Well, I’ve managed to comb several different sources and reports regarding casualties taken by the 1st Rifles at Dranesville. However, I’ve found many discrepancies in the numbers that are given by each source. It made me wonder as to who was closest to being correct regarding the number of casualties at that battle. So I went through several reports, company muster roll sheets, and battle/regimental histories to see how many I could find.
The following is the name of the source from which I got the original number of casualties.
1. Sypher, Justin R. "History of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps." Chapter 4, Page 107.
2. Bates, Samuel P. "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers 1861-65." -Bates’ lists 3 Killed and 5 (including officers) wounded.
3. Kane, Lt. Col. Thomas L. O.R.I.V., Pg 489. -Kane Reports 3 Killed, 27 (including officers) wounded.
After combing names I’ve found in the muster roll sheets of the regiment, and those mentioned in reports, I’ve managed to comply a reasonable list of those who were among the killed, wounded and captured. Although it is not known exactly how many men fell, I think my list gives a pretty good account without exceeding more names then I’ve found.
KILLED 1. Corporal Samuel Galbraith, Company B - Killed 2. Private George Raup, Company B - Killed 3. Private George Cook, Company E - Killed OFFICERS - WOUNDED 1. Lieutenant Colonel Thomas L. Kane, commanding officer of the 1st Pa Rifles, Wounded. 2. Captain Alanson E. Niles, Company E, Seriously Wounded.
ENLISTED/NCO’s - WOUNDED 1. Private Francis A. Foster, Company B 2. Private John Pennell, Company B 3. Sergeant Enoch Barnum, Company C 4. Private Nelson Geer, Company D 5. Sergeant George A. Ludlow, Company E 6. Private Samuel W. Campbell, Company E 7. Private Barzillia K. Dewey, Company E 8. Private Parish Mosier, Company E 9. Private Edward Osborn, Company E 10. Private Benjamin B. Potter, Company E 11. Private George Bott, Company F 12. Private Charles Meddler (Middler?), Company F 13. Private Thomas Furlong, Company G 14. Private John B. Brink, Company H 15. Private Robert T. Lane (Lain?), Company I 16. Private John F. Barnes, Company K 17. Private James Glenn, Company K CAPTURED/MISSING 1. Private Lewis McGraff, Company E I have found and listed a total of 3 Killed, 19 Wounded & 1 Captured/Missing. Below you will find my sources for each man I have listed.
1. Galbraith, Samuel: Listed as Killed in Action at Dranesville December 20, 1861. Source: Bates’ "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers"; Sypher’s "History of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps"; Muster Roll of Company E, 1st Pennsylvania Rifles, "History of the Bucktails."
2. Raup, George: See Above Sources (#1.) And Company B Muster Roll.
3. Cook, George: See Above Sources (#1.) In Addition, Thomson & Rauch state in "History of the Bucktails" that "it is probably not out of place to mention here the death of George Cook, of Company E, after whom the G.A.R., Post 315, of Wellsboro, is named, he being the first man from Wellsboro County to die in battle [Dranesville]."
4. Kane, Thomas L: Although there is no mention of his own wound in his after action report, he was wounded when struck in the face (upper right jaw) by a bullet in the right side of his face, knocking out some teeth and producing long-term difficulty with his vision. Source: Bates’ "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers"; Sypher’s "History of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps"; Thomson & Rauch’s "History of the Bucktails"; John D. Imhof’s "Two Roads to Gettysburg, Thomas Lieper Kane and the 13th Pennsylvania Reserves" Gettysburg Magazine #9, July, 1993; Larry Tagg’s "The Generals of Gettysburg-The leaders of America’s Greatest Battle."
5. Niles, Alanson E: I could only find his name mentioned as wounded in Thomas L. Kane’s after action report, as well as a report made by S.D.Freeman, who was the regimental surgeon of the Bucktails at that time. He was leading at the head of his Company while the regiment was charging the enemy, "till a bullet, piercing his lung, made him drop to the ground." The wound he suffered was a very serious one, as Kane wrote: "I trust the life of Captain Niles will be spared to his friends" All information comes from Sypher’s "History of the Pennsylvania Reserve Corps"& Thomson & Rauch’s "History of the Bucktails."
6. Barnum, Bott, Lain & Meddler: Listed as wounded in both Bates’ "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers" & Muster Roll of Companies C, F & I in Thompson & Rauch’s "History of the Bucktails."
7. Lane, Robert T.: He is found listed in Bates’ "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers" with his last name being spelled as "LANE." However, he is listed as "LAIN" on the Company Muster Roll in "History of the Bucktails."
8. Meddler, Charles: He is found listed in Bates’ "History of Pennsylvania Volunteers" with his last name spelled as "Meddler." However, he is listed as "Middler" on the Company Muster Roll in "History of the Bucktails."
9. Galbraith, Raup & Cook: Listed as killed in all sources, Bates’, Sypher, Thompson & Rauch and according to Muster Roll Sheets.
10. Foster, Pennell, Geer, Ludlow, Campbell, Dewey, Mosier, Osborn, Potter, Furlong, Brink, Barnes & Glenn: These names are found listed in Bates’ History of Pennsylvania Volunteers. However they do not list that they received wounds at Dranesville. Thompson & Rauch’s Muster Roll Sheets do list them as being among the wounded at the battle.
11. McGraff, Lewis: McGraff is listed in the Company E Muster Roll as "Captured at Dranesville, December 20, 1861." Bates’ does not have anything listed regarding him being captured at Dranesville. He maybe one of the two soldiers stated to be captured by General McCall before the battle. In orders to General Ord from McCall before the battle, McCall states that "The object of the expedition is two-fold. In the first place, to drive back the enemy's pickets, which have advanced within four or five miles of our lines, and have carried off two good Union men and threatened others; and secondly, to procure a supply or forage." However he is listed in Bates’ as "Transferred to the 190th Pa Vols" at the end of the 1st Rifles enlistment.
That concludes my list of casualties suffered at Dranesville, the Bucktails first real taste of battle. It seems that both Kane & Sypher come up with 30-31. I was able to find only 22, between 8-9 short of what they have. The men I was unable to find in order to coincide along with Kane and Sypher’s numbers, probably suffered the same fate as Captain Niles, who was seriously wounded but failed to make it in the muster roll sheets as wounded at that battle.
