The 15th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

that served in the Union Army during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. It was popularly known as the Norwegian Regiment or the Scandinavian Regiment, due to its composition of mostly

Norwegian American Norwegian Americans () are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the 20th century. There are more than 4.5 milli ...

Swedish American Swedish Americans () are Americans of Swedish descent. The history of Swedish Americans dates back to the early colonial times, with notable migration waves occurring in the 19th and early 20th centuries and approximately 1.2 million arrivi ...

, and Danish American immigrants.

Service

The 15th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was originally formed by Col. Hans Christian Heg at Camp Randall, near

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. It is the List of municipalities in Wisconsin by population, second-most populous city in the state, with a population of 269,840 at the 2020 Uni ...

. The majority of its members were Norwegian immigrants with the rest being mainly Swedish and Danish immigrants. The regiment was organized at

, and mustered into federal service January 31, 1862. The regiment was mustered out of service by company between December 1, 1864, and February 13, 1865.

Major campaigns

The 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Regiment was a participant in a number of major battles conducted by the Union Army during the Civil War. *The Battle of Island Number Ten *The

Battle of Perryville The Battle of Perryville, also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills, was fought on October 8, 1862, in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky, as the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Offensive (Kentucky Campaign) during the Ame ...

(October 8, 1862) *The

Battle of Stones River The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the American Ci ...

(December 31, 1862 - January 2, 1863) *The Tullahoma Campaign (June 24 - July 3, 1863) * Battle of Chickamauga (September 19 – 20, 1863) * Battle of Resaca (May 13–15, 1864) *The Battle of Peachtree Creek (July 20, 1864) *

Battle of Atlanta The Battle of Atlanta took place during the Atlanta Campaign of the American Civil War on July 22, 1864, just southeast of Atlanta, Georgia. Continuing their summer campaign to seize the important rail and supply hub of Atlanta, Union forces ...

(July 22 - August 25. 1864) *

Battle of Jonesborough The Battle of Jonesborough (August 31–September 1, 1864) was fought between Union Army forces led by William Tecumseh Sherman and Confederate States of America, Confederate forces under William J. Hardee during the Atlanta Campaign in the Am ...

(August 31 – September 1, 1864)

Casualties

The 15th Wisconsin suffered eight officers and 86 enlisted men who were killed in action or who later died of their wounds, plus another one officer and 241 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 336 fatalities. On September 20, 1863 Colonel Hans Christian Heg died of wounds he received in action in the Battle of Chickamauga on September 19, 1863.

Commanders

* Colonel Hans Christian Heg (February 14, 1862September 20, 1863) died of wounds after Chickamauga. Before the war, he had served as the 6th prison commissioner of Wisconsin. * Major Jurgen Wilson (September 20, 1863July 24, 1864) commanded the regiment after many senior officers were killed or captured at Chickamauga. Earlier in the war, he had been captain of Co. H. He was also wounded at Chickamauga. He received an honorary brevet to lieutenant colonel after the war. * Lt. Colonel Ole C. Johnson (July 24, 1864February 10, 1865) was captured at Chickamauga and was prisoner of war until making his escape in May 1864. He commanded the regiment through the end of the war and was designated for promotion to colonel, but was never mustered at that rank. Earlier in the war, he had been captain of Co. B. After the war he became mayor of

Beloit, Wisconsin Beloit ( ) is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 36,657 people. Beloit is a principal city of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Janesville–Beloit metropolitan statistical area (Rock Co ...

, and immigration commissioner of Wisconsin.

Notable people

* Hans Borchsenius was adjutant of the regiment for one year. He resigned due to illness. He later served as a Wisconsin state legislator, and served several appointed roles in the

Internal Revenue Service The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the revenue service for the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, which is responsible for collecting Taxation in the United States, U.S. federal taxes and administerin ...

. * Claus Lauritz Clausen was chaplain of the regiment for one year. Before the war he had served in the Iowa state legislature. After the war he was a prominent religious leader in the Scandinavian American Lutheran community. * David McKee was lieutenant colonel of the regiment and died at the Battle of Stones River. Earlier in the war, he had been captain of Co. C in the

2nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 2nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It spent most of the war as a member of the famous Iron Brigade of the Army of the Potomac. It suffered the largest numbe ...

. * John T. Rice was first lieutenant and later captain of Co. C, serving nearly the entire war. After the war he served as a Wisconsin state legislator. * Otto A. Risum was enlisted in Co. G and rose to the rank of sergeant. He was later promoted to sergeant major and then adjutant, serving through the entire war. After the war he served as a Wisconsin state legislator. * Svend Samuelson was 2nd lieutenant of Co. F and resigned due to illness in November 1863. He later served as a Wisconsin state legislator.

References

{{Reflist

Other sources

*Buslett, Ole Amundsen ''Det Femtende Regiment Wisconsin Frivillige'' (Decorah, Iowa, 1894) Norwegian *Estabrook, Charles E, ed. ''Records and sketches of military organizations: population, legislation, election and other statistics relating to Wisconsin in the period of the Civil War'' (Madison, Wisconsin: State of Wisconsin. 1914) * Current, Richard Nelson ''The History of Wisconsin, The Civil War Era, 1848-1873'' (Madison, Wisconsin: State Historical Society of Wisconsin. 1976)

External links

Camp of the 15th Regiment of the Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry

Military units and formations established in 1862 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865 Units and formations of the Union army from Wisconsin Norwegian-American culture in Wisconsin 1862 establishments in Wisconsin