Sunday, 4th.—We made a short march of about twelve miles, and bivouacked at a beautiful place within fourteen miles of Livingston.
Hancock’s Diary: or, A History of The Second Tennessee Cavalry.–Richard R. Hancock.
Saturday, 3d.—Moving on through Chestnut Mound, we encamped in quite a rough section of country, in Putnam County, after a march of about twenty-one miles.
Friday, 2d.—The two companies marched on through New Middleton, crossed the Caney Fork River at Trousdale’s Ferry, and camped on the east bank of that stream.
Thursday, Aug. 1st. — We (Ewing’s and Allison’s Companies) moved on through Lebanon and bivouacked seven miles beyond, on the Livingston road.
Wednesday, 31st.— Two companies (C and E) of the First Battalion, setting out from Camp Jackson, passed through Gallatin, crossed Cumberland River at Wood’s Ferry, and camped for the night one mile and a half from the river, on the Lebanon road. The other three companies, starting from Nashville, moved by a different route, crossing the Cumberland at Carthage, and uniting with us at Livingston.
Tuesday, July 30th.—Having received our clothing, saddles, and one month’s pay, we were busy making the necessary preparations for our anticipated march.
News having reached Auburn, Cannon County, that the First Battalion would start to East Tennessee in a few days, quite a number of the friends and relatives of our company (Allison’s) paid us a visit, about the 24th of July, at Camp Jackson. They brought trunks and boxes filled with "good things" to eat. How, for the next three or four days, we did enjoy the company of our friends and relatives, as well as eating the good things they brought for us! Had I an eloquent pen I would here use it in describing those few but bright days. They were, in comparison with the rest of our soldier life, like an oasis in a great desert.
On the morning of the 28th most of our friends set out on their return home, and the three companies enlisted at Nashville (Harris’s, Horn’s, and Payne’s) had previously gone to that place to visit relatives and friends before starting eastward. Allison’s and Ewing’s Companies were still at Camp Jackson.
Friday, 28th.—As Tennesseans were then offering their services faster than the state was prepared to arm and equip them, it was after hard begging that Governor Isham G. Harris gave his consent to have our company mustered into service; and as he would not receive more than seventy-six men, including the officers, eight of our company had to return home.
About eleven o’clock A. M., the Auburn Company (known afterward as the “Sangs”) was sworn into service by J. G. Picket.
(Muster-rolls in the book at this point will not be included here.)
Thursday, 27th.—On arriving at Nashville, after a ride of about twenty-two miles, we took quarters at the fair grounds.
By the request of some of my friends and comrades, I have, on this the 16th of June, 1885, commenced rewriting my War Diary for the purpose of having it published in book form.
Unfortunately, the first month of my Diary has been torn out and lost; so I will have to state some things from memory, without giving exact dates all the time.
Wednesday, June 26th, 1861.—Eighty-four men, having previously organized themselves into a company and elected T. M. Allison Captain, met on the above date, at Auburn, Cannon County, Tennessee, for the purpose of starting to Nashville to offer their services to their native State for twelve months. The writer was one of the eighty-four.
Notwithstanding that the above named period is now nearly one-quarter of a century in the past, that day of parting is still green in the memory of the surviving soldiers and citizens of the Auburn vicinity.
Oh! the thought of parting from our friends, relatives, and especially our sweethearts, was enough to make us feel sad, as we did not know that we would ever see them again on earth.
After the “final farewell” to our friends “had been said,” we left Auburn in time to go (about twenty-three miles) to Judge Ridley’s the first day. The Judge lived in Rutherford County, near Old Jefferson.
