The 23rd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a

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 ...

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 ...

Service

The 23rd Wisconsin was organized at

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 ...

, and mustered into Federal service on August 30, 1862. Duty at Newport, Ky., till October 8, 1862. Moved to Paris, Ky., October 8-15, thence to Lexington and Nicholasville, Ky., October 22-31. Moved to Louisville; thence to Memphis, Tenn., November 8-27. Sherman's Yazoo Expedition December 20, 1862, to January 3, 1863. Expedition from Milliken's Bend to Louisiana & Shreveport Railroads, December 25-26. Chickasaw Bayou, December 26-28. Chickasaw Bayou, December 29. Expedition to Arkansas Post, Ark., January 3-10, 1863. Assault on and capture of Fort Hindman, Arkansas Post , January 10-11. Moved to Young's Point, La., January 15, and duty there till March 8. Expedition to Cypress Bend, Ark., February 14-29. Moved to Milliken's Bend, La., March 8, and duty there till April 25. Movement on Bruinsburg and turning Grand Gulf April 25-30. Battle of Port Gibson , May 1 (Reserve). Battle of Champion's Hill, May 16. Big Black River , May 17. Siege of Vicksburg , Miss., May 18-July 4. Assaults on Vicksburg May 19 and 22. Advance on Jackson, Miss., July 4-10. Siege of Jackson July 10-17. Camp at Vicksburg till August. Ordered to New Orleans, La., August 24. Expedition to New and Amite Rivers September 24-29. Western Louisiana Campaign October 3-November 30. Carrion Crow Bayou November 3. At New Iberia till December 7. Moved to Berwick, December 7-10. Moved to Brashear City, thence to Algiers and to Matagorda Pennisula, Texas, December 13, 1863-January 1, 1864. Reconnoissance on Matagorda Peninsula January 21, 1864. Duty at DeCrow's Point till February 22. Moved to Algiers, La., February 22-26. Red River Campaign March 10-May 22. Advance from Franklin to Alexandria March 14-26. Bayou de Paul, Carroll's Mill, and battle of Sabine Cross Roads, April 8. Monett's Ferry, Cane River Crossing, April 23. At Alexandria April 26-May 13. Construction of dam at Alexandria April 30-May 10. Retreat to Morganza May 13-20. Mansura , May 16. Moved to Baton Rouge May 24, and duty there till July 8. Moved to Algiers, La., July 8, thence to Morganza July 26. Expedition to Mobile Bay August 18-September 2. Operations near Morganza September 16-25. Expedition to Bayou Sara October 3-6. Bayou Sara and Thompson's Creek, near Jackson, October 5. Moved to Helena, Ark., October 10, and duty there till February 23, 1865. Ordered to New Orleans, La., February 23. Campaign against Mobile, Ala., and its defences March 17-April 12. Siege of Spanish Fort and Fort Blakely March 26-April 8. Assault on and capture of Fort Blakely , April 9. Occupation of Mobile April 12. Duty at and near Mobile till July. The regiment was mustered out on July 4, 1865, at

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Casualties

The 23rd Wisconsin suffered 1 officer and 40 enlisted men killed in action or who later died of their wounds, plus another 5 officers and 262 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 308 fatalities.

Commanders

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Joshua James Guppey Joshua James Guppey (August 27, 1820December 8, 1893) was an American lawyer, politician, and Wisconsin pioneer. He served as a Union Army officer in the American Civil War, and received an honorary Brevet (military), brevet to the rank of Briga ...

(August 30, 1862July 4, 1865) was nominal commander through the entire life of the regiment, but was absent for the second half of 1863 and first half of 1864 due to illness and injury. By the time he was well enough to return, in July 1864, he was made an acting brigade commander. After the war he received an honorary brevet to brigadier general. ** Lt. Colonel William Freeman Vilas (June 5, 1863August 25, 1863) mustered in as captain of Co. A, and was promoted to major then lieutenant colonel. He had command of the regiment in the summer of 1863 when Colonel Guppey was incapacitated by illness. He resigned his commission in August 1863. After the war he became a

United States senator The United States Senate consists of 100 members, two from each of the 50 U.S. state, states. This list includes all senators serving in the 119th United States Congress. Party affiliation Independent Senators Angus King of Maine and Berni ...

. ** Lt. Colonel Edgar P. Hill (August 25, 1863January 1864, June 1864January 1865) was originally captain of Co. C. He was acting commander of the regiment after the resignation of Lt. Colonel Vilas. ** Major Joseph E. Green (January 1864June 1864, January 1865June 1865) was originally captain of Co. D. He was acting commander of the regiment while Lt. Colonel Hill was on leave in Wisconsin.

Notable people

* John F. Appleby was a corporal in Co. E throughout the war. During the war, Appleby invented and patented a manual magazine feed

breech loading Breech may refer to: * Breech (firearms), the opening at the rear of a gun barrel where the cartridge is inserted in a breech-loading weapon * breech, the lower part of a pulley block * breech, the penetration of a boiler where exhaust gases leave ...

needle gun. After the war, he invented and patented several agricultural devices. * Joseph Bartholomew was an enlisted man in Co. H. He rose to the rank of sergeant with this company, and was then commissioned a 2nd lieutenant in the 49th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment. After the war he became chief justice of the

North Dakota Supreme Court The North Dakota Supreme Court is the highest court of law in the state of North Dakota. The Court rules on questions of law in appeals from the state's district courts. Each of the five justices is elected on a no-party ballot for a ten-year ...

. * Rockwell J. Flint was a sergeant in Co. C, but transferred to the

Signal Corps A signal corps is a military branch, responsible for military communications (''signals''). Many countries maintain a signal corps, which is typically subordinate to a country's army. Military communication usually consists of radio, telephone, ...

in 1863. After the war became a Wisconsin legislator and U.S. marshal. * Birney Maries Jarvis was enlisted in Co. A and served throughout the war. After the war he became a Wisconsin legislator. *

Edmund Jüssen Edmund Jüssen (1830 – February 17, 1891) was a German-American politician and diplomat who held office in the states of Wisconsin and Illinois. He spent the final years of his career as the United States Consul General in Vienna. Biograp ...

was lieutenant colonel until his resignation in March 1863. After the war served as an American diplomat. * William Seamonson was enlisted in Co. D and rose to the rank of sergeant, serving through the entire war. After the war he became a Wisconsin legislator. * John Starks, son of Argalus Starks, was 1st lieutenant of Co. I. He was wounded in the trenches at the

Siege of Vicksburg The siege of Vicksburg (May 18 – July 4, 1863) was the final major military action in the Vicksburg campaign of the American Civil War. In a series of maneuvers, Union Major General Ulysses S. Grant and his Army of the Tennessee crossed th ...

and later died of his wound. He previously served as an enlisted man in the 6th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment. * Henry Vilas, brother of William Freeman Vilas, was 2nd lieutenant of Co. E and later captain of Co. A.

Equipment

Springfield Model 1861 The Springfield Model 1861 was a Minié-type rifled musket used by the United States Army during the American Civil War. Commonly referred to as the "Springfield" (after its original place of production, Springfield, Massachusetts). It was the ...

Springfield Model 1855 The Springfield Model 1855 was a rifled musket widely used in the American Civil War. It exploited the advantages of the new conical Minié ball, which could be deadly at over . It was a standard infantry weapon for Union and Confederates al ...

Pattern 1853 Enfield The Enfield Pattern 1853 rifle-musket (also known as the Pattern 1853 Enfield, P53 Enfield, and Enfield rifle-musket) was a .577 calibre Minié-type muzzle-loading rifled musket, used by the British Empire from 1853 to 1867; after which many wer ...

References

{{Reflist

External links

The Civil War Archive
Military units and formations established in 1862 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865 Units and formations of the Union army from Wisconsin 1862 establishments in Wisconsin