Louisville Legion
Encyclopedia
The 5th Kentucky Volunteer Infantry Regiment, unofficially known as the Louisville Legion was an infantry
regiment
that served in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
.
under the command of Colonel
Lovell Harrison Rousseau.
Recruits to the 5th Kentucky Infantry were promised a pay of $11–$21 a month, in addition to clothes and lodging. After a year's enlistment, they were promised 160 acre (0.6474976 km²) of land. Although a recruitment station was placed at the corner of 8th and Main in Louisville, the actual training took place across the Ohio River
at Camp Joe Holt
, in present-day Clarksville, Indiana
.
On July 1, 1861, 334 recruits were shipped to Camp Joe Holt as the first company. On September 17, 1861, the regiment left Camp Joe Holt, to stop Confederate
forces from approaching Louisville.
The regiment was attached to Rousseau's 1st Brigade, McCook's Command, at Nolin to November 1861. 4th Brigade, Army of the Ohio
, to December 1861. 4th Brigade, 2nd Division, Army of the Ohio, to September 1862. 4th Brigade, 2nd Division, I Corps, Army of the Ohio, to November 1862. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, Right Wing, XIV Corps, Army of the Cumberland
, to January 1863. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, XX Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to October 1863. 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, IV Corps, to July 1864. Unattached, 4th Division, XX Corps, to September 1864.
The 5th Kentucky Infantry mustered out of service on July 25, 1865.
May 24. Moved to Louisville, Ky., June.
. On May 17, 1847, in New Orleans
, it was mustered out.
Of the regiment's service during the Civil War, Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman
wrote, "No single body of men can claim more honor for the grand result than the officers and men of the Louisville Legion of 1861."
Ten years after the Civil War the Louisville Legion would again organize as the Kentucky State Guard's 1st Regiment of Infantry. In this incarnation it would take part in the French Eversole Feud
and the Rowan County War
. In the Spanish-American War
it would be the first unit from Kentucky to reach Puerto Rico
. Afterwards it would maintain the peace around Frankfort, Kentucky
after the assassination of Governor William Goebel
, and then patrol the Mexican border.
The 138th Field Artillery and 149th Armor Brigade of the Kentucky National Guard
are directly descended from the Louisville Legion.
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
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 5th Kentucky Infantry was mustered into the service at Louisville, KentuckyLouisville, Kentucky
Louisville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kentucky, and the county seat of Jefferson County. Since 2003, the city's borders have been coterminous with those of the county because of a city-county merger. The city's population at the 2010 census was 741,096...
under the command of Colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
Lovell Harrison Rousseau.
Recruits to the 5th Kentucky Infantry were promised a pay of $11–$21 a month, in addition to clothes and lodging. After a year's enlistment, they were promised 160 acre (0.6474976 km²) of land. Although a recruitment station was placed at the corner of 8th and Main in Louisville, the actual training took place across the Ohio River
Ohio River
The Ohio River is the largest tributary, by volume, of the Mississippi River. At the confluence, the Ohio is even bigger than the Mississippi and, thus, is hydrologically the main stream of the whole river system, including the Allegheny River further upstream...
at Camp Joe Holt
Camp Joe Holt
Camp Joe Holt was a Union base during the American Civil War in Jeffersonville, Indiana, across the Ohio River from Louisville, Kentucky on land that is now part of Clarksville, Indiana, near the Big Eddy. It was a major staging area for troops in the Western Theatre of the War, in preparation for...
, in present-day Clarksville, Indiana
Clarksville, Indiana
Clarksville is a town in Clark County, Indiana, United States, along the Ohio River as a part of the Louisville Metropolitan area. The population was 21,724 at the 2010 census. The town, once a home site to George Rogers Clark, was founded in 1783 and is the oldest American town in the Northwest...
.
On July 1, 1861, 334 recruits were shipped to Camp Joe Holt as the first company. On September 17, 1861, the regiment left Camp Joe Holt, to stop Confederate
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
forces from approaching Louisville.
The regiment was attached to Rousseau's 1st Brigade, McCook's Command, at Nolin to November 1861. 4th Brigade, Army of the Ohio
Army of the Ohio
The Army of the Ohio was the name of two Union armies in the American Civil War. The first army became the Army of the Cumberland and the second army was created in 1863.-History:...
, to December 1861. 4th Brigade, 2nd Division, Army of the Ohio, to September 1862. 4th Brigade, 2nd Division, I Corps, Army of the Ohio, to November 1862. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, Right Wing, XIV Corps, Army of the Cumberland
Army of the Cumberland
The Army of the Cumberland was one of the principal Union armies in the Western Theater during the American Civil War. It was originally known as the Army of the Ohio.-History:...
, to January 1863. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, XX Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to October 1863. 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, IV Corps, to July 1864. Unattached, 4th Division, XX Corps, to September 1864.
The 5th Kentucky Infantry mustered out of service on July 25, 1865.
Detailed service
Moved to Muldraugh's Hill, Ky., September 17, 1861, and duty there until October 14. Duty at Bacon Creek and Green River until February 1862. Marched to Nashville, Tenn., February 17-March 3; then marched to Savannah, Tenn., March 16-April 6. Battle of Shiloh, April 6–7. Advance on and siege of Corinth, Miss., April 29-May 30. Bridge Creek May 27. Duty at Corinth until June 10. Buell's Campaign in northern Alabama and middle Tennessee June to August. Marched to Louisville, Ky., in pursuit of Bragg August 21-September 26. Pursuit of Bragg into Kentucky October 1–15. Dog Walk, Ky., October 8–9. Marched to Nashville, Tenn., October 16-November 7, and duty there until December 26. Kimbrough's Mills December 6. Advance on Murfreesboro, Tenn., December 26–30. Nolensville December 26–27. Battle of Stones River December 30–31, 1862 and January 1–3, 1863. At Murfreesboro until June. Tullahoma Campaign June 22-July 7. Liberty Gap June 22–27. Occupation of middle Tennessee until August 16. Passage of Cumberland Mountains and Tennessee River and Chickamauga Campaign August 16-September 22. Battle of Chickamauga, September 19–20. Siege of Chattanooga September 24-November 23. Reopening Tennessee River October 26–29. Brown's Ferry October 27. Battles of Chattanooga November 23–25. Orchard Knob November 23–24. Missionary Ridge November 25. Pursuit to Graysville November 26–27. Marched to relief of Knoxville November 28-December 8. Campaign in eastern Tennessee December 1863 to April 1864. Atlanta Campaign May 1 to July 25. Demonstration on Rocky Faced Ridge and Dalton May 5–13. Battle of Resaca May 14–15. Adairsville May 17. Near Kingston May 18–19. Near Cassville May 19. Advance on Dallas May 22–25. Operations on line of Pumpkin Vine Creek and battles about Dallas, New Hope Church, and Allatoona Hills May 25-June 5. Pickett's Mills May 27. Operations about Marietta and against Kennesaw Mountain June 10-July 2. Pine Hill June 11–14. Lost Mountain June 15–17. Assault on Kennesaw June 27. Ruff's Station, Smyrna Camp Ground, July 4. Pace's Ferry July 5. Chattahoochie River July 6–17. Peachtree Creek July 19–20. Siege of Atlanta July 22–25. Ordered to Nashville, Tenn., July 25; then to Louisville, Ky. Veterans moved to Nashville July 25 and duty there until January 1865. Battle of Nashville, Tenn., December 15–16. Pursuit of Hood December 17–28. Moved to Louisville, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York, and Hilton Head, S.C., and rejoined Sherman at Raleigh, N.C., April 1865. Bennett's House April 26. Surrender of Johnston and his army. Marched to Washington, D.C., via Richmond, Va., April 29-May 19. Grand Review of the ArmiesGrand Review of the Armies
The Grand Review of the Armies was a military procession and celebration in Washington, D.C., on May 23 and May 24, 1865, following the close of the American Civil War...
May 24. Moved to Louisville, Ky., June.
Casualties
The regiment lost a total of 302 men during service; 8 officers and 149 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded, 2 officers and 143 enlisted men died of disease.Legacy
The Louisville Legion nickname was derived from an earlier Kentucky militia unit that was first constituted on January 21, 1839 in Louisville, and was mustered into federal service for the Mexican-American War, from May 17, 1846, as the 1st Kentucky Volunteer Infantry Regiment. It saw action in the Battle of MontereyBattle of Monterey
-Preliminaries:Prior to the Mexican-American War the Californio forces had already driven the Mexican appointed Governor Manuel Micheltorena and most of his soldiers from Alta California...
. On May 17, 1847, in New Orleans
New Orleans, Louisiana
New Orleans is a major United States port and the largest city and metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana. The New Orleans metropolitan area has a population of 1,235,650 as of 2009, the 46th largest in the USA. The New Orleans – Metairie – Bogalusa combined statistical area has a population...
, it was mustered out.
Of the regiment's service during the Civil War, Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman
William Tecumseh Sherman was an American soldier, businessman, educator and author. He served as a General in the Union Army during the American Civil War , for which he received recognition for his outstanding command of military strategy as well as criticism for the harshness of the "scorched...
wrote, "No single body of men can claim more honor for the grand result than the officers and men of the Louisville Legion of 1861."
Ten years after the Civil War the Louisville Legion would again organize as the Kentucky State Guard's 1st Regiment of Infantry. In this incarnation it would take part in the French Eversole Feud
French Eversole Feud
The French-Eversole Feud was a long-lasting conflict from 1882 until the early 1900s, centered in Hazard, Kentucky. The fierce feud was between the followers of two men who had once been friends: Joseph C. Eversole and Benjamin Fulton French...
and the Rowan County War
Rowan County War
The Rowan County War, located in Rowan County, Kentucky, centered in Morehead, Kentucky, was a feud that took place between 1884 and 1887. In total, 20 people died and 16 were wounded.-Background:...
. In the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
it would be the first unit from Kentucky to reach Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
. Afterwards it would maintain the peace around Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort, Kentucky
Frankfort is a city in Kentucky that serves as the state capital and the county seat of Franklin County. The population was 27,741 at the 2000 census; by population it is the 5th smallest state capital in the United States...
after the assassination of Governor William Goebel
William Goebel
William Justus Goebel was an American politician who served as the 34th Governor of Kentucky for a few days in 1900 after having been mortally wounded by an assassin the day before he was sworn in...
, and then patrol the Mexican border.
The 138th Field Artillery and 149th Armor Brigade of the Kentucky National Guard
Kentucky National Guard
The Kentucky National Guard consists of the:*Kentucky Army National Guard*Kentucky Air National Guard-External links:** compiled by the United States Army Center of Military History...
are directly descended from the Louisville Legion.
See also
- List of Kentucky Civil War Units
- Louisville Home GuardLouisville Home GuardThe Louisville Home Guard was a pro-Union military unit organized early in the American Civil War in Louisville, Kentucky. The auxiliary militia served to help secure supplies of arms and weapons, as well as to patrol the streets and discourage Confederate sympathizers.The original Home Guard...
- Kentucky in the American Civil War
- Louisville in the American Civil War