The 1st Michigan Engineers and Mechanics Regiment was an

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

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 ...

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 (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 ...

. There were only ten other similar regiments in the Union Army. The Michigan unit was one of three engineering regiments raised in 1861, the other two being Missouri (August 1861) and New York (September 1861). Engineering regiments are often left off of many Order of Battles, but their contribution to campaigns were vital from a logistics point of view; repairing/building railroads, bridges and blockhouses; and destroying enemy communication lines, railroads and bridges. Engineering units like the First Michigan were often caught up in attacks from enemy guerrillas and cavalry skirmishes.

Service

The 1st Michigan Engineers was organized at

Marshall, Michigan Marshall is a U.S. city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Calhoun County. The population was 7,088 at the 2010 census. Marshall is best known for its cross-section of 19th- and early 20th-century architecture. It has been referred to by t ...

and mustered into service on October 29, 1861. They rendezvoused at Camp Owen on the Calhoun county fairgrounds in early October. The regiment was mustered out on September 22, 1865.

Total strength and casualties

Over its existence, the regiment carried a total of 2962 men on its muster rolls. The regiment lost 1 officer and 12 enlisted men killed in action or mortally wounded, and 351 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 364 fatalities. At the Battle of Perryville (October 1862), the First Michigan had at least ten wounded and one missing. At Lavergne, Tennessee; just prior to the Battle of Murfreesboro, the First Michigan had one killed, five wounded, four POWs and one missing. The 1st Michigan saw two men killed, nine wounded, and two missing at the Battle of Murfreesboro (early January 1863). The unit was active all over middle Tennessee, including Columbia, Spring Hill, Franklin, Brentwood and Nashville from 1862 - 1864, building and repairing railroads, bridges, blockhouses, etc. The Franklin-Nashville Campaign was costly to the First Michigan Engineers, losing over 30 men as POWs. The unit also participated in Sherman's March to the Sea and at the Battle of Bentonville.

Commanders

Colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

William Power Innes, September 12, 1861, to October 26, 1864 *Colonel John B. Yates, November 3, 1864, to September 22, 1865Record of Service of Michigan Volunteers in the Civil War, 1904, vol. 43, p. 230

Notes

References

*
The Civil War Archive

Engineers Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...

1865 disestablishments in Michigan 1861 establishments in Michigan Military units and formations established in 1861 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865 Engineer units and formations of the Union Army {{AmericanCivilWar-unit-stub

Service

Total strength and casualties

Commanders

See also

Notes

References