The 81st New York Infantry Regiment (aka "2nd Oswego Regiment" and "Mohawk Rangers") 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 ...

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 81st New York Infantry was organized at Albany,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

beginning February 18, 1862, and mustered on December 20, 1861, through February 20, 1862, for a three-year enlistment 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 ...

Edwin Rose. The regiment was attached to the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division, IV Corps,

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 ...

, to June 1862. 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, IV Corps, to June 1862. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, IV Corps, December 1862. Naglee's Brigade,

Department of North Carolina The Department of Virginia and North Carolina was a United States Military department encompassing Union-occupied territory in the Confederate States during the Civil War. In 1863 it was formed by the merging of two previously existing department ...

, to January 1863. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, XVIII Corps, Department of North Carolina, to February 1863. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, XVIII Corps,

Department of the South The Department of the South was a military department of the United States Army that existed in several iterations in the 19th century during and after the American Civil War. 1862–65 After the first 11 months of the American Civil War, startin ...

, to April 1863. District of Beaufort, North Carolina, XVIII Corps, to October 1863. Newport News, Virginia,

Department of Virginia and North Carolina The Department of Virginia and North Carolina was a United States Military department encompassing Union-occupied territory in the Confederate States during the Civil War. In 1863 it was formed by the merging of two previously existing departmen ...

, to January 1864. District of the Currituck, Department of Virginia and North Carolina, to March 1864. 1st Brigade, Heckman's Division, Department of Virginia and North Carolina, to April 1864. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, XVIII Corps,

Army of the James The Army of the James was a Union Army that was composed of units from the Department of Virginia and North Carolina and served along the James River (Virginia), James River during the final operations of the American Civil War in Virginia. Histor ...

, to December 1864. 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, XXIV Corps, to July 1865. 1st Independent Brigade, XXIV Corps, to August 1865. The 81st New York Infantry mustered out of service on August 31, 1865.

Detailed service

Organized at Albany, NY, from December 20, 1861, to February 20, 1862. Left State for Washington, DC, March 5, 1862. Attached to 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division, 4th Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, to June 1862. 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, 4th Army Corps, to June 1862. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, 4th Army Corps, to December 1862. Naglee's Brigade, Dept. of North Carolina, to January 1863. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, 18th Army Corps, Dept. of North Carolina, to February 1863. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, 18th Army Corps, Dept. of the South, to April 1863. District of Beaufort, NC, 18th Army Corps, to October 1863. Newport News, VA, Dept. of Virginia and North Carolina, to January 1864. District of the Currituck, Dept. of Virginia and North Carolina, to March 1864. 1st Brigade, Heckman's Division, Dept. of Virginia and North Carolina, to April 1864. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, 18th Army Corps, Army of the James, to December 1864. 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, 24th Army Corps, to July 1865. 1st Independent Brigade, 24th Army Corps, to August 1865. Duty at Kalorama Heights, Defenses of Washington, DC, March 7–13, 1862. They moved to the Peninsula, VA, on March 28. Siege of Yorktown April 5-May 4. Reconnaissance toward Lee's Mills April 29. Battle of Williamsburg May 5. Battle of Seven Pines or Fair Oaks May 31-June 1. Seven days before Richmond June 25-July 1. White Oak Swamp June 30. Malvern Hill July 1. At Harrison's Landing until August 16. The movement to Fortress Monroe August 16–22, and duty there until September 18. Duty at Yorktown, Norfolk, and Portsmouth until December. Moved to Morehead City, NC, December 28, 1862 – January 1, 1863; thence to Port Royal, SC, January 28–31, 1863. At St. Helena Island, SC, until April. Expedition against Charleston, SC, April 3–11. I moved to New Berne, NC, April 12–15. Expedition to relief of Little Washington April 17–21. Expedition to Trenton July 4–8. Action at Quaker Bridge July 6. Duty in the District of Beaufort, NC, until October. Moved to Newport News, VA, October 16–18, and duty there until January 1864. They moved to Portsmouth, VA, on January 22, and duty there and in the District of the Currituck until April 1864. Moved to Yorktown, VA, on April 26. Butler's operations on the south side of the James River and against Petersburg and Richmond May 4–28. Occupation of Bermuda Hundred and City Point May 5. Swift Creek or Arrowfield Church May 9–10. Operations against Fort Darling May 12–16. Battle of Drewry's Bluff May 14–16. Bermuda Hundred May 16–28. Moved to White House Landing, thence to Cold Harbor May 27–31. Battles about Cold Harbor June 1–12. Before Petersburg, June 15–18. Siege operations against Petersburg and Richmond from June 16, 1864, to April 2, 1865. Mine Explosion, Petersburg, July 30, 1864 (Reserve). Battle of Chaffin's Farm, New Market Heights, September 28–30. Battle of Fair Oaks October 27–28. Duty in trenches before Richmond until April 1865. Occupation of Richmond April 3. Pursuit of Lee April 4–9. Appomattox Court House April 9. Surrender of Lee and his army. Duty in the Department of Virginia until August. Mustered out August 31, 1865.

Casualties

Regiment lost during service, 13 Officers and 129 Enlisted men were killed and mortally wounded, and 1 Officer and 98 Enlisted men by disease. Total 239.

Commanders

* Colonel Edwin Rose - resigned in July 1862 due to illness * Colonel Jacob J. De Forest * Colonel John B. Raulston * Colonel David B. White

References

* De Forest, Bartholomew S. ''Random Sketches and Wandering Thoughts; or, What I Saw in Camp, on the March, the Bivouac, the Battlefield and Hospital while with the Army in Virginia, North and South Carolina, During the Late Rebellion with a Historical Sketch of the Second Oswego Regiment, Eighty-first New York State V.I.'' (Albany, NY: A. Herrick), 1866. * Dyer, Frederick H. ''A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion'' (Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co.), 1908. ; Attribution * {{CWR

External links