Fellow Sharpshooters,

Dan Masters has transcribed a series of letter authored by 2nd Lieutenant Ira Smith Brown, that originally appeared in the (Pen Yann, NY) Yates County Chronicle. The following submission appeared on his September 26, 2021 blog.

A Sharpshooter at Williamsburg

     The Battle of Williamsburg, Virginia was the first major engagement of McClellan’s Peninsula campaign. Fought May 5, 1862, the battle was brought about when General Joseph E. Johnston detached a force to hold Fort Magruder to gain time for the remainder of his army to get on the road to Richmond. Pursuing Federals slammed into them, and the resulting fight racked up more than 2,200 Federal casualties and nearly 1,700 Confederate casualties.
          Second Lieutenant Ira Smith Brown of Co. A of the 1st U.S. Sharpshooters took part in some of the toughest fighting on the Federal right while attached to Brigadier General Winfield S. Hancock’s brigade.

https://dan-masters-civil-war.blogspot.com/2021/09/a-sharpshooter-at-williamsburg.html?m=1

Lt. Brown closes his May 22,1862 letter with a surprising entry: “A week ago last Sunday I was promoted to be staff officer on General Charles S. Hamilton’s staff. He commands Heintzelman’s old division.[1] But McClellan refused to let me leave my regiment because I belonged to Porter’s division; consequently, my confidence in the general is impaired.”

The above comments suggests Lt. Brown is looking for opportunities for advancement outside of the Sharp Shooters, and he’s not averse to sharing his opinions with the civilian press.

Below I’ve added a link to the American Battlefield Trust map of the Williamsburg battlefield. At the upper right quadrant of the map you can find Hancock’s brigade arrayed in a line of battle. Based on Lt. Smith’s letter, the Sharp Shooter battalion, Companies A, (commanded by Captain J.B. Isler), and C, (commanded by Captain Benjamin Giroux). were sandwiched between the 5th Wisconsin and the 33rd New York infantry.

The “barn” filled with wounded Confederates and desecrated graves mentioned by Brown, most likely belonged to the Curtis family. Fortunately, and unlike most of the original Williamsburg battlefield, this section has been preserved by the ABT.

https://www.battlefields.org/learn/maps/williamsburg-may-5-1862

* Lt. Brown’s very detailed letter against Col. Hiram Berdan (presented like court martial specifications) can be found in Chapter Five of R. L. Murray’s book, Letters from Berdan’s Sharpshooters. Benedict Books. Wolcott, NY 2005.

Bill Skillman
Michigan Companies
Berdan Sharpshooters Survivors Association