16th Vermont Infantry
Encyclopedia
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to August 1863. It was a member of the 2nd Vermont Brigade
2nd Vermont Brigade
The 2nd Vermont Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.- Composition and commanders :...
.
Recruitment
The 16th Vermont Infantry, a nine months regiment, was raised as a result of President Abraham LincolnAbraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
's call on August 4, 1862, for additional troops due to the disastrous results of the Peninsula Campaign.
It was recruited in Windsor and Windham Counties
Windham County, Vermont
Windham County is a county located in the U.S. state of Vermont. As of 2010, the population was 44,513. Its shire town is Newfane.-Geography:According to the U.S...
, the two southernmost counties in the state, and rendezvoused in the following towns:
- BethelBethel, VermontBethel is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,968 at the 2000 census. The town includes the locations of Bethel-Gilead, East Bethel, Lilliesville, Lympus , and West Bethel...
, Co. A, recruited by Asa G. Foster. - BrattleboroBrattleboro, VermontBrattleboro, originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located in the southeast corner of the state, along the state line with New Hampshire. The population was 12,046 at the 2010 census...
, Co. B, Robert B. Arms. - LudlowLudlow, VermontLudlow, Vermont may refer to:*Ludlow , Vermont*Ludlow , Vermont...
, Co. C, Asa G. Foster. - TownshendTownshend, VermontTownshend is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The town was named for the Townshend family, powerful figures in British politics...
, Co. D, David Ball. - SpringfieldSpringfield, VermontSpringfield is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 9,373 at the 2010 census.-History:One of the New Hampshire grants, the township was chartered on August 20, 1761 by Governor Benning Wentworth and awarded to Gideon Lyman and 61 others...
, Co. E, Alvin C. Mason. - WilmingtonWilmington, VermontWilmington is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,225 at the 2000 census.-History:The town was chartered in 1751 by Benning Wentworth, colonial governor of New Hampshire. It was named in honor of Spencer Compton, 1st Earl of Wilmington...
, Co. F, Henry F. Dix. - BarnardBarnard, VermontBarnard is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 958 at the 2000 census.- History :The town was chartered on July 17, 1761 by a New Hampshire Grant and named after the second-listed grantee of the town Sir Francis Bernard, 1st Baronet and since 1760 Governor of the...
, Co. G, Harvey N. Bruce. - Felchville, Co. H, Joseph C. Sawyer.
- Williamsville, Co. I, Lyman E. Knapp.
- ChesterChester, VermontChester is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,044 at the 2000 census. The town was originally chartered by New Hampshire Governor Benning Wentworth as Flamstead in 1754. The terms of the charter were not met and the town was re-chartered as New Flamstead in 1761...
, Co. K, Samuel Hutchinson.
On September 27, 1862, the officers listed above met at Bellows Falls
Bellows Falls, Vermont
Bellows Falls is an incorporated village located in the town of Rockingham in Windham County, Vermont, United States. The population was 3,165 at the 2000 census...
and elected Wheelock G. Veazey
Wheelock G. Veazey
Wheelock Graves Veazey was an American attorney, judge, and government official. Veazey served as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, and as a member of the Interstate Commerce Commission...
, of Springfield, colonel, Charles Cummings, of Brattleboro, lieutenant colonel, and William Rounds, of Chester, major.
The regiment rendezvoused at Brattleboro
Brattleboro, Vermont
Brattleboro, originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located in the southeast corner of the state, along the state line with New Hampshire. The population was 12,046 at the 2010 census...
on October 9, and was mustered into the United States service on October 23, with 949 officers and men. The left Brattleboro on October 24, and arrived in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
on the morning of October 27, going into camp near the other four regiments that were then formed into the 2nd Vermont Brigade
2nd Vermont Brigade
The 2nd Vermont Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.- Composition and commanders :...
.
In the field
The regiment marched to Munson Hill on October 30, then to Hunting Creek on November 5, where it remained until December 12. It next served on picket duty near Fairfax Court House until January 20, 1863, where it participated in the repulse of Stuart's cavalry on December 29, 1862. The regiment was next stations at Union Mills from March 24 to June 1, then Bristoe Station, Catlett's Station and Manassas until June 15, when it returned to Union Mills.On June 25, the brigade was assigned as the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division, I Corps
I Corps (ACW)
I Corps was the designation of three different corps-sized units in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The units served in the following armies:...
, and ordered to form the rear guard of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
as it marched north after Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
. The 16th marched with the brigade from Wolf Run Shoals on June 25, crossed the Potomac river on June 27, at Edward's Ferry, and moved north through Frederick City and Creagerstown, Maryland. It was drawing near Gettysburg
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg is a borough that is the county seat, part of the Gettysburg Battlefield, and the eponym for the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. The town hosts visitors to the Gettysburg National Military Park and has 3 institutions of higher learning: Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg College, and...
on July 1, when the 12th
12th Vermont Infantry
The 12th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a nine months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to July 1863...
and 15th regiments were detached to guard the corps trains. The two regiments accompanied the corps trains to Rock Creek Church, near the battlefield. The remaining regiments of the brigade arrived on the battlefield at Gettysburg after dark on the first day of the battle, and camped in a wheat field to the left of Cemetery Hill.
Gettysburg
On July 2, the brigade helped reinforce picket lines along Cemetery Ridge that were threatened by an attack by Confederate General A. P. HillA. P. Hill
Ambrose Powell Hill, Jr. , was a career U.S. Army officer in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars and a Confederate general in the American Civil War...
.
The 13th, 14th and 16th Vermont regiments played a pivotal role in the Union repulse of Pickett's Charge
Pickett's Charge
Pickett's Charge was an infantry assault ordered by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee against Maj. Gen. George G. Meade's Union positions on Cemetery Ridge on July 3, 1863, the last day of the Battle of Gettysburg during the American Civil War. Its futility was predicted by the charge's commander,...
on the afternoon of July 3. The 13th and 16th regiments flanked James L. Kemper
James L. Kemper
James Lawson Kemper was a lawyer, a Confederate general in the American Civil War, and the 37th Governor of Virginia...
's brigade as it approached the copse of trees on Cemetery Ridge, then the 16th wheeled about, and joined by the 14th, stopped the advance of David Lang's brigade, capturing hundreds of Floridians. Lieutenant George Benedict, an aide to Brigadier General George J. Stannard
George J. Stannard
George Jerrison Stannard was a Vermont farmer, teacher, and Union general in the American Civil War. After the war, he served as Doorkeeper of the United States House of Representatives.-Early life:...
, related General Abner Doubleday
Abner Doubleday
Abner Doubleday was a career United States Army officer and Union general in the American Civil War. He fired the first shot in defense of Fort Sumter, the opening battle of the war, and had a pivotal role in the early fighting at the Battle of Gettysburg. Gettysburg was his finest hour, but his...
's reaction, saying he "waved his hat and shouted: 'Glory to God, glory to God! See the Vermonters go it!'"
Final days
After the battle, due to Brigadier General George J. StannardGeorge J. Stannard
George Jerrison Stannard was a Vermont farmer, teacher, and Union general in the American Civil War. After the war, he served as Doorkeeper of the United States House of Representatives.-Early life:...
's wounding, Colonel Veazey assumed command of the brigade, and it participated in the pursuit of Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
across the Catoctin mountains to Middletown, Maryland
Middletown, Maryland
Middletown is a town in Frederick County, Maryland, United States. The population was 2,668 at the 2000 census. Middletown is a small, rural community steeped in American history...
, then back over South Mountain, through Boonesboro
Boonsboro, Maryland
Boonsboro is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States, located at the foot of South Mountain. It nearly borders Frederick County and is proximate to the Antietam National Battlefield...
, to Williamsport
Williamsport, Maryland
Williamsport is a town in Washington County, Maryland, United States. The population was 1,868 at the 2000 census and 2,278 as of July 2008.-Geography: Williamsport is located at ....
by July 14. On the previous day, a picket detail of 150 from the 16th participated in a skirmish with rebel pickets, in which two soldiers were wounded. This was the last known action of the brigade.
The 14th, 15th and 16th regiments marched to Harper's Ferry, across South Mountain again, and camped near Petersville, near Berlin
Berlin, Maryland
Berlin is a town in Worcester County, Maryland, United States. The population was 3,491 at the 2000 census.-History:The town of Berlin had its start around the 1790s, part of the Burley Plantation, a land grant dating back to 1677...
. On July 18, the regiment was released, took a train from Berlin to Baltimore. It reached New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
on July 20. After spending a few uneventful days in theat riot-torn city, assisting with security, the regiment continued its trip home, arrived in Brattleboro on July 21, and mustered out on July 30.
Like the other regiments in the 2nd Vermont Brigade
2nd Vermont Brigade
The 2nd Vermont Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.- Composition and commanders :...
, dozens of newly discharged members from the 14th regiment enlisted again, predominantly in the regiments of the 1st Vermont Brigade, and the 17th Vermont Infantry
17th Vermont Infantry
The 17th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a three years' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War...
.
Medal of Honor
- Wheelock G. VeazeyWheelock G. VeazeyWheelock Graves Veazey was an American attorney, judge, and government official. Veazey served as a justice of the Vermont Supreme Court, and as a member of the Interstate Commerce Commission...
, colonel, "rapidly assembled his regiment and charged the enemy's flank; charged front under heavy fire, and charged and destroyed a Confederate brigade, all this with new troops in their first battle," at Gettysburg on July 3, 1863.
Final statement
| FINAL STATEMENT | |
|---|---|
| Original members | 964 |
| Gain (recruits and transferes) | 4 |
| --- Aggregate | 968 |
| --- Losses --- | |
| Killed in action | 16 |
| Died of wounds | 8 |
| Died of disease | 48 |
| Died in Confederate prisons | 1 |
| Todal deaths | 73 |
| Honorably discharged | 59 |
| Deserted | 2 |
| Promoted to U.S. Army | 2 |
| Appointed Cadet at West Point | 1 |
| --- Total Losses | 137 |
| Mustered out at various times | 831 |
| Total wounded | 87 |
| Total taken prisoner | 4 |
Further reading
- Coffin, Howard, Full Duty: Vermonters in the Civil War. Woodstock, VT.: Countryman Press, 1995.
- -----. Nine Months to Gettysburg. The Vermonters Who Broke Pickett's Charge. Woodstock, VT.: Countryman Press, 1997.
- Palmer, Edwin F., The Second Brigade: or, Camp Life, By a Volunteer, Montpelier: E. P. Walton, 1864.
- Williams, John C. Life in Camp: A History of the Nine Months' Service of the Fourteenth Vermont Regiment, From October 21, 1862, When It was Mustered into the U.S. Service, to July 21, 1863, Including the Battle of Gettysburg. Claremont, NH: Claremont Mfg Co, 1864.