55th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment
Encyclopedia
The 55th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry
regiment
that served in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
. The regiment is sometimes referred to as the Canton Rifles or the Douglas Brigade 2nd Regiment.
The 55th Illinois Infantry was organized at Camp Douglas
, Chicago
, Illinois
and mustered into Federal service on October 31, 1861. Training continued at Benton Barracks, Missouri. The 55th was part of Sherman's Yazoo Expedition.
The regiment was mustered out on August 14, 1865.
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...
. The regiment is sometimes referred to as the Canton Rifles or the Douglas Brigade 2nd Regiment.
Service
Camp Douglas (Chicago)
Camp Douglas, in Chicago, Illinois, was a Union Army prisoner-of-war camp for Confederate soldiers taken prisoner during the American Civil War. It was also a training and detention camp for Union soldiers. The Union Army first used the camp in 1861 as an organizational and training camp for...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
, Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
and mustered into Federal service on October 31, 1861. Training continued at Benton Barracks, Missouri. The 55th was part of Sherman's Yazoo Expedition.
The regiment was mustered out on August 14, 1865.
Total strength and casualties
The regiment suffered casualties including nine officers, 149 enlisted men who were killed in action, or mortally wounded, and two officers and 127 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 286 fatalities.Commanders
- ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
David StuartDavid Stuart (politician)David Stuart was a politician from the U.S. state of Michigan and an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Early life:...
- promoted to brigadier general on November 29, 1862, U.S. Senate refused to confirm appointment, resigned April 3, 1863 - Colonel Oscar MalmborgOscar MalmborgFrans Oscar Malmborg , a veteran of the Mexican War, became famous for his ostentatious manner in training recruits for the American Civil War, primarily the 55th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment in which he served....
See also
- Memphis and Charleston RailroadMemphis and Charleston RailroadThe Memphis and Charleston Railroad, completed in 1857, was the first railroad in the United States to link the Atlantic Ocean with the Mississippi River. Chartered in 1846 the railroad ran from Memphis, Tennessee to Stevenson, Alabama through the towns of Corinth, Mississippi and Huntsville,...
- Milton L. HaneyMilton L. HaneyMilton Lorenzo Haney was a regimental chaplain in the United States Army.-Biography:Haney was born in Savannah, Ohio in 1825. He credited the home life of his mother as being the greatest human factor leading to his salvation. In 1846, he received appointment as the junior preacher of the Dixon,...
- List of Illinois Civil War Units
- Illinois in the American Civil WarIllinois in the American Civil WarThe state of Illinois during the American Civil War was a major source of troops for the Union army , and of military supplies, food, and clothing. Situated near major rivers and railroads, Illinois became a major jumping off place early in the war for Ulysses S...