The distasteful quality of food in the Army is a long-standing joke among those in the know, but the problem became so bad during Civil War recruitment in Niagara County that it nearly provoked a mutiny.
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This problem had its roots in the July 1, 1862, call of President Abraham Lincoln to raise 300,000 volunteers to fight the South in the Civil War. A Niagara Falls man, Col. Franklin Spalding, immediately began raising a regiment.
Despite a surge of patriotism as the war broke out, securing volunteers was no easy task. As the war progressed and casualties mounted, recruitment became even more of a challenge.
In Niagara Falls, in forming Company B of a new 151st Regiment, Col. Spalding solicited the help of wealthy businessmen and even some young women to help. Businessmen offered new volunteers $15 to sign up. Newspaper accounts said one Miss Vogt came up with $15 for a recruit and Miss Witmer offered $25.
Eventually Company B was filled up and Capt. Frederick W. Coleman was named captain. At that time, new recruits were sent to the old fairgrounds in Lockport, where a training camp had been set up. Company B reported there on Aug. 7, 1862.
The training apparently went well enough, but the food was a different matter. The company contracted to feed the troops was none too careful about serving hot meals. The troops complained that the bowls of soup were so cold there was a ring of grease on top.
The potatoes were cold and mushy and the bread spoiled. Some troopers found pieces of dishcloth in their food. The men charged that the food was not fit for human consumption.
A group of men, headed by chief instigator Sgt. Fred Derrick, took matters into their own hands. They overturned the tables containing the unfit food, scattering it about the grounds, then stormed back to their barracks.
Sgt. Derrick faced a court martial but, having the lousy food as evidence, he was let off with a reprimand. In any event, the food service improved considerably after that.
Just before the 151st arrived at the boot camp in Lockport, the 8th Heavy Artillery left for frontline duty. Remaining at the camp was a rifle company recruited mostly in Orleans County. That group became Company A of the 151st Regiment.
Company H was recruited in Lockport, but the volunteers came from throughout the county. One volunteer, Watson C. McNall, of McNall's Corners in Royalton, left a diary of his military experience. About the recruitment, he wrote the following:
"Well do I remember the stirring tunes of fife and drum in all the small town school houses. Speeches were made and offers to care for the families of those enlisting. The town, county and state offered a bounty to those who would enlist.
"I recall vividly the meeting at Royalton Center the night I enlisted. It was addressed by County Judge Alfred Holmes and other prominent lawyers and ministers. How proudly we marched up and signed our names for three years or the duration of the war. We were anxious to secure the 100 men necessary for the Company. We had a recruiting office in Lockport."
McNall told of one man who appeared too old and unkempt and was turned away. To remedy the situation, McNall wrote, "I got a horse and buggy and went to his home in Pendleton Center and took him to a barber shop in Lockport where he was shaved and his hair cut and colored. The next day, he was accepted by the surgeon."
| Niagara Falls Reporter | www.niagarafallsreporter.com | Dec. 28 2004 |