The 70th New York Infantry Regiment was one of five infantry regiments formed by former U.S. Congressman

Daniel Sickles Daniel Edgar Sickles (October 20, 1819May 3, 1914) was an American politician, soldier, and diplomat. Born to a wealthy family in New York City, Sickles was involved in a number of scandals, most notably the 1859 homicide of his wife's lover, U. ...

and established as part of the

Excelsior Brigade The Excelsior Brigade was a military unit in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Mainly composed of infantry regiments raised in the state of New York primarily by former U.S. Representative Daniel Sickles, the brigade served in several ...

which fought with 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 multiple key engagements of 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 ...

, including the Chancellorsville, Gettysburg and Overland campaigns. Leaders from the 70th New York recruited men from New Jersey, as well as from cities and small towns across the State of New York.

Service

The regiment was organized in

New York City 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 ...

in May 1861 under the authority of the

War Department War Department may refer to: * War Department (United Kingdom) * United States Department of War (1789–1947) See also * War Office, a former department of the British Government * Ministry of defence * Ministry of War * Ministry of Defence * Dep ...

as the 1st Regiment,

Sickles Sickles may refer to: People *Carlton R. Sickles (1921–2004), American lawyer and congressman from Maryland *Daniel Sickles (1819–1914), American politician and Civil War general * Mark D. Sickles (born 1957), American politician *Nicholas Sick ...

' Brigade, at Camp Scott on

Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...

. It mustered into service on June 20, 1861. The 70th left the state for

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

, on July 23, 1861. It was subsequently attached to Sickles' Brigade, Division of the Potomac, until October, 1861. Then, it was reassigned to Sickles' Brigade, Hooker's Division,

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...

, until March 1862. (It was formally designated as the 70th Regiment New York Infantry on December 11, 1861.) The 70th was part of the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, Third Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, until March 1864. Then it was in the 2nd Brigade, 4th Division, Second Army Corps until May 1864. It finished the war in the 4th Brigade, 3rd Division, Second Army Corps, until July 1864. Ordered to New York for muster out June 22, 1864. Veterans and Recruits were transferred to the 86th New York Infantry. The 70th mustered out on July 7, 1864, to date from July 1, 1864, after the expiration of its three-year term of enlistment. The regiment lost during service 9 officers and 181 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded, and 2 officers and 62 enlisted men by disease for a total of 254 fatalities.

Commanding officers and other notable members

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 ...

John Egbert Farnum John Egbert Farnum (born in New Jersey, 1 April 1824; died in New York City, 16 May 1870) was a brevet general in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War, and captain of the illegal slave ship ''Wanderer ...

: His name was marked in the

Graffiti House The Graffiti House, located at 19484 Brandy Road in the eastern end of the town of Brandy Station, Virginia, is believed by the Brandy Station Foundation to have been built in 1858. It is one of few dwellings in the village built before the Amer ...

Brandy Station, Virginia Brandy Station is an unincorporated community and census-designated place (CDP) in Culpeper County, Virginia, United States. It was first listed as a CDP in the 2020 census with a population of 191. Its original name was Brandy. The name Brandy S ...

, which served as the headquarters for a division of Third Corps, Army of the Potomac during the post-Battle of Gettysburg pursuit of Confederate General Robert E. Lee's army * John N. Coyne: U.S. Medal of Honor recipient for capturing an enemy flag in the

Battle of Williamsburg The Battle of Williamsburg, also known as the Battle of Fort Magruder, took place on May 5, 1862, in York County, James City County, and Williamsburg, Virginia, as part of the Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War. It was the first pitc ...

, Virginia on May 5, 1862

Footnotes

Citations

References

* * * Foner, Eric (1988). ''Reconstruction: America's Unfinished Revolution, 1863-1877''. New York, New York: Harper & Row. . * * * *

External links

New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center - Civil War - 70th Infantry Regiment
{{DEFAULTSORT:70th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment Infantry 070 Military history of New York City Excelsior Brigade Daniel Sickles 1861 establishments in New York (state) Military units and formations established in 1861 Military units and formations disestablished in 1864