West Virginia in the Civil War: Difference between revisions
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''[[United States of America|United States]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865|U.S. Civil War]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[West Virginia|West Virginia]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[West Virginia Military Records|West Virginia Military]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[West Virginia in the Civil War|West Virginia in the Civil War]]'' | |||
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[[Image:{{Harpers Ferry 1865}}]] | [[Image:{{Harpers Ferry 1865}}]] | ||
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=== Introduction === | === Introduction === | ||
West Virginia divided from Virginia and became a state June 20, 1863 because of the Civil War. | West Virginia divided from Virginia and became a state June 20, 1863 because of the Civil War. For the Union, West Virginia mustered between 22,000 and 25,000 men<ref name="wvcwsd">George Tyler Moore, Center for the Study of the Civil War, [http://www.shepherd.edu/gtmcweb/research_database.html West Virginia Civil War Soldiers Database], (accessed 14 April 2011)</ref> in 20 infantry units, 7 cavalry units, 1 artillery unit and 3 other types of units. West Virginia did not organize any confederate regiments. Approximately 9,000 West Virginians chose to fight for the Confederate States of America and generally joined the confederate regiments of Virginia. | ||
=== West Virginia Military Units === | |||
Most units were numbered, however, some were named. See the table below for lists of the regiments, battalions, batteries, and unassigned companies. <br> | |||
The information in the lists of West Virginia Military Units comes from the [http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/ Civil War Soldiers and Sailors] web site. This web site can also be searched by the name of a soldier. | |||
<br> | |||
<center>'''West Virginia Units by Number or by Name'''</center><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; color: black; padding-top: 5px">'''''Union Units'''''</div><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">[[West Virginia Civil War Union Units 1st through 17th|1st-17th]]</div><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">[[West Virginia Civil War Union Units A to Z|A to Z]]</div> | |||
<br><br><br><br> | |||
<center>'''West Virginia Units by Type of Unit'''</center><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; color: black; padding-top: 5px">'''''Union Units'''''</div><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">[[West Virginia Civil War Union Infantry Units|Infantry]]</div><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">[[West Virginia Civil War Union Cavalry Units|Cavalry]]</div><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">[[West Virginia Civil War Union Artillery Units|Artillery]]</div><div style="text-align: center; padding-bottom: 5px; background-color: rgb(204,255,255); margin: 4px; padding-left: 5px; width: 60px; padding-right: 5px; float: left; height: 40px; padding-top: 5px">[[West Virginia Civil War Other Union Units|Other]]</div> | |||
<br><br><br> | |||
<br> | |||
=== Sources and Resources === | === Sources and Resources === | ||
For | For Regimantal Histories of the following: [http://www.civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/unwvcav.htm#1stcav Click here] | ||
1st Regiment Cavalry 2nd Regiment Cavalry 3rd Regiment Cavalry | |||
4th Regiment Cavalry 5th Regiment Cavalry 6th Regiment Cavalry | |||
Battery "A" Light Artillery (Daum's) | 7th Regiment Cavalry Battery "A" Light Artillery (Daum's) Battery "B" Light Artillery (Keeper's) | ||
Battery "C" Light Artillery | Battery "C" Light Artillery Battery "D" Light Artillery Battery "E" Light Artillery | ||
Battery "F" Light Artillery | Battery "F" Light Artillery Battery "G" Light Artillery Battery "H" Light Artillery | ||
1st Regiment Infantry (3 months) 1st Regiment Infantry (3 years) 1st Regiment Veteran Infantry | |||
2nd Regiment Infantry 2nd Regiment Veteran Infantry 3rd Regiment Infantry | |||
4th Regiment Infantry 5th Regiment Infantry 6th Regiment Infantry | |||
<br> | |||
<br> | |||
==== General ==== | ==== General ==== | ||
| Line 79: | Line 51: | ||
:- [http://www.wvculture.org/history/ag/ag.html West Virginia Adjutant Generals' Papers, 1861-1983] with Union Militia, Union regiments, National Guard, etc. | :- [http://www.wvculture.org/history/ag/ag.html West Virginia Adjutant Generals' Papers, 1861-1983] with Union Militia, Union regiments, National Guard, etc. | ||
:- A guide, [http://www.wvculture.org/history | :- A guide, [http://www.wvculture.org/history/civwaran.html Researching Your Civil War Ancestor], with a great bibliography | ||
:- Timelines, histories of battles, and reunion information | :- Timelines, histories of battles, and reunion information | ||
*The George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War has the following in its [http://www.shepherd.edu/gtmcweb/research_database.html West Virginia Civil War Soldiers Database] with biographical information about | *The George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War has the following in its [http://www.shepherd.edu/gtmcweb/research_database.html West Virginia Civil War Soldiers Database] with biographical information about the soldiers including regiments and enlistment, muster-in, and discharge data. | ||
:- [http://www.shepherd.edu/gtmcweb/gettysburg.htm#2 West Virginia soldiers interred in Gettysburg National Cemetery] | |||
:- West Virginia soldiers buried in the [http://www.shepherd.edu/gtmcweb/Antietam.htm Antietam National Cemetery] | :- West Virginia soldiers buried in the [http://www.shepherd.edu/gtmcweb/Antietam.htm Antietam National Cemetery] | ||
==== Union Records ==== | ==== Union Records ==== | ||
===== Union Service Records ===== | ===== Union Service Records ===== | ||
Indexes to service and pension records of Union volunteers are available at the | Indexes to service and pension records of Union volunteers are available at the Family History Library and the National Archives. The library also has 261 microfilms of the | ||
*'''Index.''' United States. Adjutant General's Office. ''Index to compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers who Served in Organizations from the State of West Virginia. ''National Archives microfilm publications, M507. (Washington [District of Columbia]: The National Archives, 1963), {{ | *'''Index.''' United States. Adjutant General's Office. ''Index to compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers who Served in Organizations from the State of West Virginia. ''National Archives microfilm publications, M507. (Washington [District of Columbia]: The National Archives, 1963), {{FHL|313613|item|disp=FHL films 881595-881607}} | ||
:- The index will give the unit a soldier served in. The name of the unit is needed to find a soldier in the compiled service records described below.<br><br> | |||
*'''Compiled Service Records.''' United States. War Department. Record and Pension Office. ''Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of West Virginia. ''National Archives microfilm publication, M508. (Washington [District of Columbia] : The National Archives, 1963). {{FHL|484391|item|disp=on 261 FHL films beginning with 881595}} | |||
:- Within each unit, the records are arranged alphabetically by the soldiers' names.<br><br> | |||
===== Union Pension Records ===== | |||
The pension records are available only at the National Archives | |||
A card indes is available online and on microfilms. Each card gives the soldier's name, unit, the application number, the certificate number and the state from which the soldier served. In some cases, the soldier's rank, terms of service, date of death and place of death are given. The index cards refer to pension applications of veterans who served in the U.S. Army between 1861 and 1917. The majority of the records pertain to Civil War veterans, but some records of other wars, of that time period, are included. | |||
*[http://pilot.familysearch.org/recordsearch/start.html#p=collectionDetails&c=fs%3A1471019 Civil War Pension Index Cards], The indexing of this project has been provided by [http://www.footnote.com footnote.com]. | |||
*United States. Veterans Administration. ''Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans who Served Between 1861 and 1900- [1917]''. (Washington, District of Columbia : The National Archives, 1949.. NARA microfilm publications: T0289). {{ | *United States. Veterans Administration. ''Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans who Served Between 1861 and 1900- [1917]''. (Washington, District of Columbia : The National Archives, 1949.. NARA microfilm publications: T0289). {{FHL|573022|item|disp=on 765 FHL films beginning with 1725491}} | ||
<br> | |||
==== Confederate Records ==== | ==== Confederate Records ==== | ||
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===== Confederate Service Records ===== | ===== Confederate Service Records ===== | ||
The approximately 9,000 West Virginians who chose to fight for the Confederate States of America generally joined the confederate regiments of Virginia. Virginia's 22nd Infantry was composed almost entirely of soldiers from West Virginia. The 31st and 46th Infantry also had large numbers from West Virginia | The approximately 9,000 West Virginians who chose to fight for the Confederate States of America generally joined the confederate regiments of Virginia. Virginia's 22nd Infantry was composed almost entirely of soldiers from West Virginia. The 31st and 46th Infantry also had large numbers from West Virginia. | ||
The Wikipedia article, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_West_Virginia_Civil_War_Confederate_units List of West Virginia Civil War Confederate units], lists infantry, cavalry, artillery, guerrilla units, and other Virginia units with a heavy concentration of men from the West Virginia area. | The Wikipedia article, [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_West_Virginia_Civil_War_Confederate_units List of West Virginia Civil War Confederate units], lists infantry, cavalry, artillery, guerrilla units, and other Virginia units with a heavy concentration of men from the West Virginia area. | ||
| Line 133: | Line 100: | ||
West Virginia did not grant pensions to confederate veterans. Some confederate veterans may have received pensions from Virginia. | West Virginia did not grant pensions to confederate veterans. Some confederate veterans may have received pensions from Virginia. | ||
*Virginia. Office of the Comptroller, Virginia State Library and Archives (Richmond, Virginia). ''Confederate Pension Applications, Virginia, Acts of 1888, 1900, 1902 ; Index, 1888-1934 Records, with an Index'', are on 220 | *Virginia. Office of the Comptroller, Virginia State Library and Archives (Richmond, Virginia). ''Confederate Pension Applications, Virginia, Acts of 1888, 1900, 1902 ; Index, 1888-1934 Records, with an Index'', are on 220 Family History Library films beginning with {{FHL|474918|title-id|disp=1439763}}. Microreproduction of original records at the Virginia State Library and Archives in Richmond, Virginia. | ||
*The Library of Virginia has many [http://tinyurl.com/3s64w63 Civil War guides and records online ]for both Virginia and West Virginia Confederate soldiers. | *The Library of Virginia has many [http://tinyurl.com/3s64w63 Civil War guides and records online ]for both Virginia and West Virginia Confederate soldiers. | ||
<br> | |||
==== Southern Claims Commission ==== | ==== Southern Claims Commission ==== | ||
| Line 149: | Line 110: | ||
If a Union sympathizer in West Virginia claimed a loss during the Civil War due to Union military confiscation, he could apply to the Southern Claims Commission for reimbursement. Only a few applied per county, but their neighbors were called as witnesses and asked dozens of questions. Hundreds of the residents of all kinds in a county may be mentioned in answers to Commission questions, and their wartime activities described. To learn how to find records mentioning these neighbors in West Virginia counties during the Civil War see the [[Southern Claims Commission|Southern Claims Commission]]. | If a Union sympathizer in West Virginia claimed a loss during the Civil War due to Union military confiscation, he could apply to the Southern Claims Commission for reimbursement. Only a few applied per county, but their neighbors were called as witnesses and asked dozens of questions. Hundreds of the residents of all kinds in a county may be mentioned in answers to Commission questions, and their wartime activities described. To learn how to find records mentioning these neighbors in West Virginia counties during the Civil War see the [[Southern Claims Commission|Southern Claims Commission]]. | ||
==== | ==== History ==== | ||
*Boyd B. Stutler, ''West Virginia in the Civil War.'' Charleston, (West Virginia: Educational Foundation, 1963). This has an excellent discussion of West Virginia's part in the Civil War. Family History Library {{FHL|359152|title-id|disp=book 975.4 M2s}}. | |||
=== References === | === References === | ||
<references /> | <references /> | ||
[[Category:West_Virginia_-_Military_-_Civil_War,_1861-1865]] | [[Category:West_Virginia_-_Military_-_Civil_War,_1861-1865]] | ||
Revision as of 13:38, 16 June 2011
United States 
U.S. Civil War West Virginia West Virginia Military West Virginia in the Civil War
Introduction[edit | edit source]
West Virginia divided from Virginia and became a state June 20, 1863 because of the Civil War. For the Union, West Virginia mustered between 22,000 and 25,000 men[1] in 20 infantry units, 7 cavalry units, 1 artillery unit and 3 other types of units. West Virginia did not organize any confederate regiments. Approximately 9,000 West Virginians chose to fight for the Confederate States of America and generally joined the confederate regiments of Virginia.
West Virginia Military Units[edit | edit source]
Most units were numbered, however, some were named. See the table below for lists of the regiments, battalions, batteries, and unassigned companies.
The information in the lists of West Virginia Military Units comes from the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors web site. This web site can also be searched by the name of a soldier.
Union Units
Union Units
Sources and Resources[edit | edit source]
For Regimantal Histories of the following: Click here
1st Regiment Cavalry 2nd Regiment Cavalry 3rd Regiment Cavalry
4th Regiment Cavalry 5th Regiment Cavalry 6th Regiment Cavalry
7th Regiment Cavalry Battery "A" Light Artillery (Daum's) Battery "B" Light Artillery (Keeper's)
Battery "C" Light Artillery Battery "D" Light Artillery Battery "E" Light Artillery
Battery "F" Light Artillery Battery "G" Light Artillery Battery "H" Light Artillery
1st Regiment Infantry (3 months) 1st Regiment Infantry (3 years) 1st Regiment Veteran Infantry
2nd Regiment Infantry 2nd Regiment Veteran Infantry 3rd Regiment Infantry
4th Regiment Infantry 5th Regiment Infantry 6th Regiment Infantry
General[edit | edit source]
- The West Virginia Archives and History has several sources and online databases
- - West Virginia Adjutant Generals' Papers, 1861-1983 with Union Militia, Union regiments, National Guard, etc.
- - A guide, Researching Your Civil War Ancestor, with a great bibliography
- - Timelines, histories of battles, and reunion information
- The George Tyler Moore Center for the Study of the Civil War has the following in its West Virginia Civil War Soldiers Database with biographical information about the soldiers including regiments and enlistment, muster-in, and discharge data.
- - West Virginia soldiers interred in Gettysburg National Cemetery
- - West Virginia soldiers buried in the Antietam National Cemetery
Union Records[edit | edit source]
Union Service Records[edit | edit source]
Indexes to service and pension records of Union volunteers are available at the Family History Library and the National Archives. The library also has 261 microfilms of the
- Index. United States. Adjutant General's Office. Index to compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers who Served in Organizations from the State of West Virginia. National Archives microfilm publications, M507. (Washington [District of Columbia]: The National Archives, 1963), FHL films 881595-881607
- - The index will give the unit a soldier served in. The name of the unit is needed to find a soldier in the compiled service records described below.
- Compiled Service Records. United States. War Department. Record and Pension Office. Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of West Virginia. National Archives microfilm publication, M508. (Washington [District of Columbia] : The National Archives, 1963). on 261 FHL films beginning with 881595
- - Within each unit, the records are arranged alphabetically by the soldiers' names.
Union Pension Records[edit | edit source]
The pension records are available only at the National Archives
A card indes is available online and on microfilms. Each card gives the soldier's name, unit, the application number, the certificate number and the state from which the soldier served. In some cases, the soldier's rank, terms of service, date of death and place of death are given. The index cards refer to pension applications of veterans who served in the U.S. Army between 1861 and 1917. The majority of the records pertain to Civil War veterans, but some records of other wars, of that time period, are included.
- Civil War Pension Index Cards, The indexing of this project has been provided by footnote.com.
- United States. Veterans Administration. Organization Index to Pension Files of Veterans who Served Between 1861 and 1900- [1917]. (Washington, District of Columbia : The National Archives, 1949.. NARA microfilm publications: T0289). on 765 FHL films beginning with 1725491
Confederate Records[edit | edit source]
Confederate Service Records[edit | edit source]
The approximately 9,000 West Virginians who chose to fight for the Confederate States of America generally joined the confederate regiments of Virginia. Virginia's 22nd Infantry was composed almost entirely of soldiers from West Virginia. The 31st and 46th Infantry also had large numbers from West Virginia.
The Wikipedia article, List of West Virginia Civil War Confederate units, lists infantry, cavalry, artillery, guerrilla units, and other Virginia units with a heavy concentration of men from the West Virginia area.
See the Virginia in the Civil War article for more information about these Virginia units.
Confederate Pension Records[edit | edit source]
West Virginia did not grant pensions to confederate veterans. Some confederate veterans may have received pensions from Virginia.
- Virginia. Office of the Comptroller, Virginia State Library and Archives (Richmond, Virginia). Confederate Pension Applications, Virginia, Acts of 1888, 1900, 1902 ; Index, 1888-1934 Records, with an Index, are on 220 Family History Library films beginning with 1439763. Microreproduction of original records at the Virginia State Library and Archives in Richmond, Virginia.
- The Library of Virginia has many Civil War guides and records online for both Virginia and West Virginia Confederate soldiers.
Southern Claims Commission[edit | edit source]
If a Union sympathizer in West Virginia claimed a loss during the Civil War due to Union military confiscation, he could apply to the Southern Claims Commission for reimbursement. Only a few applied per county, but their neighbors were called as witnesses and asked dozens of questions. Hundreds of the residents of all kinds in a county may be mentioned in answers to Commission questions, and their wartime activities described. To learn how to find records mentioning these neighbors in West Virginia counties during the Civil War see the Southern Claims Commission.
History[edit | edit source]
- Boyd B. Stutler, West Virginia in the Civil War. Charleston, (West Virginia: Educational Foundation, 1963). This has an excellent discussion of West Virginia's part in the Civil War. Family History Library book 975.4 M2s.
References[edit | edit source]
- ↑ George Tyler Moore, Center for the Study of the Civil War, West Virginia Civil War Soldiers Database, (accessed 14 April 2011)