63rd Ohio Infantry Regiment

The 63rd Ohio Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment which served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was a part of the Union forces in the Western Theater of operations.

63rd Ohio Infantry Regiment
ActiveJanuary 23, 1862 – July 8, 1865
CountryUnited States of America
AllegianceUnion
BranchUnion Army
TypeInfantry
Size~1,000 soldiers at organization
Part ofArmy of the Mississippi Jan. - Nov. 1862;
Army of the Tennessee Nov. 1862 - Jul. 1865
EngagementsAmerican Civil War
Commanders
Notable
commanders		John W. Sprague
Oscar L. Jackson

Organization

The original 63rd Ohio Infantry Regiment was organized on December 1, 1861, at Camp Worthington in Columbus[1] and at Camp Marietta in Marietta, but only enough men were available to fill four companies. Hence, the 63rd was not officially designated as a regiment.

The 63rd Ohio Infantry was organized January 23, 1862, in Marietta, Ohio, by consolidation of a battalion of the 22nd Ohio Infantry Regiment and the four companies originally raised for the 63rd Ohio Infantry Regiment. Governor David Tod appointed John W. Sprague as the regiment's colonel.[2] Its ten individual companies had been raised in southern Ohio.

Service history

The regiment immediately took the field and joined Major General John Pope in Missouri. At New Madrid, the 63rd was brigaded with other Ohio regiments in what became known as the Ohio Brigade. It took part in all the operations resulting in the surrender of Island No. 10.[3][1]

In April 1862, the 63rd Ohio Infantry joined Maj. Gen. Henry Halleck's forces near Corinth, Mississippi.[1] After the evacuation, it operated in Northern Alabama, and participated in the battles of Iuka and Corinth[4] in the army of William S. Rosecrans. Colonel Sprague was promoted to brigadier general, and Oscar L. Jackson assumed command of the regiment.

During 1863, the 63rd Ohio Infantry operated mostly in Northern Alabama and Tennessee. In January 1864, most of the men re-enlisted for three years, and the regiment went to Ohio on veteran furlough. In May it joined Sherman's Atlanta Campaign[1][5] and shared in all the battles to the end of the campaign. In the autumn, the 63rd Ohio Infantry took part in Sherman's March to the Sea.[6]

In early 1865, the 63rd Ohio Infantry participated in the Carolinas Campaign.[1][6] It took part in the Grand Review of the Armies in Washington, D.C. in May and then went by train to Louisville, Kentucky, where the men mustered out on July 8, 1865.

The regiment lost during its term of service 2 officers and 91 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded; and 5 officers and 259 enlisted men by disease, for a total of 357 fatalities.[7]

See also

Notes
  1. Roster Commission (1897), p. 381, Vol. V.
  2. Reid (1868b), p. 371, Vol. II.
  3. Reid (1868b), p. 372, Vol. II.
  4. Reid (1868b), p. 373, Vol. II.
  5. Reid (1868b), p. 374, Vol. II.
  6. Reid (1868b), p. 375, Vol. II.
  7. War Department (1880).

References
  • Carroon, Robert G. (1998). From Freeman's Ford to Bentonville: The 61st Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Shippensburg, PA: Burd Street Press. p. 70. ISBN 9781572490772. OCLC 607177710.
  • Dyer, Frederick H (1908). A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion. Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co. ASIN B01BUFJ76Q.
  • Reid, Whitelaw (1868a). The History of the State During the War, and the Lives of Her Generals. Ohio in the War: Her Statesmen, Her Generals, and Soldiers. I. Cincinnati, OH: Moore, Wilstach, & Baldwin. p. 1112. ISBN 9781154801965. OCLC 11632330.
  • Reid, Whitelaw (1868b). The History of Her Regiments, and Other Military Organizations. Ohio in the War: Her Statesmen, Her Generals, and Soldiers. II. Cincinnati, OH: Moore, Wilstach, & Baldwin. p. 1002. ISBN 9781154801965. OCLC 11632330.
  • Roster Commission, Ohio (1897). 54th–69th Regiments—Infantry. Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War on the Rebellion, 1861–1865. V. Akron, OH: The Werner Ptg. and Mfg. Co. p. 828. OCLC 1744402.
  • War Department, U.S. (1880). The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. OCLC 857196196.
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