First at Belmont: The 7th Iowa Infantry

Iowa provided many fighting regiments to the war effort, and among those featured by William F. Fox in Regimental Losses in The American Civil War, 1861-1865 was the 7^th Iowa Infantry. Their first combat occurred at the battle of Belmont (Missouri) where they suffered an exceptionally large number of casualties. After service in Missouri they went on to serve in the western theater at such places as Fort Donelson, Shiloh, Corinth, and many other battles. For further information about the Fighting Seventh see:

Iowa GenWeb: 7^th Iowa Infantry Historical Sketch and Roster

University of Iowa Libraries: several manuscript sources relating to the 7^th Iowa are listed on this website

“Rice's Brigade — Sweeny's Division--Sixteenth Corps.

（1) Col. Jacob G. Lauman. R. A.; Bvt. Major-Gen.	（2) Col. Elliot W. Rice, R. A.; Bvt. Major-Gen.
（3) Col. James C. Parrott; Bvt. Brig.-Gen.

companies.		killed and died of wounds.			died of disease, accidents, in Prison, &c.			Total Enrollment.
		Officers.	Men.	Total.	Officers.	Men.	Total.
Field and Staff		1	1	2	1		1	16
Company	A		13	13	1	14	15	169
	B	1	13	14		21	21	175
	C	2	16	18	2	21	23	172
	D		11	11		8	8	124
	E		12	12		21	21	141
	F	1	18	19		14	14	139
	G	1	11	12		21	21	108
	H		22	22		12	12	133
	I	1	10	11		19	19	143
	K		7	7		9	9	158
Totals		7	134	141	4	160	164	1,478

Total of killed and wounded, 465; captured and missing, 73; died in Confederate prisons (previously included), 13.

Battles.	K. & M. W.	Battles.	K. & M. W.
Belmont, Mo. (8 Cos.)	74	Kenesaw Mountain, Ga.	1
Fort Donelson, Tenn.	2	Marietta, Ga.	1
Shiloh, Tenn.	12	Atlanta, Ga.	4
Corinth, Miss.	28	Allatoona, Ga.	1
Resaca, Ga.	15	Guerrillas	2
Dallas, Ga.	1

Present, also, at Fort Henry, Tenn.; Iuka, Miss.; Jonesboro, Ga.; Jenkins's Bridge, Ga.; Savannah, Ga.; Lynch Creek, S. C.; Bentonville, N. C.

Notes.—Leaving Iowa August 6, 1861, it proceeded to Cape Girardeau, Mo., where it was assigned to Prentiss's Division. It was engaged on active duty in Missouri for several months, during which it fought at Belmont, sustaining the heaviest loss of any regiment in that battle. The first man killed at Belmont was one of the skirmishers of the Seventh; its loss was 51 killed, 127 wounded, 39 captured, and 10 missing; a total of 227 out of 410 engaged. Lieutenant-Colonel Augustus Wentz and three line officers were killed there, while Colonel Lauman and Major Rice were wounded. At Fort Donelson the regiment was in General C. F. Smith's Division, Colonel Lauman commanding the brigade; loss 2 killed and 37 wounded. At Shiloh,--then in Tuttle's Brigade, W. H. Wallace's Division,--the regiment was on parade for inspection when the army was surprised by the Confederate attack; the Seventh moved promptly to the front, and immediately became engaged; loss, 10 killed, 17 wounded, and 7 missing.

At the battle of Corinth,--October 3d and 4th, 1862--it was in Davies's Division; under command of Colonel Rice it made a stubborn fight, capturing a stand of colors, but losing 21 killed, 87 wounded, and 13 missing; over one-third of those engaged. The year 1863 was spent near Corinth, and in 1864, the regiment having reenlisted, entered upon Sherman's Atlanta campaign, during which it was hotly engaged at Lay's Ferry, Ga. (Resaca), where it lost 11 killed and 51 wounded. It was then in Rice's (1st) Brigade, Sweeny's (2d) Division, Sixteenth Corps. After the fall of Atlanta, it was placed in Rice's (4th) Division, Fifteenth Corps, in which it served during Sherman's Georgia and Carolina campaigns. Mustered out July 12, 1865” (Fox, p. 407).