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Civil War Congressional Medal of Honor Recipient
First Sergeant George Mason Lovering
A Congressional Medal of Honor winner's story
By Wesley C. Cote/ Historically Speaking
Friday, January 14, 2005 (The following article first appeared in the Jan. 7, 1960 issue of the Sun.-ed.)
I would like to tell the story of a military hero from East Randolph (now Holbrook) who received the highest award this nation can bestow: the Congressional Medal of Honor.
The story is probably not known by anyone in town today and was probably forgotten by even the oldest residents. This hero lies today in a grave in Union Cemetery.
Sometime between 1832 and 1837, James Lovering and his wife Catharine, with their family, moved from Springfield, N. H. and journeyed down into Massachusetts, settling in East Randolph. Eventually Lovering purchased a piece of land, with an old Cape Cod house thereon, located on North Franklin Street where the Clifford residence is now situated.
By 1850, his property amounted to one house, one barn, one shop, and three and a half acres of land. In 1861, he was elected to the position of highway surveyer for District No. 9 in East Randolph. (This was principally the northern part of the present Holbrook.)
Among the children of James and Catherine Lovering was George Mason Lovering, who was born in Springfield, N.H., on Jan. 10. 1832. (One record gives his place of birth as East Randolph, however, this is probably incorrect.) George attended the local schools and without a doubt was a pupil in the old Franklin schoolhouse which was torn down and replaced many years later. He took up the carpenter's trade and bootmaker's trade. Later he became a volunteer fireman, being a steward of the old "Aquarius" engine of East Randolph in 1860.
It appears that George M. Lovering enlisted in the Randolph Light Infantry, which was formed in 1855 from an older organization in the west part of Randolph known as the Sons of Liberty. This group was officially known as Company D, being part of the 4th Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Militia.
On April 12, 1861, the Civil War broke out, and three days later word came for the company to be in Boston the next morning. The company left the Randolph depot (now Holbrook depot) on the morning of April 16 and arrived at the Old Colony depot in Boston, being the first company south of Boston to arrive after the call for troops by the governor.
In the company of Sgt. Lovering (he having been made a sergeant prior to this) were the following men from East Randolph: Sgt. Otis Crooker, Allen J. Crooker, James E. Dawes, John H. Gill, George H. Godwin, and Samuel R. Hodge.
The entire 4th Regiment was quartered at Faneuil Hall until April 17 at which time it boarded a special train for Fall River. This train passed through East Randolph at 9 o'clock in the evening where a number of townspeople had come to the depot to watch their relatives and friends pass by. At Fall River, the regiment boarded the steamer State of Maine which reached Fortress Monroe in Virginia on April 20.
On May 17, a number of men left Randolph to reinforce the company in Virginia, and among these was Isaac J. Lovering, brother of George. Other men from East Randolph in this reinforcement were Charles F. Dawes, Seth M. Harris, Zenas N. Hayden, Henry Joy, Elisha L. Wales, and William L. White. The company occupied Newton News and Hampton, Virginia, and after three months of service returned home, being mustered out on July 22, 1861.
George M. Lovering was home but a short time when he re-enlisted as a private in Read's Company, 3rd Regiment, Mass. Volunteer Cavalry, on Dec. 4, 1861. However on June 15, 1862, he was given a disability discharge at New Orleans, La. Again on Sept. 22, 1882, he re-enlisted, this time in Company I, 4th Regiment, Volunteer Infantry, where he was made 1st Sergeant at Camp Joe Hooker at Lakeville, Mass.
This regiment left Camp Joe Hooker for New York, where it embarked for Louisiana in January, 1863. Here it cooperated with the Navy in the attempt of Admiral Farragut to run past the Confederate batteries at Port Hudson, and it engaged in the attack on Fort Bisland from April 11 to 13.
During the first two weeks in June, 1863, Sgt. Lovering's regiment took part in the siege of Port Hudson on the Mississippi River. On June 14, after prior failures, a grand assault was made on the Confederate works at Port Hudson. New ground was gained and held, but at a total cost of nearly 2,000 Union killed and wounded. It was during this fierce attack that Sgt. Lovering displayed courage for which he was awarded the nation's highest honor.
As stated in the official record, "During a momentary confusion in the ranks caused by other troops rushing upon the regiment, this soldier, with coolness and determination, rendered efficient aid in preventing a panic among the troops." This act of Sgt. Lovering could have very well meant the difference between success and disaster to the Union cause at Port Hudson. For this he was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor.
On July 8, 1863, Port Hudson surrendered, which meant the opening up of the Mississippi to the Union. 7,000 troops, 51 cannons, and all the stores were given up. After this, the 4th Regiment did garrison duty in the captured defenses until the termination of its period of enlistment. The regiment started for home on Aug. 4 and was mustered out at Camp Joe Hooker on Aug. 28.
Sgt. Lovering was later appointed 1st Lieutenant in the 75th U.S. Colored Infantry, but he resigned from this capacity on Dec. 28, 1863. Nothing can be learned about him after the war, and his name does not appear on the poll list in Holbrook for 1872.
Finally in 1919, we find that a small newspaper item declared that the body of a Mr. Lovering was brought to the cemetery here and buried in the family plot. Apparently it was known that he was a Civil War veteran as a G.A.R. flag holder was put upon his grave.
After examining the records, we find that George Mason Lovering died on April 2, 1919 at the age of 87 at St. Mary's Hospital in Lewiston, Me. His residence at the time was Pleasant Street in Auburn, Me. His remains were sent to Holbrook and buried in the family lot in Union Cemetery.
A curious fact is that Mr. Lovering'a death was recorded in the Holbrook death records even though he was not a resident here at the time of his death. It may be that Zenas Aaron French, who was town clerk at the time, was aware of the significance of his past.
George Mason Lovering,
Randolph and Holbrook's Medal of Honor Recipient
The little plot of greenery that is formed by the road realignment at the junction of Union and Center Streets was dedicated on Saturday, May 25, 1998 to the memory of George M. Lovering.
Selectman James Burgess had learned that Lovering had enlisted in the Army while residing in East Randolph and thus is the sole known recipient of the Medal of Honor from the town. Today, East Randolph is now Holbrook, so the two sister communities can share the honor and history of this Civil War era veteran.
Lovering served in the Massachusetts 4th Regiment. During the Civil War state regiments were organized in numerical succession, thus a very low number such as the 4th, indicates a unit formed out of state militia already organized and active before hostilities began in 1861. The Mass.4th was one of those early units that answered Pres. Lincoln's call to rush south and hold onto the border states and the District of Columbia. They served in this role for 90 days, sometimes seen as the origin of the phrase "90 day soldiers". From contemporaneous accounts the unit mustered up at the railroad station before boarding a train into Boston and then onto Baltimore, where local residents showered them with epithets and vegetables, and where a few units actually saw their first casualties. Thus the new memorial to George Lovering overlooks the very spot from whence he left home to go off to war.
After their 90 day service the unit returned to Randolph for a respite and then later Co. D of the 4th Mass. was assigned to the Western theater under the rising star of General Ulysses S. Grant. Eventually joining with many other units to try and take the last Confederate stronghold on the Mississippi, at Port Hudson, Louisiana.
The Battle of Port Hudson
This series of sieges and assaults occurred over a lengthy period extending from at least May of 1863 until the eventual capitulation on July 9, 1863. There was action by both the Union Navy and Army against a Confederate garrison at Port Hudson of about 2,500. Several Navy Medals of Honor were awarded during this series of engagements as well as several Army awards.
Port Hudson was one of only two remaining strongholds that allowed the Confederacy to block free navigation of the Mississippi, the other being Vicksburg and while Port Hudson withstood furious Union naval attacks and artillery barrages along with two major ground assaults, its defenders held out. Only when word of the fall of Vicksburg (July 7, 1863) reached them did they strike their colors aware that they could not hold out indefinitely.
The first ground assault happened on May 23, 1863. This action is significant especially in connection with Sergeant Lovering, as we shall see later, though was not the engagement for which he was awarded the Medal.
Some of the most courageous and unstinting efforts on this day where made by the 1st and 3rd Infantry Regiments of the Louisiana Native Guards (also called the Corps d'Afrique, and the United States Colored Volunteers, generally considered part of what is called "The Black Phalanx", from the book of the same title by Joseph T. Wilson, American Publishing Co., Hartford, Ct., 1892, which recounts the contributions of African-American soldiers from the War for Independence and on to the Western campaigns of the so-termed 'Buffalo Soldiers '.)
To put it in perspective, this happens in late May of 1863, the more famous unit of African-American soldiers the Massachusetts 54th has only formed in February of 1863 and is still in training. But in fact Federal units consisting of former slaves and freemen had been organized since mid 1862 and had already fought several battles. The 54th will first go into gallant action at Fort Wagner, So. Carolina on July 18, 1863, two weeks after Port Hudson has finally surrendered.
The movie 'Glory ' which recounts the Mass. 54th is typical of Hollywood in that what is given with one hand is taken away with the other, since it unkindly and perhaps quite unfairly presents these existing units in a less than favorable light in order to heighten the drama. The Mass. 54th and the 'forgotten' 55th were the first two units organized of African-Americans in the North as state volunteers. An impressive brass relief monument, located on Boston Common opposite the Massachusetts' State House, was dedicated to the Mass. 54th and its commanding officer Robert Gould Shaw. Created by the sculptor Augustus St. Gaudens it further insures this unit's fame. The monument was recently re-dedicated in a ceremony featuring Civil War recreators and highlighted by a keynote speech given by Gen. Colin Powell, U.S.A. ret.
Sergeant Lovering would have been posted to Fort Hudson as part of Co. D of the 4th Mass., but by the date of the action that earns his nation's gratitude he is the First Sergeant of Co. I. 4th Mass. which was probably not fully composed of Randolph/Holbrook residents.
A second major assault occurs starting on June 13, 1863 and lasting until the 14th. Like the May 23rd action this fails to breach the bastion, and results in substantial Union casualties. Both assaults while bold were probably intemperate in the face of the well entrenched defenders, a pattern that is typical of many Civil War era actions.
The actual citation awarding the Medal of Honor to George M. Lovering is as follows: Rank and organization: First Sergeant, Company I, 4th Massachusetts Infantry. Place and date: At Port Hudson, La., 14 June 1863. Entered service at: East Randolph, Mass. Born: 10 January 1832, Springfield, N.H. Date of issue: 19 November 1891. Citation: During a momentary confusion in the ranks caused by other troops rushing upon the regiment, this soldier, with coolness and determination, rendered efficient aid in preventing a panic among the troops.
As the award describes there was poor coordination amongst the various unit commanders. General Banks in overall command had planned an assault on several sides, but in the actual event, Union troop formations ran into one another.
The situation then returns to active siege until July 9, 1963 when the Confederate garrison surrenders upon learning of the fall of Vicksburg.
George Lovering is then offered a commission as a First Lieutenant in the renamed 75th Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops which is formed from the 3rd Infantry Corps d'Afrique. One of three units that fought so well on May 23 and which suffered greatly that day. His record then follows this unit which means that he stays in the bayous of Louisiana until mustered out in 1865. Lovering eventually lived at a veteran's home in Maine, and died at St. Mary's hospital in Lewiston in 1919, aged 87.
What follows is a brief history of the 75th Regiment, its commanding officer and its place in the historical record of Civil War and the Afro-American soldiers who served during and afterwards.
75th Regiment Infantry .
Organized April 4, 1864, from 3rd Corps d'Afrique Infantry. Attached to 1st Brigade, 1st Division, Corps d'Afrique, Dept. of the Gulf, to February, 1865. District of LaFourche, Dept. of the Gulf, to November, 1865.
SERVICE.-Red River Campaign March 10-May 22, 1864. Advance from Franklin to Alexandria, La., March 14-26. Retreat from Alexandria to Morganza May 13-20. Mansura May 16. Near Moreauville May 17. Yellow Bayou May 18. Duty at Morganza till February, 1865. Ordered to Terre Bonne February 26. Duty there and in the District of LaFourche till November, 1865. Expedition to Lake Verret, Grand Lake and the Park April 2-10, 1865. Operations about Brashear City April 30-May 12. Mustered out November 25, 1865.
Predecessor unit:
CORPS D'AFRIQUE.-UNITED STATES COLORED VOLUNTEERS.
3rd REGIMENT INFANTRY.
Organized June 6, 1863, from 3rd Louisiana Native Guard Infantry. Attached to 1st Division, 19th Army Corps, Dept. of the Gulf, to July, 1863. Port Hudson, La., to September, 1863. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, Corps d'Afrique, Dept. of the Gulf, to April, 1864.
SERVICE.-Assault on Port Hudson, La., June 14, 1863. Surrender of Port Hudson July 9. Duty at Port Hudson till April, 1864. Skirmish at Jackson August 3, 1863. Designation of Regiment changed to 75th United States Colored Troops April 4, 1864.
SERVICE.-Red River Campaign March 10-May 22, 1864. Advance from Franklin to Alexandria, La., March 14, 1965.
George Lovering was offered a commission as a first lieutenant of the 75th Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops. A unit reorganized from the 3rd Regiment, Corps D'Afrique. Lieutenant Lovering, appears to have served the remainder of the War with this regiment.
They participated in what came to be called the Red River Campaign. This was a series of fierce though ultimately futile attempts by Union General Banks to extend control westward to the Red River valley (same as the folk song.) A new biography of Gen. Banks, entitled Pretense of Glory is scheduled to be published by the Louisiana State University Press in November, Banks had been twice elected to Congress from Massachusetts and served as Speaker. He was a rising star in the then new Republican Party, rumored to be of possible presidential timber. In the end Banks never quite seemed to achieve the glory he sought.
Several speculations arise about why George Lovering accepted this commission. Primarily, it would have been a nominal promotion (every G.I knows or soon learns that the sergeants really run the army.) However, he may have wanted to continue to serve under Banks, someone whose political record he would have known before the war. Lovering may have been active or at least interested in politics prior to 1861, there are some tantalizing threads suggesting same which need more research and some luck to confirm.
The 75th regiment was reorganized from the 3rd regiment, Corps D'Afrique and that from the Louisiana Native Guards . In 1995. Louisiana State University also published a book entitled the Louisiana Native Guards, The Black Military Experience during the Civil War . And quite a story it is, this unit was first organized by the Confederacy, as a home guard and almost surely for propaganda reasons, as they go on to serve the Union at the first opportunity. They truly opted for liberty in the face of a clear danger to life. After the War many of the veterans were active in the early Civil Rights struggle. To paraphrase one soldier's expression: struggle was their normal lot.
French names such as the Corps D'Afrique and even french uniforms (the Zouaves for example) were popular in that time. But the french name may have also reflected the language spoken by many of the troopers. Even a hundred years later parts of Louisiana spoke mostly French due to the Cajun (Acadian) influence. It may be that George Lovering needed to parlez francais to converse with his new unit's soldiers.
In July of this year the newest memorial in Washington was unveiled. Located in the Shaw neighborhood of Washington which name derives from Col. Robert Gould Shaw who commanded the Massachusetts 54th regiment, the first state regiment of black troops (the Corps d'Afrique actually predates that both in organization and in its baptism of fire.) This memorial commemorates all the soldiers and sailors who served in the USCT and the Union Navy. It also recognizes their families and features three aspects, one for the soldiers, one for the sailors and the third depicts the women and children of the family.
Whilst probably not of African-American ancestry himself, Lovering's name is proudly carried on the rolls as one of the more 225,000 soldiers and sailors who served in the United States Colored Troops and U.S. Navy. His name is on plaque C-82. So if you visit Washington D.C. you can use this to help locate this further memorial to a son of Randolph/Holbrook.
Information for this report derived from: Wes Cote, Holbrook Historian; U.S. Military History Archives; National Park Services-U.S. Colored Troops Database; and Henry Cooke IV, Randolph Historian.
The Fight for Equal Rights: Black Soldiers in the Civil War
CITATION:
Rank and organization: First Sergeant, Company I, 4th Massachusetts Infantry. Place and date: At Port Hudson, La., 14 June 1863. Entered service at: East Randolph, Mass. Born: 10 January 1832, Springfield, N.H. Date of issue: 19 November 1891. Citation: During a momentary confusion in the ranks caused by other troops rushing upon the regiment, this soldier, with coolness and determination, rendered efficient aid in preventing a panic among the troops.
Courtesy of Find A Grave
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