The Battle of Antietam was on September 17th, 1862, marking this year as the 164th anniversary of the battle. Soldiers in battle today have dog-tags with their name, rank, and possibly a location of what unit they served with. However, in the 1860s, this was not on the minds of soldiers. They would usually write letters and leave them on them. When they passed, the letters would tell the future person that if they were killed in battle, here’s who they would have to contact. One of these such soldiers is Captain Allen Zacharias of Company K within the 7th Michigan.
A little background about this soldier is very interesting. Even though he was a native of Washington County, Maryland, he moved to Michigan and graduated from the University of Michigan. When he was fighting within the Peninsula Campaign, he wrote a short autobiography on a piece of paper which he kept with him. On the other side of the note he wrote:
Friend: If you find my body lifeless upon the field, bury it decently, mark its resting place, and inform my friends in the regiment and my father. Do this and you shall be liberally rewarded and have the gratitude of my friends.
He would survive the Peninsula Campaign and move with the 7th Michigan towards Antietam. Here, sadly, his fate would change and he knew he had little time left after getting shot. When he was lying on the ground between the West Woods and Dunker Church, Capt. Allen Zacharias wrote a note to his family:
Dear Parents, Brothers and Sisters: I am wounded, mortally I think. The fight rages around me. I have done my duty, this is my consolation. I hope to meet you all again. I left not the line until nearly all had fallen and the colors gone. I am getting weak, my arms are free, but my chest is all numb. The enemy trotting over me, the numbness up to my heart. Goodbye all. Your son, Allen.
(Courtesy of The Red Book of Michigan; a Civil, Military, and Biographical History by Charles Lanman)
In fact, Capt. Zacharias was mortally wounded at Antietam. When soldiers found him, he was taken to a hospital in Hagerstown and died on December 31st. His letters to his family were sent to his father. When he passed away, several family members from Maryland were there with him, and he would pass away in the same county in which he was born.
His family story is unique. He had two brothers that also served in the Civil War, one within his own company.
- His first brother was Alexander K. Zacharias. He would enlist with Company K in the 7th Michigan in August 1861 along with his brother, Allen. He would survive Antietam.
- His second brother, Private Melville Zacharias, would enlist in Company M, of the 8th Cavalry. He was captured in November 1864, and became a prisoner of war.
The steamer Sultana had a max capacity of 375 passengers, but during the explosion, over 2,300 soldiers were on board at the time. Over 1547 lives were lost, with soldiers from Tennessee, Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, and Virginia heading north on the river. Both brothers somehow ended up on the Sultana on April 27th, 1865 when the ship exploded. Allen’s first brother, Alexander, survived the explosion, while Melville perished. There were prisoners from Andersonville and Cahaba gaining their freedom back, only to lose their lives on the mighty Mississippi.