Battery A, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery
Encyclopedia
Battery A, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery was an artillery
battery
that served in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
.
and mustered in for a three year enlistment on June 6, 1861 under the command of Captain William H. Reynolds.
The battery was attached to Burnside's Brigade, Hunter's Division, McDowell's Army of Virginia
, to August 1861. Department of the Shenandoah to October 1861. Banks' Division, Army of the Potomac
, to March 1862. Artillery, 2nd Division, 2nd Corps, Army of the Potomac, to June 1863. Artillery Brigade, II Corps, Army of the Potomac, to September 1864.
Battery A, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery ceased to exist on September 30, 1864 when its members were transferred to Battery B, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery.
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
battery
Artillery battery
In military organizations, an artillery battery is a unit of guns, mortars, rockets or missiles so grouped in order to facilitate better battlefield communication and command and control, as well as to provide dispersion for its constituent gunnery crews and their systems...
that served in the Union Army
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...
.
Service
The battery was organized in Providence, Rhode IslandProvidence, Rhode Island
Providence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
and mustered in for a three year enlistment on June 6, 1861 under the command of Captain William H. Reynolds.
The battery was attached to Burnside's Brigade, Hunter's Division, McDowell's Army of Virginia
Army of Virginia
The Army of Virginia was organized as a major unit of the Union Army and operated briefly and unsuccessfully in 1862 in the American Civil War. It should not be confused with its principal opponent, the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by Robert E...
, to August 1861. Department of the Shenandoah to October 1861. Banks' Division, 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...
, to March 1862. Artillery, 2nd Division, 2nd Corps, Army of the Potomac, to June 1863. Artillery Brigade, II Corps, Army of the Potomac, to September 1864.
Battery A, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery ceased to exist on September 30, 1864 when its members were transferred to Battery B, 1st Rhode Island Light Artillery.
Detailed service
Left Rhode Island for Washington, D.C., June 19. Duty in the defenses of Washington, D.C., until July 16, 1861. Advance on Manassas, Va., July 16-21. Battle of Bull Run July 21. Moved to Sandy Hook, Md., July 28. Duty there and at Berlin and Darnestown until September. Moved to Harpers Ferry September 16. Action at Bolivar Heights October 16. At Muddy Branch and Poolesville, Md., until March 1862. Moved to Washington, then to Hampton, Va., March 22-April 1. Virginia Peninsula Campaign April to August. Siege of Yorktown April 5-May 4. Battle of Fair Oaks (Seven Pines) May 31-June 1. Seven Days Battles before Richmond June 25-July 1. Peach Orchard and Savage Station June 29. Charles City Cross Roads and Glendale June 30. Malvern Hill July 1. At Harrison's Landing until August 16. Movement to Alexandria August 16-28. March to Fairfax Court House August 28-31. Cover retreat of Pope's Army from Bull Run to Washington August 31-September 1. Maryland Campaign September. Battles of South Mountain, Md., September 14, and Antietam September 16-17. Moved to Harpers Ferry September 22, and duty there until October 30. Reconnaissance to Charlestown October 16-17. Action at Charlestown October 16. Advance up Loudoun Valley and movement to Falmouth, Va., October 30-November 17. Battle of Fredericksburg December 11-15. Duty at Falmouth until April, 1863. Chancellorsville Campaign April 27-May 6. Maryes Heights, Fredericksburg, May 3. Salem Heights May 3-4. Gettysburg Campaign June 11-July 24. Battle of Gettysburg July 1-4. Advance from the Rappahannock to the Rapidan September 13-17. Bristoe Campaign October 9-22. Bristoe Station October 14. Auburn Heights October 14. Advance to line of the Rappahannock November 7-8. Mine Run Campaign November 26-December 2. At Stevensburg, Va., until May 1864. Demonstration on the Rapidan February 6-7. Morton's Ford February 6-7. Campaign from the Rapidan to the James May-June. Battles of the Wilderness May 5-7; Spotsylvania May 8-12; Po River May 10; Spotsylvania Court House May 12-21. Assault on the Salient May 12. North Anna River May 23-26. Line of the Pamunkey May 26-28. Totopotomoy May 28-31. Shallow Creek May 31. Cold Harbor June 1-12. Before Petersburg June 16-18. Non-veterans mustered out June 18, 1864. Siege of Petersburg June 16-September 30. Jerusalem Plank Road June 21-23. Deep Bottom July 27-28. Mine Explosion, Petersburg, July 30 (reserve). Strawberry Plains, Deep Bottom, August 14-18. Ream's Station August 25.Casualties
The battery lost a total of 18 men during service; 1 officer and 12 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded, 5 enlisted men died of disease.Commanders
- Captain William H. Reynolds
- Captain John Albert Monroe
- Captain John A. Tompkins
- Captain William A. Arnold
- Lieutenant William S. Perrin - commanded at the First Battle of Deep Bottom
Notable members
- Corporal Benjamin H. Child - Medal of HonorMedal of HonorThe Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
recipient for action at the battle of Antietam
Legacy
Battery A, 1st Battalion, 103rd Field Artillery of the Rhode Island National Guard traces its origins to this battery.See also
- List of Rhode Island Civil War units
- Rhode Island in the American Civil WarRhode Island in the American Civil WarThe state of Rhode Island during the American Civil War, as with all of New England, remained loyal to the Union. Rhode Island furnished 25,236 fighting men to the Union Army, of which 1,685 died. On the home front, Rhode Island, along with the other northern states, used its industrial capacity to...