The 138th Ohio Infantry Regiment, sometimes 138th Ohio Volunteer Infantry (or 138th OVI) was an
infantry
Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and marine i ...
regiment
A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation.
In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscripted ...
in the
Union Army
During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
during the
American Civil War
The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
.
Service
The 138th Ohio Infantry was organized at
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 De ...
near
Cincinnati, Ohio
Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
, and mustered in May 14, 1864, for 100 days service.
The regiment was attached to 1st Brigade, DeRussy's Division,
XXII Corps. Assigned to 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division,
X Corps 10th Corps, Tenth Corps, or X Corps may refer to:
France
* 10th Army Corps (France)
* X Corps (Grande Armée), a unit of the Imperial French Army during the Napoleonic Wars
Germany
* X Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army
* ...
,
Army of the James
The Army of the James was a Union Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River (Virginia), James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia.
Histor ...
.
The 138th Ohio Infantry mustered out of service at Camp Dennison on September 1, 1864.
Detailed service
Left Ohio for Washington, D.C., May 14. Picket duty at Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, May 16–22. Reached Washington May 22. Assigned to garrison duty at Forts
Albany,
Craig, and
Tillinghast Tillinghast may refer to:
* Tillinghast (surname), an English surname
* Tillinghast L'Hommedieu Huston (1867–1938), American businessman, owner of New York Yankees, circa 1915
* Tillinghast Mill Site, a Registered Historic Place in Rhode Island, ...
, defenses of Washington, south of the Potomac, until June 5. Moved to White House Landing, Virginia, June 5. Picket and guard duty there until June 16. Moved to Bermuda Hundred, Virginia, June 16. Picket and fatigue duty at Bermuda Hundred, Point of Rocks, Broadway Landing, and Cherrystone Inlet until August.
Ohio National Guard
Over 35,000 Ohio National Guardsmen were federalized and organized into regiments for
100 days service in May 1864. Shipped to the Eastern Theater, they were designed to be placed in "safe" rear areas to protect railroads and supply points, thereby freeing regular troops for Lt. Gen.
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
’s push on the
Confederate
Confederacy or confederate may refer to:
States or communities
* Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities
* Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...
capital of
Richmond, Virginia
(Thus do we reach the stars)
, image_map =
, mapsize = 250 px
, map_caption = Location within Virginia
, pushpin_map = Virginia#USA
, pushpin_label = Richmond
, pushpin_m ...
. As events transpired, many units found themselves in combat, stationed in the path of Confederate Gen.
Jubal Early
Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a Virginia lawyer and politician who became a Confederate general during the American Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early resigned his U.S. Army commissio ...
’s veteran
Army of the Valley
The Army of the Valley (officially the Army of the Valley District) was the name given to the army of Lt. Gen. Jubal Early's independent command during the Shenandoah Valley Campaigns in the summer and autumn of 1864. The Army of the Valley was t ...
during its famed
Valley Campaigns of 1864. Ohio Guard units met the battle-tested foe head on and helped blunt the Confederate offensive thereby saving
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
from capture. Ohio National Guard units participated in the battles of
Monacacy,
Fort Stevens,
Harpers Ferry
Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia. It is located in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The population was 285 at the 2020 census. Situated at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, where the U.S. stat ...
, and in the
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. Although it is more popularly known as the Siege of Petersburg, it was not a cla ...
.
Casualties
The regiment lost 8 enlisted men during service, all due to disease.
See also
*
List of Ohio Civil War units
During the American Civil War, nearly 320,000 Ohioans served in the Union Army, more than any other Northern state except New York and Pennsylvania. Of these, 5,092 were free blacks. Ohio had the highest percentage of population enlisted in the ...
*
Ohio in the Civil War
During the American Civil War, the State of Ohio played a key role in providing troops, military officers, and supplies to the Union army. Due to its central location in the Northern United States and burgeoning population, Ohio was both political ...
References
* Dyer, Frederick H. ''A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion'' (Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co.), 1908.
* Ohio Roster Commission. ''Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War on the Rebellion, 1861–1865, Compiled Under the Direction of the Roster Commission'' (Akron, OH: Werner Co.), 1886–1895.
* Reid, Whitelaw. ''Ohio in the War: Her Statesmen, Her Generals, and Soldiers'' (Cincinnati, OH: Moore, Wilstach, & Baldwin), 1868.
;Attribution
*
External links
Ohio in the Civil War: 138th Ohio Volunteer Infantry by Larry Stevens
{{Ohio in the Civil War
Military units and formations established in 1864
Military units and formations disestablished in 1864
1864 disestablishments in Ohio
Units and formations of the Union Army from Ohio
1864 establishments in Ohio