The original 11th Illinois Infantry Regiment organized at Springfield, Illinois. It was mustered into three-months' service on 30 April 1861 by CaptainJohn Pope. The regiment traveled to Villa Ridge on 5 May and was stationed in that location until 20 June. Subsequently, the unit moved to Bird's Point, Missouri from which Companies A and B participated in an expedition to Little River on 22–23 June. It remained at Bird's Point until 30 July when it was mustered out of service. During its service 10 men died of disease.[1] Its field officers were ColonelW. H. L. Wallace, Lieutenant Colonel J. Warren Filler of Effingham, and MajorThomas E. G. Ransom of Vandalia.[2] During service, the regiment ranged between 833 and 933 in strength, while 916 men were mustered out.[3]
Three-year unit
Formation and officers
The reorganized 11th Illinois Infantry Regiment was mustered into Federal service for a three-year enlistment on 30 July 1861, at Cairo.[1] One source stated that the unit organized at Bird's Point between 29 July and 27 October.[4] Only 288 men re-enlisted from the three-month regiment, but by the end of November, recruiting brought the unit's total strength to 801 men.[3] The field officers were Colonel Wallace, Lieutenant Colonel Ransom, and Major Garrett L. Nevius of Rockford. Other regimental staff included 1 adjutant, 1 quartermaster, 1 surgeon, 1 assistant surgeon, 1 chaplain,[2] 5 sergeant majors, 4 quartermaster sergeants, 5 commissarysergeants, 3 hospital stewards, and 3 musicians. In addition, there was a 16-member band, all from Rockford, who were discharged after serving one year.[5]
Colonel Wallace received promotion to brigadier general on 23 March 1862. He was replaced as colonel by Ransom who was promoted brigadier general on 16 March 1863. Ransom was succeeded as colonel by Nevius who was killed in action on 22 May 1863. Nevius was replaced as colonel by James Henry Coates who received a brevet promotion to brigadier general on 13 March 1865.[4][note 1] Three of the 11th Illinois' colonels died in the war. Wallace was fatally wounded while commanding a division at the Battle of Shiloh and died a few days later.[6] Ransom was wounded four times and rose to command the Left Wing of the XVI Corps in the Atlanta campaign, but died of poor health on 29 October 1864.[7] When Coates became colonel on 22 May 1863, Lloyd D. Waddell became lieutenant colonel but he resigned on 15 September 1864. On the same day, George C. McKee became major but he mustered out on 30 July 1864.[8] When the regiment mustered out, Coates was colonel, Nathaniel C. Kenyon was lieutenant colonel, and Samuel O. Lewis was major.[4]
A number of officers gained promotion by transferring to other units. Captain John H. Widmer and Second LieutenantDouglas Hapeman were promoted major and lieutenant colonel, respectively, in the 104th Illinois Infantry Regiment on 4 September 1862. Captain Charles T. Hotchkiss was promoted lieutenant colonel of the 89th Illinois Infantry Regiment on 4 September 1862. First Lieutenant Hurbert A. McCaleb was promoted lieutenant colonel of the 6th U. S. Colored Heavy Artillery on 7 November 1862. First Lieutenant Samuel B. Dean was promoted major of the 58th U. S. Colored Infantry on 31 August 1863. First Lieutenant Cyrus E. Dickey became Captain and Assistant Adjutant General on 8 June 1863.[4] Major Smith D. Atkins resigned on 17 April 1862 and was promoted colonel of the 92nd Illinois Infantry Regiment on 4 September 1862. Atkins received a brevet promotion to brigadier general on 12 January 1865.[9]
W. H. L. Wallace
Captains and Recruiting Areas of the 11th Illinois Infantry Regiment[10]
The 11th Illinois Infantry Regiment was assigned to W. H. L. Wallace's 3rd Brigade, District of Cairo until February 1862.[1] During this period, the regiment participated in a number of forays into Missouri. These were toward New Madrid on 9–11 September 1861, to Charleston on 6–10 October, to Bloomfield on 3–12 November, and to Sikeston on 25–28 January 1862. The unit also went on a reconnaissance of Columbus, Kentucky on 13–20 January. The 11th Illinois boarded river transports on 2 February and joined the Fort Henry campaign. On 11 February, the regiment began to march toward Fort Donelson which was invested on 12–14 February.[3]
At the Battle of Fort Donelson on 15 February 1862, the 11th Illinois led by Lieutenant Colonel Ransom (who was wounded) was part of Colonel Wallace's 2nd Brigade, Brigadier General John Alexander McClernand's 1st Division, under the overall command of Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant.[12] That morning, the Confederates attempted to break out of the fort by launching a heavy assault against the 1st Division. After heavy fighting, McClernand's right brigade under Colonel Richard J. Oglesby was forced back and the 11th Illinois on the right flank of Wallace's brigade bore the brunt of the Confederate attacks. The regiment was compelled to retreat though Ransom greatly distinguished himself. At the end of the day, Grant ordered a counterattack which restored the investment; the Confederates surrendered the following day.[13] Out of about 500 effectives, the 11th Illinois suffered 329 casualties, including 72 killed and 182 wounded. On 4–13 March, the regiment moved first to Fort Henry, then to Savannah, Tennessee. On 23–25 March, the unit moved farther up the Tennessee River to Pittsburg Landing, Tennessee.[3]
At the Battle of Shiloh on 6–7 April 1862, the 11th Illinois was attached to Colonel C. Carroll Marsh's 2nd Brigade, McClernand's 1st Division, in Major General Grant's Army of the Tennessee. Both Ransom and Major Nevius were wounded and Captain Waddell took command.[14] On the first day, McClernand ordered Marsh to move his brigade to support Brigadier General William Tecumseh Sherman's division. After first moving to Sherman's right rear, Marsh shifted farther to the left and deployed the 11th, 20th, 45th, and 48th Illinois Infantry Regiments. Ransom wrote that the Confederates came on in, "four ranks and three columns steadily upon us".[15] Marsh's troops were compelled to retreat,[16] during which Captain Coates and his son were both wounded and taken prisoner. While withdrawing, some soldiers stubbornly fought back behind some sacks filled with oats. When Marsh's brigade rallied on a new defense line near Jones Field, a portion of the 70th Ohio Infantry Regiment joined the 11th Illinois and fought with it the rest of the day. At 12:30 pm, Marsh's brigade joined a counterattack by Sherman and McClernand and the 11th and 20th Illinois overran a Confederate Kentucky battery. Ransom was bleeding from a head wound, but continued to lead the regiment until his horse was killed; then he went to the rear. After a two-hour fight, Confederate reinforcements again threw the Union troops back.[17] At Shiloh, the 11th Illinois lost 27 killed and wounded out of 150 total.[3] After the battle, Tommy Newsom erected a monument to the regiment's dead. This became known as the White Post burial place; it was the first monument built on the battlefield.[18]
The 11th Illinois was attached to the 2nd Brigade, 6th Division, Left Wing XIII Corps, Army of the Tennessee in November–December 1862. The same brigade and division transferred first to the XVI Corps in December 1862 – January 1863, and then to the XVII Corps from January to September 1863.[1] On 20–24 November 1862, the regiment moved to La Grange, Tennessee, where it joined the 6th Division under Brigadier General John McArthur. The unit participated in Grant's abortive Northern Mississippi campaign through 12 January 1863. The 11th Illinois first marched to Tallahatchie where it engaged in a skirmish, then to Abbeville, and finally to Oxford. On the return march to Memphis, Tennessee, the regiment went via Holly Springs, Mississippi, and Moscow, Tennessee. On 17 January, the unit embarked on river transports at Memphis and traveled to Young's Point, which it reached on 24 January.[3]
On 11 February, the 11th Illinois moved to Lake Providence, Louisiana, where it remained until 20 April. While there, the regiment went on an expedition to American Bend on 17–28 March. On 23 April, 589 enlisted men transferred into the 11th Illinois from the 109th Illinois Infantry Regiment. From 26 April to 18 May, the regiment marched to join the Siege of Vicksburg, moving through Richmond, Louisiana, Perkins' Landing, Grand Gulf, Mississippi, and Raymond, Mississippi. The unit participated in the 19 May and 22 May assaults.[3] At Vicksburg, the 11th Illinois was assigned to Ransom's 2nd Brigade, McArthur's 6th Division, Major General James B. McPherson's XVII Corps, Grant's Army of the Tennessee.[21] Vicksburg fell on 4 July; during the siege, 11th Illinois lost 3 officers wounded and 40 men killed and wounded.[22] In addition, Colonel Nevius was killed leading the 22 May assault.[4] The regiment moved to Natchez, Mississippi, on 17 July, and subsequently participated in an expedition to Woodville, Mississippi. On 12 October the unit returned to Vicksburg where it was on duty until 29 July 1864.[22] From September 1863 to August 1864, the regiment was assigned to the 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, XVII Corps.[1]
1864–1865
George C. McKee
From 1 February to 8 March 1864, the 11th Illinois participated in an expedition up the Yazoo River to Greenwood, Mississippi. On 5 February there was fighting at Liverpool Heights where the regiment lost 4 killed and 9 wounded. In the Battle of Yazoo City on 5 March, the unit sustained losses of 1 officer and 8 enlisted men killed, 24 wounded, and 12 missing.[22] Under the overall leadership of Colonel Coates, the expedition consisted of 21 officers and 539 enlisted men from the 11th Illinois and 17 officers and 370 men from 8th Louisiana Infantry Regiment (African) aboard river transports. The force was accompanied by five gunboats under CaptainElias K. Owen and later joined by 250 troopers from the 1st Mississippi Cavalry Regiment (African). Yazoo City was occupied on 9 February and Greenwood on 14 February. After returning to Yazoo City, Coates' force was attacked by two brigades of Confederate cavalry on 5 March. The attackers surrounded nine companies of the 11th Illinois under Major McKee and 80 men of the 1st Mississippi in rifle pits outside the town, while forcing their way into the streets. Brigadier General Lawrence Sullivan Ross tried three times to bluff McKee into surrendering, but that officer refused to capitulate. After four hours, Coates attacked from the town with Company A of the 11th Illinois and six companies of the 8th Louisiana and compelled the Confederates to withdraw.[23]
The 11th Illinois guarded the Big Black River bridge on 6–28 April. The regiment joined the Yazoo City expedition on 4–21 May. The expedition moved from Vicksburg to Yazoo City, Benton, and Vaughan Station while fighting in three skirmishes. On 1–7 July, the regiment was part of Major General Henry Warner Slocum's expedition to Jackson, Mississippi, where it fought in three actions. On 29 July, the unit moved to Morganza, Louisiana where it stayed until 3 September.[22] From this time until December 1864, the 11th Illinois was part of the 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, XIX Corps, Army of the Gulf.[1] While posted in Morganza, the regiment was sent on a number of expeditions. These were to Clinton, Louisiana, on 24–29 August, the mouth of the White River on 3 September, Memphis on 8 October, the White River again on 27 October, Gaines Landing on 6–7 November, and DeValls Bluff, Arkansas, on 8 November. The unit moved to Memphis on 30 November–4 December.[22]
Battle of Fort Blakeley, 9 April 1865.
From December 1864 to February 1865, the 11th Illinois was attached to the 2nd Brigade, Reserve Division, Army of West Mississippi. In February, the 2nd Brigade was transferred to the 1st Division. From February to July 1865, the regiment was attached to the 2nd Brigade, 1st Division, XIII Corps, Army of West Mississippi.[1] The regiment went on an expedition to Moscow, Tennessee, on 20–31 December. It moved first to Kenner, Louisiana, on 1–5 January 1865, then to Dauphin Island, Alabama, on 4–7 February. The regiment fought in the Mobile campaign from 17 February to 12 April.[22] During the campaign, the 11th Illinois under Colonel Coates served in Brigadier General Elias Smith Dennis' 2nd Brigade, Brigadier General James C. Veatch's 1st Division, Major General Gordon Granger's XIII Corps, Major General Edward Canby's Army of West Mississippi. The 8th Illinois and 46th Illinois Infantry Regiments were the 2nd Brigade's other units.[24] On 2 April, two Union divisions began to invest Fort Blakely, and on 3–4 April Canby reinforced them with two more divisions, including Veatch's.[25] Fort Blakeley had 3,500 Confederate defenders and 33 guns under Brigadier General St. John Richardson Liddell.[26] On 8 April, the Battle of Spanish Fort concluded when its Confederate garrison evacuated the fort. By this time, Union troops completed their third parallel within 600yd (549m) of Fort Blakeley. Each of the four Union division commanders made his own plan of attack.[27] Veatch assigned Dennis' brigade to lead the attack with one regiment deployed as skirmishers and the other two forming the assault column. A second brigade was in support. The troops rapidly reached and overran Redoubt No. 5, capturing 300 prisoners and five cannons. In total, Veatch's division sustained losses of 13 killed and 64 wounded. In the Battle of Fort Blakeley on 9 April, Liddell's entire garrison was made prisoners.[25]
On 12 April 1865, the 11th Illinois occupied Mobile, Alabama and performed garrison duty. On 27 May, the regiment boarded ship for New Orleans via Lake Pontchartrain. The unit moved to Alexandria, Louisiana, and left there on 22 June. The regiment was mustered out of service on 14 July at Baton Rouge, and traveled to Springfield, Illinois, for final payment and discharge.[22] During service, the 11th Illinois lost 7 officers and 179 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded in action, and 1 officer and 284 enlisted men from disease. There were 471 fatalities.[19] A total of 1,879 officers and men served with the regiment during its 3-year existence.[22]
↑ The 11th Illinois monument (see photo) and the Illinois Adjutant General spell the name Nevius, while the Official Army Register and Battles & Leaders spell it Nevins.
The 17th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was popularly known as the Irish Brigade, due to its composition of mostly Irish American immigrants.
The 95th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 88th Illinois Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment from Illinois that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment mustered into service in September 1862 and was engaged at Perryville a month later. The unit subsequently fought at Stones River, in the Tullahoma campaign, at Chickamauga, at Missionary Ridge, in the Atlanta campaign, at Franklin, and at Nashville. The 88th Illinois especially distinguished itself at Stones River, Missionary Ridge, and Franklin. The regiment mustered out of service in June 1865.
The 33rd Illinois Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment from Illinois that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. A number of the soldiers were college students and graduates, and for a time the regiment included a 17-piece band. The unit fought at Fredericktown in 1861, Cotton Plant in 1862, the Vicksburg campaign and Fort Esperanza in 1863, and at Spanish Fort in 1865. The original enlistees were mustered out in October 1864 while the veterans and recruits were mustered out in December 1865.
The 18th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 21st Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 114th Illinois Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment from Illinois that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Formed in September 1862, the regiment served in Ulysses S. Grant's Central Mississippi campaign, in the Vicksburg campaign, at Brices Cross Roads, at Tupelo, in the 1864 Missouri campaign, at Nashville, and at Spanish Fort. At Nashville, the unit participated in the decisive attack on Shy's Hill. In 1865, the regiment was reassigned as pontoniers. The regiment was mustered out in August 1865.
The 1st Kansas Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. On August 10, 1861, at the Battle of Wilson's Creek, Missouri, the regiment suffered 106 soldiers killed in action or mortally wounded, one of the highest numbers of fatalities suffered by any Union infantry regiment in a single engagement during the American Civil War.
The 125th Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment from Illinois that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Soon after mustering into Federal service in September 1862, the regiment fought at Perryville. After being stationed at Nashville, Tennessee, the unit briefly fought at Chickamauga and served in the Chattanooga and Knoxville campaigns in 1863. The regiment participated in the Atlanta campaign in 1864, where it took heavy losses at Kennesaw Mountain. It also fought at Peachtree Creek and Jonesborough. At the end of 1864, it served during Sherman's March to the Sea and in 1865 the unit fought in the Carolinas campaign. The regiment participated in the Grand Review of the Armies before being mustered out of service in June 1865.
The 58th Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 127th Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Isham Nicholas Haynie (1824-1868) was a lawyer, politician, soldier and officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was colonel of the 48th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment at the battles of Fort Donelson and Shiloh.
The Battle of Yazoo City was an engagement in Mississippi during a month-long Union expedition up the Yazoo River in the American Civil War. The Union force commanded by Colonel James Henry Coates repulsed an attack led by Confederate Brigadier General Lawrence Sullivan Ross. The Union force suffered greater losses and withdrew down the river the next day with a large amount of cotton seized or bought from plantations along the river. The expedition was undertaken in cooperation with Major General William Tecumseh Sherman's Meridian campaign.
The 119th Regiment, Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 7th Texas Infantry Regiment was a unit of Confederate States Army infantry volunteers organized in 1861 that fought mostly in the Army of Tennessee during the American Civil War. The regiment was captured at Fort Donelson in 1862 and sent to Northern prison camps. After the survivors were exchanged and new recruits added, the regiment was reconstituted and fought at Raymond, Jackson, Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge, and Ringgold Gap in 1863. The unit served in the Atlanta Campaign and at Franklin, Nashville, Averasborough, and Bentonville in 1864–1865. The regiment's 65 survivors surrendered to William Tecumseh Sherman's Federal forces on 26 April 1865.
The 9th Texas Infantry Regiment was a unit of Confederate States Army infantry volunteers organized in December 1861 that fought during the American Civil War. The regiment fought at Shiloh, Perryville, and Stones River in 1862, Chickamauga in 1863, the Atlanta Campaign, Allatoona, and Nashville in 1864, and Spanish Fort and Fort Blakeley in 1865. The remaining 87 officers and men surrendered to Federal forces in May 1865. Two of the regiment's commanding officers were promoted brigadier general.
Friend Smith Rutherford was an American military officer who was colonel and posthumously appointed brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He commanded the 97th Illinois Infantry Regiment during the Vicksburg campaign. On June 18, 1864, President Abraham Lincoln nominated Rutherford for appointment to the grade of brigadier general of volunteers and the United States Senate confirmed the appointment on June 28, 1864. Rutherford's appointment was dated June 27, 1864, and it was to rank from June 28, 1864. His appointment was made and commission issued without knowledge of his death on June 20, 1864. Since Rutherford had died, the confirmation technically could not be given and the commission could not become effective. Nonetheless, several sources list Rutherford as a Union Army general, although historian Ezra Warner does not.
Battery I, 1st Illinois Light Artillery Regiment was an artillery battery from Illinois that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The battery was organized in February 1862 at Chicago and within two months it fought at Shiloh. Later, the battery served at Corinth, Vicksburg, Jackson, Missionary Ridge, Knoxville, Franklin, and Nashville. The battery mustered out of Federal service in July 1865.
The 3rd United States Colored Cavalry was a regiment in the United States Army organized as one of the units of the United States Colored Troops during the American Civil War. The regiment was originally formed in October 1863 at Vicksburg, Mississippi as the 1st Mississippi Cavalry Regiment. The unit soon began taking part in expeditions near Vicksburg. In February–March 1864, the regiment saw action at Yazoo City. After being renamed the 3rd U.S. Colored Cavalry in March 1864, the regiment continued to participate in raids, including the Yazoo City expedition in May. In December 1864, the unit took part in a successful raid led by Benjamin Grierson during which the Battle of Egypt Station and other actions were fought. The regiment operated near Memphis, Tennessee, until April 1865, after which it returned to Vicksburg for occupation duties. The soldiers were mustered out of federal service in January 1866.
The 20th Louisiana Infantry Regiment was a unit of volunteers recruited in Louisiana that fought in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The unit began its existence as the 6th Louisiana Battalion in September 1861. The battalion was augmented to regimental strength in January 1862 at New Orleans and served during the war in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. The regiment fought at Shiloh, Farmington, and Perryville in 1862. After being reduced in numbers, the regiment was consolidated with the 13th Louisiana Infantry Regiment and served at Stones River, Jackson, Chickamauga, and Missionary Ridge in 1863. The 13th-20th Consolidated Louisiana fought at Resaca, New Hope Church, Ezra Church, and Nashville in 1864. The consolidation with the 13th Louisiana was discontinued in February 1865 and the regiment was re-consolidated with other units. It fought its final battle at Spanish Fort one month before surrendering in May 1865.
References
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. Vol.1. Secaucus, N.J.: Castle. 1987a [1883]. ISBN0-89009-569-8.
Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. Vol.3. Secaucus, N.J.: Castle. 1987b [1883]. ISBN0-89009-571-X.
Smith, Timothy B. (2014). Shiloh: Conquer or Perish. Lawrence, Kan.: University Press of Kansas. ISBN978-0-7006-2347-1.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
United States 
Illinois 
