The 25th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an

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 ...

raised in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

for service in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

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 fought mostly with the Army of the Northwest and

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...

. Its soldiers saw action from the battle of

Philippi Philippi (; , ''Phílippoi'') was a major Greek city northwest of the nearby island, Thasos. Its original name was Crenides (, ''Krēnĩdes'' "Fountains") after its establishment by Thasian colonists in 360/359 BC. The city was renamed by Phili ...

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

Cheat Mountain Cheat Mountain is an exceptionally high and rugged ridge situated in the Allegheny Mountains of eastern West Virginia, USA. It is about long (north to south) and more than five miles (8 km) wide at its widest. Its highest point is at its so ...

Campaign and Jackson's Valley Campaign. In the spring of 1862 the 9th Battalion, Virginia Infantry, four companies from Taylor County under the command of Lt. Colonel George W. Hansbrough that had fought in the Army of the Northwest and fought at

Greenbrier River The Greenbrier River is a tributary of the New River (Kanawha River), New River, long,McNeel, William P. "Greenbrier River." ''The West Virginia Encyclopedia''. Ken Sullivan, editor. Charleston, WV: West Virginia Humanities Council. 2006. . in ...

and Camp Allegheny were merged into the 25th Virginia. After the July 11, 1861,

Battle of Rich Mountain The Battle of Rich Mountain took place on July 11, 1861, in Randolph County, Virginia (now West Virginia) as part of the Operations in Western Virginia Campaign during the American Civil War. Background Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan assumed c ...

, the regiment was severely depleted due to Col. Pegram's surrender of Camp Garnett, as discussed below. 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,

. The order to merge the 9th Battalion was rescinded in November 1862, and its men were divided among other commands. The 25th Virginia participated in the Jones-Imboden Raid during the spring of 1863, as Confederates sought to discourage West Virginia statehood, but failed. While depleted, the 25th Virginia took an active part in the campaigns of the army from the Seven Days' Battles to Cold Harbor, then fought with Early in the Shenandoah Valley and in various conflicts around Appomattox.

Casualties

This regiment reported 18 casualties at Camp Alleghany, 72 at McDowell, and 29 at

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and Port Republic. It lost 1 killed and 24 wounded at Cedar Mountain, had 3 killed and 20 wounded at Sharpsburg, and reported 1 killed and 13 wounded at Fredericksburg. Of the 280 engaged at Gettysburg, twenty-five percent were disabled. There were 15 members (1 officer, 14 enlisted) of the 25th at Appomattox on April 9, 1865.

Officers

The field officers were: Brigadier General John C. Higginbotham (Posthumous), Colonels George A. Porterfield, and

George H. Smith George Hamilton Smith (February 10, 1949 – April 8, 2022) was an American author, editor, educator, and speaker known for his writings on atheism and libertarianism in the United States. Early life and activism Born in Japan in 1949 to Fr ...

; 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 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)

John B. Salling

The man who was recognized as Virginia's last surviving Confederate veteran, John B. Salling, claimed to work as a peter monkey and saltpeter miner after enlisting as a private in Company D, 25th Virginia Infantry, in

Scott County, Virginia Scott County is a county located in the far southwestern part of the U.S. state of Virginia, on the border with Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 21,576. Its county seat is Gate City. Scott County was formed by an act of ...

, during the Civil War."General" John Salling: Virginia’s Last Confederate Veteran?
''Library of Virginia'', October 6, 2010

References

*{{USGovernment, url=http://www.civilwar.nps.gov/cwss/regiments.cfm, title=Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, agency=National Park Service