Darius Nash Couch | |
|---|---|
 Portrait byMathew Bradyc. 1861–1862 | |
| Born | (1822-07-23)July 23, 1822 Putnam County, New York, US |
| Died | February 12, 1897(1897-02-12) (aged 74) Norwalk, Connecticut, US |
| Place of burial | |
| Allegiance |  United States (Union) |
| Service | United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1846–1855, 1861–1865 |
| Rank |  Major General |
| Commands | II Corps,Army of the Potomac Department of the Susquehanna 2nd Division,XXIII Corps |
| Battles / wars | Mexican–American War Seminole Wars American Civil War |
| Signature |  |
Darius Nash Couch[1] (July 23, 1822 – February 12, 1897) was an American soldier, businessman, andnaturalist. He served as a careerU.S. Army officer during theMexican–American War, theSecond Seminole War, and as ageneral officer in theUnion Army during theAmerican Civil War.
During the Civil War, Couch fought notably in thePeninsula andFredericksburg campaigns of 1862, and theChancellorsville andGettysburg campaigns of 1863. He rose to command acorps in theArmy of the Potomac, and leddivisions in both theEastern Theater andWestern Theater.Militia under his command played a strategic role during the Gettysburg Campaign in delaying the advance ofConfederate troops of theArmy of Northern Virginia and preventing their crossing theSusquehanna River, critical toPennsylvania's defense.
He has been described as personally courageous, very thin in build, and (after his time in Mexico) frail of health.[2]
Couch[3] was born in 1822 on a farm in the village ofSoutheast inPutnam County, New York, and was educated at the local schools there.[4] In 1842 he entered theUnited States Military Academy atWest Point, graduating four years later 13th out of 59 cadets. On July 1, 1846, Couch was commissioned abrevetsecond lieutenant and was assigned to the 4th U.S. Artillery.[5]
Couch then saw action with the U.S. Army during theMexican–American War, most notably in theBattle of Buena Vista on February 22–23, 1847. For his actions on the second day of this fight, he was brevetted afirst lieutenant for "gallant and meritorious conduct." After the war ended in 1848 Couch began serving ingarrison duty atFort Monroe inHampton, Virginia. The following year he was stationed atFort Pickens, located nearPensacola, Florida, and then inKey West. Couch next participated in theSeminole Wars during 1849 and into 1850.[6]
Returning to garrison duty, later that year Couch was sent toFort Columbus inNew York Harbor, and in 1851 Couch was involved in recruiting atJefferson Barracks located on theMississippi River atLemay, Missouri. Later in 1851 he returned to Fort Columbus, and then was ordered toFort Johnston inSouthport, North Carolina, staying there into 1852, and next in garrison atFort Mifflin inPhiladelphia until 1853.[6]
Couch then took a one-year leave of absence from the army from 1853 to 1854 to conduct a scientific mission for theSmithsonian Institution in northernMexico. There, he discovered the species that are known asCouch's kingbird andCouch's spadefoot toad.[7] Upon his return to the United States in 1854, Couch was ordered toWashington, D.C., on detached service. Later that year he resumed garrison duty inFort Independence atCastle Island alongBoston Harbor,Massachusetts. Also in 1854 he was stationed atFort Leavenworth,Kansas, and would remain there into the following year. On April 30, 1855, Couch resigned his commission in the U.S. Army. From 1855 to 1857 he was a merchant inNew York City.[6] He then moved toTaunton, Massachusetts, and worked as acopper fabricator in the company owned by his wife's family. Couch was still working in Taunton when the American Civil War began in 1861.[7]
At the outbreak of the Civil War, Couch was appointed commander of the7th Massachusetts Infantry on June 15, 1861, with the rank ofcolonel in the Union Army. That August he was promoted tobrigadier general with an effective date back to May 17. He was givenbrigade command in the Military Division thenArmy of the Potomac that fall, and Couch was givendivisional command in theVI Corps in the following spring.[8][5] From July 1861 to March 1862 he helped prepare and then maintain the defenses ofWashington, D.C. He participated in thePeninsula Campaign, fighting in theSiege of Yorktown on April 5–May 4 and theBattle of Williamsburg the following day.[6]
Couch led his division during theBattle of Seven Pines on May 31 and June 1, 1862. In this engagement his corps commander, Brig. Gen.Erasmus D. Keyes, ordered Couch's division and that of Brig. Gen.Silas Casey forward of the Union defensive line, Couch's men right behind those of Casey. This placed the IV Corps in an isolated position, vulnerable to attack on three sides; however poorly coordinatedConfederate movements allowed Couch and Casey to partially prepare entrenchments against the impending assault. As the fighting continued throughout May 31 both Couch and Casey were slowly driven back, with their right flank units in the most peril. At this time Couch counterattacked with his old 7th Massachusetts Infantry and the62nd New York Infantry in an attempt to bolster that side, however he did not succeed and was forced back, as was the rest of the Union IV Corps by nightfall.[9]
Couch continued to lead his division during the 1862Seven Days Battles that followed, fighting in theBattle of Oak Grove on June 25 and theBattle of Malvern Hill on July 1. Later in July Couch's health began to fail, prompting him to offer his resignation. The army commander, Maj. Gen.George B. McClellan, refused to send it to theU.S. War Department, and instead Couch was promoted tomajor general, to date from July 4. Couch was involved in theMaryland Campaign that fall, although absent from theBattle of Antietam on September 17.[10][11]
On November 14, 1862, Couch was assigned command of theII Corps, and he led it during theBattle of Fredericksburg as part of Maj. Gen.Edwin V. Sumner's "Right Grand Division".[5] In this fight Couch's corps contained three divisions, led by Brig. Gens.Winfield Scott Hancock,Oliver Otis Howard, andWilliam H. French.[12] Early on December 12 infantry from his corps attempted to support the Union engineers' efforts to laypontoon bridges across theRappahannock River and into the town. When Confederate fire repeatedly prevented this, and a heavy artillery bombardment failed as well, the decision was made to send small groups of soldiers across in pontoon boats to dislodge the defenders. Thisamphibious assault, which finally succeeded in driving out the Confederates, was executed by one of Couch's brigades under Col.Norman J. Hall (3rd Brigade, 2nd Division – 19th & 20th Massachusetts, 7th Michigan, 42nd & 59th New York, & 127th Pennsylvania).[13]
As the Union soldiers entered a smoldering Fredericksburg they began tosack the city, forcing Couch to order hisprovost guard to secure the bridges and collect the loot. The next day his corps was ordered to attack the Confederate position at the base of Marye's Heights above Fredericksburg. To better watch his men's progress Couch entered the town's courthouse and climbed itscupola, where he could see French's division advancing. As they approached the Confederate defenses, Couch could see his men taking very heavy fire and easily repulsed, described "as if the division had simply vanished." Hancock's division followed that of French, meeting the same fate with high casualties as well. Howard, who was to go in next, was with Couch as Hancock's division attacked. Briefly through the smoke they could see the mounting casualties, and Couch reportedly said, "Oh, great God! See how our men, our poor fellows, are falling."[14]
Couch ordered Howard to march his division toward the right and possiblyflank the Confederate defenses his other two divisions had failed to dislodge. However the terrain did not permit any force that was marching from Fredericksburg toward Marye's Heights to attack anywhere other than at the stone wall along its base. When Howard's men attacked they were crowded back to the left, meeting the same resistance, and were repulsed. As other Union soldiers followed the II Corps in, Couch ordered hisartillery to move into the field and blast the Confederates at close range. When his own artillery chief protested against exposing the gun crews in this fashion, Couch stated that he agreed but it was necessary to slow the Confederate fire in some way. The cannon stopped about 150 yards from the stone wall and opened fire, but quickly lost most of their crews and did little to slacken the enemy fire. During this time Couch moved slowly along his line of men, who were on the ground firing as best they could until nightfall.[15] Recounting the attack on the heights on December 13, Couch wrote after the war:
The musketry fire was very heavy & the artillery fire was simply terrible. I sent word, many times, to our artillery on the right of Falmouth that they were firing into us & tearing our own men to pieces. I thought they had made a mistake in the range. But I learned later that the fire came from the guns of the enemy on their extreme left.[16]
In the attack Couch's force suffered heavily, as did the rest of the Right Grand Division. He reported that the II Corps sustained over four thousand casualties during the Fredericksburg Campaign. French's division lost an estimated 1,200 soldiers and Hancock around 2,000. Howard lost about 850 men, 150 of which were hit on December 11 supporting the engineers at the river.[17] That night the Union wounded remained in the field, and Couch wrote after the war what he saw: "It was a night of dreadful suffering. Many died of wounds & exposure, and as fast as men died they stiffened in the wintry air, & on the front line were rolled forward for protection to the living. Frozen men were placed for dumb sentries."[16]
Following the Union defeat at Fredericksburg and the ingloriousMud March in January 1863, the commander of the Army of the Potomac—Couch's immediate superior—was again replaced. Maj. Gen.Ambrose Burnside was relieved and Maj. Gen.Joseph Hooker named to his place. Hooker reorganized the army and drew up plans for a new campaign against theArmy of Northern Virginia. He wished to avoid attacking the Confederate defenses at Fredericksburg and sought to flank them out of position, thereby fighting on more open ground. After the reorganization Couch continued to lead the II Corps, with his divisions commanded by Hancock and French (both now major generals) and Brig. Gen.John Gibbon at the head of Howard's former division, a total of about 17,000 soldiers.[18]
During the ensuingChancellorsville Campaign Couch was the senior corps commander, making him Hooker's second-in-command. In late April, Hooker began moving his corps across theRappahannock andRapidan Rivers, ordering two of Couch's divisions to entrench and defend the Banks's Ford crossing of the Rappahannock and detach Gibbon's 5,000 men to remain at the Union camp back at Falmouth on April 29. The following day Couch had cleared the ford and was marching towardChancellorsville. In the afternoon of May 1 Hooker—normally quite aggressive—cautiously slowed his marching army, and soon he stopped their movement altogether, despite some success against the Confederates and the loud protests of his corps commanders. Couch sent Hancock's division to bolster the Union men already engaged, and informed Hooker they could handle the enemy in front of them. However, Hooker's orders stood; march back into the positions they held the previous day and assume a defensive posture. Couch complied and ordered Hancock's division to form arear guard as they withdrew. As Hancock formed his men, Couch could see Confederate artillery aiming for the massed Union columns, and he told his staff "Let us draw their fire." The group of mounted officers clustered around a clearing where the enemy cannon could easily view them, thus attracting their fire and sparing the marching infantry; Couch and his staff also went unharmed. By nightfall the Union soldiers were busy fortifying the ground. Couch formed his divisions behind theXII Corps in roughly the center of Hooker's line.[19][20]
By late afternoon on May 2, Hooker's line was hit on the right (theXI Corps led by Howard) by Confederates underLt. Gen.Thomas Jonathan "Stonewall" Jackson, and despite resisting the XI Corps was routed and ran toward Chancellorsville. The remaining corps tightened into a U-shaped formation by May 3, and Confederate artillery began shelling their positions, including Couch's men. At about 9 a.m. that day Hooker was stunned by enemy fire when a shell hit the pillar he was leaning on, temporarily incapacitating him within an hour. At that time Hooker turned command of the army over to Couch, and through consulting with a "groggy" Hooker it was decided to withdraw the army to defensive lines to the north, with the other commanders (except an embarrassed Howard) strongly advocating an attack instead.[21]
Couch requested reassignment after quarreling with Hooker.PresidentAbraham Lincoln offered him command of the Army of the Potomac, but he declined, citing poor health. He commanded the newly createdDepartment of the Susquehanna during theGettysburg Campaign in 1863.[22] Fort Couch inLemoyne, Pennsylvania, was constructed under his direction and was named in his honor. Assigned to protectHarrisburg from a threatened attack byConfederates underLt. Gen.Richard S. Ewell, Couch directedmilitia from his department to skirmish with enemycavalry elements atSporting Hill, one of the war's northernmost engagements.[23] Couch's militia then joined the pursuit ofRobert E. Lee'sArmy of Northern Virginia intoMaryland after theBattle of Gettysburg.
Confederates again invaded Couch's Department of the Susquehanna in August 1864, as Brig. Gen.John McCausland burned the town ofChambersburg.[24] In December, Couch returned to the front lines with an assignment to the Western Theater, where he commanded a division in theXXIII Corps of theArmy of the Ohio in theFranklin-Nashville Campaign and for the remainder of the war. Couch finished his military service after theCarolinas Campaign in 1865.
Couch returned to civilian life in Taunton after the war, where he ran unsuccessfully as aDemocratic candidate forGovernor of Massachusetts in1865. He later briefly served as president of a mining company inWest Virginia. Couch moved toConnecticut in 1871, where he served as the Quartermaster General, and then Adjutant General, for the state militia until 1884. In 1888 he joined theAztec Club of 1847 by right of his service in the Mexican War. He also joined the Connecticut Society of theSons of the American Revolution in 1890.
He died inNorwalk, Connecticut. He was buried inMount Pleasant Cemetery in Taunton.
According to Herman Hattaway and Michael D. Smith:
Couch is best remembered as an able division and corps commander in the Army of the Potomac. His career occasionally was marred by personal traits of impatience and temper directed at both subordinates and superiors. He also suffered from prolonged bouts of ill health, which led to his acceptance of the post of department commander.[25]
In 2017, General Couch's portrait was featured on a mural in Lemoyne, Pennsylvania in commemoration of the defenses mounted in the town under his name during the Gettysburg campaign. The fort served as the last line of defense for Pennsylvania' capital city of Harrisburg.[26]
Couch is commemorated in the scientific names of two species of reptiles:Sceloporus couchii andThamnophis couchii,[27] and one frog:Scaphiopus couchii.[28] He also has one bird species named for him:Couch's kingbird.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Henry W. Paine | Democratic nominee forGovernor of Massachusetts 1865 | Succeeded by Theodore H. Sweetser |
| Military offices | ||
| Preceded by | Commander of theII Corps October 7, 1862 – December 26, 1862 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Commander of theII Corps February 5, 1863 – May 22, 1863 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Connecticut Adjutant General 1883–1884 | Succeeded by |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Collector of Customs for the Port of Boston 1866–1867 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
