in the highways of twelve diiferent States; its bayonets
flashed from Fort Laramie to the gulf, and from Kansas
to North Carolina. At Nashville it did duty in white
gloves; at Strawberry Plains it was shirtless, shoeless
and in rags. It was feasted in Kansas, and starved in
Chattanooga. It hunted guerrillas in Missouri, combat-
ted Longstreet's veterans at Chicamauga, stormed the
blazing heights of Mission Ridge, fought a continuous
battle from Kennesaw Mountain to Atlanta, and broke
the lines of Hood at Nashville. It built roads, bridged
rivers, convoyed trains, destroyed railroads, operated
mills, policed cities, gathered crops, and made history.
And wherever it was, or whatsoever it was doing, the
calm and patient endurance, the magnificent courage,
the splendid discipline and the unfaltering patriotism of
its soldiers could always be relied on".
Source

[PetePaolillo]

Re: More 8th Kansas History

More from Col Martins speech....

"I need not say how glad and proud I am, my dear old
comrades, to meet and greet you one and all once more.
It seems but a brief time since the Eighth Kansas Vol-
unteer Infantry pitched its tents in the blue grass of
this reserve and was mustered into the service of the
United States, "for three years, or during the war."
But the whitening locks of many of its survivors, gath-
ered here to-day, tell the story of time's flight. The
youngest soldiers in its ranks have reached middle age;
the oldest are now old men, nearing the sunset of their
lives. The hardships and privations of march and
camp, and the casualties of battle, decimated its ranks
again and again during its long term of service; very
many have since died, their lives shortened by wounds
or by the wasting effects of the campaigns in which
they participated; and the survivors, scattered all over
the country, probably do not number one-third of the
1,081 men who have answered "here" at its roll calls.

It is no vain-glorious or empty boasting to declare, as
I do, that to have served in the Eighth Kansas is a fact
of which any man has a just right to be proud. No
regiment in the army of the Union during the civil war
can cite participation in campaigns of greater magni-
tude, events of more romantic and exciting ii:terest, or
marches over a vaster scope of country. Nor did any
regiment more conspicuously illustrate, in camp or field,
a loftier devotion to duty, a more unselfish patriotism
or a more constant courage.

The Eighth Kansas served in four of the great armies
of the Union. Its service began in what was afterwards
known as the "Army of the Frontier;" thence, early
in 1862, it was transferred to the "Army of the Missis-
sippi;" in the summer of the same year it joined the
"Army of the Ohio," and in November became a part of
the "Army of the Cumberland." With this military
division it served until its final muster out, in January,
1866.

Its organization was commenced in August, 1861, and
its first company was mustered in on the 28th of that
month. By the 12th of October eight companies had
been recruited and mustered; in December the ninth
was added, and early in January the regiment had its
full complement.

In February, however, a reorganization of Kansas reg-
iments was made. Companies D and H, of the Eighth,
which were cavalry, were transferred to the Ninth Kan-
sas; companies F and K were consolidated, and three
companies of Colonel Graham's battalion were trans-
ferred to the Eighth, making it a lull regiment of in-
fantry.

From the date of its organization, in September, 1861,
until May, 1862, four companies of the regiment did
duty along the Missouri border, iu southern Kansas;
others formed part of the post garrisons at Forts Leav-
enworth, Eiley, Kearney and Laramie. Early in May,
five companies were ordered to Corinth, Mississippi,
and proceeding to Columbus, Kentucky, by steamer,
they marched thence along the line of the Mobile it
Ohio Railroad to Corinth. After a service of two months
in that army, the division to which the Eighth was at-
tached was ordered to reinforce General Buell. By
rapid marches through Eastport and Florence, Alabama,
it joined the "Army of the Ohio" at Murfreesboro, T n-
nessie, and took part in the extraordinary campaign
which ended at Louisville, Kentucky. Thence it moved
southward again, with the command to which it was at-
tached, through Perryville and Lancaster to Crab
Orchard, and thence to Nashville. There it remained
nearly six months, doing provost duty, and there, in
February and March, 1863, the five companies left in
Kansas joined headquarters, and for the first time iu its
history the regiment was united.

Early in June, 1863, the Eighth rejoined its division at
Murfreesboro, It participated, during that summer, in
the campaign against TulLihoma, and, late in August,

forming the advance guard of the 20th Corps, crossed
the Tennessee river at Capertou's Ferry, in pontoon
boats. It took an active part in all the movements of
the campaign whicli followed, ending with the battle of
Chicamauga and the siege of Chattanooga. On the 2od
of November, covering the front of its brigade as skir-
mishers, the Eighth captured Orchard Knob, the head-
quarters of Generals Grant and Tliomas during the
battles of the succeeding two days. On the 25th it par-
ticipated in the storming of Mission Ridge, and its tiag
was one of the tirst, if not the first, planted on the
summit.
Two days later the Eighth marched with its corps to
the relief of Burnside, at Knoxville; took part in all
the movements of that dreadful winter campaign, and
formed a portion of the rear guard on the retreat from
Dandridge.

Early in January, 1864, at Strawberry Plains, East
Tennessee, four-tifths of all the members of the Eighth
then present reenlisted as veterans. Returning home
in February, the regiment received a furlough for thirty
days. Reassembling at this post, early in April, it re-
turned to the South, and took part in the campaign
against Atlanta. Thence, wiili its corps, it moved back
to Nashville, and participated in the battle which ground
the rebel army of the West to atoms.

During the first six months of the year 1865, the
lughth was stationed at various points in Alabama and
Tennessee, but late in July it was ordered to Texas,
where it remained until the 20th of November, when it
was mustered out and ordered home for final discharge.
It reached Fort Leavenworth on the Gth of January,
1866, and on the 9th was formally disbanded.

Its career, it will thus be seen, commenced at a very
early period of the civil war, and terminated long after
the last hostile shot had been fired. From the date of
its organization until its final muster out, there were
1,081 names on its rolls. But its largest numerical

strength at any one time was 877, in March, 1862. The
largest aggregate force, " present for duty," was 056, at
about the same date.

The records of its service show that it traveled 10,750
miles; participated in 15 battles and many skirmishes;
and lost in battle 3 commissioned officers and 67 enlisted
men killed, 13 commissioned officers and 276 enlisted
men wounded, and 1 commissioned officer and 20 en-
listed men missing; or a total of 70 killed, 289 wounded
and 21 missing ; and an aggregate of 380 killed, wounded
and missing. Of the missing, nearly all were killed ; and
of the wounded, about one-fifth died of their wounds.
The regiment's loss by the casualties of battle, it will
thus be seen, was nearly 60 per cent, of the greatest
number it ever had present for duty.

In addition to these losses, 3 commissioned officers and
92 enlisted men died of disease, 192 were discharged for
disabilities resulting from wounds or disease, and 53
died of wounds. The total loss by death, including the
70 killed in battle, was 218, and by discharge because of
wounds and disease 192, making a total loss, by death or
disability, of 410.

The regiment brought back to the State, and depos-
ited at Topeka, 3 flags. Under the first, carried until it
returned home on veteran furlough, in February, 1864,
it marched 3,681 miles, and lost 3 commissioned officers
and 49 enlisted men killed, 10 commissioned officers and
218 enlisted men wounded, and 20 enlisted men missing.
Under the second, carried until after the battle of Nash-
ville, it marched 2,660 miles, and lost 3 commissioned
officers wounded and 1 captured, and 18 enlisted men
killed and 58 wounded. Under the third it traveled
4,409 miles, but sustained no loss iu battle.

The largest loss the Eighth sustained in a single en-
gagement was at Chicamaugua, where, out of a total of
406 officers and men present, its killed, wounded and
missing numbered 243, or 60 per cent, of all engaged."

[PetePaolillo]

Re: More 8th Kansas History

and more... The below speech from Col Martin is continued. It also has some complimentary official orders in it that are very interesting beause these accolades were given to the regiment before and during the Tullahoma campaign where The Army of the Cumberland, commanded by Gen. Rosecrans, outmaneuvered the Army of Tennessee, commanded by General Bragg, from a strong defensive position, driving the Confederates from Middle Tennessee and threatening Chattanooga.
The Tullahoma Campaign was said to be Rosecrans's most significant achievement of the war, He achieved significant goals with very few casualties on either side. It of course was overshadowed by Union victories at Gettysburg and Vicksburg and it left his opponent's army essentially intact, which led to Rosecrans's disastrous defeat at the Battle of Chickamauga in September. We will be portraying the regiment after this and we know how battered and bruised these Men were at this point. It is interesti ng to see how things were beforehand for them to get an idea about what was expierenced by the 8th.

"It is pleasant to remember, too, and I am sure there is
no true soldier of the Eighth who will not proudly re-
call the fact, that on many different occasions the drill,
discipline and military appearance of the regiment were
complimented in official orders, issued from corps and
army headquarters. At Murfreesboro, Tennessee, in
June, 1863, the following order was published:



Inspector General's Office, 20th Army Corps,
Murfreesboro, June 19th, 1863.. J
I take pleasure in reporting to you the following ex-
tract from the report of the Inspector of the First Di-
vision, especially as the same regiments have attracted
the notice of the Corps Inspector:

Extract: "The drill, military appearance and dress of
the Eighth Kansas is the best observed in the Division ;
that of the Twenty-fifth Illinois next.

[ Signed ] H. W. Hall,

Captain and Inspector First Division."
Very respectfully,

Horace N. Fisher,
Lieutenant Colonel and Inspector General.

Headquarters 20th Army Corps, )
June 20, 1863. (

Respectfully referred to Colonel Heg, commanding
Third Brigade, First Division, who will have this cred-
itable compliment conveyed to the above-named regi-
ments.
By command of Major General McCook.

A. C. McClurg, Capt. and A. A. G.

On the loth of July, 1863, the following order was is-
sued:

Headquarters "]

Department of the Cumberland, !
Inspector General's Office, j
TULLAHOMA, July 15, 1863. J
Colonel — I have the honor to make the following
extract from the semi-monthly inspection report of
Lieutenant Colonel H. C. Fisher, Assistant Inspector
General 20th Army Corps:

Extract: "The Eighth Kansas, lately attached to this
corps, is splendidly equipped and well cared for. Its
long stay in Nashville has enabled it to attain a polish
to a certain degree impracticable in the field, but its ex-
ample is valuable to the corps."

Very respectfully, A. S. Burt, Cnpt. and A. A. G.
To Lieutenant Colonel Goddard, A. A. G.

Headquarters
Department of the Cumberland,
Tullahoma, July 19, 1863.
Respectfully referred to the commanding officer of the
Eighth Kansas.
By command of Major General Eosecrans.

Wm. McMichael, Major and A. A. G.



A few weeks later the following order was issued:

Headquarters 20th Army Corps,

Inspector Generai/s Office,
Winchester, Tenx.. July 31, 18(53.
Colonel— I have the honor to carry our attention to
the following extract from the report of Captain H. W.
Hall, A. I. G. First Division, on the camps of the Third
Brigade:

extract: "The camps of the Eighth Kansas and Twen-
ty-fifth Illinois are the best in the Division. These
regiments vie with each other in excellence in every
respect, and are models worthy of imitation for any
troops with which it has been my fortune to associate."
Very respectfully,

Horace K Fisher, TAeut. Col. and A. I. G.

Headquarters 20Tn Army Corps,)
July 31, 1863. ]

Respectfully referred to the commanding officer.
Third Brigade, First Division. The general command-
ing the corps is pleased to hear so favorable a report of
the regiments of this Brigade.
By command of Major General Sheridan.

G. P. Thurston, A. A. G. and Chief of Staff.

With these extracts I may fitly close this brief story
of a regiment whose career was alike creditable to the
State it represented and to the men who served in its
ranks. I do not claim for the Eighth higher soldierly
qualities than belonged to many other regiments. I
simply assert that, having great opportunities to serve
its country, it was always equal to them, and that
wherever it was placed it did its whole duty. It was
the only Kansas regiment that served in the great
"Array of the Cumberland." Ohio, Illinois, Iowa, Indi-
ana, Wisconsin, Michigan, and many other States, had
scores of splendid regiments in that grand army, but
the Eighth alone represented the martial spirit of Kan-
sas in its ranks. It would not be fair to say that the
regiment was ever treated unjustly because of this fact-
But it is true that, when it first joined the army, the
Eighth was regarded with some suspicion and a great
deal of curiosity. Whatsoever respect it won, whatso-
ever reputation it made, whatsoever fame it afterwards
enjoyed in that great army as a well-disciplined, brave
and patriotic body of soldiers, was squarely and fairly
earned by honest deserving, for it had neither original
good repute nor the kindly aid of other regiments bear-
ing the name of the same State to promote its fortunes
and its reputation. Alone, in a great army of 200,000, this
little body of 700 men kept stainless the honor and
added lustre to the fame of Kansas. In less than six
months after it joined the Army of the Cumberland, no
regiment was better or more favorably known, and un-
til its final muster out it steadily held the respect and
confidence of its commanding generals, and of the
troops with which it was most intimately associated.

In the noisy and distracting political feuds which
were so numerous in Kansas at that day, the Eighth
had no part or lot. It was so far away as to be beyond
even their echo. No man who belonged to it ever
made money out of the war. One and all, officers and
men, they came out of the army as poor in purse as
when they entered it. But they brought back and de-
posited in the State House, at Topeka, three torn and
tattered flags that all the wealth of this year's harvest
could not buy. Kansas will preserve, among her price-
less treasures, as long as her government shall endure,
these ragged and faded flags — all that remain of the
Eighth Kansas Volunteer Infantry, except its few hun-
dred scattered survivors and the history with which it
glorified the name of the State. "

[FlatLandFed]

Re: More 8th Kansas History

Hey, Jayhawkers -- does the Kansas historical society or the statehouse still have these flags? Can they be viewed by the public/us? I'll be at the SUVCW Encampment in Overland Park in August, but I would gladly take a side trip then or on another weekend to view them. Are they at Lawrence or elsewhere?
Thanks.
Paul Hadley
Lincoln, Neb.

[PetePaolillo]

Re: More 8th Kansas History

Hey, Jayhawkers -- does the Kansas historical society or the statehouse still have these flags? Can they be viewed by the public/us? I'll be at the SUVCW Encampment in Overland Park in August, but I would gladly take a side trip then or on another weekend to view them. Are they at Lawrence or elsewhere?
Thanks.
Paul Hadley
Lincoln, Neb.

Flags can be found at the Kansas State Historical society in Topeka Kansas. There is a link to the web page below this commentary about their flag collection


The primary focus of the museum's military flag collection is the 82 flags which date from both the Civil and Spanish-American Wars. The majority of these flags represent most of the Kansas regiments raised to serve in these wars.

The flags of the Civil War regiments were presented to the state by veterans in a ceremony in Topeka on July 4, 1866. Included were flags of the First through Sixteenth Kansas Regiments, with the exception of the Third and Fourth, which never fully organized and were taken into the Tenth Regiment. No flag exists for the Seventeenth, which organized late in the war. Also included were flags of the First Kansas Colored Infantry, the Second Kansas Colored Infantry, and the First and Second Kansas Batteries. No flags exist for the Third Battery and the Independent Colored Kansas Battery.

The flags were originally the responsibility of the Adjutant General, and remained so until 1905. They were probably kept at Topeka's Constitution Hall until part of the Capitol was ready for occupancy in 1870. At least part of the time they were kept in a case in the Governor's Office.

In 1905 the flags were transferred to the Kansas State Historical Society. For nine years they were kept in a case in the Society's rooms on the fourth floor of the Capitol. When the Society moved in 1914 to the newly constructed Grand Army of the Republic Memorial Building, they were moved in a stirring ceremony where veterans of the Kansas regiments marched the flags from the south steps of the Capitol to the new building. Until the early 1960's they would remain encased in the building's auditorium. A remodeling program at that time forced them into storage.

No flags exist from the Indian War-era's Eighteenth and Nineteenth Regiments. Eight flags exist for the Spanish-American War's Twentieth through Twenty-second regiments, but none for the Twenty-third regiment. These flags were turned over to the state shortly after use in that war and the Philippine Insurrection. The collections also include a Spanish banner, taken by a member of the Twentieth regiment, which bears the signatures of the men of Company E.

Eleven Confederate or pro-Southern flags are in the collection, mostly flags captured by Kansas regiments. This includes a small flag apparently dropped by a member of the raiders led by William Clarke Quantrill during his raid on Olathe, Kansas, in September, 1862.

The museum's Main Gallery features several flags on display, including the Quantrill flag and flags of the First Kansas Colored Infantry and the Twenty-second Kansas Militia. Also exhibited is the flag (pictured at right) of the Second Kansas Infantry, Company H which is said to be the only Federal flag on the field when General Nathaniel Lyon was killed at the Battle of Wilson's Creek on August 10, 1861.

Sadly, many of the Kansas flags are made of silk and have not stood the test of time. Many remained furled in poor condition and are badly fragmented. The Kansas State Historical Society is currently raising funds for their conservation through the Save Our Flags! project. Among the artifacts conserved through this project are flags from the Eighth Kansas Infantry and Major General James G. Blunt.
For more information about the flags, contact Blair Tarr, Curator of Decorative Arts, btarr@kshs.org.

SOURCE

[Pvt_Sullivan]

United At Last

Some of the companies of the 8th Kansas were raised to participate in the cancelled Federal Expedition to New Mexico and some others were raise for home guard duties in Kansas. The unit that became the 8th Kansas was also know as the the 1st New Mexico and elements of it were raised for the 9th and 10th Kansas Regiments. During nearly the first half of their enlistments, the companies of the 8th Kansas was never located together. They were spread throughout Missouri, Kansas and several territories providing security for the local populace against marauders and indians. As the War continued, despite original promises to only use the 8th Kansas inside the state, it was decided to send the 8th Kansas on to join General Rosecran's Army of the Cumberland. A portion of the 8th Kansas was already on duty as the Provost Guard in Nashville and that proved the most convinient location to consolidate the separate companies with the regiment. Company G had to travel in excess of 1,200 miles by foot, riverboat and rail from Fort Laramie in what would become Wyoming to join the regiment. By March of 1863 the 8th Kansas was fully assembled for the first time in its history.

Periodically over the next few months I am going to post with permission quotes from Keep the Flag to the Front a modern history of the 8th Kansas based on first hand accounts from the soldiers themselved. It was written by Bill McFarland and is available through the Company A, 8th Kansas Volunteer Infantry Reenactment Group on their webpage here... http://www.8thkansas.org/about.html4.html

The enlistment period of the men was half over. Although the Eighth has seen some action, there had been no combat deaths in its own ranks, though some had been wounded. there had been a number of close calls where troops passed a point just in front of or behind the Eighth Kansas had been captured or badly chewed up. Many of the boys believed the members of the Eighth Kansas had "charmed lives." Said some, "God takes care of Jayhawkers - The rebs run away from us". There were now 750 men in the Eighth Kansas Infantry present for duty at Nashville. The pride of the regiment grew with its increasing numbers. Said one officer; "Nobody had better run against the Eighth now." They were no longer the "little battalion" but the "big regiment."

[Pvt_Sullivan]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

My thanks to Pete Paolillo for bringing the electronic copy of this official account of the Kansas Regiments in the War Between the States to my attention...

Official Military history of Kansas Regiments during the War for the Suppression of the Great Rebellion, Kansas Adjutant General's Office, Josiah B. McAfee, published by W.S. Burke 1870, Leavenworth, Kansas.

You can download it from Google Books here - http://books.google.com/books?id=dfgsAAAAYAAJ

Or for those who like to have old fashioned books on their shelves, it was reprinted in 2009 and is available through Amazon here... http://www.amazon.com/Military-Histo.../dp/1120006120

[c.irelan]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

To bad Co. H is being left out of the orginazation of the federal Army if H was there it would more than likely swing the minds of my pards and I to go federal as well.

Co.H came out of Rock Island,Henery, and Mercer counties in IL orginized by Col. Graham the owner of local newspaper (the Argis now the dispatch) in Rock Island (home of the prison camp as well) Before becomming Co. H they were called Grahams Independent Rangers and formed as mounted infantry and sent out to New Mexico. Things changed and they lost there job, Col. Graham was was friends with the Govener of Kansas and knew that his men wanted to fight so he drafted a letter asking if Kansas was in need of able bodied men. While in route back to IL word was recieved that Kansas would be more than pleased to host the men. The origional 8th was not a regiment in it's beginning but a battalion (Inf, Cav, and Art.) it was only when the call for federal service came to them that they were orginized into a Infantry Reg. The Regiment was one of Roscranns favorites always noted was how they maintained there untforms (this would of been during garrison and occupation times) with a smart , crisp apperance, which showed even more in there drill, They were openly against slavery, which did cause problems with higher staff officers to the point of harrisment. There are accounts of the Regiment being requested by town Mayors and councles to be left behind in communities as provost because they knew that they would be treated fairly and kindly by the 8th it is this reputation that aided them in the abillity to replinish there ranks with men from there theaters of operations with great ease it is also one of the reasons they stayed in service until 1866.

The 8th is a great Regimant with a very colurful history they are not your your tipical roughneck get the job done westener.

[Pvt_Sullivan]

Re: 8th Kansas Info

To bad Co. H is being left out of the orginazation of the federal Army if H was there it would more than likely swing the minds of my pards and I to go federal as well.

We have six companies right now, but if someone wanted to raise Company H in addition all that would take is a quick message to Jim Butler.

http://www.westernindependentgrays.org/beforebreakout/registration.htm

[Pvt_Sullivan]

"Old Soldier"

The 8th Kansas had many colorful characters in it. One of its most beloved was a dog...

Old Soldier

The Eigth Kansas had a dog that participated in all of the marches and campaigns of the regiment, The dog was called "Old Soldier" and was cared for by Private Frederick Hegele of Company B. The dog, therefore, attached himself to Company B and attended guard mount and dress parade in front of that company. In battalion formation each company took its place in line according to the seniority of its company commander. Since Captain Block of compnay B was the senior captain, the position of his company in battalion formation was on the extreme right of the regiment. When Captain Block resigned from the service , on April 30 [1863], Company B was assigned a new position in formation. At the first formation after Block's resignation, "Old Soldier" watched as Company B took its new position in line. Instead of following the company, "Old Soldier" trotted to the former position of Company B and inspected the troops there. Then "with an expression of annoyance" he returned to Company B and lay down in his usual place in front of that company.

From Keep the Flag to the Front a modern history of the 8th Kansas based on first hand accounts from the soldiers themselved. It was written by Bill McFarland and is available through the Company A, 8th Kansas Volunteer Infantry Reenactment Group on their webpage here... http://www.8thkansas.org/about.html4.html - Used with permission