25th Virginia Infantry Regiment
25th Virginia Infantry Regiment | |
---|---|
Active | May 1861 – April 1865 |
Disbanded | April 1865 |
Country | Confederate States of America |
Allegiance | Virginia |
Branch | Confederate States Army |
Type | Infantry |
Nickname(s) | Heck’s Regiment |
Engagements | American Civil War
|
Commanders | |
Notable commanders | Colonel George Hugh Smith Lt. Colonel Robert D. Lilley |
The 25th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of the Northwest and Army of Northern Virginia. Its soldiers saw action from the battle of Philippi until the Appomattox.
Service
The 25th Virginia was organized during the early summer of 1861. Its members were raised in Upshur, Augusta, Highland, Bath, Pendleton, and Rockbridge counties. The unit participated in Lee's
Members of 1st Co. A (Upshur Grays) and 1st Co. B (Rockbridge Guards) were dispatched to Hart's Farm under command of Capt. Julius A. DeLagnel to ward off an expected Federal assault. Men of the 20th VA and 25th VA, along with a lone cannon took position in the stable yard of the Hart farm and awaited the Federal assault. As the Federals appeared on the hillside, the long-awaited battle began. The small (310 men) force of Confederates held back the initial attacks, but overwhelming numbers, along with a final charge of the 19th Ohio forced the surviving members of the Confederate outpost to flee. The following morning, being cut off and surrounded, Col. Pegram surrendered the balance of his command at Camp Garnett, including the majority of the 25th VA. The 25th lost 5 killed, 11 wounded, and 2 captured at Hart's farm. Included in the dead were Upshur Gray privates Henry Clay Jackson and Oscar Sherwood, whose names can be seen engraved in the rock that they defended to this day.
After Jackson's campaign finished, the regiment was assigned to General Early's, J.R. Jones', and W. Terry's Brigade,
Casualties
This regiment reported 18 casualties at
Officers
The field officers were: Brigadier General John C. Higginbotham (Posthumous), Colonels George A. Porterfield, and George H. Smith; Lieutenant Colonels Patrick B. Duffy, Jonathan McGee Heck, Robert D. Lilley, and John A. Robinson; and Majors Wilson Harper, Albert G. Reger, and William T. Thompson.
Companies
- Company A, Upshur Grays, Col. John C. Higginbotham
- Company B, Rockbridge Guards, Capt. David P. Curry
- Company C, Augusta Lee Rifles, Capt. Robert D. Lilley
- Company D, Highland Rangers, Capt. George M. Kiracofe
- Company E, Pendleton Rifles, Capt. George H. Smith
- Company F, Franklin Guards, Capt. John B. Moomau
- Company G, Bath Grays/Bath Rifles, Capt. William D. Ervin
- Company H, Hardy Blues, Capt. J.C.B. Mullin
- Company I, Mt. Crawford Cavalry, formerly Valley Rifles, Capt. William N. Jordan
- Company K, South Branch Riflemen, Capt. John H. Everly[2]
When the regiment was reorganized in 1862 to bring it back to full strength the following companies were added from the 9th Battalion Virginia Infantry
- Company A, Letcher Guards, Capt. John A. Robinson
- Company C, Braxton Blues, Capt. Patrick B. Duffy
- Company E, Fighting Company E (composed from several parts of depleted companies)
- Company F, Highland County, Capt. George Madison Karicofe
- Company G, Mollohan's Company, Capt. William H. Mollohan
- Company I, Pocahontas Rescuers, Capt. Daniel A. Stofer
- Company K, Pendleton Minute Men, Capt. D.C. Anderson (company transferred from the 31st Virginia Infantry to the 25th)[3]
John B. Salling
The man who was recognized as Virginia's last surviving Confederate veteran,
See also
References
- ^ Richard Armstrong, 25th VA Inf. (Virginia Regimental Histories, Lynchburg) pg. 88
- ^ Haselberger, Fritz, Yanks from the South, Past Glories, Baltimore, MD, 1987, pg. 87, list of companies.
- ^ Armstrong, Richard L., 25th Virginia Infantry and 9th Battalion Virginia Infantry, H.E. Howard, Inc., Lynchburg, 1990
- ^ "General" John Salling: Virginia’s Last Confederate Veteran?, Library of Virginia, October 6, 2010
- This article incorporates public domain material from Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System. National Park Service.
Further reading
- Armstrong, Richard L. 25th Virginia Infantry and 9th Battalion Virginia Infantry. (Virginia regimental histories series.) H. E. Howard, 1990.