Posted 13 years ago
VikingFan82
(373 items)
These are my great great great grandfather's papers from the Civil War. A Company of the Wisconsin 28th Regiment Volunteer Infantry. The 28th was involved in the following battles: Battle at Helena, Arkansas on 4 July 1863, Battle at Montana Elba, Arkansas on 30 March 1864,
Battle at Mark's Mills, Arkansas on 25 April 1864, Battle on 19 January 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 27 March 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 28 March 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 29 March 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 30 March 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 31 March 1865,
Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 2 April 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 3 April 1865, Battle at Spanish Fort, Alabama on 4 April 1865. In all, the 28th suffered 1 officer and 12 enlisted men killed in action or who later died of their wounds, plus another 6 officers and 221 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 240 fatalities. My great great great grandfather was one of the lucky ones, he survived the war and died at the age of 83. I am not sure why it says his organization did not participate in any battles, I have found otherwise. On another note, eighty years after his service, his great grandsons, Pvt. John Carrier and Pvt. Robert E. Carrier served in WWII, with the latter being killed in action.
It always amazes me at the magnitude of disease vs. battle casualties.
Scott
Yeah it's crazy, I read somewhere that something like 3/5th of all casualties were from disease. Insane. It's a miracle things were accomplished with that much disease and sickness. Can you imagine troops in Iraq and Afghanistan running around by the hundreds with dysentery, small pox and malaria?
There were bouts of sickness/ disease that had did have significant impacts to units during both Desert Storm and Iraqi Freedom. Fortunately, with modern medical care, the illnesses resulted in few deaths but were very incapacitating for a day or two.
Scott
I noticed that in my family tree. They went to few battles, lost few in battle, but lost a huge percent to disease.
Neat documents. your grand father must have been a very healthy person and also knew how to take care of his health since he served 3 years in the field often under very unhealthy conditions and maintained his health. His battle record means that he was not in any "major " battles. His unit was in many small actions which in todays terms would be called fire fights, skirmishes and the like which were all called battles at the time. Some of these cost the Confederates almost 200 casualties in one action. These were definately life and death battles to the men on the ground but not "Battles" to the war department. Any photos of him in uniform, army or GAR?
Thanks, we have no photos of him at all unfortunately.
Yeah I have been on that site a lot, and uploaded quite a few photos myself.