Battle of Stones River Union Army Order of Battle

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Union Army Order of Battle at the Battle of Stones River

Organization of the Fourteenth Army Corps, or Army of the Cumberland,
The Stone's River or Murfreesborough, Tenn., Campaign.
DECEMBER 26, 1862-JANUARY 5, 1863

Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecrans, U.S. Army, commanding

ARTILLERY.
Col. JAMES BARNETT.

PROVOST GUARD.

10th Ohio, Lieut.
    Col. Joseph W. Burke.

GENERAL ESCORT.

Anderson Troop, Pennsylvania Cavalry,
    Lieut. Thomas S. Maple.

 RIGHT WING.
Maj. Gen. ALEXANDER McD. McCOOK

FIRST (LATE NINTH) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. JEFFERSON C. DAVIS.

Escort.

36th Illinois Cavalry, Company B,
    Capt. Samuel B. Sherer
2d Kentucky Cavalry, Company G:
    Capt. Miller R. McCulloch.
    Lieut. Harvey S. Park.

First (late Thirtieth) Brigade.
Col. P. SIDNEY POST.

59th Illinois,
    Capt. Hendrick E. Paine.
74th Illinois,
    Col. Jason Marsh.
75th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. John E. Bennett
22d Indiana,
    Col. Michael Gooding.

Second (late Thirty-first) Brigade.
Col. WILLIAM P. CARLIN.

21st Illinois:
    Col. J. W. S. Alexander.
    Lieut. Col. Warren E. McMackin.
38th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. Daniel H. Gilmer.
101st Ohio:
    Col. Leander Stem.
    Lieut. Col. Moses F. Wooster.
    Maj. Isaac M. Kirby.
    Capt. Bedan B. McDonald.
15th Wisconsin,
    Col. Hams C. Heg.

Third (late Thtrty-second) Brigade.
Col. WILLIAM E. WOODRUFF.

25th Illinois:
    Maj. Richard H. Nodine.
    Col. Thomas D. Williams.
    Capt. Wesford Taggart.
35th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. William P. Chandler.
81st Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. John Timberlake.

Artillery.

2d Minnesota Battery,
    Capt. William A. Hotchkiss.
5th Wisconsin Battery:
    Capt. Oscar F. Pinney.
    Lieut. Charles B. Humphrey.
8th Wisconsin Battery:
    Capt. Stephen J. Carpenter.
    Sergt. Obadiah German.
    Lieut. Henry E. Stiles.

SECOND DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. RICHARD W. JOHNSON.

First (late Sixth) Brigade.
(1.) Brig. Gen. AUGUST WILLICH.
(2.) Col. WILLIAM WALLACE.
(3.) Col. WILLIAM H. GIBSON.

89th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. Charles T. Hotchkiss.
32d Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. Frank Erdelmeyer.
39th Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. Fielder A.Jones.
15th Ohio:
    Col. William Wallace.
    Capt. A. R. Z Dawson.
    Col. William Wallace.
49th Ohio:
    Col. William H. Gibson.
    Lieut. Col. Levi Drake.
    Capt. Samuel F. Gray.

Second (late Fifth) Brigade.
(1.) Brig. Gen. EDWARD N. KIRK.
(2.) Col. JOSEPH B. DODGE.

34th Illinois:
    Lieut. Col. Hiram W. Bristol.
    Maj. Alexander P. Dysart.
79th Illinois:
    Col. Sheridan P. Read.
    Maj. Allen Buckner.
29th Indiana:
    Lieut. Col. David M. Dunn
    Maj. Joseph P. Collins.
30th Indiana:
    Col. Joseph B. Dodge.
    Lieut. Col. Orrin D. Hurd.
77th Pennsylvania:
    Lieut. Col. Peter B. Housum.
    Capt. Thomas E. Rose.

Third (late Fourth) Brigade.
Col. PHILEMON P. BALDWIN.

6th Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. Hagerman Tripp.
5th Kentucky,
    Lieut. Col. William W. Berry.
1st Ohio,
    Maj. Joab A. Stafford.
93d Ohio.
    Col. Charles Anderson.

Artillery.

5th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. Peter Simonson.
1st Ohio, Battery A,
    Lieut. Edmund B. Belding.
1st Ohio, Battery E,
    Capt. Warren P. Edgarton.

Cavalry.

3d Indiana, Companies G, H, I, and K,
    Maj. Robert Klein.

THIRD (LATE ELEVENTH) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. PHILIP H. SHERIDAN.

Escort.

2d Kentucky Cavalry, Company L,
Lieut. Joseph T. Forman.

First (late Thirty-seventh) Brigade.
(1.) Brig. Gen. JOSHUA W. SILL.
(2.) Col. NICHOLAS GREUSEL.

36th Illinois:
    Col. Nicholas Greusel.
    Maj. Silas Miller.
    Capt. Porter C. Olson.
88th Illinois,
    Col. Francis T. Sherman.
21st Michigan,
    Lieut. Col. William B. McCreery.
24th Wisconsin,
    Maj. Elisha C. Hibbard.

Second (late Thirty-fifth ) Brigade
(1.) Col. FREDERICK SCHAEFER.
(2.) Lieut. Col. BERNARD LAIBOLDT.

44th Illinois,
    Capt. Wallace W. Barrett.
73d Illinois,
    Maj. William A. Presson.
2d Missouri:
    Lieut. Col. Bernard Laiboldt.
    Maj. Francis Ehrler.
15th Missouri,
    Lieut. Col. John Weber.

Third Brigade.
(1.) Col. GEORGE W. ROBERTS.
(2.) Col. LUTHER P. BRADLEY.

22d Illinois:
    Lieut. Col. Francis Swanwick.
    Capt. Samuel Johnson.
27th Illinois:
    Col. Fazilo A. Harrington.
    Maj. William A. Schmitt.
42d Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. Nathan H. Walworth.
51st Illinois:
    Col. Luther P. Bradley.
    Capt. Henry F. Wescott.

Artillery.
Capt. HENRY HESCOCK.

1st Illinois, Battery C,
    Capt. Charles Houghtaling.
4th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. Asahel K. Bush.
1st Missouri, Battery G,
    Capt. Henry Hescock.

CENTER.
Maj. Gen. GEORGE H. THOMAS.

PROVOST GUARD.
9th Michigan, Col. John G. Parkhurst.

FIRST (LATE THIRD) DIVISION.
Maj. Gen. LOVELL H. ROUSSEAU.

First (late Ninth) Brigade.
Col. BENJAMIN F. SCRIBNER.

38th Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. Daniel F. Griffin.
2d Ohio:
    Lieut. Col. John Kell.
    Maj. Anson G. McCook.
33d Ohio,
    Capt. Ephraim J. Ellis.
94th Ohio:
    Col. Joseph W. Frizell.
    Lieut. Col. Stephen A. Bassford.
10th Wisconsin,
    Col. Alfred R. Chapin.

Second (late Seventeenth) Brigade.
Col. JOHN BEATTY.

42d Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. James M. Shanklin.
88th Indiana:
    Col. George Humphrey.
    Lieut. Col. Cyrus E. Briant.
15th Kentucky:
    Col. James B. Forman.
    Lieut. Col. Joseph R. Snider.
3d Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. Orris A. Lawson.

Third (late Twenty-eighth) Brigade.
Col. JOHN C. STARKWEATHER.

24th Illinois,
    Col. Geza Mihalotzy.
79th Pennsylvania,
    Col. Henry A. Hambright.
1st Wisconsin,
    Lieut. Col. George B. Bingham.
21st Wisconsin,
    Lieut. Col. Harrison C. Hobart.

Fourth Brigade.
Lieut. Col. OLIVER L. SHEPHERD.

15th United States, 1st Battalion:
    Maj. John H. King.
    Capt. Jesse Fulmer.
16th United States, 1st Battalion, and Company B, 2d Battalion:
    Maj. Adam J. Slemmer.
    Capt. R. E. A. Crofton.
18th United States, 1st Battalion, and Companies A and D, 3d Battalion,
    Maj. James N. Caldwell.
18th United States, 2d Battalion, and Companies B, C, E, and F, 3d Battalion,
    Maj. Frederick Townsend.
19th United States, 1st Battalion:
    Maj. Stephen D. Carpenter.
    Capt. James B. Mulligan.

Artillery.
Capt. CYRUS O. LOOMIS.

Kentucky, Battery A,
    Capt. David C. Stone.
1st Michigan, Battery A,
    Lieut. George W. Van Pelt.
5th United States, Battery H,
    Lieut. Francis L. Guenther.

Cavalry.

2d Kentucky (six companies).
    Maj. Thomas P. Nicholas.

SECOND (LATE EIGHTH) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. JAMES S. NEGLEY.

First (late Twenty-fifth) Brigade.
Brig. Gen. JAMBS G. SPEARS.

1st Tennessee,
    Col. Robert K. Byrd.
2d Tennessee,
    Lieut. Col. James M. Melton.
3d Tennessee,
    Col. Leonidas C. Houk.
5th Tennessee,
    Col. James T. Shelley.
6th Tennessee,
    Col. Joseph A. Cooper.

Second (late Twenty-ninth) Brigade.
Col. TIMOTHY R. STANLEY.

19th Illinois:
    Col. Joseph R. Scott.
    Lieut. Col. Alexander W. Raffen.
11th Michigan,
    Col. William L. Stoughton.
18h Ohio, Lieut.
    Col. Josiah Given.
69th Ohio:
    Col. William B. Cassilly.
    Maj. Eli J. Hickcox.
    Capt. David Putnam.
    Capt. Joseph H. Brigham.
    Lieut. Col. George F. Elliott.

Third (late Seventh ) Brigade.
Col. JOHN F. MILLER.

37th Indiana:
    Col. James S. Hull.
    Lieut. Col. William D. Ward.
21st Ohio, Lieut.
    Col. James M. Neibling.
74th Ohio,
    Col. Granville Moody.
78th Pennsylvania,
    Col. William Sirwell.

Artillery.

Kentucky, Battery B,
    Lieut. Alban A. Ellsworth.
1st Ohio, Battery G,
    Lieut. Alexander Marshall.
1st Ohio, Battery M,
    Capt. Frederick Schultz.

THIRD (LATE FIRST) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. SPEED S. FRY.

Escort.

2d Kentucky Cavalry, Company B,
    Captain Henry E. Collins.

First Brigade.
Col. MOSES B. WALKER.

82d Indiana,
    Col. Morton C. Hunter.
12th Kentucky,
    Col. William A. Hoskins.
17th Ohio,
    Col. John M. Connell.
31st Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. Frederick W. Lister.
38th Ohio,
    Col. Edward H. Phelps.

Second Brigade.
Col. JOHN M. HARLAN.

10th Indiana,
    Col. William B. Carroll.
74th Indiana,
    Col. Charles W. Chapman.
4th Kentucky,
    Col. John T. Croxton.
10th Kentucky,
    Lieut. Col. William H. Hays.
14th Ohio,
    Col. George P. Este.

Third Brigade.
Brig. Gen. JAMES B. STEEDMAN.

87th Indiana,
    Col. Kline G. Shryock.
2d Minnesota,
    Col. James George.
9th Ohio,
    Col. Gustave Kammerling.
35th Ohio,
    Col. Ferdinand Van Derveer.

Artillery.

1st Michigan, Battery D,
    Capt. Josiah W. Church.
1st Ohio, Battery C,
    Capt. Daniel K. Southwick.
4th United States, Battery I,
    Lieut. Frank G. Smith.

FOURTH (LATE SEVENTH) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. ROBERT B. MITCHEL.

First Brigade.
Brig. Gen. JAMES D. MORGAN.

10th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. McLain F. Wood.
16th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. James B. Cahill.
60th Illinois,
    Col. Silas C. Toler.
10th Michigan,
    Lieut. Col. C. J. Dickerson.
14th Michigan:
    Lieut. Col. Myndert W. Quackenbush.
    Lieut. Col. Milton L. Phillips.

Second (late Thirty-sixth) Brigade.
Col. DANIEL McCOOK.

85th Illinois,
    Col. Robert S. Moore.
86th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. David W Magee.
125th Illinois,
    Col. Oscar F. Harmon.
52d Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. D. D. T. Cowen.

Cavalry.

2d Indiana. Company A,
    Capt. John G. Kessler.
5th Kentucky,
    Maj. John Q. Owsley.
3d Tennessee,
    Col. William C. Pickens.

Artillery.

2d Illinois, Battery I,
    Capt. Charles M. Barnett.
10th Wisconsin Battery,
    Capt. Yates V. Beebe.)

Unattached Infantry.

8th Kansas (five companies),
    Col. John A. Martin.
1st Middle (10th) Tennessee,
    Col. Alvan C. Gillem.

Artillery Reserve.

11th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. Arnold Sutermeister.
12th Indiana Battery,
    Lieut. James A. Dunwoody.
1st Michigan, Battery E,
    Capt. John J. Ely.

FIFTH (LATE TWELFTH) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. JOSEPH J. REYNOLDS.

First (late Thirty-third) Brigade.
Col. ALBERT S. HALL.

80th Illinois,
    Col. Thomas G. Allen.
123d Illinois,
    Col. James Monroe.
101st Indiana,
    Col. William Carver.
105th Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. William R. Tolles.

Second (late Fortieth) Brigade.
Col. ABRAM O. MILLER.

98th Illinois,
    Col. John J. Funkhouser.
17th Indiana,
    Col. John T. Wilder.
72d Indiana,
    Maj. Henry M. Cart.
75th Indiana,
    Col. Milton S. Robinson.

Artillery.

18th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. Eli Lilly.
19th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. Samuel J. Harris.

LEFT WING.
Maj. Gen. THOMAS L. CRITTENDEN.

FIRST (LATE SIXTH) DIVISION.
(1.) Brig. Gen. THOMAS J. WOOD.
(2.) Brig. Gen. MILO S. HASCALL.

First (late Fifteenth ) Brigade.
(1.) Brig. Gen. MILO S. HASCALL.
(2.) Col. GEORGE P. BUELL.

100th Illinois,
    Col. Frederick A. Bartleson.
58th Indiana:
    Col. George P. Buell.
    Lieut. Col. James T. Embree.
3d Kentucky:
    Col. Samuel McKee.
    Maj. Daniel R. Collier.
26th Ohio,
    Capt. William H. Squires.

Second (late Twenty-first) Brigade.
Col. GEORGE D. WAGNER.

15th Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. Gustavus A. Wood.
40th Indiana:
    Col. John W. Blake.
    Lieut. Col. Elias Neff.
    Maj. Henry Learning.
57th Indiana:
    Col. Cyrus C. Hines.
    Lieut. Col. George W. Lennard.
    Capt. John S. McGraw.
97th Ohio,
    Col. John Q. Lane.

Third (late Twentieth) Brigade.
Col. CHARLES G. HARKER.

51st Indiana,
    Col. Abel D. Streight.
73d Indiana,
    Col. Gilbert Hathaway.
13th Michigan,
    Col. Michael Shoemaker.
64th Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. Alexander McIlvain.
65th Ohio:
    Lieut. Col. Alexander Cassil.
    Maj. Horatio N. Whitbeck.

Artillery.
Maj. SEYMOUR RACE.

8th Indiana Battery,
    Lieut George Estep.
10th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. Jerome B. Cox.
6th Ohio Battery,
    Capt. Cullen Bradley.

SECOND (LATE FOURTH) DIVISION.
Brig. Gen. JOHN M. PALMER.

First (late Twenty-second) Brigade.
Brig. Gen. CHARLES CRUFT.

31st Indiana,
    Col. John Osborn.
1st Kentucky,
    Col. David A. Enyart.
2d Kentucky,
    Col. Thomas D. Sedgeswick.
90th Ohio,
    Col. Isaac N. Ross.

Second (late Nineteenth ) Brigade.
Col. WILLIAM B. HAZEN.

110th Illinois,
    Col. Thomas S. Casey.
9th Indiana,
    Col. William H. Blake.
6th Kentucky,
    Col. Walter C. Whitaker.
41st Ohio,
    Lieut Col. Aquila Wiley.

Third (late Tenth) Brigade.
Col. WILLIAM GROSE.

84th Illinois,
    Col. Louis H. Waters.
36th Indiana:
    Maj. Isaac Kinley.
    Capt. Pyrrhus Woodward.
23d Kentucky,
    Maj. Thomas H. Hamrick.
6th Ohio,
    Col. Nicholas L. Anderson.
24th Ohio:
    Col. Frederick C. Jones.
    Maj. Henry Terry.
    Capt. Enoch Weller.
    Capt. A. T. M. Cockerill.

Artillery.
Capt. WILLIAM E. STANDART.

1st Ohio, Battery B,
    Capt. William E Standart.
1st Ohio, Battery F:
    Capt. Daniel T. Cockerill.
    Lieut. Norval Osburn.
4th United States, Batteries H and M,
    Lieut. Charles C. Parsons.

THIRD (LATE FIFTH) DIVISION.
(1.) Brig. Gen. HORATIO P. VAN CLEVE.
(2.) Col. SAMUEL BEATTY.

First (late Eleventh ) Brigade.
(1.) Col. SAMUEL BEATTY.
(2.) Col. BENJAMIN C. GRIDER.

79th Indiana,
    Col. Frederick Knefler.
9th Kentucky:
    Col. Benjamin C. Grider.
    Lieut. Col. George H. Cram.
11th Kentucky,
    Maj. Erasmus L. Mottley.
19th Ohio,
    Maj. Charles F. Manderson.

Second (late Fourteeth) Brigade.
Col. JAMES P. FYFFE.

44th Indiana:
    Col. William C. Williams.
    Lieut. Col. Simeon C. Aldrich.
86th Indiana,
    Lieut. Col. George F. Dick.
13th Ohio:
    Col. Joseph G. Hawkins.
    Maj. Dwight Jarvis, jr.
59th Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. William Howard.

Third (late Twenty-third) Brigade.
Col. SAMUEL W. PRICE.

35th Indiana,
    Col. Bernard F. Mullen.
8th Kentucky:
    Lieut. Col. Reuben May.
    Maj. Green B. Broaddus.
21st Kentucky,
    Lieut. Col. James C. Evans.
51st Ohio,
    Lieut. Col. Richard W. McClain.
99th Ohio:
    Col. Peter T. Swaine.
    Lieut. Col. John E. Cummins.

Artillery.
Capt. GEORGE R. SWALLOW.

7th Indiana Battery,
    Capt. George R. Swallow.
Pennsylvania, Battery B (26th),
    Lieut. Alanson J. Stevens.
3d Wisconsin Battery,
    Lieut. Cortland Livingston.

CAVALRY.
Brig. Gen. DAVID S. STANLEY.

CAVALRY DIVISION.
Col. JOHN KENNETT.

First Brigade.
Col. ROBERT H. G. MINTY.

2d Indiana, Company M,
    Capt. J. A. S. Mitchell.
3d Kentucky,
    Col. Eli H. Murray.
4th Michigan,
    Lieut. Col. William H. Dickinson.
7th Pennsylvania,
    Maj. John E. Wynkoop.

Second Brigade.
Col. LEWIS ZAHM.

1st Ohio:
    Col. Minor Milliken.
    Maj. James Laughlin.
3d Ohio, Lieut.
    Col. Douglas A. Murray.
4th Ohio,
    Maj. John L. Pugh.

Artillery.

1st Ohio, Battery D (section),
    Lieut. Nathaniel M. Newell.

RESERVE CAVALRY.

15th Pennsylvania:
    Maj. Adolph G. Rosengarten.
    Maj. Frank B. Ward.
    Capt. Alfred Vezin.
1st Middle (5th) Tennessee,
    Col. William B. Stokes.
2d Tennessee,
    Col. Daniel M. Ray.

UNATTACHED.
4th U.S. Cavalry, Capt. Elmer Otis.

MISCELLANEOUS.

PIONEER BRIGADE.
Capt. JAMES ST. C. MORTON.

1st Battalion,
    Capt. Lyman Bridges.
2d Battalion,
    Capt. Calvin Hood.
3d Battalion,
    Capt. Robert Clements.
Illinois Light Artillery, Stokes' battery,
    Capt. James H. Stokes.

ENGINEERS AND MECHANICS.

1st Michigan,
    Col. William P. Innes.

POST OF GALLATIN, TENN.
Brig. Gen. ELEAZER A. PAINE.

Ward' s (late Eighth ) Brigade.
Brig. Gen. WILLIAM T. WARD.

102d Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. Frank C. Smith.
105th Illinois,
    Lieut. Col. Henry F. Vallette.
70th Indiana,
    Col. Benjamin Harrison.
79th Ohio,
    Col. Henry G. Kennett.
Indiana Light Artillery, 13th Battery,
    Capt. Benjamin S. Nicklin.

Cavalry.

1st Kentucky,
    Col. Frank Wolford.
7th Kentucky,
    Lieut. Col. John K. Faulkner.
11th Kentucky,
    Lieut. Col. William E. Riley.

Courtesy civilwarhome.com

Recommended Reading: CIVIL WAR IN WEST SLIP CASES: From Stones River to Chattanooga [BOX SET], by Peter Cozzens (1528 pages) (University of Illinois Press). Description: This trilogy very competently fills in much needed analysis and detail on the critical Civil War battles of Stones River, Chickamauga and Chattanooga"Cozzens' comprehensive study of these three great battles has set a new standard in Civil War studies....the research, detail and accuracy are first-rate." Continued below...

Mr. Cozzens' has delivered a very valuable, enjoyable work deserving of attention. The art work by Keith Rocco is also a nice touch, effecting, without sentimentality...historical art which contributes to the whole.

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Recommended Reading: No Better Place to Die: THE BATTLE OF STONES RIVER (Civil War Trilogy). Review from Library Journal: Until now only three book-length studies of the bloody Tennessee battle near Stone's River existed, all old and none satisfactory by current historical standards. This important book covers the late 1862 campaign and battle in detail. Though adjudged a tactical draw, Cozzens shows how damaging it was to the South. Continued below.

Not only did it effectively lose Tennessee, but it completely rent the upper command structure of the Confederacy's major western army. Valuable for its attention to the eccentric personalities of army commanders Bragg and Rosecrans, to the overall campaign, and to tactical fine points, the book is solidly based on extensive and broad research. Essential for period scholars but quite accessible for general readers.

 

Recommended Reading: Six Armies in Tennessee: The Chickamauga and Chattanooga Campaigns (Great Campaigns of the Civil War). Description: When Vicksburg fell to Union forces under General Grant in July 1863, the balance turned against the Confederacy in the trans-Appalachian theater. The Federal success along the river opened the way for advances into central and eastern Tennessee, which culminated in the bloody battle of Chickamauga and then a struggle for Chattanooga. Continued below...

Chickamauga is usually counted as a Confederate victory, albeit a costly one. That battle—indeed the entire campaign—is marked by muddle and blunders occasionally relieved by strokes of brilliant generalship and high courage. The campaign ended significant Confederate presence in Tennessee and left the Union poised to advance upon Atlanta and the Confederacy on the brink of defeat in the western theater.
 

Recommended Reading: Hardtack & Coffee or The Unwritten Story of Army Life. Description: Most histories of the Civil War focus on battles and top brass. Hardtack and Coffee is one of the few to give a vivid, detailed picture of what ordinary soldiers endured every day—in camp, on the march, at the edge of a booming, smoking hell. John D. Billings of Massachusetts enlisted in the Army of the Potomac and survived the hellish conditions as a “common foot soldier” of the American Civil War. "Billings describes an insightful account of the conflict – the experiences of every day life as a common foot-soldier – and a view of the war that is sure to score with every buff." Continued below...

The authenticity of his book is heightened by the many drawings that a comrade, Charles W. Reed, made while in the field. This is the story of how the Civil War soldier was recruited, provisioned, and disciplined. Described here are the types of men found in any outfit; their not very uniform uniforms; crowded tents and makeshift shelters; difficulties in keeping clean, warm, and dry; their pleasure in a cup of coffee; food rations, dominated by salt pork and the versatile cracker or hardtack; their brave pastimes in the face of death; punishments for various offenses; treatment in sick bay; firearms and signals and modes of transportation. Comprehensive and anecdotal, Hardtack and Coffee is striking for the pulse of life that runs through it.

 
Recommended Reading: Life of Billy Yank: The Common Soldier of the Union (488 pages) (Louisiana State University Press). Description: This fascinating social history reveals that while the Yanks and the Rebs fought for very different causes, the men on both sides were very much the same. "This wonderfully interesting book is the finest memorial the Union soldier is ever likely to have. . . . [Wiley] has written about the Northern troops with an admirable objectivity, with sympathy and understanding and profound respect for their fighting abilities. He has also written about them with fabulous learning and considerable pace and humor.
 

Recommended Reading: Shiloh and the Western Campaign of 1862. Review: The bloody and decisive two-day battle of Shiloh (April 6-7, 1862) changed the entire course of the American Civil War. The stunning Northern victory thrust Union commander Ulysses S. Grant into the national spotlight, claimed the life of Confederate commander Albert S. Johnston, and forever buried the notion that the Civil War would be a short conflict. The conflagration at Shiloh had its roots in the strong Union advance during the winter of 1861-1862 that resulted in the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson in Tennessee. Continued below.

The offensive collapsed General Albert S. Johnston advanced line in Kentucky and forced him to withdraw all the way to northern Mississippi. Anxious to attack the enemy, Johnston began concentrating Southern forces at Corinth, a major railroad center just below the Tennessee border. His bold plan called for his Army of the Mississippi to march north and destroy General Grant's Army of the Tennessee before it could link up with another Union army on the way to join him. On the morning of April 6, Johnston boasted to his subordinates, "Tonight we will water our horses in the Tennessee!" They nearly did so. Johnston's sweeping attack hit the unsuspecting Federal camps at Pittsburg Landing and routed the enemy from position after position as they fell back toward the Tennessee River. Johnston's sudden death in the Peach Orchard, however, coupled with stubborn Federal resistance, widespread confusion, and Grant's dogged determination to hold the field, saved the Union army from destruction. The arrival of General Don C. Buell's reinforcements that night turned the tide of battle. The next day, Grant seized the initiative and attacked the Confederates, driving them from the field. Shiloh was one of the bloodiest battles of the entire war, with nearly 24,000 men killed, wounded, and missing. Edward Cunningham, a young Ph.D. candidate studying under the legendary T. Harry Williams at Louisiana State University, researched and wrote Shiloh and the Western Campaign of 1862 in 1966. Although it remained unpublished, many Shiloh experts and park rangers consider it to be the best overall examination of the battle ever written. Indeed, Shiloh historiography is just now catching up with Cunningham, who was decades ahead of modern scholarship. Western Civil War historians Gary D. Joiner and Timothy B. Smith have resurrected Cunningham's beautifully written and deeply researched manuscript from its undeserved obscurity. Fully edited and richly annotated with updated citations and observations, original maps, and a complete order of battle and table of losses, Shiloh and the Western Campaign of 1862 will be welcomed by everyone who enjoys battle history at its finest. Edward Cunningham, Ph.D., studied under T. Harry Williams at Louisiana State University. He was the author of The Port Hudson Campaign: 1862-1863 (LSU, 1963). Dr. Cunningham died in 1997. Gary D. Joiner, Ph.D. is the author of One Damn Blunder from Beginning to End: The Red River Campaign of 1864, winner of the 2004 Albert Castel Award and the 2005 A. M. Pate, Jr., Award, and Through the Howling Wilderness: The 1864 Red River Campaign and Union Failure in the West. He lives in Shreveport, Louisiana. About the Author: Timothy B. Smith, Ph.D., is author of Champion Hill: Decisive Battle for Vicksburg (winner of the 2004 Mississippi Institute of Arts and Letters Non-fiction Award), The Untold Story of Shiloh: The Battle and the Battlefield, and This Great Battlefield of Shiloh: History, Memory, and the Establishment of a Civil War National Military Park. A former ranger at Shiloh, Tim teaches history at the University of Tennessee.

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