Camp Union near

Sacramento, California Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat, seat of Sacramento County, California, Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento Rive ...

was a military training center for 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 ...

. First constructed near Sacramento, across the river from Sutterville the camp operated from 1861 until it was evacuated due to the flood waters from the

Great Flood of 1862 The Great Flood of 1862 was the largest flood in the recorded history of California, Oregon, and Nevada, inundating the western United States and portions of British Columbia and Mexico. It was preceded by weeks of continuous rains and snows tha ...

. The second camp site was located on the east side of the river in Sutterville. These camps primarily served as a training camps for California volunteer regiments. Toward the end of the conflict, the camp became a discharge center for returning troops until the post was closed and abandoned in 1866. The troops of the

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 ...

, organized and training in the camp at the time, aided the flooded capital of California during the Great Flood. The site is

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in the U.S. state of California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meetin ...

No. 666.

References

Historic California Posts: Camp Union, California State Military Department, The California State Military Museum, militarymuseum.org accessed Oct. 19, 2013
California in the American Civil War History of Sacramento, California American Civil War army posts 1861 establishments in California 1861 in California California Historical Landmarks {{AmericanCivilWar-stub