The 19th Ohio Volunteer Infantry

By Bob Lehman

The 19th Ohio was made up of men from Mahoning, Trumbull, Columbiana, Ashtabula, Stark-Geauga and Summit counties. They came from all walks of life: farmers, clerks, laborers, factory workers. Their ages ranged from seventeen to forty-three, common men who enlisted first for three months in 1861, then three years and finally as a veteran regiment for the duration of the war. Their service record was better than some regiments, worse than others. The men were like those of hundreds of other regiments from both North and South who risked life and liberty for a cause in which they believed.

After the Battle of Stones River, in which the 19th Ohio suffered nearly fifty percent casualties, General W. S. Rosecrans stated, "But above all, the sturdy rank and file showed invincible fighting courage and stamina worthy of a great and free nation." A word that occurs again and again in contemporary writing by soldiers of both sides is "valor." No finer tribute was paid the common soldier of both armies than the words spoken by Confederate General William B. Taliaferro after Second Bull Run. "It was a stand-up combat, dogged and unflinching, in a field almost bare. There was cover of woods not very far in the rear of the lines on both sides, and brave men might have been justified in seeking shelter from the iron hail that smote them, but out in the sunlight, in the dying daylight and under the stars they stood, and although they could not advance, they could not retire. There was some discipline in this, but there was much more of true valorÉit was a question of endurance, and both endured."

Few of us can comprehend what made these men perform such deeds under less than ideal conditions. It is to their memory that we strive to keep the image of their deeds alive through our actions as reenactors and interpreters of a living and dynamic period of our history.

Brief History

The 19th Ohio was among the regiments answering President Lincoln's call in 1861 for 75,000 volunteers. It was composed of recruits from the following counties:

The 19th Ohio was mustered into service on April 23, 1861, for a period of three months and took part in the campaign for western Virginia. The men were mustered out on July 23, 1861, their terms of enlistment being up. On September 26, 1861, ten companies were mustered into Federal service at Alliance, Ohio; the regiment went to Camp Dennison and from there to Kentucky where it became part of the Army of the Ohio, Fifth Division. On October 24, 1862, the regiment joined the newly-formed Army of the Cumberland, 14th Corps.

On January 9, 1863, the Left Wing was made the 21st Corps of the Army of the Cumberland. The only battle in which the 21st Corps participated was Chickamauga. On October 9, 1863, the 21st Corps was merged with the original 20th Corps and formed the new 4th Corps of the Army of the Cumberland. In January of 1864, over 400 men reenlisted for three years and went on veterans' leave, arriving back in time for the Atlanta Campaign. After the battle of Nashville, the regiment spent the remainder of the war stationed between Huntsville, Alabama and East Tennessee. The regiment was transferred in June 1865 to Texas, where 478 men were mustered out of service at San Antonio on October 21, 1865, and from there arriving at Columbus, Ohio on November 22, being discharged at Camp Chase on November 25. The regiment gave four years and three months service to its country. Its losses were as follows:

Combat Deaths Total

Officers 7, Enlisted 104 111

Disease, Accidents, Prison

Officers 6, Enlisted 162 168

Total Deaths 279

No clear records exist on the number of men wounded during the war.

List of engagements

July 7, 1861 Rich Mountain, W. Virginia

April 6-7, 1862 Shiloh, Tennessee

May 30, 1862 Corinth, Miss. (occupation)

Oct. 8, 1862 Perryville, Kentucky (not engaged)

Dec. 31, 1862 Stones River, Tennessee

Sept. 19-20, 1863 Chickamauga, Georgia

Nov. 22, 1863 Chattanooga, Tennessee

Nov. 23, 1863 Orchard Knob, Tennessee

Nov. 25, 1863 Missionary Ridge, Tennessee

May 19-22, 1864 Cassville, Georgia

May 25, 1864 New Hope Church, Georgia

May 27, 1864 * Pickett's Mill, Georgia

June 9-30, 1864 Kenesaw Mountain, Georgia

June 27, 1864 Kenesaw Mountain, Georgia (general assault)

July 9, 1864 Chattahoochee River, Georgia

July 22, 1864 Atlanta, Georgia

Sept. 2-6, 1864 Lovejoy Station, Georgia

Nov. 30, 1864 Franklin, Tennessee

Dec. 1-14, 1864 Nashville, Tennessee (skirmishing in front of city)

Dec. 15-16, 1864 Nashville, Tennessee (battle)

* See Pickett's Mill scenario

This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com