FRANCIS BELL – 47th INFANTRYDIED OF INFLAMED LUNGS - Francis Bell from Ausable was one of very few men in Clinton County who were in the 47th Infantry. He enlisted on July 7, 1863, in the Town of Ausable and was dead of disease two years later.Francis was in many major engagements – the Siege of Battery Wagner; the Bombardment of Fort Sumter; operations against Petersburg and Richmond; Drewry’s Bluff; Bermuda Hundred; Cold Harbor and Chaffin’s Farm.Finally, in December, he boarded the transport, “Louisa Moore”, with his regiment and went to the coast off Fort Fisher, NC, guarding Wilmington, the last operating Confederate port.The battle began at 8 am on January 13, 1865, when the Union fleet, under Rear Admiral David Porter, bombarded the fort at point-blank range. In the afternoon, General Alfred Terry with 8,000 soldiers, including the 47th, landed and finally captured the fort more than two days later, at 10:00 pm on January 15.The victory at Fort Fisher ended the coastal war - General Lee no longer had a way of getting supplies to his deperate army. After the battle, the 47th crossed the Cape Fear River and marched into Wilmington without Private Bell.Sadly, Francis’ lung inflammation became worse after the attack on Fort Fisher. He was hospitalized at Smithville, now Southport, near the mouth of the Cape Fear River, and died on June 6, 1865. Francis was buried in the hospital grounds. Two years later, his body was disinterred and buried in New York section of the Wilmington National Cemetery where you can visit his grave today.
