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2nd Regiment Kansas Volunteer Infantry (African Descent)
Encyclopedia
The 2nd Kansas Volunteer Infantry Regiment (Colored) was an infantry
regiment
that served in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
.
and mustered in for three years. It mustered in by individual companies beginning in August 1863 at Fort Scott and completed muster-in at Fort Smith, Arkansas
on November 1, 1863 under the command of Colonel
Samuel Johnson Crawford.
The regiment was attached to District of the Frontier, Department of Missouri, to January 1864. Unattached, District of the Frontier, VII Corps, Department of Arkansas, to March 1864. 2nd Brigade, District of the Frontier, VII Corps, to December 1864.
The 2nd Kansas Infantry (Colored) ceased to exist on December 13, 1864 when its designation was changed to the 83rd U.S. Colored Troops.
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...
that served in the Union Army
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...
.
Service
The 2nd Kansas Infantry (Colored) was organized at Fort Scott, KansasFort Scott, Kansas
Fort Scott is a city in and the county seat of Bourbon County, Kansas, United States, south of Kansas City, on the Marmaton River. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 8,087. It is the home of the Fort Scott National Historic Site and the Fort Scott National...
and mustered in for three years. It mustered in by individual companies beginning in August 1863 at Fort Scott and completed muster-in at Fort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith, Arkansas
Fort Smith is the second-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. With a population of 86,209 in 2010, it is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas-Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Area, a region of 298,592 residents which encompasses the Arkansas...
on November 1, 1863 under the command of Colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
Samuel Johnson Crawford.
The regiment was attached to District of the Frontier, Department of Missouri, to January 1864. Unattached, District of the Frontier, VII Corps, Department of Arkansas, to March 1864. 2nd Brigade, District of the Frontier, VII Corps, to December 1864.
The 2nd Kansas Infantry (Colored) ceased to exist on December 13, 1864 when its designation was changed to the 83rd U.S. Colored Troops.
Detailed service
Action at Baxter Springs, Arkansas, October 6, 1863 (Company A). Moved from Fort Scott, Kansas, to Fort Smith, Arkansas, October 19, 1863, as escort to train. Duty at Fort Smith until March 1864. Steele's Expedition to Camden March 23-April 30. Prairie D'Ann April 9–13. Jenkins' Ferry April 30, and May 4 and 8. Return to Fort Smith and duty there until December.Casualties
The regiment lost at least 71 men during service; 1 officer and 70 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded. (These numbers are incomplete because the regiment's records were lost after the action at Jenkins' Ferry.)See also
- List of Kansas Civil War Units
- Kansas in the Civil WarKansas in the Civil WarEven before the outbreak of the American Civil War, the territory of Kansas had been the scene of fighting between anti-slavery and pro-slavery forces...