1st Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry
Encyclopedia
The 1st Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was an infantry
regiment
in the Union
army during the American Civil War
.
Organized at "Camp Ellsworth" in Cambridge, Massachusetts
, the regiment was made up partly of companies
that had belonged to the 1st Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, a peactime unit of state militia. The companies were mostly from Boston but also Roxbury
and Brookline
. The 1st Massachusetts was the first of the Massachusetts regiments recruited for a term of three-years.
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
in the Union
Union (American Civil War)
During the American Civil War, the Union was a name used to refer to the federal government of the United States, which was supported by the twenty free states and five border slave states. It was opposed by 11 southern slave states that had declared a secession to join together to form the...
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...
.
Organized at "Camp Ellsworth" in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
, the regiment was made up partly of companies
Company (military unit)
A company is a military unit, typically consisting of 80–225 soldiers and usually commanded by a Captain, Major or Commandant. Most companies are formed of three to five platoons although the exact number may vary by country, unit type, and structure...
that had belonged to the 1st Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, a peactime unit of state militia. The companies were mostly from Boston but also Roxbury
Roxbury, Massachusetts
Roxbury is a dissolved municipality and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It was one of the first towns founded in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1630, and became a city in 1846 until annexed to Boston on January 5, 1868...
and Brookline
Brookline, Massachusetts
Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States, which borders on the cities of Boston and Newton. As of the 2010 census, the population of the town was 58,732.-Etymology:...
. The 1st Massachusetts was the first of the Massachusetts regiments recruited for a term of three-years.
See also
- Massachusetts in the Civil WarMassachusetts in the Civil WarThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts played a significant role in national events prior to and during the American Civil War. Massachusetts dominated the early antislavery movement during the 1830s, motivating activists across the nation. This, in turn, increased sectionalism in the North and South,...
- List of Massachusetts Civil War units