The Following is published in Patricia Fife Medert’s Dear Companion… Yours untill death, her transcriptions of the 60 or so letters from Jacob that are in the Ross County Historical Society in Chillicothe, Ohio. Her transcriptions include his typical spelling patterns.
“Mission Ridge, Chattanooga Tenn.
Nov. 30, 1863
Dear Companion and Friends
It is my blessed privalidge again after passing through another desperate battle to inform you that I am yet safe and unhurt. I think we cannot be to thankful for the protecting power that has shielded me through this desperate struggle. No doubt you have heard of this desperate battle and our glorious success and I fear you have passed many hours of uneasiness about me and wel can I immagion your joy when you get the word that I have passed through the whole fight with my regiment and brigaid and that I am yet spared to tell the tale.
After an injenious manieuver of troops we left our camp early on Monday the 23d and took a position in front east of Lookout. Here we skirmished some and shelling was kept up all day from our forts, throwing them over us. At about 10 oclock Hookers force opened on our right the west of Lookout and very soon heavy musketry ensued. Hooker soon advanced on a charge at the side of the mountain driving the enemy before them. Our loss was very heavy but our men mooved steadily forward. our artilery in the forts wer continualy hailing shot and shell into the retreating enemy who retreaded slowly and stubbornly. They soon came in full view of us, the enemy in considerable confusion and our men in good order with their lines in the shape of a harrow. The advance finaly broke the rebs center when our forces sepparated to the advance point. Our left division swung their right around and down the hill capturing a brigaid of rebs. Our right divion swung there right up to the rocky cliff of Lookout and took the advance along the foot of this cliff of rocks and held this position fighting until midnight when the enemy gave way which left Lookout with a large lot of artilery and prisoners in our possession. The scene of the fighting after night was a rare sight as we could see the flash of every gun.
On Tuesday the 24th cannonaiding was kept up all day all along our lines and feeling the enemys position. The night of the 24th Gen. Sherman crossed the river above and on the morning of the 25th he opened out on our left at the North East end of what is called missionary ridge a high and narrow ridge running N.E. & S.W. This ridge was occupied and fortified about 5 miles along its heights besides other works at the foot of the ridge. About noon we wer shifted further to the left and after some maneuvering we wer ordered to charge the ridge. No sooner said than our whole brigaid raised the yel and started. We had to go about a half mil across an open field under a heavy cross fire of grape canester shell and musketry and up a long and very steep hil but we went steadily forwared untill we arrived at the works on the top of the hill notwithstanding we had left many of our comrads dead or wounded on the side of the hill behind us. We raised a yel and charged over the works killing hundreds of rebs in their own works and captured or killed many more as they ran out and down the opposite side of the ridge. Our brigaid captured near 2000 prisners and 37 pieces of artilery and I cant say how many small arms. But the victory was not confiened to us alone. It was the case all along the ridge. Our victory is compleet and I think to say the least of it, it is the grandest success of this war….”
Patricia F. Medert, ed., Dear Compannion…Yours Untill Death Jacob Shively 89th Regt. O.V.I.: The Civil War Letters of Jacob Shively (Chillicothe, Ohio: Ross County Historical Society, 2001), 29-30.
A Thousand Thunders 