1st cousins 4x removed of Susan Norder's husband, John Norder

 

SIDNEY: Full Corpl      Co. E       1st MI Sharpshooters

Dates of Service:  23 Oct 1863 - 28 Jul 1865

JAMES: Private           Co. E       1st MI Sharpshooters

Dates of Service:  23 Feb 1864 - 23 Feb 1865

 

New Recruits – February 1864

Nineteen-year-old James B. Haight of Camden signed the Company E roster on 23 February 1864. His younger brother Sidney had been in the regiment since the previous October. The two boys visited a photographer a few weeks later, had their likenesses taken, and sent a copy home to their parents. They stared into the camera and posterity as they were about to embark on the great adventure of their lives.

 

Murder Most Glorious – Spotsylvania, Virginia – May 1864

After lying about without being able to punish the rebels, the Second Brigade was ready to swing into action. The three regiments, with remnants of whatever companies of the First Brigade cared to join them, charged to within 50 yards of the Confederate works. 'With no cover the men were exposed to the enemy, to a murderous cross fire, and the loss bid fair to be a fearful record," wrote Colonel DeLand in his official report. I ordered the men forward to the first line of the enemy's works."

 

As the rebels retreated, the Sharpshooters occupied the deserted trenches. For a few moments the men rested, then they were ordered again to advance. The Sharpshooters worked their way into the scrubby woods in front of them. James and Sidney Haight of Company E, one of the many brother combinations, kept an eye on each other as they entered the timber. Jim was ahead with Sid close behind.

 

Suddenly, a rebel rose from behind a log with his musket leveled at Jim. Pulling up his own weapon, Jim reacted immediately. Both men fired at the same moment, but to those who saw the action, it sounded as if only one shot were discharged. Jim's weapon fell from his hands, and he twisted in pain, holding his left arm. "Sid," he called out, "I've been hit." Giving a quick look at his brother's wounded arm, Sid told Jim to go to the rear. Reluctantly, Sid left his brother, turned, and joined in the attack. As Sid stepped over the log behind which the rebel had hidden, he saw the man lying there, dead. The Confederate had been shot in the forehead, while his own bullet had hit the side of Jim's rifle and been deflected into the Sharpshooter's arm.

 

The Dead and Wounded – May 1864

James Haight, whose lucky shot had killed his assailant, made his way to the division hospital, but nothing was done for him there. His wound was painful, the doctors were busy with dozens of other cases, and he was lost in the shuffle. Receiving no help for his injured left arm, Haight did manage to get a drink of whiskey and milk, his only sustenance or anesthesia. Not until he reached Lincoln Hospital in Washington, DC, did he receive any medical assistance. He adamantly refused to have his arm amputated; the surgeon could do little more than probe the blackened limb for the bullet and pieces of bone. The arm healed, but the severe damage crippled it. Very reticent about his military career for the rest of his life, the 19-year-old farmer had to restart his civilian occupation with quite a handicap.

 

James Haight’s grandson, who recalled the incident, wrote, "I well remember that my grandfather, when questioned about the Confederate soldier found dead behind the log, would walk away to avoid having to admit he had ever shot a man. He was a staunch admirer of Lincoln and the ideas for which he stood, but the war to him was sad experience".

 

The Mine Disaster – Petersburg, Virginia – July 1864

It was about 3:00 in the afternoon. Colonel Byron M. Cutcheon could see the flags of the three Michigan regiments of the Second Brigade still standing on the edge of the Crater, 150 yards away. The Sharpshooters' banner--the state colors given by Mrs. Austin Blair, which had been retrieved from the sand of the 17 June fight--flew in the face of the onrushing rebels; Sergeant Urie kept it afloat till the very end. It and the standards of the two other Michigan regiments were captured with the men who were unable or unwilling to run back to their lines.

 

A brigade of Virginians finally took the Crater and all those in it. During this last charge, the Sharpshooters held back and showed their character, giving the rebels a fight while allowing their comrades time to escape. Sergeant DePuy, the artilleryman, stuck by his guns to the last; the rebels captured him in the redoubt [stronghold].

 

Some of the Sharpshooters, among them Pvts. Sidney Haight, Antoine Scott, and Charles Thatcher, covered the retreat as best they could before they pulled out. Scott (Co. K) was one of the last to leave the fort. Both Haight and Scott were conspicuous in their bravery and seemed to have charmed lives. During the fight both men were in front of the breastworks, ceaselessly firing at the enemy. When the last charge came they stood in the open and kept a brisk fire going. Only at the end, when all was falling apart, did they leave the fort, running the "gauntlet of shot and shell" to their own lines. Thatcher, Haight, Scott, and DePuy all were cited for the Medal of Honor for their exploits that day.

 

Thatcher did not make it out of the Crater in time; he "continued to return the enemy's fire until he was captured." The 18-year-old Haight was probably the very last Sharpshooter to leave the redoubt. As he fired his final shot, a rebel officer with sword upraised came at him, demanding his surrender. Haight lunged and rammed his bayonet into the Confederate. Not stopping to retrieve his weapon, Haight turned and bolted for the Union lines as fast as his legs could carry him. On his way across the shell-torn expanse of open ground he lost his cap and felt lead balls tear through the ends of his jacket. A bullet hit the heel of his shoe, ripping the sole back to within an inch of the toe; that sole flapped with every running step. The bullets spat around Haight until he dived into the Union trench out of breath, hatless, with a sole mostly pulled from his shoe, but safe and sound.

 

The Last Charge – July 1864

Because of the ferocity and partial success of the engagement, the names of five men were submitted to Ninth Corps Headquarters. Recommended for Medals of Honor in the "demonstration" were Color Sgt. Richard Campbell and Sgt. William Wick (Co. D), both of whom "engaged in hand to hand conflict with the enemy." The other three were Cpls. Sidney Haight and Charles Thatcher (Co. E) and Pvt. Antoine Scott (Co. K), the last for "repeated gallantry."

 

The last three had previously received medal citations for their conduct in the Crater. Unfortunately, no action took place with these later recommendations, and none of the five received any governmental congratulations or medals for their heroism in the "demonstration".

 

NOTE:  Antoine Scott, the only Indian in the regiment who was ever nominated for the award, never received a medal for any of his heroism during the war. He died at Pentwater, Michigan, in December 1878. Sidney Haight received his medal in 1896, Scott probably never even knew be qualified for the honor.

 

CIVIL WAR MEDAL OF HONOR RECIPIENT - HAIGHT, SIDNEY

Rank and organization: Corporal, Company E, 1st Michigan Sharpshooters. Place and dare: At Petersburg, Va., 30 July 1864. Entered service at: Goodland, Mich. Born. 1846, Reading, Mich. Date of issue. 31 July 1896. Citation: Instead of retreating, remained in the captured works, regardless of his personal safety and exposed to the firing, which he boldly and deliberately returned until the enemy was close upon him.

 

The Last Reveille – Hillsdale, Michigan – 1918/19

Sidney Haight returned to Hillsdale after the war. He didn't receive the Medal of Honor for his heroic behavior in the Crater until the 1890s. He died in 1918 at 71 years of age. His brother James, whose arm had been permanently crippled at Spotsylvania, followed him to the grand reveille in 1919.

 

Source: Raymond J. Herek, THESE MEN HAVE SEEN HARD SERVICE--The First Michigan Sharpshooters in the Civil War (Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1998), 88, 144, 156, 227, 321, 349, 373

 

GRAVESITES:  West Reading Cemetery, Reading, Hillsdale Co., MI

Compiled by Susan Norder, June 2001