{{Infobox military unit , unit_name= 38th Iowa Infantry Regiment , image=Flag of Iowa.svg , image_size = 100 , caption=Iowa state flag , dates= November 4, 1862, to December 12, 1864 , country=

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, branch=

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 ...

, equipment= , battles= Siege of Vicksburg

Siege of Fort Morgan The siege of Fort Morgan occurred during the American Civil War, as part of the battle for Mobile Bay, in the Confederate state of Alabama during August 1864. Union ground forces led by General Gordon Granger conducted a short siege of the Con ...

The 38th Iowa 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 ...

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 ...

Service

Personnel for the 38th Iowa Infantry were enrolled chiefly in five counties in northeastern Iowa: Fayette, Winneshiek, Bremer, Chickasaw, and

Howard Howard is an English-language given name originating from Old French Huard (or Houard) from a Germanic source similar to Old High German ''*Hugihard'' "heart-brave", or ''*Hoh-ward'', literally "high defender; chief guardian". It is also probabl ...

. The regiment was organized and trained at Camp Franklin, Dubuque, Iowa, and on November 4, 1862, was mustered in for 3 years' service. The regiment re-occupied New Madrid,

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, on January 2, 1863, garrisoning Fort Thompson, and patrolling the woods and swamps of New Madrid and Pemiscot Counties, along the

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. On June 6, 1863, the regiment left for

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, a Confederate stronghold, as part of

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 ...

Francis Herron's Division. The 38th Iowa Infantry arrived on June 11, 1863, in the vicinity of Vicksburg, where the

Army of the Tennessee under Major General

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was besieging the city. In response to rumors of Confederate cavalry moving from

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, Mississippi, Herron's Division was ordered to a position on the southernmost portion of Grant's line. On June 14, 1863, the 38th Iowa Infantry crossed the Mississippi River, and occupied the bluff above Warrenton, Mississippi. On June 15, the 38th Iowa Infantry took a position on the extreme left of the line, extending from the river to a short distance across the Warrenton Road. Vicksburg surrendered on July 4, 1863. The 38th Iowa Infantry was ordered on December 12, 1864, to be consolidated with the 34th Regiment, Iowa Volunteer Infantry. More than 500 men of the 38th were transferred to the 34th. The consolidation was completed on January 1, 1865. On April 9, 1865, the consolidated 34th Iowa Infantry participated in the last major battle of the Civil War at

Fort Blakeley The Battle of Fort Blakeley took place from April 2 to April 9, 1865, in Baldwin County, Alabama, about north of Spanish Fort, Alabama, as part of the Mobile Campaign of the American Civil War. At the time, Blakeley, Alabama, had been the count ...

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. The regiment (including many soldiers from the old 38th Iowa Infantry) charged 500 yards against a redoubt; the regiment's casualties included one soldier killed and seven wounded from the old 38th. The 34th Iowa Infantry mustered out August 15, 1865, in

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, Texas.

Total strength and casualties

A total of 1037 men served in the 38th Iowa at one time or another during its existence. The Regiment suffered 1 enlisted man (Bendick Bendickson) killed in action at Vicksburg on July 16, 1863, when he was shot through the head, and one other (Evelyn Califf) who died of his wounds there on July 1 after being struck by pieces of an exploding shell. Four officers and 311 enlisted men died of disease, for a total of 317 and losses from all other causes had been 180. Most of these men died or were discharged due to disease from mid-July 1863 to mid-October 1863. The mortality loss alone amounted to over thirty percent of the total number enrolled, while the aggregate number of its casualties constituted nearly fifty per cent of its total enrollment. The regiment, without having had the opportunity to participate in any one of the great pitched battles of the war, passed through a frightful struggle with disease and death, only surpassed by other regiments whose conflicts with the enemy involved the loss of so many lives in addition to those claimed by disease. This period, when the Regiment lost more men to disease than any other Iowa regiment will come to symbolize the Regiment,s place in Iowa's civil war history.

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 Brush - Commissioned as the regiment's commanding officer by Iowa Governor

Samuel J. Kirkwood Samuel Jordan Kirkwood (December 20, 1813 – September 1, 1894) was an American politician who twice served as governor of Iowa, twice as a U.S. Senator from Iowa, and as the U.S. Secretary of the Interior. Early life and career Samuel Jordan ...

on September 12, 1862; commission revoked by governor for incompetence on October 26, 1862. * Colonel David Henry Hughes - Promoted from

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

on October 27, 1862, to replace Brush. Died of disease August 7, 1863, at Port Hudson,

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. *

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 ...

Charles Chadwick - Commanded regiment in place of Colonel Hughes from about August 1, 1863, until resigning on January 7, 1864. * Lieutenant Colonel Joseph O. Hudnutt - Last commander of the 38th Iowa Infantry, from about January 7, 1864, until December 31, 1864, when mustered out upon consolidation of the regiment with the 34th Iowa Infantry.Iowa Genweb Iowa in the Civil War Project after Logan, Guy E., Roster and Record of Iowa Troops In the Rebellion', Vol. 1 * Colonel

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- Commander of the 34th Iowa Infantry; commander of the Consolidated 34th and 38th Regiment on January 1, 1864;

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brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

, April 9, 1864; mustered out with regiment on August 15, 1865.

Notes

References

The Civil War Archive
Units and formations of the Union Army from Iowa Military units and formations established in 1862 1862 establishments in Iowa Military units and formations disestablished in 1864 1864 disestablishments in Iowa

Service

Total strength and casualties

Commanders

See also

Notes

References