The 85th New York 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 mar ...
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 conscript ...
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 of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...
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 ...
.
Service
The 85th New York Infantry was organized at
Elmira,
New York beginning in August 1861 and mustered in for three-years service on December 2, 1861 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 o ...
Uriah L. Davis.
The regiment was attached to 3rd Brigade, Casey'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 Confede ...
, to March 1862. 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division,
IV Corps, Army of the Potomac, to June 1862. 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, IV Corps, to September 1862. Wessell's Brigade, Division at Suffolk,
VII Corps 7th Corps, Seventh Corps, or VII Corps may refer to:
* VII Corps (Grande Armée), a corps of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars
* VII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I
* VII ...
,
Department of Virginia
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 departme ...
, to December 1862. 1st Brigade, 1st Division,
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 departme ...
, to January 1863. 1st Brigade, 4th Division,
XVIII Corps, Department of North Carolina, to May 1863. District of the Albemarle, Department of North Carolina, August 1863. Sub-District of the Albemarle, District of North Carolina,
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 April 1864. Plymouth, North Carolina, District of North Carolina, January to March 1865. 2nd Brigade, Division District of Beaufort, North Carolina, Department of North Carolina, to April 1865. Unattached,
XXIII Corps, Department of North Carolina, to June 1865.
The 85th New York Infantry mustered out of service on June 27, 1865.
Detailed service
Left New York for Washington, D.C., December 3, 1861.
Duty in the defenses of Washington, D.C., until March 1862.
Advance on Manassas, Va., March 10–15.
Moved to the Peninsula, Va., March 28.
Siege of Yorktown April 5-May 4.
Reconnaissance toward Lee's Mills April 29.
Battle of Williamsburg May 5.
Reconnaissance to Bottom's Bridge May 20–23.
Seven Pines, Savage Station and Chickahominy May 24.
Reconnaissance to Seven Pines May 24–27.
Battle of Seven Pines May 31-June 1.
New Market Road June 8.
Seven days before Richmond June 25-July 1.
Bottom's Bridge June 27–28.
White Oak Swamp June 30. Malvern Hill July 1.
At Harrison's Landing until August 16.
Moved to Fort Monroe August 16–23, then to Suffolk, Va., September 18, and duty there until December.
Reconnaissance to Franklin October 3.
Blackwater October 9, 26, 29 and 30.
Franklin October 31.
Zuni November 18.
Ordered to New Bern, N.C., December 4.
Foster's Expedition to Goldsboro, N.C., December 11–20.
Actions at Kinston December 14.
Whitehall December 16. Goldsboro December 17.
Duty at New Bern, N.C., until April 1863.
Expedition to relief of Little Washington April 7–10.
Moved to Plymouth, N.C., May 2, and duty there until July.
Expedition to Williamston and Gardiner's Bridge July 5–7 (detachment).
Expedition from Plymouth to Foster's Mills July 26–29.
Expedition to Roanoke Island August 6–13, and to Columbia August 26–27.
Duty at Albemarle Sound and Chowan River until November.
Expedition to Winton November 6–9.
Regiment veteranized January 1, 1864.
Expedition up the Chowan January 6–21.
Harrellsville January 20 (detachment).
Siege of Plymouth, N.C., April 17–20.
Surrendered at Plymouth April 20.
Regiment reorganized January 1865, and duty in the Department of North Carolina until June.
Carolinas Campaign March 1-April 26.
Advance on Kinston and Goldsboro March 6–21.
Battle of Wyse Fork March 8–10.
Occupation of Kinston March 14, and of Goldsboro March 21.
Occupation of Raleigh April 14.
Bennett's House April 26.
Surrender of Johnston and his army.
Duty in the Department of North Carolina until June.
Casualties
The regiment lost a total of 361 men during service; 1 officers and 34 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded, 2 officers and 324 enlisted men died of disease.
[Fox, William F., Lt.-Col., 'Regimental Losses in the American Civil War, 1861-1865', Albany, N.Y., 1889, p. 479.]
Commanders
* Colonel Uriah L. Davis
* Colonel
Robert B. Van Valkenburgh
* Colonel Jonathan S. Belknap
* Colonel Enrico Fardella
* Colonel William W. Clark
See also
*
List of New York Civil War regiments
The following units served the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Infantry
Militia infantry
Cavalry
Artillery
1st New York Light Artillery
* Battery A, 1st New York Light Artillery
* Battery B, 1st New York Lig ...
*
New York in the Civil War
The state of New York during the American Civil War was a major influence in national politics, the Union war effort, and the media coverage of the war. New York was the most populous state in the Union during the Civil War, and provided more tr ...
References
* Ball, John. ''Escape from Dixie: The Story of Lt John Lafler (85th NY) Civil War POW'' (Williamsville, NY: Goldstar Enterprises), 1996.
* Dyer, Frederick H. ''A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion'' (Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co.), 1908.
* Mahood, Wayne and David G. Martin. ''The Plymouth Pilgrims: A History of the Eighty-Fifth New York Infantry in the Civil War'' (Hightstown, NJ: Longstreet House), 1991.
* Mosher, Charlie. ''Charlie Mosher's Civil War: From Fair Oaks to Andersonville with the Plymouth Pilgrims (85th N.Y. Infantry)'' (Hightstown, NJ: Longstreet House), 1994.
* Smith, William Mervale. ''Swamp Doctor: The Diary of a Union Surgeon in the Virginia and North Carolina Marshes'' (Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books), 2001.
;Attribution
* {{CWR
Military units and formations established in 1861
1861 establishments in New York (state)
Military units and formations disestablished in 1865
Infantry 085