3rd New Hampshire 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 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 ...

. It was organized at Camp Berry in

Concord Concord may refer to: Meaning "agreement" * Pact or treaty, frequently between nations (indicating a condition of harmony) * Harmony, in music * Agreement (linguistics), a change in the form of a word depending on grammatical features of other ...

and mustered in on August 23, 1861, for three years service, 1,047 officers and men. The regiment served most of its time on the Atlantic coast in the Carolinas. The 3rd New Hampshire finished the war in

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

and were mustered out of Federal service on July 20, 1865, arriving back in Concord on the 28th for final discharge and payment. The 3rd had a total of 198 casualties, with another 154 dying in

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between 1 ...

prisons, disease, or warfare-related accidents.

Military service

After being mustered in, the 3rd New Hampshire left for

Long Island Long Island is a densely populated island in the southeastern region of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York, part of the New York metropolitan area. With over 8 million people, Long Island is the most populous island in the United Sta ...

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 * '' ...

, encamping at Camp Winfield Scott at

Hempstead Plains The Hempstead Plains is a region of central Long Island, in what is now Nassau County, in New York State. It was once an open expanse of native grassland estimated to once extend to about . It was separated from the North Shore of Long Island by ...

. From here, they went to

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, ...

and

Annapolis, Maryland Annapolis ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Maryland and the county seat of, and only incorporated city in, Anne Arundel County. Situated on the Chesapeake Bay at the mouth of the Severn River, south of Baltimore and about east o ...

where the regiment embarked on the steamer ''

Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

'' for the assault on

Hilton Head, South Carolina Hilton Head Island, sometimes referred to as simply Hilton Head, is a South Carolina Lowcountry, Lowcountry resort town and barrier island in Beaufort County, South Carolina, United States. It is northeast of Savannah, Georgia, and southwest of C ...

. It was part of the forces used to establish Federal footholds on the

South South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

's Atlantic Coast. Except for minor skirmishes with Confederate pickets, they did not see action until June 16, 1862, where it participated in the

Battle of Secessionville The Battle of Secessionville (or the First Battle of James Island) was fought on June 16, 1862, during the American Civil War. Confederate forces defeated the Union's only attempt to capture Charleston, South Carolina, by land. It's noted for ...

. The 3rd entered battle with 26 officers and 597 men and suffered 104 casualties—27 of them killed or mortally wounded. In August 1862, the undersized Company H, consisting of 48 men, was stationed at the northern end of Pinckney Island. A Confederate raid overran this position, resulting in seven deaths and 36

prisoners of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person who is held Captivity, captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold priso ...

, who were later exchanged. The 3rd New Hampshire then engaged in amphibious operations for several months and was assigned to one of the brigades to attack

Fort Wagner Fort Wagner or Battery Wagner was a beachhead fortification on Morris Island, South Carolina, that covered the southern approach to Charleston Harbor. It was the site of two American Civil War battles in the campaign known as Operations Agai ...

. From July 10–13, 1863, the 3rd attempted the first assault, which failed, losing seven killed and 21 wounded. The regiment lost another eight in a second failed assault which took place July 18, 1863, led by Captain James F. Randlett. During the spring of 1864, the 3rd New Hampshire was transferred north to Virginia where they joined the 10th Corps, also known as the

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 ...

. Soon after, they were heavily engaged at

Drewry's Bluff Drewry's Bluff is located in northeastern Chesterfield County, Virginia, in the United States. It was the site of Confederate Fort Darling during the American Civil War. It was named for a local landowner, Confederate Captain Augustus H. Drewry, w ...

on May 16, 1864, where sixty-six New Hampshire men were killed or wounded. On August 16, 1864, they also fought at Deep Bottom, Virginia, where Lt. Colonel Josiah Plimpton, in command of the regiment, was mortally wounded. On August 23, 1864, the three-year term of service was up for the original volunteers, and those who did not reenlist were mustered out and sent home. Only 180 men remained of the thousand who had left Concord three years priorState of NH, Report of the Adjutant General, 1866: vol II pg502 In January 1865, the 3rd New Hampshire also took part in the successful attack on

Fort Fisher Fort Fisher was a Confederate fort during the American Civil War. It protected the vital trading routes of the port at Wilmington, North Carolina, from 1861 until its capture by the Union in 1865. The fort was located on one of Cape Fear River' ...

in North Carolina.

Demographics

Out of the 900 men in the regiment, 450 were farmers, 69 laborers, 44 machinists, 31 carpenters, 30 manufacturers, 27 painters, 15 teamsters, and 16 clerks. The origin of the 3rd New Hampshire is as follows: six hundred twenty-nine (629) from New Hampshire, 118 from

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

, 116 from

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, 81 from

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, 70 from

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

, and 31 from

, and the remaining from various other places. Company C, commanded by Capt. Michael Donohoe, was almost entirely

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

References

State of NH, Report of the Adjutant General, 1866: vol II pg505 State of NH, Report of the Adjutant General, 1866: vol II pg502

External links

* {{Internet Archive, 01745230.3269.emory.edu, The Third New Hampshire and all about it (1893) 3 1861 establishments in New Hampshire Military units and formations established in 1861 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865

Military service

Demographics

See also

Further reading

References

External links