Saturday, December 13, 1862
Augustus Baldwin Fairchild was killed during the assault on Marye's Heights, most likely as he emerged from the swale near the Stratton House. During this phase of the attack the regiment was exposed to a killing fire from Confederate infantry at the base of Marye's Heights and also exposed to Confederate artillery atop Marye's Heights. Additionally the the regiment was likewise exposed to "friendly fire" from Union artillery atop Stafford Heights across the Rappahannock River. General Darius Couch of the Second Corps ordered the artillery to cease fire as he realized that several artillery barrages landed in General Samuel Zook's brigade, of which the Twenty-Seventh Connecticut was a part, as the regiment neared the Stratton House.
Augustus was a quiet and reserved young man, regarded as a gentleman and respected by his comrades. He was sorely missed by all who knew him and dearly missed by his family. The circumstances surrounding his death will unfold with the aftermath of the battle of Fredericksburg.1
References:
1Compiled service record, Augustus B. Fairchild, Pvt., Co. A, 27th Connecticut Infantry; Carded Records, Volunteer Organizations, Civil War; Records of the Adjutant General's Office, 1780s-1917, Record Group 94; National Archives, Washington, D.C. Record Book of Company A, Civil War Collection, Mss. 77, Box 5, Folder A, New Haven Historical Society, 29 - 44. Francis Augustin O'Reilly, The Fredericksburg Campaign: Winter War on the Rappahannock (Baton Rouge, Louisiana: Louisiana State University Press, 2003), 304-307.
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