Ohio in the Civil War - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

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...

, the State of Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

played a key role in providing troops, military officers, and supplies to 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...

. Due to its central location in the Northern United States

Northern United States

Northern United States, also sometimes the North, may refer to:* A particular grouping of states or regions of the United States of America. The United States Census Bureau divides some of the northernmost United States into the Midwest Region and the Northeast Region...

and burgeoning population, Ohio was both politically and logistically important to the war effort. Despite the state's boasting a number of very powerful Republican

Republican Party (United States)

The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

politicians, it was divided politically. Portions of Southern Ohio followed the Peace Democrats and openly opposed President Abraham Lincoln

Abraham 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 policies. Ohio played an important part in the Underground Railroad

Underground Railroad

The Underground Railroad was an informal network of secret routes and safe houses used by 19th-century black slaves in the United States to escape to free states and Canada with the aid of abolitionists and allies who were sympathetic to their cause. The term is also applied to the abolitionists,...

prior to the war, and remained a haven for escaped and runaway slaves during the war years.

The third most populous state in the Union at the time, Ohio raised nearly 320,000 soldiers for the Union army, third behind only New York

New York

New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...

and Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...

in total manpower contributed to the military. Several leading generals hailed from Ohio, including Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...

, William T. Sherman, and Philip H. Sheridan. Five Ohio-born Civil War officers would later serve as the President of the United States

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

. The Fighting McCooks

Fighting McCooks

The Fighting McCooks were members of a family of Ohioans who reached prominence as officers in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Two brothers, Daniel and John McCook, and thirteen of their sons were actively involved in the army, making the family one of the most prolific in American...

gained fame as the largest immediate family group ever to become officers in the U.S. Army.

The state was spared many of the horrors of war as only two minor battles were fought within its borders. Morgan's Raid

Morgan's Raid

Morgan's Raid was a highly publicized incursion by Confederate cavalry into the Northern states of Indiana and Ohio during the American Civil War. The raid took place from June 11–July 26, 1863, and is named for the commander of the Confederates, Brig. Gen...

in the summer of 1863 spread terror among the populace. Ohio troops fought in nearly every major campaign during the war. Nearly 7,000 Buckeye soldiers were killed in action. Its most significant Civil War site is Johnson's Island

Johnson's Island

Johnson's Island is a island in Sandusky Bay, located on the coast of Lake Erie, 3 miles from the city of Sandusky, Ohio. It was the site of a prisoner-of-war camp for Confederate officers captured during the American Civil War. Johnson's Island was the only Union prison exclusively for Southern...

, located in Sandusky Bay

Sandusky Bay

Sandusky Bay is a body of water situated in between Erie, Ottawa, and Sandusky counties in the U.S. state of Ohio and just to the south of Lake Erie. Sandusky Bay runs from Muddy Creek Bay to Cedar Point, which is part of Sandusky....

of Lake Erie

Lake Erie

Lake Erie is the fourth largest lake of the five Great Lakes in North America, and the tenth largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has the shortest average water residence time. It is bounded on the north by the...

. Barracks and outbuildings were constructed for a prisoner of war depot, intended chiefly for officers. Over three years more than 15,000 Confederate men were held there. The island includes a Confederate cemetery where about 300 men were buried.

Ohio politics during the War

Much of southern Ohio's economy depended upon trade with the South

Southern United States

The Southern United States—commonly referred to as the American South, Dixie, or simply the South—constitutes a large distinctive area in the southeastern and south-central United States...

across the Ohio River

Ohio River

The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...

, which had served for years as passage and a link with the slave state

Slave state

In the United States of America prior to the American Civil War, a slave state was a U.S. state in which slavery was legal, whereas a free state was one in which slavery was either prohibited from its entry into the Union or eliminated over time...

s of Virginia

Virginia

The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...

and Kentucky

Kentucky

The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...

. The culture of southern Ohio was closer to those states than it was to northern parts of the state, owing to many settlers coming from the South and being formerly territory of the state of Virgina as part of the Virginia Military District

Virginia Military District

The Virginia Military District was an approximately 4.2 million acre area of land in what is now the state of Ohio that was reserved by Virginia to use as payment for veterans of the American Revolutionary War....

. Most of the state's population was solidly against secession

Secession

Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...

and in favor of a strong central government. During the 1860 Presidential Election

United States presidential election, 1860

The United States presidential election of 1860 was a quadrennial election, held on November 6, 1860, for the office of President of the United States and the immediate impetus for the outbreak of the American Civil War. The nation had been divided throughout the 1850s on questions surrounding the...

, Ohio voted in favor of Abraham Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln

(231,709 votes or 52.3% of the ballots cast) over Stephen Douglas (187,421; 42.3%), John C. Breckinridge

John C. Breckinridge

John Cabell Breckinridge was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Kentucky and was the 14th Vice President of the United States , to date the youngest vice president in U.S...

(11,406; 2.6%), and John Bell

John Bell (Tennessee politician)

John Bell was a U.S. politician, attorney, and plantation owner. A wealthy slaveholder from Tennessee, Bell served in the United States Congress in both the House of Representatives and Senate. He began his career as a Democrat, he eventually fell out with Andrew Jackson and became a Whig...

(12,194; 2.8%).

A number of men with Ohio ties would serve important roles in Lincoln's Cabinet and administration, including Steubenville's

Steubenville, Ohio

Steubenville is a city located along the Ohio River in Jefferson County, Ohio on the Ohio-West Virginia border in the United States. It is the political county seat of Jefferson County. It is also a principal city of the Weirton–Steubenville, WV-OH Metropolitan Statistical Area...

Edwin M. Stanton

Edwin McMasters Stanton was an American lawyer and politician who served as Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during the American Civil War from 1862–1865...

as Attorney General

Attorney General

In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...

and then Secretary of War

United States Secretary of War

The Secretary of War was a member of the United States President's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War," was appointed to serve the Congress of the Confederation under the Articles of Confederation...

, and former Ohio U.S. Senator and Governor Salmon P. Chase

Salmon P. Chase

Salmon Portland Chase was an American politician and jurist who served as U.S. Senator from Ohio and the 23rd Governor of Ohio; as U.S. Treasury Secretary under President Abraham Lincoln; and as the sixth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.Chase was one of the most prominent members...

as Secretary of the Treasury. Prominent Ohio politicians in Congress

United States Congress

The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....

included Senators John Sherman

John Sherman (politician)

John Sherman, nicknamed "The Ohio Icicle" , was a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Ohio during the Civil War and into the late nineteenth century. He served as both Secretary of the Treasury and Secretary of State and was the principal author of the Sherman Antitrust Act...

and Benjamin F. Wade.

During the war, three men would serve as Governor of Ohio– William Dennison

William Dennison (Ohio governor)

William Dennison, Jr. was a Whig and Republican politician from Ohio. He served as the 24th Governor of Ohio and as U.S...

, David Tod

David Tod

David Tod was a politician and industrialist from the U.S. state of Ohio. As the 25th Governor of Ohio, Tod gained recognition for his forceful and energetic leadership during the American Civil War....

and John Brough

John Brough

John Brough was a War Democrat politician from Ohio. He served as the 26th Governor of Ohio during the final years of the American Civil War, dying in office of gangrene shortly after the war concluded....

. Without being asked by the War Department

United States Department of War

The United States Department of War, also called the War Department , was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army...

, Dennison sent Ohio troops into western Virginia

Virginia

, where they guarded the Wheeling Convention

Wheeling Convention

The 1861 Wheeling Convention was a series of two meetings that ultimately repealed the Ordinance of Secession passed by Virginia, thus establishing the Restored government of Virginia, which ultimately authorized the counties that organized the convention to become West Virginia. The convention was...

. The convention led to the admission of West Virginia

West Virginia

West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian and Southeastern regions of the United States, bordered by Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Ohio to the northwest, Pennsylvania to the northeast and Maryland to the east...

as a free state. Tod became known as "the soldier's friend," for his determined efforts to help equip and sustain Ohio's troops. He was noted for his quick response in calling out the state militia

Militia

The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...

to battle Confederate raiders. Brough strongly supported the Lincoln Administration's war efforts and was key to persuading other Midwestern governors to raise 100-day regiments

Hundred Days Men

The Hundred Days Men was the nickname applied to a series of volunteer regiments raised in 1864 for 100-days service in the Union Army during the height of the American Civil War...

, such as the 131st Ohio Infantry

131st Ohio Infantry

The 131st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-History:The 131st OVI was mustered into the service at Camp Chase in Columbus on May 14, 1864, as an Ohio National Guard unit...

in early 1864, to release more seasoned troops for duty in Gen. Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

's spring campaign.

Copperheads

Through the middle of the war, the Copperhead

Copperheads (politics)

The Copperheads were a vocal group of Democrats in the Northern United States who opposed the American Civil War, wanting an immediate peace settlement with the Confederates. Republicans started calling anti-war Democrats "Copperheads," likening them to the venomous snake...

movement had appeal in Ohio, driven in part by noted states rights advocate, Congressman Clement Vallandigham

Clement Vallandigham

Clement Laird Vallandigham was an Ohio resident of the Copperhead faction of anti-war Democrats during the American Civil War. He served two terms in the United States House of Representatives.-Biography:...

, a leading Peace Democrat. After General Ambrose E. Burnside issued General Order Number 38

General Order Number 38

General Order Number 38 was issued by American Union general Ambrose Burnside on April 13, 1863, during the American Civil War, while Burnside commanded the Department of the Ohio...

in early 1863, warning that the "habit of declaring sympathies for the enemy" would not be tolerated in the Military District of Ohio, Vallandigham gave a major speech charging the war was being fought not to save the Union, but to free blacks and enslave whites.

Burnside ordered his arrest and took Vallandigham to Cincinnati for trial. At the trial, Vallandigham was found guilty. The court sentenced him to prison for the duration of the war. President Lincoln attempted to quiet the situation by writing the Birchard Letter

Birchard Letter

The Birchard Letter , was a public letter from United States President Abraham Lincoln to M. Birchard and eighteen other Ohio Democrats in which Lincoln defended the administration's treatment of antiwar agitators, and offered to release Clement Vallandigham if a majority of those to whom the...

, which offered to release Vallandigham if several Ohio congressmen agreed to support certain policies of the Administration. To try to prevent political backlash and preserve authority of Gen. Burnside, Abraham Lincoln changed Vallandigham's sentence to banishment to the South. The threat was imprisonment if Vallandigham returned to northern soil. The South allowed Vallandigham to migrate to Canada, from where he ran an unsuccessful campaign for governor against Brough in 1863. Vallandigham's campaign bitterly divided much of southern Ohio.

1864 election

Public sentiment shifted more in favor of the Lincoln Administration, particularly as Ohio generals rose in prominence, with military successes in the Atlanta Campaign

Atlanta Campaign

The Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater of the American Civil War throughout northwest Georgia and the area around Atlanta during the summer of 1864. Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman invaded Georgia from the vicinity of Chattanooga, Tennessee, beginning in May...

, the Siege of Petersburg

Siege of Petersburg

The Richmond–Petersburg Campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War...

, and Sheridan's Valley Campaigns

Valley Campaigns of 1864

The Valley Campaigns of 1864 were American Civil War operations and battles that took place in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia from May to October 1864. Military historians divide this period into three separate campaigns, but it is useful to consider the three together and how they...

. In the 1864 Presidential Election

United States presidential election, 1864

In the United States Presidential election of 1864, Abraham Lincoln was re-elected as president. The election was held during the Civil War. Lincoln ran under the National Union ticket against Democratic candidate George B. McClellan, his former top general. McClellan ran as the "peace candidate",...

, Ohio strongly supported Lincoln's reelection. The state gave the president 265,674 votes (56.4% of the total) versus 205,609 votes (43.6%) for General George McClellan

George B. McClellan

George Brinton McClellan was a major general during the American Civil War. He organized the famous Army of the Potomac and served briefly as the general-in-chief of the Union Army. Early in the war, McClellan played an important role in raising a well-trained and organized army for the Union...

.

En route to 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....

for his inauguration, President Lincoln passed through Ohio by train, with brief stops in numerous cities. His first formal speech given after his election was in Hudson, Ohio

Hudson, Ohio

Hudson is a city in Summit County, Ohio, United States. The population was 22,262 at the 2010 census. It is an affluent exurban community and is part of the Akron, Ohio Metropolitan Statistical Area...

, a stop he made in route to Cleveland. Although Lincoln had visited the state several times before the war, he would not return during the Civil War. In 1865 his funeral train carried his body through the state, bound for Springfield, Illinois

Springfield, Illinois

Springfield is the third and current capital of the US state of Illinois and the county seat of Sangamon County with a population of 117,400 , making it the sixth most populated city in the state and the second most populated Illinois city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area...

.

Newspapers engaged in very lively discussion of war issues, from the Republican, War Democrat and Copperhead perspectives.

Military recruitment

At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, in response to a call to arms by President Lincoln, Ohio raised 23 volunteer infantry 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...

s for three months' service, 10 more regiments than the state's quota. When it became evident that the war would not end quickly, Ohio began raising regiments for three-year terms of enlistment. At first the majority were stocked with eager volunteers and recruits. Before the war's end, they would be joined by 8,750 draftees.

Nearly 320,000 Ohioans served in the Union army, more than any other northern state except New York

New York

and Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

. Of these, 5,092 were free blacks. Ohio had the highest percentage of population enlisted in the military of any state. Sixty percent of all the men between the ages of 18 and 45 were in the service. Ohio mustered 230 regiments of infantry

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...

and cavalry

Cavalry

Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...

, as well as 26 light artillery

Artillery

Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...

batteries and 5 independent companies of sharpshooters. Total casualties among these units numbered 35,475 men, more than 10% of all the Buckeyes in uniform during the war. There were 6,835 men killed in action, including 402 officers.

Dozens of small camps were established across the state to train and drill the new regiments. Two large military posts were created: Camp Chase

Camp Chase

Camp Chase was a military staging, training and prison camp in Columbus, Ohio, during the American Civil War. All that remains of the camp today is a Confederate cemetery containing 2,260 graves. The cemetery is located in what is now the Hilltop neighborhood of Columbus, Ohio.- History :Camp Chase...

in Columbus

Columbus, Ohio

Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...

and Camp Dennison

Camp Dennison

Camp Dennison was a military recruiting, training, and medical post for the United States Army during the American Civil War. It was located near Cincinnati, Ohio, not far from the Ohio River. The camp was named for Cincinnati native William Dennison, Ohio's governor at the start of the war.With...

near Cincinnati

Cincinnati, Ohio

Cincinnati is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio. Cincinnati is the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located to north of the Ohio River at the Ohio-Kentucky border, near Indiana. The population within city limits is 296,943 according to the 2010 census, making it Ohio's...

. The 1st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry (OVI)

1st Ohio Infantry

The 1st Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Western Theater in a number of campaigns and battles.-Three-months regiment:...

would eventually be joined on the muster rolls by more than 100 additional infantry regiments.

Ohioans first had military action at the Battle of Philippi Races

Battle of Philippi Races

The Battle of Philippi—also known mockingly as "The Philippi Races"—was fought on June 3, 1861, in and around Philippi, Virginia as part of the Western Virginia Campaign of the American Civil War...

in June 1861, where the 14th and 16th Ohio Infantry

16th Ohio Infantry

The 16th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Three-months regiment:...

participated in the Union victory. Ohioans comprised one-fifth of the Union army at the April 1862 Battle of Shiloh

Battle of Shiloh

The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6–7, 1862, in southwestern Tennessee. A Union army under Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had moved via the Tennessee River deep into Tennessee and...

, where 1,676 Buckeyes suffered casualties. Ohio would suffer its highest casualty count at the Battle of Chickamauga

Battle of Chickamauga

The Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19–20, 1863, marked the end of a Union offensive in southeastern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia called the Chickamauga Campaign...

in September 1863, with 3,591 killed or wounded. Another 1,351 men were taken prisoner of war

Prisoner of war

A prisoner of war or enemy prisoner of war is a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict...

by the Confederates. Among these prisoners, 36 men from the 2nd Ohio Infantry

2nd Ohio Infantry

The 2nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Three-months regiment:...

would perish in the infamous Andersonville prison

Andersonville prison

The Andersonville prison, officially known as Camp Sumter, served as a Confederate Prisoner-of-war camp during the American Civil War. The site of the prison is now Andersonville National Historic Site in Andersonville, Georgia. Most of the site actually lies in extreme southwestern Macon County,...

, as did hundreds more Buckeye soldiers there.

Several Buckeye regiments played critical roles in other important battles. The 8th OVI

8th Ohio Infantry

The 8th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater in a number of campaigns and battles, but perhaps is most noted for its actions in helping repulse Pickett's Charge during the Battle of...

was instrumental in helping repulse 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,...

at the Battle of Gettysburg

Battle of Gettysburg

The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...

. At the same battle, the 66th OVI

66th Ohio Infantry

The 66th Ohio Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:The 66th Ohio Infantry was organized at Camp McArthur in Urbana, Ohio and mustered in for three years service on December 17, 1861 under the command of Colonel Charles Candy.The...

flanked repeated Confederate assaults and helped secure the crest of Culp's Hill

Culp's Hill

Culps Hill is a Battle of Gettysburg landform south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, with a heavily wooded summit of . The east slope is to Rock Creek , 160 feet lower in elevation, and the west slope is to a saddle with Stevens Knoll with a summit lower than the Culps Hill summit...

. George Nixon, great-grandfather of President Richard Nixon

Richard Nixon

Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...

, died at Gettysburg in the 73rd OVI.

John Clem

John Clem

John Lincoln Clem was a United States Army general who had served as a drummer boy in the Union Army in the American Civil War. He gained fame for his bravery on the battlefield, becoming the youngest noncommissioned officer in Army history. He retired from the Army in 1915, having attained the...

, celebrated as "Johnny Shiloh" and "The Drummer Boy of Chickamauga," became the youngest person to become a noncommissioned officer in United States Army

United States Army

The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...

history. More than 100 soldiers from Ohio units earned the Medal of Honor

Medal of Honor

The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...

during the conflict. Several were awarded it for the ill-fated Great Locomotive Chase

Great Locomotive Chase

The Great Locomotive Chase or Andrews' Raid was a military raid that occurred April 12, 1862, in northern Georgia during the American Civil War. Volunteers from the Union Army, led by civilian scout James J...

.

President Lincoln had a habit on the eve of a battle of asking how many Ohio men would participate. When someone inquired why, Lincoln remarked, "Because I know that if there are many Ohio soldiers to be engaged, it is probable we will win the battle, for they can be relied upon in such an emergency."

Small-scale riots broke out in ethnic German and Irish districts, and in areas along the Ohio River with many Copperheads. Holmes County, Ohio

Holmes County, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 38,943 people, 11,337 households, and 9,194 families residing in the county. The population density was 92 people per square mile . There were 12,280 housing units at an average density of 29 per square mile...

was an isolated localistic areas dominated by Pennsylvania Dutch

Pennsylvania Dutch

Pennsylvania Dutch refers to immigrants and their descendants from southwestern Germany and Switzerland who settled in Pennsylvania in the 17th and 18th centuries...

and some recent German immigrants. It was a Democratic stronghold and few men dared speak out in favor of conscription. Local politicians denounced Lincoln and Congress as despotic, seeing the draft law as a violation of their local autonomy. In June 1863, small scale disturbance broke out; they ended when the Army send in armed units.

Military actions in Ohio

Unlike its neighbors West Virginia

West Virginia

, Kentucky

Kentucky

, and Pennsylvania

Pennsylvania

, Ohio was spared from serious military encounters. In September 1862, Confederate forces under Brig. Gen.

Brigadier General

Brigadier general is a senior rank in the armed forces. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries, usually sitting between the ranks of colonel and major general. When appointed to a field command, a brigadier general is typically in command of a brigade consisting of around 4,000...

Henry Heth

Henry "Harry" Heth was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general in the American Civil War. He is best remembered for inadvertently precipitating the Battle of Gettysburg, when he sent some of his troops of the Army of Northern Virginia to the small Pennsylvania village,...

marched through northern Kentucky and threatened Cincinnati (see Defense of Cincinnati

Defense of Cincinnati

The Defense of Cincinnati occurred during what is now referred to as the Confederate Heartland Offensive of American Civil War from September 1 through September 13, 1862, when Cincinnati, Ohio, was threatened by Confederate forces....

). They turned away after encountering strong Union fortifications south of the Ohio River

Ohio River

. Not long afterwards, Brig. Gen. Albert G. Jenkins

Albert G. Jenkins

Albert Gallatin Jenkins was an attorney, planter, representative to the United States Congress and First Confederate Congress, and a Confederate brigadier general during the American Civil War...

briefly passed through the extreme southern tip of Ohio during a raid.

It was not until the summer of 1863 that Confederates arrived in force, when John Hunt Morgan

John Hunt Morgan

John Hunt Morgan was a Confederate general and cavalry officer in the American Civil War.Morgan is best known for Morgan's Raid when, in 1863, he and his men rode over 1,000 miles covering a region from Tennessee, up through Kentucky, into Indiana and on to southern Ohio...

's cavalry division traversed southern and eastern Ohio during Morgan's Raid

Morgan's Raid

. His activities culminated in Morgan's capture in Columbiana County

Columbiana County, Ohio

Columbiana County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. As of 2010, the population was 107,841. It is named for Christopher Columbus and the county seat is Lisbon....

. The Battle of Buffington Island

Battle of Buffington Island

The Battle of Buffington Island, also known as the St. Georges Creek Skirmish, was an American Civil War engagement in Meigs County, Ohio, and Jackson County, West Virginia, on July 19, 1863, during Morgan's Raid. The largest battle in Ohio during the war, Buffington Island contributed to the...

was the largest fought in Ohio during the Civil War.

Notable Civil War leaders from Ohio

Numerous leading general

General

A general officer is an officer of high military rank, usually in the army, and in some nations, the air force. The term is widely used by many nations of the world, and when a country uses a different term, there is an equivalent title given....

s and army commanders hailed from Ohio. The General-in-Chief of the Union armies, Ulysses S. Grant

Ulysses S. Grant

, was born in Clermont County

Clermont County, Ohio

Clermont County is a county located in the state of Ohio, United States, just east of Cincinnati. As of 2010, the population was 197,363. Its county seat is Batavia...

in 1822. Among the 19 major general

Major General

Major general or major-general is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. A major general is a high-ranking officer, normally subordinate to the rank of lieutenant general and senior to the ranks of brigadier and brigadier general...

s from Ohio were William T. Sherman, Philip H. Sheridan, Don Carlos Buell

Don Carlos Buell

Don Carlos Buell was a career United States Army officer who fought in the Seminole War, the Mexican-American War, and the American Civil War. Buell led Union armies in two great Civil War battles—Shiloh and Perryville. The nation was angry at his failure to defeat the outnumbered...

, Jacob D. Cox, George Crook

George Crook

George R. Crook was a career United States Army officer, most noted for his distinguished service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.-Early life:...

, George Armstrong Custer

George Armstrong Custer

George Armstrong Custer was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the Indian Wars. Raised in Michigan and Ohio, Custer was admitted to West Point in 1858, where he graduated last in his class...

, James A. Garfield, Irvin McDowell

Irvin McDowell

Irvin McDowell was a career American army officer. He is best known for his defeat in the First Battle of Bull Run, the first large-scale battle of the American Civil War.-Early life:...

, James B. McPherson

James B. McPherson

James Birdseye McPherson was a career United States Army officer who served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War...

, William S. Rosecrans, and Alexander M. McCook (of the "Fighting McCook

Fighting McCooks

" family, which sent a number of generals into the service). The state would contributed 53 brigadier general

Brigadier General

s.

A handful of Confederate

Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...

generals were Ohio-born, including Bushrod Johnson

Bushrod Johnson

Bushrod Rust Johnson was a teacher, university chancellor, and Confederate general in the American Civil War. He was one of a handful of Confederate generals who were born and raised in the North.-Early life:...

of Belmont County

Belmont County, Ohio

Belmont County is a county located in the U.S. state of Ohio. It is part of the Wheeling, West Virginia Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of 2010, the population was 70,400. Its county seat is St. Clairsville...

and Robert H. Hatton

Robert H. Hatton

Robert Hopkins Hatton was a lawyer, politician, United States Congressman, and Confederate officer during the American Civil War.-Biography:...

of Steubenville

Steubenville, Ohio

. Charles Clark

Charles Clark (governor)

Charles Clark was a Mississippi Democratic political figure, as well as a major general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.-Early life and career:Clark was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, in 1811...

of Cincinnati led a division

Division (military)

A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...

in the Army of Mississippi

Army of Mississippi

There were three organizations known as the Army of Mississippi in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. -Army of Mississippi :This army, at times known by the names Army of the West or Army of the...

during the Battle of Shiloh

Battle of Shiloh

and then became the late war pro-Confederate Governor of Missouri. Noted Confederate guerrilla Capt. William Quantrill

William Quantrill

William Clarke Quantrill was a Confederate guerrilla leader during the American Civil War. After leading a Confederate bushwhacker unit along the Missouri-Kansas border in the early 1860s, which included the infamous raid and sacking of Lawrence, Kansas in 1863, Quantrill eventually ended up in...

was also born and raised in Ohio.

In addition to Grant and Garfield, three other Ohio Civil War veterans would become President of the United States

President of the United States

in the decades following the war: William McKinley

William McKinley

William McKinley, Jr. was the 25th President of the United States . He is best known for winning fiercely fought elections, while supporting the gold standard and high tariffs; he succeeded in forging a Republican coalition that for the most part dominated national politics until the 1930s...

of Canton

Canton, Ohio

Canton is the county seat of Stark County in northeastern Ohio, approximately south of Akron and south of Cleveland.The City of Caton is the largest incorporated area within the Canton-Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area...

, Rutherford B. Hayes

Rutherford B. Hayes

Rutherford Birchard Hayes was the 19th President of the United States . As president, he oversaw the end of Reconstruction and the United States' entry into the Second Industrial Revolution...

of Fremont

Fremont, Ohio

Fremont Public Schools enroll 4,450 students in public primary and secondary schools. The district administers 9 public schools including seven elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school, Fremont Ross. In addition, the city is home to one private catholic high school, Saint Joseph...

, and Benjamin Harrison

Benjamin Harrison

Benjamin Harrison was the 23rd President of the United States . Harrison, a grandson of President William Henry Harrison, was born in North Bend, Ohio, and moved to Indianapolis, Indiana at age 21, eventually becoming a prominent politician there...

of the greater Cincinnati area.

Civil War sites in Ohio

The only battlefield of significance in Ohio is Buffington Island

Battle of Buffington Island

. Today it is threatened by development. This was the site of the largest fight of the July 1863 dash across Ohio by Confederate cavalry under John Hunt Morgan. The incursion was immortalized as "Morgan's Raid". A lesser engagement was the Battle of Salineville

Battle of Salineville

The Battle of Salineville occurred July 26, 1863, near Salineville, Ohio during Morgan's Raid in the American Civil War. It was one of the northernmost military actions involving the Confederate States Army. The decisive Union victory shattered John Hunt Morgan's remaining Confederate cavalry and...

, which resulted in the capture of General Morgan. He and a number of his officers were incarcerated in the Ohio Penitentiary

Ohio Penitentiary

The Ohio Penitentiary, also known as the Ohio State Penitentiary, or less formally, the Ohio Pen or State Pen, was a prison operated from 1834-1983 in downtown Columbus, Ohio, in what is now known as the Arena District. The prison housed 5,235 prisoners at its peak in 1955...

before escaping. Extreme south-central Ohio had previously been briefly invaded in early September 1862 by cavalry under Albert G. Jenkins

Albert G. Jenkins

Albert Gallatin Jenkins was an attorney, planter, representative to the United States Congress and First Confederate Congress, and a Confederate brigadier general during the American Civil War...

.

Two important cemeteries for the dead from the Confederate States Army

Confederate States Army

can be found in the Buckeye State. One is at the prisoner-of-war camp

Prisoner-of-war camp

A prisoner-of-war camp is a site for the containment of combatants captured by their enemy in time of war, and is similar to an internment camp which is used for civilian populations. A prisoner of war is generally a soldier, sailor, or airman who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or...

on Johnson's Island

Johnson's Island

, the most significant Civil War site in the state and intended mostly for officers. Estimates are that 10,000-15,000 Confederate officers and soldiers were incarcerated during the camp's three years of operations, with 2500-3000 at any one time. About 300 Confederates died and were buried there. A museum about Johnson's Island is located in Marblehead on the mainland. The Civil War buildings were dismantled shortly after the war. Archeological work by Heidelberg University has revealed the boundaries of the camp and new materials. At one time part of the island was used for a pleasure resort. Another cemetery is located at Camp Chase, where more than 2,000 Southerners were interred. Union Cemetery in Steubenville, Ohio

Steubenville, Ohio

, is the final resting place of Civil War soldiers, including several generals and colonels, including several of the "Fighting McCooks

Fighting McCooks

".

Monuments in Cincinnati and Mansfield

Mansfield, Ohio

Mansfield is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Richland County. The municipality is located in north-central Ohio in the western foothills of the Allegheny Plateau, approximately southwest of Cleveland and northeast of Columbus....

commemorate the hundreds of Ohio soldiers who had been liberated from Southern prison camps, such as Cahaba

Cahaba Prison

Cahaba Prison, also known as Castle Morgan, was a prisoner of war camp in Alabama where the Confederacy held captive Union soldiers during the American Civil War. The prison was located in the small Alabama town of Cahaba, at the confluence of the Alabama and Cahaba Rivers, not far from...

and Andersonville

Andersonville prison

, but perished in the Sultana steamboat

Sultana (steamboat)

The SS Sultana was a Mississippi River steamboat paddlewheeler whose destruction in an explosion on April 27, 1865 was the greatest maritime disaster in United States history. An estimated 1,800 of the Sultanas 2,400 passengers were killed when three of the ship's four boilers exploded and the...

tragedy. In the aftermath of war, women's groups were instrumental in raising money and organizing activities to create the memorials.

Many Ohio counties have Civil War monuments, statues, cannons, and similar memorials of their contributions to the Civil War effort. These are frequently located near the county courthouses. The Ohio State Capitol has a display of Civil War guns on its grounds. In downtown Cleveland's Public Square

Public Square

Public Square is the central plaza in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, United States. It takes up four city blocks; Superior Avenue and Ontario Street cross through it. Cleveland's three tallest buildings, Key Tower, 200 Public Square and the Terminal Tower, face the square...

is the impressive Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument

Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument (Cleveland)

The Cuyahoga County Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument is a monument to Civil War soldiers and sailors from Cuyahoga County, Ohio. Located in the southeast quadrant of Public Square in downtown Cleveland, it was designed by architect Levi Scofield , who also created the monument's sculptures and...

. Other large monuments are in Dayton

Dayton, Ohio

Dayton is the 6th largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Montgomery County, the fifth most populous county in the state. The population was 141,527 at the 2010 census. The Dayton Metropolitan Statistical Area had a population of 841,502 in the 2010 census...

, Hamilton

Hamilton, Ohio

Hamilton is a city in Butler County, southwestern Ohio, United States. The population was 62,447 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Butler County. The city is part of the Cincinnati metropolitan area....

, and Columbus

Columbus, Ohio

. A large equestrian statue of General Sheridan is in the center of Somerset

Somerset, Ohio

Somerset is a village in Perry County, Ohio, United States. The population was 1,549 at the 2000 census.Saint Joseph Church, the oldest Catholic church in Ohio, is located just outside of Somerset on State Route 383.-Geography:...

. New Rumley

New Rumley, Ohio

New Rumley is an unincorporated community in central Rumley Township, Harrison County, Ohio, United States. It is famous for being the birthplace of George Armstrong Custer....

has a memorial to George Armstrong Custer. A number of Ohio Historical Markers throughout the state commemorate places and people associated with the Civil War.

Some of the homes of noted Civil War officers and political leaders have been restored and are open to the public as museums. Among these are the Daniel McCook House

Daniel McCook House

The Daniel McCook House is a historic antebellum house in Carrollton, Ohio, that was home to several of the "Fighting McCooks", who rose to fame during the American Civil War...

in Carrollton, Ohio

Carrollton, Ohio

Carrollton is a village in Carroll County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,190 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Carroll County.Carrollton is part of the Canton–Massillon Metropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...

. The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center and Library

Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center

The Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center is a complex comprising several buildings related to the life and presidency of Rutherford B. Hayes. Located in Fremont, Ohio, the center comprises the Rutherford B. Hayes Museum and Library and Spiegel Grove, an estate encompassing the Hayes home,...

in Fremont

Fremont, Ohio

contains a number of Civil War relics and artifacts associated with General Hayes. Similarly, "Lawnfield"

James A. Garfield National Historic Site

James A. Garfield National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located in Mentor, Ohio. The site preserves the property associated with the 20th President of the United States, James Abram Garfield.-History:...

, the home of James A. Garfield in Mentor

Mentor, Ohio

As of the census of 2000, there were 50,278 people, 18,797 households, and 14,229 families residing in the city. The population density was 1,878.2 people per square mile . There were 19,301 housing units at an average density of 721.0 per square mile...

, has a collection of Civil War items associated with the assassinated President.

The Ohio Historical Society

Ohio Historical Society

The Ohio Historical Society is a non-profit organization incorporated in 1885 as The Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society "to promote a knowledge of archaeology and history, especially in Ohio"...

maintains many of the archives of the war, including artifacts and many battle flags of individual regiments and artillery batteries. More relics can be found in the Western Reserve Historical Society

Western Reserve Historical Society

The Western Reserve Historical Society was founded in 1867, making it the oldest cultural institution in Northeast Ohio. WRHS is located in Cleveland, Ohio, USA.-About:...

's museum in Cleveland.

Prisons

Camp Chase Prison was a Union Army prison in Columbus. There was a plan among prisoners to revolt and escape in 1863. The prisoners expected support from Copperheads and Vallandigham, but never did revolt.

Modern embrace

The Blue Jackets professional hockey team, based in the capitol of Columbus, OH, derives its name and logo from Ohio's rich and proud Civil War history. The team's jersey is composed of Ohio's pennant-shaped flag as well as the emblematic Civil War kepi

Kepi

The kepi is a cap with a flat circular top and a visor or peak . Etymologically, the word is a borrowing of the French képi, itself a respelling of the Alemannic Käppi: a diminutive form of Kappe, meaning "cap"....

cap. Also, something unique throughout sporting arenas is the incorporation of a full-scale civil war replica cannon. In celebration of each Blue Jacket's home goal and victory an 1857 Napoleon cannon fires a blank round, reverberating throughout the confines to deliver a heart-stopping sonic boom.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Ohio politics during the War

Copperheads

1864 election

Military recruitment

Military actions in Ohio

Notable Civil War leaders from Ohio

Civil War sites in Ohio

Prisons

Modern embrace

See also

Further reading

Primary sources

External links