The 1st West Virginia Infantry Regiment 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 ...

unit 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 ...

. During its period of service, the

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 ...

was known as the 1st Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment, but often referred to with, "Union," "Loyal" or "West" in front to distinguish it from Confederate Army regiments. It was the first regiment mustered into service on southern soil after Lincoln's call for 75,000 troops. It was formed three days before the

Wheeling Convention The 1861 Wheeling Convention was an assembly of Virginia Southern Unionist delegates from the northwestern counties of Virginia, aimed at repealing the Ordinance of Secession, which had been approved by referendum, subject to a vote. The first ...

, which was assembled to decide western Virginia's response if Virginia seceded from the Union.

Service

3 month service

The first incarnation of the 1st West Virginia Infantry Regiment (known as the 1st Virginia at the time) was organized at Wheeling, Virginia, in May, 1861 from volunteer companies from

Hancock Hancock may refer to: Places in the United States * Hancock, Iowa * Hancock, Maine * Hancock, Maryland * Hancock, Massachusetts * Hancock, Michigan * Hancock, Minnesota * Hancock, Missouri * Hancock, New Hampshire ** Hancock (CDP), New Hampshir ...

Brooke Brooke may refer to: People * Brooke (given name) * Brooke (surname) * Brooke baronets, families of baronets with the surname Brooke Places * Brooke, Norfolk, England * Brooke, Rutland, England * Brooke, Virginia, US * Brooke's Point, Palawan ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

, and

Marshall Marshall may refer to: Places Australia * Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria Canada * Marshall, Saskatchewan * The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia Liberia * Marshall, Liberia Marshall Islands * Marshall Islands, an i ...

counties (the

Northern Panhandle The Northern Panhandle is the northern of the two panhandles in the U.S. state of West Virginia. It is a culturally and geographically distinct region of the state. It is the state's northernmost extension, bounded by Ohio and the Ohio River ...

of the state). These companies had been formed by pro-

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

citizens of these counties in April 1861, after the Commonwealth of

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

voted to secede from the Union, in order to resist

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 ...

incursions from the eastern portions of the state. The Regiment was mustered into United States service by companies for a period of three months (the first company, Company A, was mustered into service on May 10, while the final company, Company K, was mustered on May 23). Company A (from the Fourth Ward of Wheeling) had actually been organized, as the Rough and Ready Guards, on April 18, 1861, the day after the state convention voted for secession. Under the command of

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 ...

Benjamin Franklin Kelley Benjamin Franklin Kelley (April 10, 1807 – July 16, 1891) was an American soldier who served as a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He played a prominent role in several military campaigns in West Virginia and ...

and the 1st Virginia traveled from Wheeling by train on May 27 to near Mannington to secure a bridge on the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the first common carrier railroad and the oldest railroad in the United States, with its first section opening in 1830. Merchants from Baltimore, which had benefited to some extent from the construction of ...

, which had been destroyed by the rebels. After remaining there two days, the regiment advanced again, seizing the important railroad junction of Grafton on May 30 from a body of Virginia state militia under command of Confederate Col.

George A. Porterfield George Alexander Porterfield (November 24, 1822 – February 27, 1919) was a junior officer of United States forces in the Mexican–American War, colonel, in the Confederate States Army during the first year of the American Civil War and longtim ...

. On June 1, Isaac Duval took command as

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

of the regiment. Porterfield's troops retreated to

Philippi Philippi (; grc-gre, Φίλιπποι, ''Philippoi'') was a major Greek city northwest of the nearby island, Thasos. Its original name was Crenides ( grc-gre, Κρηνῖδες, ''Krenides'' "Fountains") after its establishment by Thasian colon ...

where, on June 3, they were defeated by a Union force which included the 1st Virginia Infantry. The

Battle of Philippi The Battle of Philippi was the final battle in the Wars of the Second Triumvirate between the forces of Mark Antony and Octavian (of the Second Triumvirate) and the leaders of Julius Caesar's assassination, Brutus and Cassius in 42 BC, at P ...

was the first land battle of the Civil War. During the battle, Col. Kelley was seriously wounded. The Regiment remained on duty at Rowlesburg, Grafton, and Philippi until July. During the remainder of their three months service, the regiment was separated. A detachment of five companies served with

Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

George B. McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...

in the Rich Mountain campaign. Another detachment was with Col.

Erastus B. Tyler Erastus Bernard Tyler (April 24, 1822 – January 9, 1891) was an American businessman, merchant, and soldier. He was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and fought in many of the early battles in the Eastern Theater before ...

in a campaign against Confederate

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Henry A. Wise Henry Alexander Wise (December 3, 1806 – September 12, 1876) was an American attorney, diplomat, politician and slave owner from Virginia. As the 33rd Governor of Virginia, Wise served as a significant figure on the path to the American Civil W ...

, who at that time had attempted an invasion of western Virginia. The remainder of the regiment guarded the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. On August 19, they returned to Wheeling where the 3-months regiment was mustered out of Federal service on August 27, 1861.

3 year service

The second incarnation of the 1st West Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment was mustered in for three year's service on October 30 at Wheeling, Virginia. It was known as the 1st Virginia until

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

became a state. Among the more notable members was the chaplain, James McCook, a member of the famed

Fighting McCooks The Fighting McCooks were members of a family of Ohioans who reached prominence as officers in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Two brothers, Daniel and John McCook, and thirteen of their sons were involved in the army, making the fami ...

. An analysis of the regiment by the George Tyler Moore Center in

Shepherdstown, West Virginia Shepherdstown is a town in Jefferson County, West Virginia, Jefferson County, West Virginia, United States, located in the lower Shenandoah Valley along the Potomac River. Home to Shepherd University, the town's population was 1,734 at the time of ...

, shows that it was composed of 39% native West Virginians, while 23% were from Ohio, 18% Pennsylvania, 11% were immigrants and 8% were from other U.S. states. Following the expiration of the original three-year term of enlistment, veterans of the regiment who chose to re-enlist were amalgamated with the

5th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment The 5th West Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 5th West Virginia Infantry Regiment was organized at Ceredo, West Virginia, beginning on September 3, 1861, ...

on October 10, 1864, to form the 2nd West Virginia Veteran Volunteer Infantry Regiment.

Casualties

The 1st West Virginia suffered 3 officers and 51 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded in battle and 2 officers and 136 enlisted men dead from disease for a total of 192 fatalitie

A member of Company G was killed in camp on May 29, 1861, from the accidental discharge of a gun.Rawling (1887), chap. IV.

Officers

Commanders

Joseph Thoburn Joseph Thoburn (April 29, 1825 – October 19, 1864) was an Irish-born American officer and brigade commander in the Union Army during the American Civil War. An accomplished physician and soldier from the state of West Virginia, he was ki ...

, originally the regimental surgeon of the 3-month unit * William H. Enochs

Other officers

* Lt. Col. Henry B. Hubbard * Maj. Isaac H. Duval (later promoted to brigadier general)

References

Bibliography

The Civil War Archive
Union Regimental Histories - West Virginia, 1st Regiment Infantry (3 Months) * (reprinted from the ''Annual Report of the Adjutant General of the State of West Virginia for the Year Ending December 31, 1864'') * {{cite book, last=Rawling, first=C. J. , title=History of the First Regiment Virginia Infantry, publisher=J. B. Lippincott Company, location=Philadelphia, date=1887, url=http://www.lindapages.com/wvcw/1wvi/1wvi.htm, accessdate=2008-09-14

External links

Units and formations of the Union Army from West Virginia 1861 establishments in Virginia Military units and formations established in 1861 Military units and formations disestablished in 1864