Camp Hutchins was a
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 ...
training camp located in
Warren, Ohio
Warren is a city in and the county seat of Trumbull County, Ohio, United States. Located in northeastern Ohio, Warren lies approximately northwest of Youngstown and southeast of Cleveland. The population was 39,201 at the 2020 census. The hi ...
, which trained local volunteers from October to December, 1861.
Civil War and Camp Hutchins development
In the spring of 1861, the U.S. War Department commissioned Ohio Senator
Benjamin Wade
Benjamin Franklin "Bluff" Wade (October 27, 1800March 2, 1878) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States Senator for Ohio from 1851 to 1869. He is known for his leading role among the Radical Republicans. of Jefferson and local Congressman
John Hutchins, both of which would supervise the Union Army's recruitment services in
Northeast Ohio. As part of the process, recruitment rolls had to be filled during the summer, in order for training to be conducted in the fall. During the location selection process, the Oak Grove Fairgrounds in Warren, Ohio was chosen as one of the sites where the prospective soldiers trained. In Hutchins' honor, the training site was named Camp Hutchins.
With 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 ...
's outbreak, both the North and South weren't prepared for conflict.
Following the
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America (CSA), commonly referred to as the Confederate States or the Confederacy was an unrecognized breakaway republic in the Southern United States that existed from February 8, 1861, to May 9, 1865. The Confeder ...
's attack on
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter is a sea fort built on an artificial island protecting Charleston, South Carolina from naval invasion. Its origin dates to the War of 1812 when the British invaded Washington by sea. It was still incomplete in 1861 when the Battle ...
in April 1861, President
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...
called for 75,000 trained volunteers to assist in Union military efforts. Ohio Governor
William Dennison Jr. wanted to utilize his state's militia forces to aid Lincoln. Unfortunately for Dennison, many of Ohio's militia forces were no longer in existence by spring 1861.
Dennison initially encouraged communities across the state to send their militia companies to
Columbus, Ohio for possible use by the North during the Civil War. Eventually, Camp Hutchins was established in Warren, where training began in October 1861.
6th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry
With their official designation as the
6th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, the training for these soldiers commenced on October 7, 1861 at Camp Hutchins in Warren. More than 800 soldiers comprised the cavalry. Authorized by the War Department to serve in the Civil War, the cavalry became the second regiment in Wade & Hutchins' Cavalry Brigade.
Camp Hutchins only remained in use until the end of 1861. During training, the regiment received support from their Warren community in the form of a Thanksgiving feast, a Christmas Eve ball in Warren's Gaskill House, and a New Year's picnic.
The 6th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry would eventually depart at the beginning of 1862.
In January 1862, the regiment relocated to
Camp Dennison for drill instruction. In March, the regiment was assigned to guard Confederate prisoners at
Camp Chase
Camp Chase was a military staging and training camp established in Columbus, Ohio in May 1861 after the start of the American Civil War. It also included a large Union-operated prison camp for Confederate prisoners during the American Civil War ...
. During the Civil War, the regiment shifted command several times, eventually engaging in conflict with General
Robert E. Lee and his Confederate forces at the
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...
in July 1863. Following Lee's surrender to General
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
at
Appomattox Courthouse, the regiment escorted Grant from
Appomattox to Burkesville Station. In August 1865, the 6th Ohio was mustered out of service in
Cleveland
Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
. In total, casualties for the 6th Ohio reached 238.
Current dedication
The former site of Camp Hutchins stands as an official landmark in Warren's history. Camp Hutchins shared the same location as the Trumbull County Fairgrounds and the present-day
Warren G. Harding High School
Warren G. Harding High School is a public high school in Warren, Ohio, United States. It is the only high school in the Warren City School District. Sports teams are called the Raiders, and they compete in the Ohio High School Athletic Associatio ...
campus. In 2012, the landmark was dedicated while students from Harding performed music that dated back a century and a half ago. In a 2012 WFMJ (
Youngstown
Youngstown is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio, and the largest city and county seat of Mahoning County. At the 2020 census, Youngstown had a city population of 60,068. It is a principal city of the Youngstown–Warren metropolitan area, which ...
) article, Wendell Lauth, a member of the Civil War 150 Committee, dedicated to honoring the, at the time, 150th anniversary of the Civil War, said; It's a perfect teaching lesson in local history for high school classes."
References
{{reflist
American Civil War army posts