1861–1865
Historically, British colonies utilized militia forces to defend themselves from attacks by Native Americans and other powers. Once Americans secured their independence in the American Revolution, the new states continued to rely primarily on the militia for military defense.
Historically, British colonies utilized militia forces to defend themselves from attacks by Native Americans and other powers. Once Americans secured their independence in the American Revolution, the new states continued to rely primarily on the militia for military defense. The requirements to serve in the militia varied from colony to colony and then from state to state, but generally every able-bodied adult white man was required to participate in the militia unless he paid a fine to be excused.
By the early 1800s, the militia began to decline in use. While most states continued to have militia forces, requirements to serve lessened, and most militia organizations became social rather than formal military organizations. This decline began along the East Coast and slowly moved westward. The decline tended to accompany the removal or extermination of Native Americans, who white Americans viewed as a serious military threat. As whites exterminated or forcibly removed the natives elsewhere, state governments relaxed militia requirements and reduced funding. In the case of Ohio, following the War of 1812, the militia began to decline in importance, as whites drove most Native Americans further west. The War of 1812's outcome also helped convince white Americans that they were invincible, prompting a belief that the militia forces were not necessary.
During previous conflicts, such as the American Revolution, various Indian wars, and the War of 1812, the federal government had heavily relied upon militia forces to supplement the regular military forces. With the militia's decline, the federal government and states began to develop a new means of securing military forces in time of war. The United States Army would maintain a small force of regular soldiers and a plethora of commanders that could lead quickly recruited state troops in times of conflict. These supplemental troops were known as Volunteer Infantry units. Those from Ohio became known as the Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The members of these state units could appoint their own junior officers, while state governors usually appointed higher ranking officers. In times of military necessity, these state units would serve alongside federal regular units and be led into battle by, at the highest levels, regular military commanders.
This reliance on volunteer units remained the standard from the Mexican-American War (1846-1848) through the Spanish-American War (1898). Beginning in the 1900s, volunteers or draftees began to serve in regular army units with regular soldiers.
In the American Civil War, Ohio provided the federal government with 260 regiments of men, including infantry, artillery, and cavalry units. Ohioans also served in several other regiments from other states, most notably from Kentucky, West Virginia, and Massachusetts, as well as in federal units. Almost 330,000 Ohio men, including 5,092 African Americans, served in the Union military during the conflict.
Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiments During the American Civil War:
Regiment |
Term of Enlistment |
Original Strength |
Mustered Out Strength |
1st Regiment |
three years |
1,001 |
474 |
2nd Regiment |
three years |
913 |
383 |
3rd Regiment |
three years |
919 |
310 |
4th Regiment |
three years |
1,004 |
177 |
5th Regiment |
three years |
941 |
322 |
6th Regiment |
three years |
931 |
525 |
7th Regiment |
three years |
1,006 |
240 |
8th Regiment |
three years |
905 |
72 |
9th Regiment |
three years |
974 |
400 |
10th Regiment |
three years |
958 |
310 |
11th Regiment |
three years |
887 |
312 |
13th Regiment |
three years |
900 |
142 |
14th Regiment |
three years |
996 |
504 |
15th Regiment |
three years |
938 |
502 |
16th Regiment |
three years |
923 |
477 |
17th Regiment |
three years |
852 |
620 |
18th Regiment |
three years |
921 |
831 |
19th Regiment |
three years |
996 |
478 |
20th Regiment |
three years |
916 |
444 |
21st Regiment |
three years |
889 |
378 |
22nd Regiment |
three years |
850 |
133 |
23rd Regiment |
three years |
927 |
732 |
24th Regiment |
three years |
923 |
310 |
25th Regiment |
three years |
949 |
352 |
26th Regiment |
three years |
914 |
249 |
27th Regiment |
three years |
898 |
474 |
28th Regiment |
three years |
1,002 |
194 |
29th Regiment |
three years |
988 |
426 |
30th Regiment |
three years |
796 |
282 |
31st Regiment |
three years |
970 |
719 |
32nd Regiment |
three years |
884 |
766 |
33rd Regiment |
three years |
839 |
368 |
34th Regiment |
three years |
953 |
unknown |
35th Regiment |
three years |
812 |
510 |
36th Regiment |
three years |
850 |
959 |
37th Regiment |
three years |
867 |
416 |
38th Regiment |
three years |
968 |
697 |
39th Regiment |
three years |
977 |
773 |
40th Regiment |
three years |
890 |
unknown |
41st Regiment |
three years |
889 |
293 |
42nd Regiment |
three years |
941 |
unknown |
43rd Regiment |
three years |
925 |
817 |
44th Regiment |
three years |
925 |
unknown |
45th Regiment |
three years |
946 |
436 |
46th Regiment |
three years |
865 |
308 |
47th Regiment |
three years |
830 |
277 |
48th Regiment |
three years |
938 |
267 |
49th Regiment |
three years |
866 |
293 |
50th Regiment |
three years |
924 |
684 |
51st Regiment |
three years |
965 |
669 |
52nd Regiment |
three years |
978 |
437 |
53rd Regiment |
three years |
899 |
416 |
54th Regiment |
three years |
709 |
256 |
55th Regiment |
three years |
966 |
378 |
56th Regiment |
three years |
863 |
203 |
57th Regiment |
three years |
937 |
213 |
58th Regiment |
three years |
873 |
364 |
59th Regiment |
three years |
609 |
178 |
60th Regiment |
one year |
867 |
unknown |
60th Regiment |
three years |
unknown |
563 |
61st Regiment |
three years |
876 |
unknown |
62nd Regiment |
three years |
936 |
unknown |
63rd Regiment |
three years |
904 |
564 |
64th Regiment |
three years |
890 |
238 |
65th Regiment |
three years |
909 |
144 |
66th Regiment |
three years |
921 |
439 |
67th Regiment |
three years |
1,025 |
570 |
68th Regiment |
three years |
990 |
514 |
69th Regiment |
three years |
900 |
536 |
70th Regiment |
three years |
944 |
355 |
71st Regiment |
three years |
879 |
377 |
72d Regiment |
three years |
1,010 |
319 |
73rd Regiment |
three years |
891 |
454 |
74th Regiment |
three years |
970 |
457 |
75th Regiment |
three years |
921 |
unknown |
76th Regiment |
three years |
929 |
433 |
77th Regiment |
three years |
910 |
444 |
78th Regiment |
three years |
908 |
521 |
79th Regiment |
three years |
859 |
531 |
80th Regiment |
three years |
919 |
325 |
81st Regiment |
three years |
950 |
588 |
82nd Regiment |
three years |
931 |
727 |
83rd Regiment |
three years |
1,010 |
unknown |
84th Regiment |
three months |
1,021 |
unknown |
85th Regiment |
three months |
871 |
unknown |
86th Regiment |
three months |
968 |
unknown |
86th Regiment |
six months |
977 |
unknown |
87th Regiment |
six months |
1,024 |
unknown |
88th Regiment |
six months |
620 |
unknown |
88th Regiment |
three months |
1,012 |
1,017 |
89th Regiment |
three months |
993 |
418 |
90th Regiment |
three months |
965 |
457 |
91st Regiment |
three years |
954 |
741 |
92nd Regiment |
three years |
905 |
488 |
93rd Regiment |
three years |
967 |
376 |
94th Regiment |
three years |
1,010 |
418 |
95th Regiment |
three years |
1,017 |
359 |
96th Regiment |
three years |
1,014 |
427 |
97th Regiment |
three years |
964 |
371 |
98th Regiment |
three years |
985 |
401 |
99th Regiment |
three years |
1,020 |
unknown |
100th Regiment |
three years |
1,014 |
526 |
101st Regiment |
three years |
980 |
329 |
102nd Regiment |
three years |
1,061 |
631 |
103rd Regiment |
three years |
975 |
185 |
104th Regiment |
three years |
1,017 |
640 |
105th Regiment |
three years |
1,009 |
427 |
106th Regiment |
three years |
703 |
520 |
107th Regiment |
three years |
850 |
491 |
108th Regiment |
three years |
625 |
412 |
110th Regiment |
three years |
797 |
627 |
111th Regiment |
three years |
1,011 |
557 |
113th Regiment |
three years |
849 |
526 |
114th Regiment |
three years |
940 |
393 |
115th Regiment |
three years |
972 |
696 |
116th Regiment |
three years |
897 |
590 |
117th Regiment |
three years |
796 |
unknown |
118th Regiment |
three years |
908 |
530 |
120th Regiment |
three years |
949 |
unknown |
121st Regiment |
three years |
943 |
391 |
122nd Regiment |
three years |
936 |
585 |
123rd Regiment |
three years |
969 |
662 |
124th Regiment |
three years |
847 |
431 |
125th Regiment |
three years |
914 |
360 |
126th Regiment |
three years |
889 |
597 |
127th Regiment |
three years |
930 |
unknown |
128th Regiment |
three years |
1.025 |
985 |
129th Regiment |
six months |
926 |
unknown |
Ohio National Guard Infantry Units that Became Ohio Volunteer Infantry Regiments:
;; ; Regiment |
Term of Enlistment |
Original Strength |
Mustered Out Strength |
130th Regiment |
100 days |
840 |
797 |
131st Regiment |
100 days |
874 |
865 |
132nd Regiment |
100 days |
846 |
803 |
133rd Regiment |
100 days |
917 |
857 |
134th Regiment |
100 days |
867 |
867 |
135th Regiment |
100 days |
850 |
688 |
136th Regiment |
100 days |
869 |
663 |
137th Regiment |
100 days |
905 |
800 |
138th Regiment |
100 days |
843 |
804 |
139th Regiment |
100 days |
773 |
664 |
140th Regiment |
100 days |
858 |
855 |
141st Regiment |
100 days |
866 |
860 |
142nd Regiment |
100 days |
845 |
845 |
143rd Regiment |
100 days |
856 |
856 |
144th Regiment |
100 days |
831 |
834 |
145th Regiment |
100 days |
870 |
832 |
146th Regiment |
100 days |
882 |
822 |
147th Regiment |
100 days |
853 |
787 |
148th Regiment |
100 days |
823 |
775 |
149th Regiment |
100 days |
858 |
755 |
150th Regiment |
100 days |
929 |
907 |
151st Regiment |
100 days |
860 |
816 |
152nd Regiment |
100 days |
860 |
821 |
153rd Regiment |
100 days |
909 |
753 |
154th Regiment |
100 days |
842 |
743 |
155th Regiment |
100 days |
838 |
785 |
156th Regiment |
100 days |
877 |
841 |
157th Regiment |
100 days |
859 |
859 |
159th Regiment |
100 days |
874 |
847 |
160th Regiment |
100 days |
856 |
836 |
161st Regiment |
100 days |
855 |
831 |
162nd Regiment |
100 days |
853 |
819 |
163rd Regiment |
100 days |
839 |
774 |
164th Regiment |
100 days |
865 |
834 |
165th Regiment |
100 days |
598 |
504 |
166th Regiment |
100 days |
960 |
960 |
167th Regiment |
100 days |
793 |
765 |
168th Regiment |
100 days |
851 |
767 |
169th Regiment |
100 days |
945 |
873 |
170th Regiment |
100 days |
851 |
788 |
171st Regiment |
100 days |
898 |
898 |
172nd Regiment |
100 days |
854 |
845 |
173rd Regiment |
one year |
1,017 |
884 |
174th Regiment |
one year |
952 |
782 |
175th Regiment |
one year |
957 |
582 |
176th Regiment |
one year |
964 |
760 |
177th Regiment |
one year |
1,020 |
766 |
178th Regiment |
one year |
937 |
769 |
179th Regiment |
one year |
949 |
764 |
180th Regiment |
one year |
947 |
716 |
181st Regiment |
one year |
1,007 |
850 |
182nd Regiment |
one year |
971 |
771 |
183rd Regiment |
one year |
1,007 |
793 |
184th Regiment |
one year |
985 |
861 |
185th Regiment |
one year |
1,006 |
889 |
186th Regiment |
one year |
991 |
851 |
187th Regiment |
one year |
998 |
835 |
188th Regiment |
one year |
1,001 |
919 |
189th Regiment |
one year |
1,009 |
939 |
191st Regiment |
one year |
1,009 |
871 |
192nd Regiment |
one year |
1,011 |
894 |
193rd Regiment |
one year |
997 |
842 |
194th Regiment |
one year |
990 |
785 |
195th Regiment |
one year |
981 |
759 |
196th Regiment |
one year |
984 |
792 |
197th Regiment |
one year |
1,006 |
883 |