22nd New York Infantry Regiment's Civil War Historical Sketch

From The 3rd Annual Report Of The Bureau Of Military Statistics

TWENTY-SECOND REGIMENT INFANTRY, N. Y. S. V. The Twenty-second regiment infantry, N. Y. S. V., or " Second Northern New York regiment," was organized at Camp Brintnall, Troy, on the 16th of May, 1861. It was composed of companies recruited in the counties of Saratoga, Washington, Warren and Essex, as follows:

Co.	Where organized	County	Date of  Muster	Reached  Troy *	By Whom Recruited
A	Waterford & Cohoes	Saratoga	May 2	May 6	Capt. Jacob L. Yates
B	Fort Edward	Washington	May 6	May 21	Capt. Robert McCoy
C	Keeseville	Essex	May 6	May 21	Capt. Gorton T. Thomas
D	Cambridge	Washington	May 5	May 10	Capt. John McKie jr.
E	Glens Falls	Warren	May 6	May 11	Capt. George Clendon, jr.
F	Glens Falls	Warren	May 7	May 9	Capt. Austin W. Holden
G	Whitehall	Washington	May 2	May 7	Capt. Edward Boynton
H	Sandy Hill	Washington	May 7	May 8	Capt. Thomas J. Strong
I	Schroon	Essex	May 8	May 14	Capt. Lyman Ormsbec
K	Westport	Essex	May 9	May 21	Capt. Miles P. S. Caldwell
* Companies B, C, E, I and K reported at Albany at prior dates, and were moved to Troy at the dates here given.

 

Company G was subsequently disbanded; a company under Capt. Atwood attached; company G reorganized under Capt. Benj. Mosher; Capt. Atwood's company detached and Capt. Mosher's assigned (June 7th)? which left the regiment locally represented as already stated—the new company being from Whitehall.

On the 14th of May (Special Orders 181), the regiment was accepted by the State Military Board, and an election of field officers ordered. This election was held at Stanwix Hall, Albany, on the evening of the 14th, Brig. Gen. Rathbone presiding, and resulted in the choice of Walter Phelps, jr., of Glens Falls, colonel, Gorton T. Thomas, of Keeseville, lieutenant colonel, and John McKie, jr. of Cambridge, major. The State Board confirmed the selections at its meeting on the 15th, which action was announced (May 17th) by Special Orders 193. On the 18th, the regiment was transferred to Camp Willard, the quarters then recently occupied by the Second regiment N. Y. S. V. The name of this camp was changed to Camp Rathbone, and embraced the Rensselaer county Fair grounds. On the 20th of May, the staff appointments were made. On the evening of the 30th, Capt. A. K. Patten's band joined the regiment and remained with it until after the battle of Cedar Mountain in the summer of 1862. On the 6th of June, the regiment was mustered into the service of the United States by Capt. Frank Wheaton, U. S. A.

The regiment was supplied with uniforms (State regulation), tents (common and wall), and with United States percussion muskets, model of 1842. (Subsequently exchanged for Springfield muskets, which were retained so long as the regiment remained in the field. On the Thursday previous to breaking camp for home, the latter were exchanged for Austrian rifles. ) Fully armed and equipped, it left the State for Washington, via Easton, Harrisburg and Baltimore, June 28th. The expenditure by the State, on account of the regiment, prior to August 15th, 1861, was $38,944.56, exclusive of subsistence and quarters.

The regiment had been transferred the week before to the Industrial School barracks at Albany and on the 28th of June, under escort of company A, Albany Zouave Cadets, it marched to the steamboat landing and embarked on a steamer and barges for the city of New York, where it was transferred to a steamer from Jersey City for Elizabethport, which place it reached about midnight. It immediately took the cars for Baltimore, via Harrisburg, and arrived in the former city after dark on the 30th. On reaching the depot of the cars for Washington, it was assaulted by persons in the crowd of spectators, and one man killed. (Edward Burge, private, company I, from Pottersville, Warren county. His head was perforated by a musket ball entering from the vertex and passing out at the back of the neck.) The fire was returned by the regiment and a number of Baltimoreans wounded, The police then interfered, and the regiment was hurried into the cars and started for Washington, where it arrived at about one A. M. on the 1st of July. Here it was divided into two parties and quartered in a carriage-house and a church in the neighborhood of Judiciary square. On the 2d, it moved to Meridian Hill, and took up its camp on Seventh street.

On the 4th of July the regiment went to Georgetown and participated in the grand review of New York regiments, passing the White House with other regiments under General Sandford.

On the evening of the 24th of July the regiment crossed Long Bridge and bivouacked on Arlington Heights, and the next day went camp. On the 4th of August it was assigned to General Kyese' into brigade (composed of the 22d, 24th, 30th and 84th N. Y. Vol.) This brigade was subsequently under command of General Andrew Porter, Gen. Augur (organization of March 13, 1862, 1st corps, 3d division, 3d brigade*), (Said to have been the first brigade created of the new and permanent organization following the first battle of Bull Run.) Colonel Sullivan, General Hatch and Colonel Phelps, and was known as the " Iron Brigade;" a synonym bestowed by General M. R. Patrick. The regiment performed camp, guard and fatigue duty at Arlington and Upton's Hill; was in the reconnoissance to Upton's Hill September 28th, and took up camp there for the winter until the 10th of March, 1862, when it moved to within three miles of Centreville, and on the 13th to Centreville. On the 15th it returned to Alexandria, marching twenty-one miles in a severe storm of rain, and on the 16th removed to its old camp on Upton's Hill.

The campaign of 1862 was entered upon by the regiment on the 4th of April, when it marched to within four miles of Fairfax, and bivouacked near Annandale. Its subsequent movements were as follows : "April 5th, marched four miles beyond Centreville and bivouacked; 6th, marched about four miles beyond Manassas Junction, near Bristow Station, bivouacked and remained through a severe storm of rain and snow ; 15th, marched from 6 to 10 P.M. and camped near Catlett's Station on Cedar Run; 17th, marched at 6½ A. M., and continued, with short rests, until 9 P.M. ; 18th, marched at 2 A. M. and reached Falmouth at 9 A. M. During this march the enemy was in the front ; occasionally skirmished with our cavalry advance, and finally retreated to Fredericksburg and burned the bridge across the Rappahannock.

The regiment remained at Falmouth until the 25th of May, with varied camp and patrol duties, and participated in the review by the President on the 23d. On the 25th it crossed the river and moved some six miles below Fredericksburg and bivouacked near the Massaponax. The order for advance was here countermanded, and the regiment retraced its steps on the 29th to some eight miles north of Fredericksburg; marched towards Catlett's Station on the 30th; reached the station on the 31st, and took the cars for Manassas Gap; rode all night in the rain and reached Front Royal about 6 P. M. on the 1st of June. On the 2d it started for Strasburg; found that the bridge over the Shenandoah had been burned, and then returned to Haymarket, where it remained until the 6th. On the 6th it marched to Warrenton; on the 8th to Warrenton Junction; on the 9th towards Fredericksburg; camped until the 14th at Elk Run crossing, when it marched twenty-two miles and reached Falmouth on the 15th. Here it was occupied in camp duties and with details on the railroad bridge.

Field duties were resumed on the 5th of August when the regiment went on the reconnoissance south of Fredericksburg; returned on the 7th ; on the 10th left Fredericksburg at 4½ A. M. for Culpepper Court House; marched until one, and rested until 4 P. M. ; marched until 9 P. M., (having forded the north fork of the Rappahannock about dark; on the 11th marched from 4 A. M. to 1 P.M., and from 6 to 11 P. M., and reached the vicinity of the Cedar Mountain battle-field of the 9th. On the 16th advanced to Cedar Mountain ; on the 19th moved to within about two miles of Rappahannock Station on the Orange and Alexandria railroad; on the 20th crossed the Rappahannock—the rear guard being attacked by the enemy, and on the 21st, 22d and 23d participated in the series of engagements repulsing the movements of the enemy to cross the rivet. The position of the regiment on the 21st was exposed to the enemy's fire from 10 A. M. until dark; on the 22d, from daylight, in support of a battery, with company B detailed as skirmishers between the battery and the river, and on the 23d from 5 A. M., and at intervals all day. About noon all the regiments of the brigade, except the Twenty-second, left for Warrenton. The latter moved about 5 P. M. and marched until 2 A. M.; resumed the march at 6 P. M. and reached Warrenton at 9, and was detailed as provost guard.

The regiment left Warrenton on the 27th of August, and halted at Buckland for the night. On the morning of the 28th it commenced marching towards Manassas; reached Gainsville at 1 P. M., where it, was ordered into line of battle, and, at 4 P. M., the brigade was Moved forward with the rest of the division, some portions of which suffered severely in that day's engagement. The loss of the Twenty-second was one wounded and half a dozen taken prisoners. On the 29th, at 2 P. M., the regiment was led against a superior force of the enemy, strongly posted in a piece of wood, and was badly cut up. On the 30th it was again engaged at Manassas Plains (second Bull Run,) and fell back to Centreville in the night with only one captain, four lieutenants, out of twenty-five officers who that day accompanied the regiment to the battle-field, and 204 enlisted men present for duty. On the first of September it fell back in the reserve to Fairfax Court House, and, on the 2d, reached its old camp on Upton's Hill.

On the 6th of September the regiment left Upton's Hill at 11½ P. M. on the Maryland campaign ; passed through Washington and halted at 5 A. M. of the 7th; resumed and continued the march, until 1½ P. M., and encamped about 10 miles from Washington ; on the 10th marched to Mechanicsville; on the 11th to Lisbon ; on the 12th to New Market; on the 13th marched to within two miles of Frederick, halted, marched and countermarched, and finally rested from 3 to 8 A. M, ; on the 14th passed through Frederick to South Mountain, and advanced against the enemy at 3 P.M. This action was commenced by two regiments of Gen. Patrick's brigade thrown out as skirmishers, and supported by the Twenty-second and the regiments of its brigade under Col. Phelps. The advance was made under hot fire to close quarters. The enemy were found posted behind a fence, and were charged and routed with a heavy loss on both sides, and the fence held for half an hour. The regiment was then relieved by a regiment of Patrick's brigade, but remained on the field during the night; On the 15th the regiment moved to Keedysville, and on the 16th went to the front. On the 17th the regiment was moved (with the brigade under Col. Phelps) from one point to another under fire of artillery, and was finally assigned to the support of Gibbons' brigade. The enemy advanced against this position in heavy masses, and our forces were obliged to fall back. The change of position was to the rear of Rickett's division, and when the regiment again faced the front it had scarcely men enough to bear its colors. The official returns show a loss to the Twenty-second in this action, of forty-three per cent of the numbers engaged.

The regiment marched on the 19th and camped about 1½ miles from the Potomac. Here it remained until the 20th of October, when it moved to Bakersville ; marched on the 26th and camped at the foot of South Mountain on the 27th; on the 28th marched through Birketsville and Petersville, and encamped near Berlin; on the 30th, about 5 P. M., crossed into Virginia on pontoon bridge a few miles below Harper's Ferry and camped ; November 1st marched to Purcellsville; 4th to Bloomfield ; 5th to Rectortown; 6th to Warrenton ; 11th to Fayetteville, and from thence to Falmouth. In the battle of Fredericksburg (Dec. 13th) it was on the extreme left in Franklin's corps; was under lire three days, lost seven wounded, and returned to its old camping ground on the 15th. It participated in the " mud march" of January, and then took up winter quarters at Belle Plain.

On the 28th of April the regiment marched to the Rappahanhock, and crossed on boats soon after the enemy had been driven from their rifle pits. It was joined by the rest of the division on the 29th, and was marched to the river's edge to protect the detail engaged in launching the boats, and while in this position was exposed to a galling fire of musketry, which wounded eleven of their number during the day. On the 1st of May it was sent on picket duty to the front; on the 2d lay between the batteries until 9 A. M., and then retired to the river and crossed in the rear; on the 3d recrossed and moved to the right, supplying, in part, the place of the Eleventh corps; remained in reserve on the 4th, and retired with the army on the 5th, the brigade acting as rear guard and covering the retreat of the army. Its loss here was ten wounded.

The regiment returned to the State on the 4th of June ; on the 6th it was received with fitting ceremonies at Fort Edward, Sandy Hill and Glens Falls, and was mustered out of service at Albany, on the 19th of that month.

 

The strength and losses of the regiment at different periods was as follows, viz :
Original enlisted men	702
Enlisted before muster	172
Total	874
Transferred and deserted before muster	124
Mustered June 6th, 1861 (men)	750
Mustered June 6th (officers)	38
Gained by recruits	186
Gained by transfers	27
Total on rolls from muster to March, '63	1,001
Strength, Aug. 29 (2d Bull Run), present	626
Loss in killed, wounded and missing	504
Strength, Sept. 14 (South Mountain), present	126
Loss—killed, 12; wounded, 25	37
Strength, Sept. 17 (Antietam), present	67
Loss —killed, 2 ; wounded, 24 ; missing, 1	27
Strength, Dec, 13 (Fredericksburg), present	210
Loss— wounded	5
Strength, May 3 (Chancellorsville), about	300
Loss — wounded	10
The deaths in the regiment, from all causes, were ninety.