Frederick Schaefer | |
|---|---|
| Born | Grand Duchy of Baden |
| Died | 1862 Murfreesboro, Tennessee |
| Allegiance |  United States of America Union |
| Service |  United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861 – 1862 |
| Rank |  Colonel, U.S.V. |
| Commands |  2nd Missouri Infantry |
| Battles / wars | American Civil War |
Frederick Schaefer was a German revolutionary and Union Army colonel during the American Civil War. He was a brigade commander at the battles of Pea Ridge and Stones River where he was killed in action.
Schaefer was born in the Grand Duchy of Baden and served in the armed forces there. [1] He came to the United States as a result of his participation in the Revolutions of 1848, and settled in Missouri. He was appointed colonel of the 2nd Missouri Infantry and assigned to the Army of the Southwest. His regiment was part of the understrength 2nd Division commanded by Brig. Gen. Alexander Asboth. By seniority of his rank, Schaefer assumed command of the 1st Brigade. [2] During the battle of Pea Ridge, Asboth's division was primarily held in reserved. On the second day of the battle, Schaefer's brigade took part in Franz Sigel's counterattack. [3]
After the Union victory at Pea Ridge much of the Army of the Southwest was transferred to the Western Army Group commanded by Henry Halleck. Asboth's division was decreased to a brigade status in the Army of the Mississippi. Schaefer returned to regimental command during the siege of Corinth. During the Kentucky Campaign, Schaefer was on sick leave and his regiment was led by Lieutenant Colonel Bernard Laiboldt. When Schaefer returned to command he was once again the ranking officer in his brigade. He assumed command of the 2nd Brigade in Philip H. Sheridan's 3rd Division of the XIV Corps. During the battle of Stones River Schaefer's brigade was initially held in reserve of Sheridan's division. His men were soon on the front lines and eventually began to run low on ammunition. Not having an adequate supply on hand, Sheridan ordered his brigade commanders to fix bayonets and continue to resist the Confederate attacks. Sheridan's division was hard pressed throughout the first day of the battle and Schaefer became Sheridan's fourth brigade commander to fall in battle. [1]
The Battle of Prairie Grove was a battle of the American Civil War fought on December 7, 1862. While tactically indecisive, the battle secured the Union control of northwestern Arkansas.
The Battle of Pea Ridge, also known as the Battle of Elkhorn Tavern, took place during the American Civil War near Leetown, northeast of Fayetteville, Arkansas. Federal forces, led by Brig. Gen. Samuel R. Curtis, moved south from central Missouri, driving Confederate forces into northwestern Arkansas. Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn had launched a Confederate counteroffensive, hoping to recapture northern Arkansas and Missouri. Confederate forces met at Bentonville and became the most substantial Rebel force, by way of guns and men, to assemble in the Trans-Mississippi. Against the odds, Curtis held off the Confederate attack on the first day and drove Van Dorn's force off the battlefield on the second. By defeating the Confederates, the Union forces established Federal control of most of Missouri and northern Arkansas.
The Battle of Cotton Plant also known as Action at Hill's Plantation or Action at Cache River or Action at Round Hill was fought during the American Civil War in Woodruff County, Arkansas. Frustrated in its attempt to march to Little Rock by a lack of supplies, the Union Army of the Southwest under the command of Samuel Ryan Curtis moved south down the White River. Curtis's army encountered a Confederate force led by Albert Rust on the east bank of the Cache River near Cotton Plant. Rust was only able to bring two Texas cavalry regiments into action. These horsemen attacked the Federal advance guard under Charles Edward Hovey, but after a spirited fight, Union reinforcements arrived and drove off the Texans. Rust's force made a disorderly retreat and Curtis's army was able to march south to Clarendon before veering east to occupy Helena on the Mississippi River.
Samuel Ryan Curtis was an American military officer and one of the first Republicans elected to Congress. He was most famous for his role as a Union Army general in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War, especially for his victories at the Battles of Pea Ridge in 1862 and Westport in 1864.
The Army of the Southwest was a Union Army that served in the Trans-Mississippi Theater during the American Civil War. This force was also known as the Army of Southwest Missouri.
The Army of the Frontier was a Union army that served in the Trans-Mississippi Theater during the Civil War. It fought in several minor engagements in Arkansas, Indian Territory, and Kansas. In June 1863 the Army was discontinued but many of its regiments were formed into the District of the Frontier.
The Army of the West, also known as the Trans-Mississippi District, was a formation of the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War that was a part of the Army of Mississippi. It saw action in the Battle of Pea Ridge, Battle of Corinth, and Battle of Iuka and consisted of about 20,000 personnel.
The 79th 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 22nd Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. On October 8, 1862, at the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, the regiment suffered 65.3% casualties, one of the highest percentages of casualties suffered by any American Civil War regiment in a single engagement.
The 2nd Missouri Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment, formed from a voluntary regiment using the same name, that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
The 15th Missouri Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Nicholas Greusel commanded the 36th Illinois Infantry Regiment during the early part of the American Civil War. As a teenager, he emigrated from the Kingdom of Bavaria to the United States. Later moving to Detroit, he was elected to political office for two years. He led a Michigan volunteer company during the Mexican-American War and later moved to Illinois. At the start of the Civil War he joined a three-month Illinois regiment, rising to field officer rank before the state governor appointed him colonel of the 36th Illinois. He led a brigade at the battles of Pea Ridge and Perryville and at the Siege of Corinth. At the Battle of Stones River he assumed command of the brigade when its commander was killed. He resigned because of poor health soon after Stones River and worked for the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad. He espoused pacifism in his later years.
Bernard Laiboldt or Bernard Laibold commanded the 2nd Missouri Volunteer Infantry in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Born in Germany, Laiboldt came to the United States with his family as a child. He joined a Missouri infantry unit during the Mexican–American War. At the start of the Civil War, he became lieutenant colonel of the 2nd Missouri and led the regiment at Pea Ridge. He commanded a brigade at the Siege of Corinth and the Battle of Perryville. He assumed command after the brigade commander was killed at Stones River and led the brigade at Chickamauga. He led the 2nd Missouri at Missionary Ridge, Calhoun, Rocky Face Ridge, and Dalton. He was never promoted to brigadier general and he left the army in December 1864. He was St. Louis Police Commissioner in 1865–66 and later County Marshal.
Battery B, 1st Missouri Light Artillery Regiment, also known as Welfley's Independent Missouri Battery, was an artillery battery that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Organized in September 1861, Welfley's Independent Battery fought at Pea Ridge and in the White River campaign. After its name changed to Battery B, 1st Missouri in December 1862, it fought at Cape Girardeau, Chalk Bluff, Vicksburg, Sterling's Plantation, and Brownsville. In September 1864, the unit ceased to exist when it was consolidated with three other Missouri batteries while stationed at New Orleans.
The 6th Texas Cavalry Regiment was a unit of mounted volunteers that fought in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The regiment fought at Chustenahlah in 1861. The following year the unit fought at Pea Ridge, First Corinth, Second Corinth, Hatchie's Bridge, and Holly Springs. The 6th Texas Cavalry participated in the fighting at Thompson's Station in 1863, the Atlanta campaign, and the Franklin–Nashville Campaign in 1864. The regiment formally surrendered to Union forces in May 1865 and its remaining soldiers were paroled.
The 4th Missouri Infantry Regiment was formed on April 28, 1862, and served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The infantry regiment did not see action at the Battle of Farmington on May 9, and the Battle of Iuka on September 19 despite being part of the Confederate force present at those battles. As part of Brigadier General Martin E. Green's brigade, the regiment participated in three charges against Union lines on October 3, 1862, during the Second Battle of Corinth. The following day, the regiment, along with the rest of Green's brigade, attacked the new Union lines. Despite initial success, the attack was repulsed by a Union counterattack. The regiment ceased to exist as a separate unit when it was combined with the 1st Missouri Infantry Regiment on November 7, 1862, to form the 1st and 4th Missouri Infantry Regiment (Consolidated).
The 2nd Missouri Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. Organized on January 16, 1862, the regiment first saw major action at the Battle of Pea Ridge on March 7 and 8, 1862. After Pea Ridge, the regiment was transferred across the Mississippi River, fighting in the Battle of Farmington, Mississippi on May 9. The unit missed the Battle of Iuka in September, but was heavily engaged at the Second Battle of Corinth on October 3 and 4. The regiment helped drive in a Union position on October 3. On October 4, the 2nd Missouri Infantry, along with the rest of Colonel Elijah Gates' brigade, captured a fortification known as Battery Powell, but were forced to retreat by Union reinforcements.
George Washington Roberts was an American soldier who served as colonel and commanding officer of a Union Army brigade in the Army of the Cumberland during the American Civil War. Roberts was killed in action leading his troops to repel Confederate attacks at the Battle of Stones River in 1862.
The Battle of McGuire's Store was fought at McGuire, Arkansas, near Elkins, between Union forces led by Brigadier General Francis J. Herron and Confederate forces under Colonel Jesse L. Cravens during the American Civil War. The skirmish was the result of an attempt by Union Brigadier General John Schofield to trap a body of Confederate cavalry reported to be at McGuire's Store. In the event, the operation failed when Herron's column took the wrong road and approached from the west instead of the north. Herron's well-equipped troops attacked Cravens' poorly armed and demoralized Texas cavalrymen and drove them off. This minor clash and other events caused Confederate Major General Thomas C. Hindman to suspend his intended advance to recover northwestern Arkansas and withdraw to the Arkansas River. Ironically, most of Schofield's soldiers also retreated to Missouri after the fight. Though the clash was minor, it marked one pulse of the ebb and flow of the war in northwest Arkansas.