CIVIL WAR CORRESPONDENCE OF CAPT. WILLIAM HEXAMER, BATTERY “A”, FIRST NEW JERSEY ARTILLERY

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Item Code: 729-84

This collection is comprised of two Hexamer commissions as Captain [1856], & Major [1861] in Hudson’s Battery, New Jersey State militia; 18 letters of official correspondence, either written by Hexamer, or received by him from various New Jersey and Federal officials, including such personages as New Jersey Governor Charles S. Olson and Brig. General Henry Hunt; plus 5 telegrams, including one from General Winfield Scott. Also included, a Longstreet House pamphlet, edited by David Martin; “Hexamer’s First New Jersey Battery in the Civil War”, with unit roster. 29 pp., wraps.

The collection is housed in a green binder, with all pieces in protective sleeves. Some are on printed letterhead—“State of New Jersey/ Executive Department”, “War Department/ Adjutant General’s Office”, “Artillery Headquarters/ Army of the Potomac”, “Thirty Eighth Congress/ House of Representatives/ United States of America”.

William Hexamer was a German immigrant who came to the United States in the wake of the 1848 Revolution, in which he had served as aide with rebel Franz Sigel before being driven into American exile. Settled in New Jersey, he accepted a commission as Captain in Hudson’s Battery of New Jersey Militia in 1856, and promoted was promoted to Major and Battery commander in 1861. During the summer of that year his unit was accepted into federal service as Battery “A”, First New Jersey Artillery, with Hexamer in command, though reverting to the rank of Captain in federal service.

Hexamer’s Battery served with Kearney’s New Jersey Brigade during the Peninsula Campaign and was engaged at Antietam and Fredericksburg. In early 1863 Hexamer fell ill and his battery was commanded by Lieutenant August Parsons at the 2nd Battle of Fredericksburg [May 1863] and at Gettysburg, where it was attached to the artillery reserve and supported the “Philadelphia Brigade” during Pickett’s Charge. Hexamer returned to command the unit that fall, participating in the Bristoe Station and Mine Run Campaigns. His battery remained with the AOP Artillery Reserve through the 1864 Overland Campaign, being transferred to the 6th Corps at the time of Cold Harbor. It was also present during the opening phases of the Siege of Peterson, after which Hexamer resigned from the service, though not before making an offer to raise a regiment of foot artillery for the army. Nothing came of this offer, however, and Hexamer resigned soon after. Following the war he lived in Hoboken, dying in 1870, and is buried in North Bergen, NJ.

Of all these pieces, the 2/15/1864 letter from General H. J. Hunt stands out as highly significant. In replying to Hexamer’s request for permission to raise a regiment of foot artillery, Hunt unburdens himself of the problem of perpetual low rank which drives promising artilleryman from that branch of service:

Henry J. Hunt text:

“Capt. W. Hexamer/ Batt “A” 1st NJ Arty.

Captain: I approve of your effort to raise a regiment or even a battalion of foot artillery for this army and trust that authority may be given to you to do so:

I also give my consent to your raising with the understanding that it may be combined if necessary into infantry—but I do this with regret and only because I know that by existing orders, all hop and prospect of promotion to officers of field artillery have been destroyed, and many of our best officers actually driven from the service. I would prefer to see you promoted into the foo artillery or even the infantry, to seeing you linger subjected to the mortification of seeing your junior officers in years , in rank, and in service, promoted over your head, with no alternative but to resign.

The promotion is denied to you except on condition that you quit the service, you have proved your efficiency. I would wish you to raise a regiment of foot artillery for service in the army.

The different battalions can be most usefully employed as guard, and escorts to batteries and ammunition trains, and details for the batteries when reduced below a serviceable number. For these duties, infantry troops are now from time to time detailed to the great injury of the service and the creation of ill feeling.

These duties are properly artillery duties which should be performed by the artillery with its own means, and, for which it should not be dependent on the other arms.

The artillery Reserve has one such regiment now. The artillery of the Corps should have each one more in battalions.

The selection of deserving field artillery regiment would enable me to place at the head of each brigade of artillery, an officer of more rank than we now have. The most of the brigades of artillery of this army, brigades equal in importance and more complicated than brigades of infantry, are commanded by Captains because of the persistent denial to artillery officers of the rank fully accorded to other arms of service.

At Chancellorsville with nearly 10,000 men and 9000 horses, with the batteries, to say nothing of the immense ammunition trains, there was for the whole of the artillery, two Colonels and three majors, five field officers in all.

At Gettysburg with 320 guns on the field covering miles of ground, over 8000 men and 7000 horses with all the other trains, I had but four field officers.

The denial of promotion is now driving my best and most experienced volunteer Captains out of the service—It has long ago driven off every regular officer who could get promotion elsewhere, and when training previous to the war experience required in it have thus been thrown away. In justice to you personally and to other experience officers like you I must consent to your transfer to other duties if you can thus get promotion but it is fearfully disorganizing and reducing the efficiency of the artillery of this army from what it might be.

Respectfully/ Your obt. Servant/ Henry J. Hunt/ Brig General of the AP”

Superb letter collection for both artillery buffs and New Jersey buffs. The Henry Hunt letter is an epistolary gem of consequence.

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