A STORY ABOUT ONE OF LEWIS COUNTY'S REBEL SOLDIERS

PVT. CHARLES BIVENS CO.C. 2ND. KY. MTD.INF. CSA.

GEN. JOHN MORGAN COMMANDER.

Written By: John A "Gus " Doyle.

This soldier's Grandfather James H. Bivens settled early on Martins Fork of Quicks Run, Lewis Co., Ky. Upon the death of his father in 1819. He heired 16 slaves, which he brought home and soon with their help he cleared all the upper part of Martins Fork and made a nice farm. At one time there was as many as twenty families living in this area, the Bivens , Polley's and lots of families related by blood or marriage to them. They were a pocket of strong " Rebels" and Democrats. ( Some are still to this day. ) Most of the folks round about were strong Union believers.  This story I am about to tell is what I remember " Uncle Charley" telling me when I was a lad about nine years old.
   Uncle Charley said: I was 17 when I went away to the rebel army. There were quite a few from the neighboring communities, and Capt. Seaman took us out.  He was the rebel recuiting officer for this area.  We went to eastern Ky. under Gen. Cosby and Gen Marshall.( The  records show that he joined March 1862) After a lot of little skrimishes I was caught near Salyersville, Ky. in May 1863.  I was later exchanged for Union Soldiers, and then I joined up with Gen. Morgan's men.  There was several other men from Lewis Co. with us in Tennessee. We did a lot of fighting there, then we started on our raid in Ohio.  we tried to cross the Green river several times but the "Yankee's"  in the willows along the shore line kept driving us back.   ( This was the 25th Michigan Infantry at Tebbs Bend on July 4 1863).  We then went down river and bypassed  them and finally reached Brandenburg, Ky. Luck was with us as we captured a steamboat and made the captain ferry us across the river. While we were crossing another steamboat came up to the boat and we all laid  down out of sight, Gen Morgan made the Captain of the boat call the other boat alongside . When he did we all jumped up and captured them.  Was that Captain ever surprised and mad ! After we got across the river we set the boat  on fire.  We had a sharp little tussle with the home Guards at Corydon, Indiana before they ran away.  We had a  little  trouble  the rest of the way up in Indiana, a few pot shots from the home guards who took a shot then skeedaddled for cover. Lots of places along the way the people would give us something to eat, I guess so they wouldn't be bothered.  We had strict orders not to hurt civilians.  We could tell there hadn't been any soldier around those parts cause the chickens and barnyard stock didn't seem scared when we rode by. One place while we was resting one of our fellows put some grains of corn on a fishing line and went off strolling through a bunch of ducks pulling the fishing line behind him. One of the old ducks grabbed the corn and he came running back and shouting " The duck was attacking him". Some women came out shouting and hollering at us too. ( Whether this was ture or not I don't know he may have been telling me this to interject a little humor to his tale).
   We found some bridges over creeks tore down but that didn't bother us, we just rode down the bank and across the creek.  We had no serious trouble.  We circled north of the town of Cincinnati and some boys rode near Camp Dennison to try to steal some horses but they didn't get any.  By this time our horses were getting wore out as we were not getting any rest because the Yankee troops were following  us.  We would trade one of our wore out horses for one in the fields, some were plugs and most were not used to long hard rides, so we were constantly changing horses, swapping horses all the time, hardly ever finding any good ones.  Some of our fellows wore out too, they would drop out and some were captured and some headed for Ky. and some headed for home.  One place in Ohio near Winchester we raided a dry goods store and some of the boys tied bolts of ribbons to the horses mane and tails and raced up and down the street with the ribbons flying.  Some of the town folks was amused but not the store keeper, who jumped and shouted at them. ( This was a Mr. Thomas who was so incensed he immediately joined the Union Army, He was made a  Capt. in the QMQ.) The home guards tore up the bridges and put rails across some of the roads but that didn't stop us.  We heard  that the regular troops were coming at us from all directions so we aimed to head for the Ohio River and cross into Virginia ( Now West Virginia).  We lost a few men that couldn't keep up.  At Jackson, Ohio we burned the Republican newspaper shop up. After Gen . Morgan's troops left town enraged Unionist led by the Republican newspaper editor burned the Democrat newspaper shop up.
   Talking about losin men--- a few years ago the Jackson, Ohio  newspaper printed a story about two of Morgan's men were very sick and some farm families took them in and nursed them back to health, They  remained on the farms and later married the farmers daughters and spent the rest of their lives there.  We heard about Vicksburg and Gettysburg battles,after we saw all the young fellows standing around in the little town. I figured we didn't have a chance anymore.  Most of the men in Kentucky and Tenneessee were away from home in one army or the other. The Union Army was closing in on us and we  had several smart skrimishes near Pomeroy. We attemped to cross the Ohio River at Buffingtons Island but the Union gunboats came down on us, about 500 of us got across the river but a lot of they were drowned.  Morgan swam back to the men  that were unable to get across.  John Hanna swam the river with his rifle. He was a powerful feller. Morgan and Duke were both captured. Sgt. Jim Voiers, my friend was captured. He was a brave and fearless feller. I saw him after he got out of Rock Island Prison. He came home in rags and one shoe was about six inches longer than the other one. After we crossed the river by the time I got my saddle girth tightened, bullets were whizzing all around me. I got back to Rebel lines again. Morgan and Duke got out of prison at Columbus and rejoined the boys and took command again. Morgan was later killed in East Tenneessee. I spent the rest of the time riding hard, fighting hard, with poor rations, parched corn and what ever else we could forage from the land.  When Lee surrendered the remaining men of our company was sent to Mt. Sterling Ky. where I was paroled.( Records show this Rebel soldier was paroled May 1865.) 

This was written by : John A"Gus" Doyle, Nephew of Charles Bivens

This Man was very possible my 3rd great grandfather.