William F. Fox featured the 31st Illinois Infantry as one of his “Three Hundred Fighting Regiments” and for good reason. These Illinois soldiers served in an unusual number of combat actions starting at Belmont, Missouri, and then in combat in Mississippi, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Their first colonel was the colorful “Black Jack” Logan who went on to become a successful Major-General.
For more information about the storied 31st see the following:
Illinois in the Civil War Project: a roster and short histories of the 31st Illinois are included
Morris, W. S., J. B. Kuykendall, L. D. Hartwell. History 31st Regiment: Illinois Volunteers Organized by John A. Logan. Southern Illinois University Press, 1998.
“John E. Smith’s Brigade — Logan's Division--Seventeenth Corps.
| （1) Col. John A. Logan; Major-Gen. | （3) Col. Edwin S. McCook; Bvt. Major-Gen. |
| （2) Col. Lyndorf Ozburn; Bvt. Brig-Gen. | （4) Col. Robert N. Pearson; 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 | 2 | | 2 | 1 | | 1 | 16 | |
| Company | A | 1 | 22 | 23 | | 32 | 32 | 183 |
| | B | 1 | 14 | 15 | | 30 | 30 | 179 |
| | C | | 16 | 16 | | 33 | 33 | 173 |
| | D | 3 | 18 | 21 | | 38 | 38 | 185 |
| | E | | 16 | 16 | | 24 | 24 | 178 |
| | F | | 16 | 16 | 1 | 24 | 25 | 174 |
| | G | | 17 | 17 | 1 | 39 | 40 | 182 |
| | H | 1 | 15 | 16 | | 27 | 27 | 195 |
| | I | | 17 | 17 | | 26 | 26 | 178 |
| | K | 1 | 15 | 16 | | 20 | 20 | 166 |
| Totals | 9 | 166 | 175 | 3 | 293 | 296 | 1,809 | |
Total of killed and wounded, 630; died of disease in Confederate prisons (previously included), 19.
| Battles. | K. & M. W. | Battles. | K. & M. W. |
| Belmont, Mo. | 18 | Trenton, Tenn. | 1 |
| Fort Donelson, Tenn. | 58 | Canton, Miss. | 1 |
| Burnt Bridge, Tenn. | 1 | Kenesaw Mountain, Ga. | 5 |
| Grand Junction, Tenn. | 1 | Battle of Atlanta, Ga. | 49 |
| Thompson’s Hill, Miss. | 1 | Siege of Atlanta Ga. | 3 |
| Raymond, Miss. | 2 | Lovejoy's Station, Ga. | 3 |
| Champion's Hill, Miss. | 8 | March to the Sea | 1 |
| Vicksburg Assault, May 22, 1863 | 5 | Wateree River, S. C. | 1 |
| Siege of Vicksburg, Miss. | 13 | Bentonville, N. C. | 1 |
| Jackson, Tenn. | 1 | Place unknown | 2 |
Present, also, at Fort Henry, Tenn.; Siege of Corinth; Tuscumbia River; Jackson, Miss.; Meridian Raid; Big Shanty, Ga.; Jonesboro, Ga.; Siege of Savannah; Salkahatchie, S. C.; Columbia, S. C.
Notes.--Organized at Cairo, September 18, 1861. In November it fought at Belmont, where it lost 10 killed, 70 wounded, and 4 missing. In February, 1862, it moved up the Tennessee River, and was present at the bombardment of Fort Henry; thence it marched over the hills to Fort Donelson, where it went into position in front of the enemy's works, amid winter's snow and storm. It was engaged in the assault, during which the regiment evinced a remarkable steadiness under fire, changing front to rear on tenth company in the face of severe musketry, over uneven ground and in tangled brush. Colonel Logan, who still commanded the Thirty-first, was seriously wounded in this action, and Lieutenant-Colonel John H. White was killed; the total loss was 31 killed, 117 wounded, and 28 missing. During the Vicksburg campaign, the Thirty-first served in J. E. Smith’s Brigade, Logan’s Division, Seventeenth Corps; it lost at Raymond 1 killed and 6 wounded; at Champion’s Hill, 5 killed and 18 wounded; and on May 22d, in the grand assault on Vicksburg 3 killed and 21 wounded, including Lieutenant-Colonel John D. Rees, who was mortally wounded by a hand-grenade while mounting the parapet. It also sustained severe losses in the trenches during the siege, several being killed in the fight over the crater at the Mine Explosion at Fort Hill May 25th. The regiment encountered its hardest fighting and greatest percentage of loss on July 22; 1864, at the battle of Atlanta; it was then in Leggett’s (3d) Division, Seventeenth Corps” (Fox, 361).
It is fascinating how much luck plays a part in the fate of an individual regiment during a battle. The 31st Illinois enjoyed an incredible streak of luck during the Battle of Raymond.
ReplyDeleteThe regiment had been tasked with refusing the extreme right flank of the division. However, when the division was ordered forward through the thick woods, the movement of the regiment in column meant they moved faster than the rest of the division moving in line of battle. So when the 3rd TN charged the Federal line, the 31st IL merely had to left face and enfilade the entire line. For the 31st IL, the fight was basically a turkey shoot. The 3rd TN suffered 188 casualties, most of which can be attributed to the 31st IL.
After the 3rd TN had dissolved, and the units to the left concerned themselves with the obstinate 7th TX, the 31st IL took up position in the creek and waited for orders. After waiting for a while, the 10th TN suddenly emerged from the woods to the right, formed line in the edge of the woods, and made an oblique charge directly across the front of the 31st IL. The 31st enjoyed yet another turkey shoot as they "opened fire as if by file."
The sudden appearance of the 10th TN managed to scare back to the creek the Federal units pursuing the Confederate center, but their charge across the face of the 31st IL exacted a heavy toll ... upwards of 88 casualties including the unit commander.
So the firepower of the 31st IL resulted in something like 250 Confederate casualties, and at what price? 1 man killed, 6 wounded.