CIVILWAR

                                           Hollingsworth Civil War History

     Owen G. Hollingsworth (OG) was born on April 4, 1846 in Sampson County, North Carolina. During his early years, he worked on his father�s farm and traveled no more than a few miles from home. Farm life was very hard, and there was little time for anything else. However, OG did have one thing to think about other than farming and that was Julia Anne Clifton. He met her at church and thought she was the best-looking girl in the county. Things couldn�t be any better for OG during the late 1850s. He was a farm boy who dreamed of adventure and had an exciting future ahead of him. He was living in a growing community where opportunities   flourished. Little did OG know that his life would be turned upside down during the coming years.

     On March 12, 1861, bombardment of Fort Sumter began, and on May 20, 1861, North Carolina seceded from the Union. The Great Rebellion had begun. All able bodied men above eighteen years of age were expected to join the Confederate Army. OG was only fourteen -- too young to join. His father also needed him on the farm. But this was a chance of a lifetime. All young boys dreamed of war and places where they might travel. Pleading to his parents that he should join the army of the Confederacy fell on deaf ears.

     Then during the summer of 1861, OG got permission from his parents to join the North Carolina 2nd Junior Reserves Battalion. The reserves met only a few times and would stay in the Goldsborough area. This would let him be part of the Confederate Army and still work the farm. He especially enjoyed the chance to put on his uniform and drill while his family and Julia Anne were looking on. Although OG was only a private, he wore his uniform proudly. He knew he would soon be traveling to distant lands.

     By the end of 1864, the dream of winning the war was dying: the Confederacy had lost in Gettysburg, and Sherman had already burned Atlanta. In December of 1864, OG�s Reserve Battalion was consolidated to the 2nd Regiment North Carolina Reserves and was assigned to the New Bern , North Carolina area.

     It was cold that morning when OG and his unit climbed on top of a freight car that would carry them to New Bern. His family had given him extra clothing and food to sustain his needs for a while and were there, along with Julia Anne, to see him off. When the train pulled out of the station, his family waved, and Julia Anne blew him a kiss. As the train gained speed, the cold worsened. Thoughts of what he was leaving behind began to make him homesick already. The train stopped briefly in Kinston before heading to New Bern. This gave him a chance to stretch his legs and warm up by a campfire. Riding atop of a bouncing train proved to be bad on the kidneys, he thought.   When the train left Kinston, it got colder and began to sleet. Holding tight, he remembered hearing that a young solider had fallen to his death on another trip. By the time he reached New Bern, his fingers were numb, and he believed he would have surely fallen off if the train had not stopped.

     The Union Army had already taken New Bern and forced out a group of elderly citizens who refused to swear allegiance to the Union. OG�s unit was assigned to help the New Bern refugees and give them safe passage back to the Confederate line. After a short time, the Yankees began to march inland, and the 2nd Regiment North Carolina Reserves were pulled back. When given their marching orders, OG�s unit left the New Bern area and went to Halifax, North Carolina under the command of Colonel John H. Anderson.

     After a few days, they marched down the Roanoke River and then across county to Colerain, North Carolina. This would be OG�s first chance to be in a battle. His unit was to intercept some Union Troops who came to shore from a gunboat on the Chowan River. When the enemy saw the Confederate soldiers coming, they fled back to their boat and left the area. OG missed his first chance of engagement.

     His unit was then requested to the Goldsborough, NC area under the Command of Division Major General Robert Frederick Hoke. OG wanted to visit his family and Julia Anne but was told that the Yankees were in Goldsborough. Word then came that the Yankees were marching from New Bern to Kinston, North Carolina. His unit, along with many others, was to stop the advancement. A few miles below Kinston, OG�s unit was positioned north of the railroad track where they met the Union soldiers and repulsed them. This was the first battle for the 2nd Regiment North Carolina Reserves.

     March 18, 1865, the 2nd Regiment North Carolina Reserves was then ordered to Bentonville, North Carolina where they reported to Colonel John H. Nethercutt�s Reserve Brigade. Their orders were to support the effort to stop Sherman�s march to Goldsborough. This would be the last full-scale action of the Civil War in which a Confederate army was able to mount a tactical offensive. The Confederate Army had around 20,00 men to Sherman�s 60,00 men. However, with the help of OG�s unit support, the Yankees lost the first day�s battle. Finally, on the third day of the Battle of Bentonville, the Confederates were forced to retreat to Greensboro, North Carolina by the way of Smithfield, Raleigh, and Durham.

     On April 26, 1865 near Greensboro, the 2nd Regiment North Carolina Reserves, along with the rest of the retreating Confederate Army, laid down their arms and surrendered. The official surrender of North Carolina occurred in Durham, North Carolina, when General Joe Johnston surrendered to General Sherman. OG received a parole and was paid $1.25 in silver on May 2, 1865 at Bush Hill, between High Point and Trinity College, in Randolph County, North Carolina.

     OG and the remainder of his Wayne County comrades walked back to Goldsborough. When he reached home, he was saddened to see what Sherman�s army had done to Goldsborough but was happy to see his family and Julia Anne.

     OG Hollingsworth married his childhood sweetheart, Julia Anne, in 1866. They had two children. Willie was born on December 27, 1867 and J. Thomas was born on June 30, 1869. On November 4, 1900, OG�s wife, Julia Anne died.

     Until his death on January 26, 1911, OG told of his great adventures and travels during the �Great War of the Rebellion� to anyone who would listen.

     OG and his family are buried in Goldsboro, North Carolina in the Willowdale cemetery where their graves are marked.

Julia Anne and Owen G. Hollingsworth�s great-grandson Roger wrote this account from extensive research. 2002