The 96th Pennsylvania Volunteers In The Civil War

 The 96th Pennsylvania Volunteers infantry regiment was formed in 1861—its ranks filled by nearly 1,200 Irish and German immigrants from Schuylkill County responding to Lincoln’s call for troops. The men saw action for three years with the Army of the Potomac’s VI Corps, participating in engagements at Gaines’ Mill, Crampton’s Gap, Salem Church and Spotsylvania. Drawing on letters, diaries, memoirs and other accounts, this comprehensive history documents their combat service from the point of view of the rank-and-file soldier, along with their views on the war, slavery, emancipation and politics.

The 96th Pennsylvania Volunteers infantry regiment was formed in 1861--its ranks filled by nearly 1,200 Irish and German immigrants from Schuylkill County responding to Lincoln's call for troops. The men saw action for three years with the Army of the Potomac's VI Corps, participating in engagements at Gaines' Mill, Crampton's Gap, Salem Church and Spotsylvania. Drawing on letters, diaries, memoirs and other accounts, this comprehensive history documents their combat service from the point of view of the rank-and-file soldier, along with their views on the war, slavery, emancipation and politics.

This book provides a detailed history of the 198th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment during the American Civil War. The author, Major E. M. Woodward, served as an officer in the regiment and was present at many of the major battles in which it fought. The book includes accounts of the battles of the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, and Cold Harbor, as well as the siege of Petersburg and the Appomattox campaign. This is a must-read for anyone interested in the history of the Civil War. This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work is in the "public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

The 149th Pennsylvania saw its one day of glory on July 1, 1863, when this young and untried regiment staged a magnificent defense at McPherson's farm. Although this bright promise quickly faded into more typical regimental experience, the story of the regiment's service under the indomitable Joshua Chamberlain remains worth telling. Drawing on the service records of more than 800 soldiers as well as diaries, letters, and other primary souces, this book details the 149th's battles from brigade to company level, from the charges at Gettsyburg to the assault at Petersburg. Focus is on the development, mood and character of a regiment as it undergoes changes in leadership, loss of reliable veterans and the increased individual desire for survival as brutal battles take their toll on mind and body. More than 100 photographs enhance the text.

The 116th Pennsylvania was no ordinary regiment. For two hard years it fought with Thomas Meagher's celebrated Irish Brigade of the Army of the Potomac. Though only partially Irish itself, the 116th won an honored place in this famous unit's history by its faithful service in some of the bloodiest campaigns of the war. The mutual respect between the Irish and the 116th was certainly founded on their shared bravery and suffering during the campaigns from Fredericksburg to Petersburg, but it no doubt also owed something to the remarkable Irish colonel, St. Clair Mulholland, who commanded the 116th through most of its battles. Mulholland was a soldier's soldier: disciplined, courageous, caring, and dedicated to the men of his regiment. Wounded four times (once, it was thought, mortally), he time and again rose from his hospital bed to return to command. Winner of the congressional Medal of Honor for his actions at Chancellorsville, he was later brevetted brigadier general and major general for service in the Wilderness and at Petersburg.

This is the never before told story of hundreds of American who went to war in defense of their beliefs, to seek adventure and to see some of the world beyond their rural Pennsylvania neighborhoods. Developed largely in the words of the soldiers of the 145th Pennsylvania Infantry, Common Men highlights some of the men's lives before the war and then carries the reader through trials and triumphs from enlistment, jubilant send-off, action from Antietam through Gettysburg and casualty. Democracy and the Union are sustained through the action of common men, men not always given the best of orders. -- back cover.