12th Vermont Infantry
Encyclopedia
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to July 1863. It was a member of the 2nd Vermont Brigade
2nd Vermont Brigade
The 2nd Vermont Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.- Composition and commanders :...
.
History
The 12th Vermont Infantry, a nine months regiment, raised as a result of President Lincoln's call on August 4, 1862, for additional troops due to the disastrous results of the Peninsula Campaign.It was composed of volunteers from ten volunteer militia companies as follows:
- West WindsorWest Windsor, VermontWest Windsor is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,067 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 24.7 square miles , of which, 24.7 square miles of it is land and 0.04 square miles of...
Guards, Co. A - Woodstock Light Infantry, Co. B
- Howard Guard of BurlingtonBurlington, VermontBurlington is the largest city in the U.S. state of Vermont and the shire town of Chittenden County. Burlington lies south of the U.S.-Canadian border and some south of Montreal....
, Co. C - TunbridgeTunbridge, VermontTunbridge is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 1,309. The town consists of three village centers, all situated on Vermont Route 110 in the valley of the first branch of the White River...
Light Infantry, Co. D - Ransom Guards of St. AlbansSt. Albans (city), VermontSt. Albans is a city in and the shire town of Franklin County, Vermont, in the United States. At the 2000 census, the city population was 7,650. St Albans City is completely surrounded by St. Albans town, which is incorporated separately from the city of St. Albans...
, Co. E - New England Guard of NorthfieldNorthfield, VermontNorthfield is a town in Washington County, Vermont, United States. It lies in a valley within the Green Mountains, and has been the home of Norwich University since 1866. The town contains the village of Northfield, where over half of its population lives. The population was 6,207 at the 2010...
, Co. F - Allen Grays of Brandon, Co. G
- BradfordBradford, VermontBradford is a town in Orange County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,619 at the 2000 census.-History:The first settler was John Hosmer in 1765...
Guards, Co. H - Saxton's River Light Infantry of RockinghamRockingham, VermontRockingham is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, along the Connecticut River. The population was 5,309 at the 2000 census. Rockingham includes the incorporated villages of Bellows Falls and Saxtons River, as well as a large rural area west of Interstate 91.Rockingham has no formal...
, Co. I - RutlandRutland (town), VermontRutland is a town in Rutland County, Vermont, United States. The population was 4,054 at the 2010 census. Rutland completely surrounds the city of Rutland, which is incorporated separately from the town of Rutland.-History:...
Light Guard, Co. K
Colonel Asa P. Blunt
Asa P. Blunt
Asa Peabody Blunt was a draughtsman and a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Early life:...
, previously of the 3rd
3rd Vermont Infantry
The 3rd Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a three-years infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the VI Corps, Army of the Potomac, from July 1861 to July 1865...
and 6th Vermont
6th Vermont Infantry
The 6th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a three years' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the Eastern Theater, predominantly in the VI Corps, Army of the Potomac, from October 1861 to June 1865. It was a member of the Vermont Brigade.The...
regiments, was selected to command the regiment. Lieutenant Colonel Roswell Farnham
Roswell Farnham
Roswell Farnham was a U.S. politician of the Republican Party and an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War....
and Major Levi G. Kingsley had held commissions in the 1st Vermont Infantry
1st Vermont Infantry
The 1st Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a three months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, in and around Fortress Monroe, Virginia.-History:...
, along with a total of 65 officers and men.
The regiment went into camp at Brattleboro
Brattleboro, Vermont
Brattleboro, originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located in the southeast corner of the state, along the state line with New Hampshire. The population was 12,046 at the 2010 census...
on September 25, 1862, and was mustered in to United States service on October 4. It left Vermont
Vermont
Vermont is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state ranks 43rd in land area, , and 45th in total area. Its population according to the 2010 census, 630,337, is the second smallest in the country, larger only than Wyoming. It is the only New England...
on October 7, and arrived in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
on October 10, and went into camp on East Capital Hill. On October 30 it became part of the 2nd Vermont Brigade
2nd Vermont Brigade
The 2nd Vermont Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War.- Composition and commanders :...
, which also included the 13th
13th Vermont Infantry
The 13th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a nine months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to August 1863...
, 14th
14th Vermont Infantry
The 14th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a nine months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to August 1863...
, 15th
15th Vermont Infantry
The 15th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a nine months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War...
and 16th Vermont Infantry
16th Vermont Infantry
The 16th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a nine months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to August 1863...
regiments.
Colonel Blunt, as ranking colonel, commanded the brigade until the arrival of Brigadier General Edwin H. Stoughton
Edwin H. Stoughton
Edwin Henry Stoughton , was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and a lawyer.-Early life:Stoughton was born in Chester, Vermont, the son of Henry Evander and Laura Stoughton....
, on December 7.
Stoughton was not popular with the officers and men of the brigade, so when he was captured by Confederate partisan John S. Mosby
John S. Mosby
John Singleton Mosby , nicknamed the "Gray Ghost", was a Confederate cavalry battalion commander in the American Civil War...
on March 9, 1863, few mourned his loss. Colonel Blunt assumed command of the brigade again, turning it over to the new brigade commander, Brigadier General George J. Stannard
George J. Stannard
George Jerrison Stannard was a Vermont farmer, teacher, and Union general in the American Civil War. After the war, he served as Doorkeeper of the United States House of Representatives.-Early life:...
, on April 20, who led the brigade until the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
.
The regiment marched to Munson's Hill on October 30, and Hunting Creek the next day, where it stayed until December 12, in 'Camp Vermont.' It was engaged in picket duty near Fairfax Courthouse from December 12 to January 20, 1863, participating in a repulse of J.E.B. Stuart
J.E.B. Stuart
James Ewell Brown "Jeb" Stuart was a U.S. Army officer from Virginia and a Confederate States Army general during the American Civil War. He was known to his friends as "Jeb", from the initials of his given names. Stuart was a cavalry commander known for his mastery of reconnaissance and the use...
's cavalry on December 29. The regiment was stationed at Wolf Run Shoals from January 20 to May 1, performed railroad guard duty at Warrenton Junction until May 7, and camped near Rappahannock Station until May 18. From then until June 1, it camped near Bristoe and Catlett's Station. For the majority of June, it was at Union Mills.
On June 25, the brigade was assigned as the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division, I Corps
I Corps (ACW)
I Corps was the designation of three different corps-sized units in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The units served in the following armies:...
, and ordered to form the rear guard of the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
as it marched north after Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
's Army of Northern Virginia
Army of Northern Virginia
The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War, as well as the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed against the Union Army of the Potomac...
. The 12th marched with the brigade from Wolf Run Shoals on June 25, crossed the Potomac river on June 27, at Edward's Ferry, and moved north through Frederick City and Creagerstown, Maryland. It was drawing near Gettysburg
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Gettysburg is a borough that is the county seat, part of the Gettysburg Battlefield, and the eponym for the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. The town hosts visitors to the Gettysburg National Military Park and has 3 institutions of higher learning: Lutheran Theological Seminary, Gettysburg College, and...
on July 1, when the 12th and 15th regiments were detached to guard the corps trains.
The regiment accompanied the corps trains to Rock Creek Church, near the battlefield, and two companies of the 12th went forward to protect ammunition trains on the Taneytown road.
After the battle, the regiment moved south to Westminster, Maryland
Westminster, Maryland
Westminster is a city in northern Maryland, United States. It is the seat of Carroll County. The city's population was 18,590 at the 2010 census. Westminster is an outlying community within the Baltimore-Towson, MD MSA, which is part of a greater Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV...
, then served as guards for a train of 2,500 Confederate prisoners who were taken to Baltimore, Maryland. Departing Baltimore, the regiment traveled to Brattleboro, Vermont
Brattleboro, Vermont
Brattleboro, originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located in the southeast corner of the state, along the state line with New Hampshire. The population was 12,046 at the 2010 census...
, where it arrived on July 9. It was mustered out on July 14, 1863.
Dozens of newly discharged members of the regiment enlisted again, predominantly in the regiments of the 1st Vermont Brigade, and the 17th Vermont Infantry
17th Vermont Infantry
The 17th Regiment, Vermont Volunteer Infantry was a three years' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War...
.
Final Statement
| FINAL STATEMENT | |
|---|---|
| Original members | 998 |
| Gain (recruits and transferes) | 7 |
| --- Aggregate | 1005 |
| --- Losses --- | |
| Died of disease | 63 |
| Honorably discharged | 75 |
| Deserted | 4 |
| Transferred to Veteran Reserve Corps and other organizations | 2 |
| --- Total Losses | 144 |
| Mustered out at various times | 861 |
Further reading
- Coffin, Howard, Full Duty: Vermonters in the Civil War. Woodstock, VT.: Countryman Press, 1995.
- -----. Nine Months to Gettysburg. The Vermonters Who Broke Pickett's Charge. Woodstock, VT.: Countryman Press, 1997.
- Palmer, Edwin F., The Second Brigade: or, Camp Life, By a Volunteer, Montpelier: E. P. Walton, 1864.