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3rd New York Light Artillery, Battery H

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Muster In: Organized at Rome, N.Y., February 22, 1862.1
Muster Out: Mustered out at Richmond, Va., June 24, 1865.2

Commander(s):
Captain William J. Riggs
WilliamJRiggs3rdNYLtArtyBttyHv094p48473

Captain Enoch Jones
Commander Image

Lieutenant Horatio N. Thomson
Commander Image

First Offensive Order of Battle: Unattached (?) | Army of the James | Union Army4

  • Commander:
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons: 6 x 12-lb. Napoleons (March 31, 1864)5
  • Note: The 3rd NY Lt. Artillery, Battery H was ordered to the Army of the James on June 13 and apparently reached the front on June 16.  What is unclear is which organization the unit was attached to in June 1864, if any.  More research is needed.6

Second Offensive Order of Battle: Unattached (?) | Army of the James | Union Army7

  • Commander:
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons: Note: The 3rd NY Lt. Artillery, Battery H was ordered to the Army of the James on June 13 and apparently reached the front on June 16.  What is unclear is which organization the unit was attached to in June 1864, if any.  More research is needed.8

Third Offensive Order of Battle: Artillery Brigade | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army9,10

  • Commander: Captain William J. Riggs (July 31, 1864)11
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Fourth Offensive Order of Battle: Artillery Brigade | X Corps | Army of the James | Union Army12

  • Commander: Captain William J. Riggs (August 31, 1864)13
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Fifth Offensive Order of Battle: Artillery Brigade | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army14,15

  • Commander:
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:
  • Note: This battery accompanied the Eighteenth Corps in the field during the Fifth Offensive.16

Sixth Offensive Order of Battle: Artillery Brigade | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army17

  • Commander: Captain William J. Riggs (October 31, 1864)18
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:
  • Note: This unit did not join the Eighteenth Corps in the field during the Battle of Fair Oaks and Darbytown Road on October 27-28, 1864.19

Seventh Offensive Order of Battle:

Artillery Brigade | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (November 1-December 3, 1864)20

Artillery Brigade | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (December 3-31, 1864)21

  • Commander: Captain William J. Riggs (December 31, 1864)22
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:
  • Note: On December 3, 1864, the X Corps and XVIII Corps of the Army of the James were reorganized into the XXIV Corps and the XXV Corps.

Eighth Offensive Order of Battle: Artillery Brigade | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army23,24

  • Commander:
    • Captain William J. Riggs (January 31, 1865)25
    • Lieutenant Horatio N. Thomson (February 28, 1865)26
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Ninth Offensive Order of Battle: Artillery Brigade | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army27,28

  • Commander: Captain Enoch Jones (March 31, 1865)29
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Dyer’s/Sifakis’ Compendium Info:
Siege of Petersburg Battles30:

  • Moved to Newport News, Va., October 16-18.
  • Duty there and in the Defenses of Portsmouth, Va., until June, 1864.
  • Ordered to report to Gen. Butler June 13.
  • Siege operations against Petersburg and Richmond June 16, 1864, to April 2, 1865.
  • Mine Explosion, Petersburg, July 30, 1864 (Reserve).
  • Bermuda Hundred August 24-25.
  • Chaffin’s Farm, New Market Heights, September 28-30.
  • Darbytown and New Market Road October 7.
  • Fair Oaks October 27-28.
  • In trenches before Richmond until March, 1865.
  • Appomattox Campaign March 28-April 9.
  • Fall of Petersburg April 2.
  • Pursuit of Lee April 3-9.
  • Appomattox Court House April 9.
  • Surrender of Lee and his army.
  • Duty in the Department of Virginia until June.
  • Mustered out at Richmond, Va., June 24, 1865.

Bibliography:

    Siege of Petersburg Documents Which Mention This Unit:

      Sources:

      1. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      2. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      3. William J. Riggs image.  MOLLUS-Mass Civil War Photograph Collection, Vol. 94, Page 4847.  United States Army Heritage and Education Center, Carlisle, PA. ↩
      4.  A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      5. Volume 3 (Ordnance Returns for the First Quarter, January-March, 1864); 3rd New York Light Artillery, Battery H Entry, Page 131; Summary Statements of Quarterly Returns of Ordnance and Ordnance Stores on Hand in Regular and Volunteer Army Organizations, 1862-1867, 1870-1876. (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1281, Roll 1); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C.: Not many returns exist for June 30, 1864, and none exist past that, so I’ve made the decision to include the March 31, 1864 ordnance return data in the absence of better information.  I’ll add more immediate reports of tube numbers and types as they are found. ↩
      6. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      7.  A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      8. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      9. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 1 (Serial Number 80), page 267 ↩
      10. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 3 (Serial Number 82), page 740 ↩
      11. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 3 (Serial Number 82), page 740 ↩
      12. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 2 (Serial Number 88), page 620: “Organization of the Army of the Potomac…August 31, 1864” ↩
      13. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 2 (Serial Number 88), page 620: “Organization of the Army of the Potomac…August 31, 1864” ↩
      14. Sommers, Richard J. “Grant’s Fifth Offensive at Petersburg: A Study in Strategy, Tactics, and Generalship.  The Battle of Poplar Spring Church, the First Battle of the Darbytown Road, the Second Battle of the Squirrel Level Road, the Second Battle of the Darbytown Road (Ulysses S. Grant, Virginia).” Doctoral Thesis. Rice University, 1970. Print. p. 1304. ↩
      15. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 1 (Serial Number 87), page 136: “Return of Casualties in the Union Forces (September-October 1864)” ↩
      16. Sommers, Richard J. “Grant’s Fifth Offensive at Petersburg: A Study in Strategy, Tactics, and Generalship.  The Battle of Poplar Spring Church, the First Battle of the Darbytown Road, the Second Battle of the Squirrel Level Road, the Second Battle of the Darbytown Road (Ulysses S. Grant, Virginia).” Doctoral Thesis. Rice University, 1970. Print. p. 1304. ↩
      17. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 3 (Serial Number 89), page 467: “Organization of the Union Forces” (October 31, 1864)” ↩
      18. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 3 (Serial Number 89), page 467: “Organization of the Union Forces” (October 31, 1864)” ↩
      19. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 1 (Serial Number 87), page 152: “Return of Casualties in the Union Forces…Fair Oaks and Darbytown Road, Va., October 27-28, 1864” ↩
      20.  A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
      21. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 3 (Serial Number 89), page 1125: “Organization of the Union Forces” (December 31, 1864) ↩
      22. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLII, Part 3 (Serial Number 89), page 1125: “Organization of the Union Forces” (December 31, 1864) ↩
      23. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 2 (Serial Number 96), page 336: “Organization of the Union Forces” (January 31, 1865) ↩
      24. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 2 (Serial Number 96), page 750: “Organization of the Union Forces” (February 28, 1865) ↩
      25. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 2 (Serial Number 96), page 336: “Organization of the Union Forces” (January 31, 1865) ↩
      26. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 2 (Serial Number 96), page 750: “Organization of the Union Forces” (February 28, 1865) ↩
      27. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 1 (Serial Number 95), page 579: “Organization of the Union Forces” (March 31, 1865) ↩
      28. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 1 (Serial Number 95), page 595: “Return of casualties in the Union Forces commanded by Lieut. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant, March 29-April 9, 1865” ↩
      29. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 1 (Serial Number 95), page 579: “Organization of the Union Forces” (March 31, 1865) ↩
      30. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩

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