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Private James C. Walker

Capture of Mission Ridge by General Thomas. From Frank Leslie's Illustrated Famous Leaders and Battle Scenes of the Civil War.

One of the units participating in the assault of Missionary Ridge was the 31st Ohio Volunteer Infantry regiment (O.V.I.), which was under the brigade command of Brigadier General John B. Turchin. As the battle commenced, the 31st O.V.I. was ordered to take its position as the third line of assault.

Upon reaching the rifle pits at the base of the Confederate breastworks at the bottom of the ridge, the 31st discovered that the first two assault lines were already pinned down by enemy fire. Surveying their position, they soon realized that it was less dangerous to move forward than retreat, especially since the Confederates were already attempting to retreat to the top of the ridge. Colonel Frederick W. Lister, company commander, gave the order: “Forward Thirty-first.”

Portrait of James C. Walker, Private, Co. K, 31st Ohio Infantry. From Deeds of Valor, v.1, p. 290.

Unable to move in unison, men in the regiment advanced as they could. Private James C. Walker was one of the first soldiers to reach the foot of the Confederate breastworks at the summit. When the number of soldiers at the foot reached twenty, Walker took charge. He called out: “Boys are you ready?” When the group responded “yes,” Walker ordered his fellow soldiers over the top of the breastworks.

Looking down into the trenches, the 31st saw the Confederates waiting for them in two lines. The first line was kneeling with fixed bayonets and the second line was lying behind them. With a yell, the 31st threw themselves down into the trenches. Immediately, fierce hand-to-hand combat commenced.

Eventually, the 31st O.V.I. broke through the Confederate line. Moving forward through the line, Walker was hit in the chest with a minie ball, which momentarily knocked the air out of him. At the same time, a shell hit the color bearer of the 31st, Corporal George W. Franklin. Staggering from the loss of blood, Franklin lost his grasp of the colors. Unwilling to let the colors touch the ground, the injured Walker jumped up and saved the flag.

Walker in Battle. From Deeds of Valor, v.1, p. 291.

After Walker saved the colors, the 31st came under attack from a Confederate battery to its left. Rushing forward with his fellow soldiers, Walker was able to pull the fuse out of the first gun. Private Sam Wright then shot the battery commander with his musket. Before too long, the 31st was able to gain control of the battery. Recounting the story, Walker told what happened next: “We drove off the rebel gunners, slewed the guns around and poured their contents into their owners.”

Confederate reinforcements arrived, forcing the 31st to retreat back over the breastworks. The regiment remained in that position until the Union forces launched another attack. As Union forces attacked the Confederates from all sides, the 31st went back over the top of the breastworks. When Walker went over the works a second time, he spotted the color bearer of an Alabama unit and engaged him in a ferocious battle over the possession of the Alabama flag. Eventually, the color bearer surrendered. Throughout the rest of the fighting, Walker, though shot and bleeding, refused to give up the colors of his regiment.

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