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8th Connecticut Infantry

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Muster In: Organized at Hartford September 21, 1861.  Mustered in October 5, 1861.1,2
Muster Out: Mustered out December 12, 1865.3,4

Commander(s):
Colonel John E. Ward
Commander Image

Lieutenant Colonel Martin B. Smith
Commander Image

Major William M. Pratt
WilliamMPratt8thCT5

Captain Charles M. Coit
Commander Image

Captain Henry M. Hoyt
Commander Image

Captain Elam Goodrich
Commander Image

First Offensive Order of Battle: Second Brigade | First Division | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army6,7

Second Offensive Order of Battle: Second Brigade | First Division | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army12,13

Third Offensive Order of Battle: Second Brigade | First Division | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army18,19

  • Commander: Captain Charles M. Coit (at least July 1-6 & July 31, 1864)20,21
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Fourth Offensive Order of Battle: Second Brigade | First Division | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army22

  • Commander: Captain Charles M. Coit (August 31, 1864)23
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Fifth Offensive Order of Battle: Second Brigade | First Division | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army24,25

  • Commander:
    • Lieutenant Colonel Martin B. Smith (September 29, 1864) (wounded severely in the leg on September 29 at the Battle of Ft. Harrison)26
    • Captain Charles M. Coit (September 29, 1864) (assumed command after Smith’s wounding)27
    • Captain Henry M. Hoyt (came up to assume command the night of Spetember 29) (September 29, 1864)28
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Sixth Offensive Order of Battle: Unattached | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army31

  • Commander:
    • Captain Elam Goodrich (around October 17, 1864)32
    • Colonel John E. Ward (October 31, 1864)33
  • Unit Strength:
    • ~103 officers and men PFD (October 17, 1864)34
  • Weapons:
  • Note: The 8th Connecticut was serving as the Headquarters Guard for the Eighteenth Corps during the Battle of Fair Oaks and Darbytown Road on October 27-28, 1864 per the Union casualty returns for the battle.35

Seventh Offensive Order of Battle:

HQ Guard | XVIII Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (November 1-December 3, 1864)36

HQ Guard | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (December 3-31, 1864)37

  • Commander: Colonel John E. Ward (December 31, 1864)38
  • Unit Strength:
    • ~300 officers and men “in aggregate” (November 29, 1864)39
    • ~250 officers and men PFD (December 20, 1864)40
  • 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:

HQ Guard | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (January 1-February ?, 1865)41

Second Brigade | Third Division | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (February ?-28, 1865)42

  • Commander:
    • Colonel John E. Ward (January 31, 1865)43
    • Major William M. Pratt (February 28, 1865)44
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:
  • Note: The 8th Connecticut was moved from a Headquarters Guard for the XXIV Corps to 2/3/XXIV/AotJ on January 31, 1865. But see the Official Records organizational charts below, whch indicate a later date for their reassgnment.45

Ninth Offensive Order of Battle:

HQ Guard | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (March 1-?, 1865)

Second Brigade | Third Division | XXIV Corps | Army of the James | Union Army (March ?-April 2, 1865)46,47

  • Commander: Major William M. Pratt (March 31, 1865)48,49
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:
  • Note: At some point in February or March 1865 the 8th Connecticut was moved from the HQ Guard of the XXIV Corps, Army of the James to 2/3/XXIV/AotJ.  More research is needed.50

Dyer’s/Sifakis’ Compendium Info:
Siege of Petersburg Battles51:

  • Assaults on Petersburg June 15-18.
  • Siege operations against Petersburg and Richmond June 16, 1864, to April 2, 1865.
  • Mine explosion Petersburg, July 30, 1864 (Reserve).
  • On Bermuda Hundred front August 25-September 27.
  • Fort Harrison, New Market Heights, September 28-29.
  • Chaffin’s Farm, September 29-30.
  • Duty in trenches before Richmond until April, 1865.
  • Battle of Fair Oaks October 27-28, 1864.
  • Occupation of Richmond April 3 and duty there and at Lynchburg, Va., until December.

Other Sites:

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. Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of the State of Connecticut, for the Year Ending March 31, 1866 (Hartford, CT: A. N. Clark & Co., State Printers, 1866), p. 227 ↩
  3. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
  4. Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of the State of Connecticut, for the Year Ending March 31, 1866 (Hartford, CT: A. N. Clark & Co., State Printers, 1866), p. 227 ↩
  5. William M. Pratt image. MOLLUS-Mass Civil War Photograph Collection, Volume 126, Page 6458.  United States Army Heritage and Education Center, Carlisle, PA. ↩
  6. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 1 (Serial Number 80), p. 235 ↩
  7. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 2 (Serial Number 81), p. 554 ↩
  8. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, pp. 164 ↩
  9. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, pp. 164, 168 ↩
  10. Volume 13 (Ordnance Returns for the Second Quarter, April-June, 1864); 8th Connecticut Entry, Page 10; 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 7); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C. ↩
  11. Volume 13 (Ordnance Returns for the Second Quarter, April-June, 1864); 8th Connecticut Entry, Page 10; 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 7); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C. ↩
  12. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 1 (Serial Number 80), p. 235 ↩
  13. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 2 (Serial Number 81), p. 554 ↩
  14. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XL, Part 2 (Serial Number 81), p. 554 ↩
  15. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 169 ↩
  16. Volume 13 (Ordnance Returns for the Second Quarter, April-June, 1864); 8th Connecticut Entry, Page 10; 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 7); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C. ↩
  17. Volume 13 (Ordnance Returns for the Second Quarter, April-June, 1864); 8th Connecticut Entry, Page 10; 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 7); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C. ↩
  18. 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 265 ↩
  19. 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 739 ↩
  20. 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 739 ↩
  21. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 170 ↩
  22. 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 621: “Organization of the Army of the Potomac…August 31, 1864” ↩
  23. 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 621: “Organization of the Army of the Potomac…August 31, 1864” ↩
  24. 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. ↩
  25. 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 135: “Return of Casualties in the Union Forces (September-October 1864)” ↩
  26. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 180 ↩
  27. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 180 ↩
  28. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 180 ↩
  29. Volume 15 (Ordnance Returns for the Third Quarter, July-September, 1864); 8th Connecticut Entry, Page 10; 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 7); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C. ↩
  30. Volume 15 (Ordnance Returns for the Third Quarter, July-September, 1864); 8th Connecticut Entry, Page 10; 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 7); Records of the Office of the Chief of Ordnance, 1797-1969, Record Group 156; National Archives Building, Washington, D.C. ↩
  31. 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)” ↩
  32. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 184 ↩
  33. 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)” ↩
  34. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 184 ↩
  35. 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 150: “Return of Casualties in the Union Forces…Fair Oaks and Darbytown Road, Va., October 27-28, 1864” ↩
  36. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩
  37. 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 1124: “Organization of the Union Forces” (December 31, 1864) ↩
  38. 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 1124: “Organization of the Union Forces” (December 31, 1864) ↩
  39. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 186. The regiment had received about 95 new recruits on November 29 to increase their numbers. Clearly other men had recovered from sickness and wounds to pad their numbers. Their total PFD was probably around the 250 they reported three weeks later, with the “aggregate” strength being the total men Present. ↩
  40. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 184 ↩
  41. 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 334: “Organization of the Union Forces” (January 31, 1865) ↩
  42. 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 749: “Organization of the Union Forces” (February 28, 1865) ↩
  43. 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 334: “Organization of the Union Forces” (January 31, 1865) ↩
  44. 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 749: “Organization of the Union Forces” (February 28, 1865) ↩
  45. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 187 ↩
  46. 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 578: “Organization of the Union Forces” (March 31, 1865) ↩
  47. 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” ↩
  48. 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 578: “Organization of the Union Forces” (March 31, 1865) ↩
  49. Liska, W. A., & Perlotto, K. L. (2023). The Eighth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers, p. 188 ↩
  50. 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 578: “Organization of the Union Forces” (March 31, 1865) ↩
  51. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion by Frederick H. Dyer (Part 3) ↩

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