20th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry | |
---|---|
![]() | |
Active | August 29, 1861 – July 28, 1865 |
Country | ![]() |
Allegiance | Union |
Branch | United States Army |
Type | Infantry |
Size | 1,978 |
Part of | In 1863: 3rd Brigade (Hall's), 2nd Division (Gibbon's), II Corps, Army of the Potomac |
Nickname(s) | "The Harvard Regiment" |
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Col. Paul J. Revere Col. William R. Lee Lt. Henry L. Abbott |
Insignia | |
II Corps (2nd Division) badge | ![]() |
Massachusetts U.S. Volunteer Infantry Regiments 1861-1865 | ||||
|
The 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry, also known as the "Harvard Regiment", was a regiment of infantry in the American Civil War. The regiment was so nicknamed because the officers of the 20th were young Harvard graduates. [1] In addition, some, but not all, of the private soldiers had attended Harvard. The 20th was organized at Camp Meigs in Readville, August 29 to September 4, 1861. After training they left Massachusetts for Washington, D. C., September 4. They would fight until the war's conclusion being mustered out on July 16 and discharged July 28, 1865. [2] Fogel et al's Union Army Data urban sample suggests perhaps as many as two-thirds of the regiment's enlisted were immigrants with Irish immigrants making up half of the regiment's total. [3]
Attached to Lander's Brigade, Division of the Potomac, to October, 1861. [4] Lander's Brigade, Stone's (Sedgwick's) Division, Army of the Potomac, to March, 1862. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, 2nd Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, to March, 1864. [5] 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, 2nd Army Corps, to July, 1865. [2]
With the exception of First Bull Run, the 20th participated in all of the major battles and many of the smaller battles fought by the Army of the Potomac. Their baptism of fire occurred at Ball's Bluff on October 21, 1861. [6] Other battles included the Seven Days, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, the Siege of Petersburg, and the Appomattox Campaign. [2]
The 20th regiment lost 17 officers and 243 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded, and one officer and 148 enlisted men from disease. The total casualties were 409. The regiment ranks first among Massachusetts regiments and fifth among Union regiments in total casualties. [7]
The 4th Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater in a number of campaigns and battles, but perhaps is most noted for its actions in helping secure Cemetery Hill during the Battle of Gettysburg.
William Francis Bartlett was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and, later, an executive in the iron industry.
The 18th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was a Union regiment that fought in the American Civil War.
The 70th New York Infantry Regiment was one of five infantry regiments formed by former U.S. Congressman Daniel Sickles and established as part of the Excelsior Brigade which fought with the Union Army during multiple key engagements of the American Civil War, including the Chancellorsville, Gettysburg and Overland campaigns. Leaders from the 70th New York recruited men from New Jersey, as well as from cities and small towns across the State of New York.
The 61st Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment raised for one year's service in the Union Army during the American Civil War from 1864 to 1865.
The 51st Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was a regiment of infantry that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was assigned to Major General John G. Foster's Department of North Carolina, later designated as the XVIII Corps. While based in New Bern, North Carolina, the 51st Massachusetts took part in several expeditions involving numerous units from Foster's command and were engaged in the Battle of Kinston, the Battle of White Hall and the Battle of Goldsborough Bridge, among other engagements.
The 62nd Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 9th Maine Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 19th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 1st Company Massachusetts Sharpshooters was a sharpshooter unit in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 16th Massachusetts was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War formed of volunteers from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
The 17th Massachusetts was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 65th New York Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment wore distinctive chasseur styled uniforms. Its members were recruited primarily from New York, but included recruits from Connecticut, Rhode Island, and Ohio.
The 45th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 111th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was noted for its holding the high ground at the center of the line at Antietam as part of Stainrook's 2nd Brigade, Greene's 2nd Division of Mansfield's XII Corps.
The 39th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 40th Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was a three-year infantry regiment of the Union Army that served in the Department of Virginia and North Carolina, the Army of the Potomac, and the Department of the South during the American Civil War.
The 3rd Massachusetts Volunteer Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was organized by consolidating the 41st Massachusetts Mounted Infantry and the 2nd Battalion Massachusetts Cavalry on June 17, 1863. The regiment served with the XIX Corps, Army of the Gulf during the Red River Campaign in 1864. Its heaviest combat during this campaign took place during the Battle of Sabine Crossroads.
The 59th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment was a unit of the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was one of the four Massachusetts "Veteran Regiments" raised in the winter of 1863–64. Recruits joining these regiments were required to have served at least nine months in a prior unit. The regiment was attached to the IX Corps of the Army of the Potomac and took part in Lieutenant General Ulysses S. Grant's Overland Campaign in the spring of 1864. They participated in heavy combat during several battles including the Battles of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Courthouse, and the Crater.
The 57th Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was a regiment of infantry that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was one of the four "Veteran Regiments" raised in Massachusetts during the winter of 1863–64. Recruits of these regiments were required to have served at least nine months in a prior unit. Colonel William F. Bartlett, at age 24 already a veteran of three regiments, organized the recruiting and formation of the 57th Massachusetts and served as its first commanding officer.