1862 April 5 Yorktown, Va.

[from the diary of Daniel D. Logan, younger brother of General Thomas M. Logan, and a Sgt., 1st Special Battalion (Rightor's), Louisiana Infantry]


Saturday - April 5th 1862
Rose at day light this morning – went over
to camp with my mess for breakfast –
It commenced raining & we went into our
tents - at 11 o’c the Enemy was reported
advancing – we went in the trenches &
changed our position twice – at 12 ½ o’c the
Enemy [word lined out] opened on us from a 6” rifle
piece placed in Battery on the road near
the woods on Whittakers farm – Our battery under
Capt Cosingham answered their fire making some
very fine shots. The shot & shell of the Enemy
riddled our camp, most of this shell bursting
over it. The Cadets & Grays displayed on the right
of Cosingham’s Battery & Kept up a skirmishing
fire all the afternoon across the creek. Our
battery shot seldom but better than the Enemy – the
artillery seased [ceased] firing by four o’c – up to dark
the skirmishers Kept it up – The enemy fired 109 -
shots & shell.- Capt Cosingham [fired] 30 shot & shell

[Actually Cosnahan’s Battery, a.k.a. “The Peninsula Artillery,” commanded by Capt. Joseph B. Cosnaham, 1838 UVa grad.]

[transcription by Mary Roy Dawson Edwards; annotation by Robert K. Krick]

MSS 6154
-