The 96th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an 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...

 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 96th Illinois Infantry was organized at Rockford, Illinois

Rockford, Illinois

Rockford is a mid-sized city located on both banks of the Rock River in far northern Illinois. Often referred to as "The Forest City", Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County, Illinois, USA. As reported in the 2010 U.S. census, the city was home to 152,871 people, the third most populated...

 and mustered into Federal service on September 6, 1862. It consisted of men from Jo Daviess County

Jo Daviess County, Illinois

Jo Daviess County is a county located in the northwest corner of U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 22,678, which is an increase of 1.7% from 22,289 in 2000. Its county seat is Galena....

 and Lake County, Illinois

Lake County, Illinois

Lake County is a county in the northeastern corner of the state of Illinois, on the shore of Lake Michigan. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 703,462, which is an increase of 9.2% from 644,356 in 2000. Its county seat is Waukegan. The county is part of the Chicago metropolitan area...

. The composition of the companies were drawn from a hat with Companies, A, E, F, H, I, and K going to Jo Daviess with D, C, D, and G filled by Lake County men. The original officers were Colonel Thomas E. Champion of Warren, Illinois

Warren, Illinois

Warren is a village in Jo Daviess County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,428 at the 2010 census, down from 1,496 at the 2000 census.Warren holds several festivals throughout the year...

 and Lieutenant Colonel Issac L. Clarke of Waukegan, Illinois

Waukegan, Illinois

Waukegan is a city and county seat of Lake County, Illinois. As of the 2000 census, the city had a total population of 87,901. The 2010 population was 89,078. It is the ninth-largest city in Illinois by population...

.

The regiment was mustered out on June 10, 1865.

Total strength and casualties

The regiment suffered 5 officers and 111 enlisted men who were killed in action or who died of their wounds and 1 officer and 124 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 241 fatalities.