Oliver Otis Howard, Autobiography of Oliver Otis Howard, major general , United States army : volume 2

A little later from Raleigh I wrote home: “General Hardee stayed here, just before we entered, with his wife and Miss Anna, his daughter. Miss Anna wrote me this morning from Hillsboro. She says that Willie was mortally wounded at the battle of Bentonville. He died at the house of a Mr. Kirkland in Raleigh, and she besought me for protection for her Kirkland friends, recalling old times.”

It was always a pleasure to me to do anything to soften the asperities of war, so that I was glad to be asked for such a favor which I readily granted.

On our part, the evening of March 21st, we had repelled many fierce charges of the Confederates, striving to retake their skirmish rifle pits which we had seized. This work was not intermitted until dark. Our cannon, however, continued to fire its projectiles from time to time during the whole night, lodging them somewhere in Johnston's lines. At dawn, finding our front clear of adversaries, we took up the pursuit, ran upon their rear guard, and skirmished with it for more than a mile along the Smithfield road, but meanwhile every Union command was making preparation to continue our way to Goldsboro. We entered that city Friday, March 24th, having spanned the distance from Bentonville in two marches. Schofield was already there. The next day after our arrival our wagons that had been previously sent to Kinston came back with supplies of food. Sherman reviewed his troops. As my two corps marched past him our men were evidently in the best of health and full of vigor, but they were actually in rags and almost shoeless. It indicates the energy of our supply department to say that