18th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment

The 18th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army in the western theater of the American Civil War. A large portion of the regiment was captured in their first battle, at Shiloh, but they went on to participate in the Vicksburg Campaign, and Sherman's campaigns in Georgia and the Carolinas. For much of the war, the regiment was commanded by Gabriel Bouck, who would later become a U.S. congressman and speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly.

18th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment
ActiveMarch 15, 1862 – July 18, 1865
CountryUnited States
AllegianceUnion
BranchInfantry
SizeRegiment
EngagementsAmerican Civil War
Commanders
ColonelJames S. Alban
ColonelGabriel Bouck
Lt. ColonelCharles H. Jackson

Service

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The 18th Wisconsin was organized at Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and mustered into Federal service March 15, 1862.

The regiment was mustered out on July 18, 1865, at Louisville, Kentucky.

Casualties

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The 18th Wisconsin suffered 4 officers and 52 enlisted men killed in action or who later died of their wounds, plus another 2 officers and 167 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 225 fatalities.[1]

 
Monument to the 18th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry located at Vicksburg National Military Park, Mississippi.

Commanders

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Notable people

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  • Jeremiah Wallace Baldock was enlisted in Co. K and rose to the rank of sergeant. He was captured at Shiloh and later designated for a commission as second lieutenant, but was never mustered into federal service at that rank. After the war he became a Wisconsin state legislator.
  • Samuel Beall was lieutenant colonel of the regiment. He was severely wounded at Shiloh and lost a leg. After leaving the regiment, he was commissioned as a major in the Veteran Reserve Corps and served as overseer of a prisoner of war camp. Before the war he had been Wisconsin's 2nd lieutenant governor.
  • Phineas A. Bennett, son of Alden I. Bennett, was second lieutenant in Co. K, was wounded at Shiloh and discharged.
  • Edward Colman was first lieutenant of Co. A and later became adjutant of the regiment. He was wounded twice—at Shiloh and Champion Hill. After the war he became a Wisconsin state senator.
  • Ira Ford was first lieutenant and later captain of Co. I. He was wounded and taken prisoner at Shiloh. After the war he became a Wisconsin state legislator.
  • Thomas A. Jackson was first lieutenant and later captain of Co. B. He was captured at Shiloh but paroled after seven months captivity. After the war he became a Wisconsin state legislator.
  • Addison W. Merrill was enlisted in Co. H and rose to the rank of corporal. After the war he became a Wisconsin state legislator.
  • Fred Ties was enlisted in Co. B and rose to the rank of first sergeant. He was wounded and captured at Jackson, Mississippi, and later designated for a commission as second lieutenant, but was never mustered into federal service at that rank. After the war he became a Wisconsin state legislator.

See also

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References

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