The 15th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a

volunteer Volunteering is a voluntary act of an individual or group freely giving time and labor for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency rescue. Others serve ...

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 mar ...

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 conscript ...

that served 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 of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

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 ...

. It was popularly known as the Norwegian Regiment or the Scandinavian Regiment, due to its composition of mostly

Norwegian American Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...

Swedish American Swedish Americans ( sv, svenskamerikaner) are Americans of Swedish ancestry. They include the 1.2 million Swedish immigrants during 1865–1915, who formed tight-knit communities, as well as their descendants and more recent immigrants. Today, ...

, and

Danish American Danish Americans ( da, Dansk-amerikanere) are Americans who have ancestral roots originated fully or partially from Denmark. There are approximately 1,300,000 Americans of Danish origin or descent. History The first Dane known to have arri ...

immigrants.

Service

The 15th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was originally formed by Col.

Hans Christian Heg Hans Christian Heg (December 21, 1829September 20, 1863) was a Norwegian American abolitionist, journalist, anti-slavery activist, politician and soldier, best known for leading the Scandinavian 15th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment on the Union s ...

at Camp Randall, near

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

. The majority of its members were

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

immigrants with the rest being mainly

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

and

Danish Danish may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Denmark People * A national or citizen of Denmark, also called a "Dane," see Demographics of Denmark * Culture of Denmark * Danish people or Danes, people with a Danish a ...

immigrants. The regiment was organized at

, and mustered into federal service January 31, 1862. The regiment was mustered out of service by company between December 1, 1864, and February 13, 1865.

Major campaigns

The 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment was a participant in a number of major battles conducted by the Union Army during the Civil War. *The

Battle of Island Number Ten The Battle of Island Number Ten was an engagement at the New Madrid or Kentucky Bend on the Mississippi River during the American Civil War, lasting from February 28 to April 8, 1862. Island Number Ten, a small island at the base of a tight dou ...

*The

Battle of Perryville The Battle of Perryville, also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills, was fought on October 8, 1862, in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky, as the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Offensive (Kentucky Campaign) during the ...

(October 8, 1862) *The

Battle of Stones River The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was a battle fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the Am ...

(December 31, 1862 - January 2, 1863) *The Tullahoma Campaign (June 24 - July 3, 1863) *

Battle of Chickamauga The Battle of Chickamauga, fought on September 19–20, 1863, between U.S. and Confederate forces in the American Civil War, marked the end of a Union offensive, the Chickamauga Campaign, in southeastern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia. I ...

(September 19 – 20, 1863) *

Battle of Resaca The Battle of Resaca, from May 13 to 15, 1864, formed part of the Atlanta Campaign during the American Civil War, when a Union force under William Tecumseh Sherman engaged the Confederate Army of Tennessee led by Joseph E. Johnston. The battle ...

(May 13–15, 1864) *The

Battle of Peachtree Creek The Battle of Peachtree Creek was fought in Georgia on July 20, 1864, as part of the Atlanta Campaign in the American Civil War. It was the first major attack by Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood since taking command of the Confederate Army of Tennessee ...

(July 20, 1864) *

Battle of Atlanta The Battle of Atlanta was a battle of the Atlanta Campaign fought during the American Civil War on July 22, 1864, just southeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Continuing their summer campaign to seize the important rail and supply hub of Atlanta, Un ...

(July 22 - August 25. 1864) *

Battle of Jonesborough The Battle of Jonesborough (August 31–September 1, 1864) was fought between Union Army forces led by William Tecumseh Sherman and Confederate forces under William J. Hardee during the Atlanta Campaign in the American Civil War. On the first ...

(August 31 – September 1, 1864)

Casualties

The 15th Wisconsin suffered eight officers and 86 enlisted men who were killed in action or who later died of their wounds, plus another one officer and 241 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 336 fatalities. On September 20, 1863 Colonel

died of wounds he received in action in the

on September 19, 1863.

Commanders

* Colonel

(February 14, 1862September 20, 1863) died of wounds after Chickamauga. Before the war, he had served as the 6th prison commissioner of Wisconsin. * Major

Jurgen Wilson George Wilson (a.k.a. Georg Wilson and Jurgen Wilson; December 18, 1836 – April 20, 1897) was a German-American, German-born Union Army officer during the American Civil War, serving with the Scandinavian Regiment. Early life Born to an English ...

(September 20, 1863July 24, 1864) commanded the regiment after many senior officers were killed or captured at Chickamauga. Earlier in the war, he had been captain of Co. H. He was also wounded at Chickamauga. He received an honorary brevet to lieutenant colonel after the war. * Lt. Colonel Ole C. Johnson (July 24, 1864February 10, 1865) was captured at Chickamauga and was prisoner of war until making his escape in May 1864. He commanded the regiment through the end of the war and was designated for promotion to colonel, but was never mustered at that rank. Earlier in the war, he had been captain of Co. B. After the war he became mayor of

Beloit, Wisconsin Beloit is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 36,657 people. History Twelve men in Colebrook, New Hampshire, created the "New England Emigrating Company" in October 1836 and sen ...

, and immigration commissioner of Wisconsin.

Notable people

* Hans Borchsenius was adjutant of the regiment for one year. He resigned due to illness. He later served as a Wisconsin state legislator, and served several appointed roles in the Internal Revenue Service. *

Claus Lauritz Clausen Claus Lauritz Clausen (November 3, 1820 – February 20, 1892) was an American pioneer Lutheran minister, church leader, military chaplain and politician. Biography Claus Clausen was born at Borgnæs in Tranderup Parish, on the island of ...

was chaplain of the regiment for one year. Before the war he had served in the Iowa state legislature. After the war he was a prominent religious leader in the Scandinavian American Lutheran community. *

David McKee David John McKee (2 January 1935 – 6 April 2022) was a British writer and illustrator, chiefly of children's books and animations. For his contribution as a children's illustrator, he was UK nominee for the biennial, international Hans Chris ...

was lieutenant colonel of the regiment and died at the Battle of Stones River. Earlier in the war, he had been captain of Co. C in the 2nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment. * John T. Rice was first lieutenant and later captain of Co. C, serving nearly the entire war. After the war he served as a Wisconsin state legislator. * Otto A. Risum was enlisted in Co. G and rose to the rank of sergeant. He was later promoted to sergeant major and then adjutant, serving through the entire war. After the war he served as a Wisconsin state legislator. * Svend Samuelson was 2nd lieutenant of Co. F and resigned due to illness in November 1863. He later served as a Wisconsin state legislator.

References

{{Reflist

Other sources

*Buslett, Ole Amundsen ''Det Femtende Regiment Wisconsin Frivillige'' (Decorah, Iowa, 1894) Norwegian *Estabrook, Charles E, ed. ''Records and sketches of military organizations: population, legislation, election and other statistics relating to Wisconsin in the period of the Civil War'' (Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. 1914) * Current, Richard Nelson ''The History of Wisconsin, The Civil War Era, 1848-1873'' (Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin. 1976)

External links

Camp of the 15th Regiment of the Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry

Military units and formations established in 1862 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865 Units and formations of the Union Army from Wisconsin Norwegian-American culture in Wisconsin 1862 establishments in Wisconsin