The 1st Battalion of California Veteran Infantry was a

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

volunteer Volunteering is an elective and freely chosen act of an individual or group giving their time and labor, often for community service. Many volunteers are specifically trained in the areas they work, such as medicine, education, or emergency ...

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 ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of up to one thousand soldiers. A battalion is commanded by a lieutenant colonel and subdivided into several Company (military unit), companies, each typically commanded by a Major (rank), ...

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 spent its entire term of service in the western United States.

History

This battalion was organized at

Franklin Franklin may refer to: People and characters * Franklin (given name), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (surname), including list of people and characters with the name * Franklin (class), a member of a historic ...

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

, under the command of Major

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious and political leader and the founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. Publishing the Book of Mormon at the age of 24, Smith attracted tens of thou ...

, (formerly of

5th Regiment California Volunteer Infantry The 5th Regiment California Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It spent its entire term of service in the western United States, attached to the Department of the Pacific and Department of ...

) between November and December 1864, by consolidating the veterans of the

1st Regiment California Volunteer Infantry First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

, into two companies, which became Companies A and B, and consolidating the companies of the 5th Regiment California Volunteer Infantry into five companies, which became Companies C, D, E, F, and G, of the battalion. On March 16, 1865, a Company F was broken up to distribute the men among the other companies, due to the difficulty in obtaining recruits to keep up all the companies to the minimum required by law. The same order directed Colonel Rigg (formerly of the 1st California Infantry) to assume command with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, with headquarters at

Fort Craig Fort Craig was a U.S. Army fort located along El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, near Elephant Butte Lake State Park and the Rio Grande in Socorro County, New Mexico. The Fort Craig site was approximately 1,050 feet east-west by 600 feet nor ...

. The battalion was mustered out in September 1866. When this battalion was mustered out, the officers and men who wished to be mustered out in California were consolidated into a company, under Captain William F. French, First Lieutenant Robert Edmiston, and Second Lieutenant William Oman and marched to the Presidio, San Francisco, where they arrived December 28, and were "discharged at San Francisco, December 31, 1866, by final muster out of the regiment."

Commander

* Major

, November 1864 – March 16, 1865 * Lieutenant Colonel

Edwin A. Rigg Edwin Augustus Rigg (1822–1882), California Gold Rush#Forty-niners, 49er, was a military officer in the American Civil War and the Apache Wars. Early life Edwin Augustus Rigg was born January 15, 1822, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He moved to ...

, March 16, 1865 – September 20, 1866

Company assignments

* Headquarters: Franklin, Texas November 1864 - February 1866. Mustered out at

Los Pinos, New Mexico Los Pinos, New Mexico is a ghost town in what is now Bosque Farms, New Mexico in Valencia County, New Mexico Valencia County () is a county in the U.S. state of New Mexico. As of the 2020 census, the population was 76,205. The county seat is ...

, September 20, 1866. * Company A: Mustered out at

Fort Union, New Mexico Fort Union National Monument is a unit of the United States National Park Service located 7.7 miles north of Watrous in Mora County, New Mexico. The site preserves the remains of three forts that were built starting in the 1850s. Also visible ...

, September 9, 1866. * Company B: Garrison at

Fort Cummings Fort Cummings is a former U. S. Army post located near Cooke's Springs, in Luna County, New Mexico. It is located 20 miles northeast of Deming, New Mexico. Cooke's Spring Cooke's Spring () was named for Philip St. George Cooke 2nd U.S. Dragoon ...

, April 1865 - August 1866, Mustered out at Los Pinos, N. M., September 15, 1866. * Company C: Mustered out at Santa Fe, N. M., September 17, 1866. * Company D: Mustered out at Los Pinos, N. M., September 15, 1866. * Company E: Mustered out at Los Pinos, N. M., September 15, 1866. * Company F: Formed at

Las Cruces, New Mexico Las Cruces (; ; lit. 'the crosses') is the List of municipalities in New Mexico, second-most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico and the county seat, seat of Doña Ana County, New Mexico, Doña Ana County. As of the 2020 United States ce ...

, November 30, 1864. Disbanded at

, March 16, 1865. Soldiers distributed to other companies. * Company G: Mustered out at Los Pinos, N. M., September 15, 1866. ** January 1866. While six men of the company were performing daily duty—cutting wood for this garrison at Oak Grove, about five miles distant, on the seventeenth instant—they were surprised and fired upon by Apache Indians. The number of Indians was estimated at about forty or more. Four men were killed, and two escaped — Privates John H. Matthews and Nathaniel B. Goldsberry, the latter with an arrow wound in his hip. Private Matthews displayed exemplary courage in defending himself, as well as virtually saving the life of Goldsberry, who was scarcely able to render any defense. One Indian was killed and indications showed others wounded.Records of California men in the war of the rebellion 1861 to 1867, p. 381

References

{{reflist
Records of California men in the war of the rebellion 1861 to 1867, By California. Adjutant General's Office, SACRAMENTO: State Office, J. D. Young, Supt. State Printing. 1890. pp.381-719
Units and formations of the Union army from California New Mexico in the American Civil War Military units and formations of the United States in the Indian Wars Military units and formations established in 1864 1864 establishments in Texas Military units and formations disestablished in 1866 1866 disestablishments in New Mexico Territory

History

Commander

Company assignments

See also

References