John Rock in the Civil War continues...

While stationed near Fort Monroe, John Rock would have participated in continuing drills, although they were given respite from these exercises on occasion due to the cold weather. I suppose their commanders wanted to protect the soldiers health. There were cases of diarrhea and camp fever during their encampment near the town of Hampton, which the soldiers called Fort Hamilton.

Town of Hampton near what was Fort Hamilton, VA.

On the morning of December 8, 1861 John boarded another steamer ship. This time, they were heading further south. A three day voyage to Port Royal, South Carolina. Today, the area is known to include Parris Island and is near the town of Beaufort, S.C. While the steamship made a pleasant voyage on calm waters, the 97th P.V. arrived too late to be brought ashore. They soon found themselves in a storm. The ship had to back away from the dangerous port and wait out the storm. The men of Co. B would have to ride out the storm below decks. Many of the men became severely sea sick. By 4 PM the following day the soldiers were once again on dry land at Fort Walker on Hilton Head Island setting up camp in an old cotton field.

By late January, the 97th boarded yet another steamer with a destination of Warsaw Sound, Georgia. It was just  thirteen miles below Savannah. Although, they were landed near Warsaw Sound, they did not remain on land. They spent 44 days aboard steam ships between January and March 5th 1862. The 97th must have felt overjoyed by the welcome news that they would be the first regiment to take up picket duty at the newly captured Fort Clinch at Fernandina along the most northern reaches of the Florida coastline.

The regular drills and camp life continued until March 24, when the 97th was sent to reinforce the troops at Jacksonville upon the steamer Cosmopolitan. Upon landing, the troops were quartered in storehouses and other large buildings that were found unoccupied, the 97th being at the corner of Bayard and Orange Streets, in a large warehouse. While the support at Jacksonville did not bring an all out battle, rebel sharpshooters along the bluffs of Jacksonville caused some pause at their landing. The soldiers of the 97th were engaged a 1/2 mile beyond the town in order to build earthen works to protect against a confederate attack at Jacksonville. Orders eventually came to abandon Jacksonville however, and the 97th boarded crowded ships and were back at Fernandina, Florida by mid April.

The ship at far right is the steamer Cosmopolitan

Photo Credit: U.S. Naval Historical Center Photograph

The 97th had guarded forts and towns along the coast for most of their enlistment by this point in their 8 month careers as soldiers. They would see their first action just outside Charleston, SC at James Island in early June of 1862. A New York Newspaper correspondent described it as follows.

I think no battle field of
this war has been the scene of more tenacious, determined and gal-
lant fighting than ensued on the part of our men. From the pecu-
liarity of the country, which abounds in all portions with thick
underbrush, the enemy were enabled to keep themselves under
cover, while our men were obliged either to hunt them from their
hiding places or wait for uncertain glimpses through the dense shrub-
bery. Notwithstanding these disadvantages our men behaved like
veterans, standing up before the enemy's galling fire of musketry
without wavering or wincing. * * * The fire of our troops
was most effective. After charging wildly at all points of the line,
the rebel commander gave up the attempt and his forces fell back
in hotter haste than they came up. * * * Col. Guss, of the
97th Pennsylvania, who had command of our forces during the
fight, rode gallantly up and down the line encouraging his men, and
though prominently exposed, in the thickest of the fight, escaped
without harm. There were numerous other hair-breadth escapes,
to be accounted for only by the fact that the fire was so rapid and
the smoke, in consequence, so dense as to partially keep the men
from view.

The protracted and arduous service of the unprecedented siege on Morris Island, during July, August
and September, 1863, had so prostrated the men as to render rest and change absolutely essential to
restore the Regiment to its usual efficiency.

Fernandina; October 1, 1863, to April 25, 1864.