The 31st New York Infantry Regiment, "Baxter's Light Guard" or the "Montezuma 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

The regiment was organized in

New York City, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

, and was mustered in for a two-year enlistment on May 14, 1861. The regiment was mustered out of service on June 4, 1863, and those men who had signed three year enlistments or who re-enlisted were transferred to the 121st New York on April 19, 1864.

Total strength and casualties

The regiment suffered 6 officers and 62 enlisted men who were killed in action or mortally wounded and 3 officers and 1 officer and 29 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 98 fatalities.

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 ...

Calvin Edward Pratt

Notes

References

The Civil War Archive

External links