A Humanitarian Act

After each Union assault on June 27, hundreds of casualties lay between the lines. By afternoon, wounded Union soldiers lying helpless near here faced a new danger as flames started by the battle’s gunfire crept steadily toward them. Lt. Col. William P. Martin, commanding the 1st & 15th Consolidated Arkansas Regiment, jumped onto the earthworks and ordered his Confederates to cease fire. Waving a white flag of truce, Martin shouted to the Federals, “Come and remove your wounded. They are burning to death.” For a brief time, Northerners and Southerners alike rescued the wounded and put out the fires. The next day, Union officers presented Colonel Martin with a pair of Colt revolvers in appreciation of his humanitarian act.

Georgia · United States