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This post is part of the Donohoo Descendancy Project. Marsh B. Taylor was the husband of Sudie Bishop, the daughter of Sarah Ann (Donohoo) Bishop, and the granddaughter of Patrick and Sarah (Thornbury) Donohoo.


 

Read Part I of this series here.

On January 19, 1862, the 10th Indiana Volunteer Infantry battled at Mills Springs, Kentucky. “Mill Springs was the first significant Union victory of the war.” [9] Among the actions of the day, the Union troops took supplies from the enemy: “We took about 2,000 head of horses and mules, 250 wagons, 14 cannon, two of which were captured by them from us at Bull Run, some 4000 or 5000 stand of arms and any number of flags. Company H, Captain Marsh B. Taylor, one silk flag.” [1 page 153] Captain Marsh B. Taylor took the flag in the thick of the action of the battle and was much commended for his actions: “The Louisville Journal contains the following: Our readers will all remember the Confederate flag captured on the battle field where Zollicoffer fell, which was inscribed, “Presented to the Mountain Rangers, Capt. F.A. Ashton, by Mrs. Chardavoyne.” This trophy was secured by Captain Marsh B. Taylor, of company A, 10th Indiana regiment, in the very wildest fight, and the brave Captain deserves every honor for the deed. The flag was forwarded to General Buell…”[10]


The President of the United States acknowledged his service with a nomination for brevet promotion: “The [April 5, 1862] Times dispatch says: The President sent to the Senate to-day the following nominations for brevet promotions for gallant and meritorious services in the battle of Mills Springs, Kentucky: …Captains Samuel H. Shortle, and Marsh B. Taylor and John N. Perkins, 10th Indiana volunteers, to be respectively Majors…” [11]


Marsh’s father also noticed and recognized his bravery:

“During the lifetime of the late Colonel Marsh B. Taylor, he was the habit of having an

open account with his father, the late John Taylor. When the Colonel needed money—

which was not unfrequent—he went to his father and got the same, and it was

charged up to him, as though he were a stranger. About the time the rebellion

broke out Marsh’s account was getting pretty large, and to fit the young man out

Additional  loan had to be made, and the account was $1,600, which was a pretty

considerabte sum of money those times; but the lender had faith in his creditor,

and the matter stood as an open account. The creditor went to the front

and nothing was said about the account until the battle of Mill Springs was

fought. The news came to this city that the 10th Indiana was in the fight,

and that it had behaved gallentiy [sic], and that Mr. Taylor’s creditor had discharged

his duty with great bravery. This was very gratifying news to Taylor and he concluded

to look over the books and give Marsh credit for some thing. He got down the book,

and figured up the interest with great care, and when this was done he wrote “M.B.

Taylor, by service at Mill Springs, to balance the above account.” The father and son

were the only persons that knew of the matter until after the death of the father

and the transaction was found in the books.” [12]
Captain Taylor was promoted to Major Taylor on 15 August 1862. [6, 7, 8]


Major Marsh B. Taylor was next recognized for his service in the Battle of Perryville, 8 October 1862. Colonel William C. Kise ended his official report with this commendation of the men he called his “three tigers”:
“In closing this brief report, I would be doing injustice to

the officers and men of my command were I not to speak of

the promptness with which my every order was obeyed and

executed and the gallantry of officers and men of the regiment.

Every line oficer on the field was at his post. Lieutenant

Colonel William B. Carroll, Major Marsh B. Taylor and Ad-

jutant John W. Hardin rendered me invaluable assistance by

their energy. coolness and courage on the field.” [1, page 176]
Marsh was shortly after promoted to Lieutenant Colonel on 18 November 1862. [6, 7, 8]

The 10th Indiana Volunteer Infantry spent time in lighter service from January to June 1863, at Stewart Creek, Tennessee:
“Our stay at Stewart‘s Creek [Tennessee] was pleasant and extended

from January 22, 1863 to June 2, 1863, when we rejoined

our division at Triune, Tenn. There was plenty of picket

duty, fatigue duty and foraging, all of which was performed

with alacrity and interspersed, as we went along, with lots of fun.
The fort which we built here was a small earthwork, suf-

ficient for four guns, and after its completion was occupied

by a section of Southwick’s battery. It was named Fort Taylor,

in honor of Lieutenant Colonel Marsh B. Taylor of our regi-

ment. During the first part of April Colonel Carroll, who had

been home on a leave of absence, returned…” [1, page 202]
The August 26, 1863 Civil War draft registration lists Marsh B. Taylor, as a 28 year old Gentleman, with brothers RJ Taylor, a 19 year old student, and WCL (William Calvin Linton) Taylor, a 25 year old Attorney. [13] No further evidence has been found about RJ Taylor’s military service. WCL Taylor advanced to the rank of Colonel in his regiment.


Images in this post:

Portrait of Lieut. Marsh B. Taylor.  Shaw, James Birney. History of the Tenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry: Three Months and Three Years Organizations. Lafayette, Indiana: 1912. Accessed on 25 November 2015 at ­https­://­archive­.­org­/­stream­/­historyoftenthre00inshaw­. Also accessed on 25 November 2015 at ­https­://­books­.­google­.­com­/­books­?­id­=­7K1xAAAAMAAJ­&­num­=­9­. Page 123.

Battle of Mill Spring, Ky. Jan 19th 1862. Currier & Ives. New York] : Currier & Ives, [1862?]. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Catalog Number 90709067. Accessed at loc.gov on 1 January 2016.

Battle of Perryville–the extreme left– Starkweather’s brigade. Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Catalog Number 2003664891. Accessed at loc.gov on 1 January 2016.

Throwing up earthworks to prevent a night attack. Waud, Alfred R. (Alfred Rudolph), 1828-1891, artist. [between 1860 and 1865]. Morgan collection of Civil War drawings (Library of Congress). Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA. Catalog Number 2004660724. Accessed at loc.gov on 2 January 2016.
Sources & Research Notes:

[1] Shaw, James Birney. History of the Tenth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry: Three Months and Three Years Organizations. Lafayette, Indiana: 1912. Accessed on 25 November 2015 at ­https­://­archive­.­org­/­stream­/­historyoftenthre00inshaw­. Also accessed on 25 November 2015 at ­https­://­books­.­google­.­com­/­books­?­id­=­7K1xAAAAMAAJ­&­num­=­9­. Page 104, 123, 153, 156, 176, 177, 186-187, 202, 229-235, 263-264, 275, 276, 298-299, 321-323.
[2] For more information and documentation on the Taylor family, please see my public Ancestry.com tree at http://person.ancestry.com/tree/42516833/person/28884429415/facts.
[3] John Taylor household. US Census Year: 1850; Census Place: Lafayette Ward 5, Tippecanoe, Indiana; Roll: M432_175; Page: 102B; Image: 209. Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Seventh Census of the United States, 1850; ‎(National Archives Microfilm Publication M432, 1009 rolls)‎; Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
[4] John Taylor household. US Census Year: 1860; Census Place: Lafayette, Tippecanoe, Indiana; Roll: M653_300; Page: 901; Image: 573; Family History Library Film: 803300. Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: 1860 U.S. census, population schedule. NARA microfilm publication M653, 1,438 rolls. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.
[5] MB Taylor in the household of Geo H Hoy. US Census Year: 1850; Census Place: Calaveras District, Calaveras, California; Roll: M432_33; Page: 162B; Image: 328. Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. Images reproduced by FamilySearch. Original data: Seventh Census of the United States, 1850; ‎(National Archives Microfilm Publication M432, 1009 rolls)‎; Records of the Bureau of the Census, Record Group 29; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
[6] Marsh B. Taylor. National Park Service. U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865 ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2007. Original data: National Park Service, Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, online <http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/>, acquired 2007.
[7] Marsh B. Taylor. Historical Data Systems, comp. U.S., Civil War Soldier Records and Profiles, 1861-1865 ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2009. Original data: Data compiled by Historical Data Systems of Kingston, MA from the following list of works. Copyright 1997-2009 Historical Data Systems, Inc. PO Box 35 Duxbury, MA 02331.
[8] Marsh B. Taylor. Ancestry.com. Web: Indiana, Civil War Soldier Database Index, 1861-1865 ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015. Original data: Civil War. Indiana State Digital Archives. https://secure.in.gov/apps/iara/search/: accessed 2 February 2015.
[9] “Battle of Mills Springs.” Wikipedia. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mill_Springs. Accessed on 2 January 2016.
[10] “The Louisville Journal contains…” The Evansville daily journal. (Evansville, Ia. [i.e. Ind.]) 1848-1862, February 12, 1862, Image 1. Image provided by Indiana State Library. Accessed at http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov on 28 December 2015.
[11] “The Times dispatch says…” Daily Ohio statesman. (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, April 05, 1862, Image 3. Image provided by Ohio Historical Society, Columbus, OH. Accessed at http://chroniclingamerica.loc.gov on 28 December 2015.
[12] “Credited for Bravery.” Madison Dollar Weekly Star (Madison, Indiana). 5 August 1879. Page 1. Accessed at newspaperarchive.com via myheritage.com on 30 December 2015.
[13] Marsh B. Taylor, WCL Taylor, RJ Taylor. National Archives and Records Administration ‎(NARA)‎; Consolidated Lists of Civil War Draft Registration Records ‎(Provost Marshal General’s Bureau; Consolidated Enrollment Lists, 1863-1865)‎; Record Group: 110, Records of the Provost Marshal General’s Bureau ‎(Civil War)‎; Collection Name: Consolidated Enrollment Lists, 1863-1865 ‎(Civil War Union Draft Records)‎; ARC Identifier: 4213514; Archive Volume Number: 4 of 4. Ancestry.com. U.S., Civil War Draft Registrations Records, 1863-1865 ‎[database on-line]‎. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. Original data: Consolidated Lists of Civil War Draft Registrations, 1863-1865. NM-65, entry 172, 620 volumes. ARC ID: 4213514. Records of the Provost Marshal General’s Archives at Washington D.C.


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