16th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry

Illinois

Illinois Military

Illinois in the Civil War

16th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry

Brief History

The 16th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry was organized at Camp Butler, near Springfield, Illinois, January to April, 1863 probably at Decatur, Alabama..

For more information on the history of this unit, see:

• The Civil War Archive section, 16th Regiment Cavalry, (accessed 14 June 2012).
• The Wikipedia article, 16th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Cavalry), (accessed 15 June 2012).

Companies in this Regiment with County of Origin

Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

The following counties of origin are taken from the Adjutant General's Report, found on the Illinois Civil War Rosters web site. Roster pages are from the same report found on the Internet Archives web site. The rosters show the men who served in each regiment, their residences, dates of enlistment and mustering out, and other remarks.

• Company A - many men from Cook County (Also known as Chicago Cavalry, Thielemann's Cavalry Company, Wilson's Dragoons) - Cook County web site -

• Company B - many men from Cook County (Also known as Chicago Cavalry, Thielemann's Cavalry Company) - Cook County web site -

• Company C - many men from Cook County (Also known as Chicago Dragoons or Rifles, Gibson's Battalion, Hoffman Dragoons, Schambeck's Cavalry Company, Washington Light Cavalry) - Cook County web site -

• Company D - many men from Sangamon County and Cook County - Sangamon and Cook county web sites -

• Company E - many men from St. Louis County, Missouri

• Company F - many men from St. Clair County - St. Clair County web site -

• Company G - many men from St. Clair County and Cook County - St. Clair and Cook county web sites -

• Company H - many men from Kane County - Kane County web site -

• Company I - many men from Cook County (Also known as McClernand Guard Battalion or Bodyguard) - Cook County web site -

• Company K - many men from Alexander County (Also known as McClernand Guard Battalion or Bodyguard) - Alexander County web site -

• Company L - many men from Cook County and Champaign County - (McClernand Guard Battalion or Bodyguard) - Cook and Champaign county web sites-

• Company M - many men from Cook County and Sangamon County - Cook and Sangamon county web sites -

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 2,630 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Regimental History and Roster

• This was Andersonville : the True Story of Andersonville Military Prison as Told in the Personal Recollections of John McElroy, by John McElroy, Publisher New York : McDowell, Obolensky, 1957, Online at:Internet Archive

Other Sources

WEBSITES

• Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in ‘Illinois in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).

• National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.

• Illinois in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Illinois, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.

• United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.

• 16th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry has histories of the regiment and rosters of the companies (accessed 10 May 2011).

• Illinois Civil War Rosters from the Adjutant General's Report includes rosters of all the regiments and information on the different companies in each regiment (accessed 10 May 2011).

• McElroy, John. Andersonville : a story of rebel military prisons : fifteen months a guest of the so-called Southern Confederacy : a private soldier's experience in Richmond, Andersonville, Savannah, Millen, Blackshear, and Florence ( 16th Illinois Cavalry Regiment). (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1993), FS Library fiche 6084189 and (Bowie, Maryland : Heritage Books, c1993), FS Catalog book 975.8913/A2 M2m