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Transcriber's Note

- In general, geographical references, spelling, hyphenation, and
capitalization have been retained as in the original publication.

- Minor typographical errors have been corrected without note.

- Significant typographical errors have been corrected. A full list of
these corrections is available in the Transcriber's Corrections section
at the end of the book.

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          THE HISTORY

              OF

          COMPANY C,

  SEVENTH REGIMENT, O. V. I.,

              BY

        THEODORE WILDER.




            OBERLIN:
    J. B. T. MARSH, PRINTER,
        "News Office."
             1866.




Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1866,

By THEODORE WILDER,

In the Clerk's Office of the District Court of the United States, for
the Northern District of Ohio.




  TO ALL
  WHOSE NAMES APPEAR
  ON THE
  COMPANY ROLL
  THIS LITTLE VOLUME
  IS MOST
  RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED.




PREFACE.


This sketch and record were written at the suggestion and by the request
of the surviving members of the Company. It was their desire to have a
brief story of their marches, battles and sieges, and, especially, an
accurate record of each member, to preserve for reference in future
years. If this little publication will serve that purpose, the object of
the author is fully accomplished. There has been no design on his part
to entertain the public with a detailed and verbose account of patriotic
deeds and severe hardships, above what many others may have endured who
have taken part in the War of the Rebellion. Therefore, those who may
chance to meet with a copy of this work, expecting to be entertained,
will probably be disappointed.

As the value of such a work as this, depends entirely upon its accuracy,
great pains have been taken to avoid all mistakes. The author has had
access to diaries and journals kept by the members, and official returns
of the commanding officer, and is thus able to give the numerous dates
and facts with a good degree of correctness: and though there may be
errors, yet it is believed that very few occur.

                                                               T. W.

Oberlin, Ohio, Feb. 14, 1866.




HISTORY OF COMPANY C.


The History of Company C is properly connected with the history of
Oberlin College, the Alma Mater of its organization. The majority of its
members were proud to be known as the exponents of the generous,
Christian principles, there so fearlessly uttered and so zealously
inculcated. The founders of Oberlin were pledged to the general law of
benevolence. _All_ known forms of virtue were cheerfully adopted. Every
system of wrong was deprecated.

Patriotism and the doctrine of Anti-Slavery very naturally found a place
in the category of their principles. They seemed to be men, "clothed and
in their right mind," possessing at least the ordinary balance of moral
character, without any design to establish an institution for the
purpose of waging war against any particular system of iniquity to the
exclusion of all the others. Missionary associations, temperance and
anti-slavery societies, in short, all organizations designed to aid in
improving and saving their fellow men, found fearless advocates in them.
Under the stimulus of such principles they left their pleasant homes in
New England for residences in an unfavorable place in a forest of
Northern Ohio, to found a college that might prove a blessing to the
broad West.

  [Sidenote: Oberlin College.]

The peculiar views held by Oberlin people with regard to their relations
and duties to the government, which are commonly known as the doctrine
of the Higher Law, were but the natural outgrowth of Christian
benevolence. They saw slavery to be a great crime, and they were bold to
take a stand against it, as one of their Christian duties. From the day
that the question of the evil of slavery was brought before the country,
they hesitated not to engage in the irrepressible conflict.

Multitudes of young men from the most virtuous families of the various
States of the Union gathered into the College to educate themselves for
positions of usefulness in every direction,--not all to be temperance
lecturers, not all to be honest lawyers, virtuous physicians, radical
anti-slavery enthusiasts; but some to fill all the various positions of
honor and trust.

No argument need be made to prove the vast extent of influence for good
which the College has exerted through the multitudes of young men who
have gone out from her halls, bearing the precious seed with them. It
has been scattered over the North, and to some extent over the South.
And to-day we are permitted to see the fields whitening, though not
fully ripe. The most enlightened communities, instead of receding from
the views promulgated by Oberlin teachers, have rapidly approached them