105th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry

1862–1865

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.

Infantry regiments formed in Ohio became known as regiments of Ohio Volunteer Infantry. They served for varying lengths of time, averaging one hundred days to three years. On August 20 and 21, 1862, the 105th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry mustered into service at Camp Taylor, at Cleveland, Ohio. The men in the regiment were to serve three years and consisted primarily of enlistees from Ashtabula, Lake, Mahoning, Trumbull, and Geauga Counties, Ohio.

Upon mustering the regiment, officials quickly ordered the 105th to Covington, Kentucky, with the regiment arriving at this location on August 22, 1862. Three days later, the 105^th advanced to Lexington, Kentucky, where the organization prepared to defend the city against General Kirby Smith’s Confederate army. On August 30, 1862, the regiment departed Lexington for Richmond, Kentucky but soon returned to the departure city upon learning that Confederate forces were in possession of Richmond. On September 1, 1862, Union forces, including the 105^th, in Lexington withdrew to Louisville, Kentucky, arriving at this new destination on September 5, 1862. At Louisville, officials assigned the 105^th to the 33^rd Brigade, 10^th Division of the Army of the Ohio.

The Army of the Ohio, including the 105^th, departed Louisville on October 1, 1862. Marching via the Kentucky communities of Taylorsville and Bloomfield, the Army of the Ohio engaged Confederate General Braxton Bragg’s army on October 8, 1862 at Perryville, Kentucky. Confederate forces drove the 105^th from its position on the battlefield, but the Union victory at the Battle of Perryville essentially ended Bragg’s invasion of Kentucky. In the battle, one-third of the 105^th’s engaged men were killed or wounded. After the Battle of Perryville, the 105^th’s commanding officer issued the following report:

HDQRS. TENTH DIVISION, FIRST ARMY CORPS, Perryville Battle-field, Ky., October 10, 1862.

SIR: Having commanded the One hundred and fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry in the engagement of the 8th instant near Perryville, Ky., it becomes my duty, although now commanding the Tenth Division, to report the part taken by said regiment in the battle. The regiment was on the march from Mackville to Perryville as part of the Thirty-third Brigade, commanded by General W. E. Terrill, in the Tenth Division, commanded by Brig. Gen. James S. Jackson, in the First Army Corps, commanded by Major-General McCook.

The Thirty fourth Brigade, commanded by Colonel Webster, of the Ninety-eighth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, was in the advance and engaged the enemy about 2.30 p.m. On hearing the fire of the skirmishers General Terrill ordered forward the Thirty-third Brigade with all possible dispatch and reached the field about 3 p.m.

My regiment was marching in rear of Parsons' battery, and at the moment of reaching the field was ordered to form on the left of the road in reserve. This point was occupied but for a few moments when the order of General Terrill was given to file to the left through the timber to the extreme left of the Union forces. Upon reaching my position I found the One hundred and twenty-third Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry, Colonel Monroe, hotly engaging the enemy to the right and rear of Parsons' battery, then in position.

At the moment of coming into position on the left and rear of Parsons' battery it was apparent that the enemy were determined to charge through the left of the One hundred and twenty-third Illinois Volunteers and cut off the battery.

This movement was immediately and effectually repulsed by the destructive fire of Parsons' battery and the charge of that wing of my regiment, most gallantly led by Major Perkins, executed by order of General Terrill, who was personally present.

The fire at this moment was terrific beyond description, and the running through my line of a six-horse team drawing a caisson created some disorder in my center. At almost the same moment of this repulse of the enemy a determined assault was made by them on our left. A battery opened on us from the enemy's right, and from the form of the ground nearly enfiladed my line. Parsons' battery was stationed on a sharp crest of open ground about 80 yards from a wood occupied by the enemy. From this crest the ground descended to the woods and then ascended, so that the enemy delivered us the fire of consecutive battalions in rear of each other. The battery was also on a crest which abruptly terminated on the left a few yards from the guns, exposing the support to a cross-fire from the enemy's extreme right, of which the enemy, as before described, promptly availed themselves.

Thus at the distance of 80 yards, in an open field, did Parsons' battery and the One hundred and fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry deliver to the enemy a most terrible and destructive fire, receiving in return the fire of an enfilading battery and of a rebel brigade concealed in the woods. The battery becoming disabled, and the rebel battery on our flank making our position untenable, by the order of General Terrill in person I moved my regiment 60 yards to the rear and formed on the line of an old fence, then much broken down. The enemy followed the movement, and when he reached the crest (our former position) received a fire that opened their ranks with the wildest havoc. But the position of the ground was such that we were still under the fire of their battery, and the quick eye of General Terrill discovering a movement of the enemy in a ravine to turn our left, again ordered the regiment to retire into a corn field in our rear, which was done in good order and promptly formed. In this field, being much exposed to the artillery and musketry of the enemy and hidden from each other by the corn, some irregularity occurred in the line, while a movement by the flank, then ordered by General Terrill, who could not be seen or heard distinctly by the command, tended still more to divide and scatter the regiment. The most of the living, however, followed the movement promptly, and formed in the rear of Bush's battery, by General Terrill's order, and there remained in its support until the close of the engagement. At this last position, in the rear of Bush's battery, our brave and beloved Terrill, who had stood by my side and moved with my regiment from the moment it was engaged, fell mortally wounded by the fragment of a shell. At this moment the disability of the general threw the command of the Thirty-third Brigade upon me. Turning over the command of the One hundred and fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry to Lieutenant-Colonel Tolles I proceeded to collect the brigade.

In the early part of the engagement and before the Thirty-third Brigade became engaged Lieutenant. Colonel Tolles with eight companies, by order of General Terrill, was sent to the left of the road a mile in rear of the line of battle to protect the rear. He joined me at Bush's battery, having come forward and joined in the engagement with the Eightieth Illinois Regiment. Of the bravery manifested by the officers and enlisted men of the One hundred and fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry I can speak with the highest satisfaction. Not an officer and but few of the enlisted men flinched from the hail of death or left their positions until ordered by their proper officers. In the engagement at Perryville they have covered themselves with imperishable honor. Citizen soldiers, with not twenty days' drill, they have exhibited the coolness and efficiency of veterans. Of the mortality and of our wounded I speak with choking sorrow. Capt. L.D. Kee, Company I, and Robert Wilson, of Company H, are no more; they fell upon that fatal crest by Parsons' battery–the former dead, the latter mortally wounded. Braver or better men never lived; truer patriots never offered a holier sacrifice to their country's cause. On the same spot 29 enlisted men of my regiment gave their lives to the cause of constitutional liberty–each a precious offering on freedom's altar. God of the true and brave! these are thine; their country calls them no more. There too on that fatal spot were wounded no less than 130 of their gallant comrades.

A. S. HALL,

One hundred and fifth Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry,

Comdg. Tenth Div., First A. C., Army of the Ohio.

Captain CAMPBELL, A. A. A. G., First Army Corps.

Following the Battle of Perryville, the 105^th advanced to Danville, Kentucky and then to Munfordville, Kentucky, arriving at the second location on October 25, 1862. The organization performed garrison duty at Munfordville until November 30, 1862, when officials dispatched the regiment to Carthage, Tennessee. Upon reaching Carthage, the 105^th next pursued Confederate General John Hunt Morgan’s cavalry force. The regiment did not engage Morgan’s command, and this excursion prevented the 105^th from participating in the Battle of Stones River. The regiment next moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee, arriving on January 11, 1863. Until June 1863, the 105^th remained at Murfreesboro, engaging in some foraging and reconnaissance expeditions, including an engagement with Morgan’s Confederates at Milton, Tennessee on March 20, 1863.

On June 24, 1863, the 105^th departed Murfreesboro, embarking upon the Tullahoma Campaign. Following this brief expedition, which resulted in Confederate Braxton Bragg’s withdrawal south of the Tennessee River, the regiment spent most of July and August 1863 encamped at University Mountain in Tennessee. On August 30, 1863, the 105^th joined the Union advance against Bragg’s army at Chattanooga, Tennessee. As the Northern forces approached the city, Bragg withdrew to northern Georgia, where the Battle of Chickamauga occurred on September 19 and 20, 1863. On the battle’s first day, the 105^th held its position and, on the second day, successfully repulsed a Confederate attack, allowing the Union army to reposition its lines. The night of September 20, 1863, the Northern force, including the 105^th, withdrew towards Chattanooga, with the regiment arriving on September 23, 1863.

At Chattanooga, the 105^th remained besieged with the rest of the Union army. On November 25, 1863, the regiment participated in the Battle of Missionary Ridge, which ended Confederate General Bragg’s siege of Chattanooga. The 105^th joined in the Union pursuit of the retreating Confederates as far as Ringgold, Georgia before returning to Chattanooga. After the Battle of Missionary Ridge, the 105^th’s commanding officer issued the following report:

HDQRS. 105TH OHIO VOLUNTEERS, Chattanooga, Tennessee, November 30, 1863.

SIR: In compliance with instructions contained in circular just received, I have the honor to report that this regiment left camp on the afternoon of the 23d instant with the brigade, taking position on the left of the front line of the same, near the picket line, southeast of Fort Negley.

Here it remained until the morning of the 25th instant, when it marched with the brigade and division to the extreme left, taking position in the center of the second line of the brigade, fronting Missionary Ridge. While moving forward at a double-quick to the line of the breastworks at the foot of the ridge, the regiment sustained its heaviest loss from the fire of batteries posted on the summit of the ridge. After gaining the ascent, the regiment was formed in proper shape. Changing direction to the left, it moved forward and formed the advance line of the division. At this point the regiment was met by the enemy in force, delivering a deadly fire both on our front and flank, which was promptly returned, for the space of about thirty minutes. At the same time the regiment advanced to the brow of the hill, covering one piece of artillery, which the enemy were endeavoring to get off. In this they were foiled, and the One hundred and fifth brought off the gun and 2 horses, when the engagement ceased. Moving back on the ridge 30 or 40 rods, the regiment camped for the night.

On the afternoon of the 26th instant, it marched with the brigade to within about 6 miles of Graysville.

On the 27th instant, it moved to within 1 or 2 miles of Ringgold, where it lay until the morning of the 29th, when it returned to camp at Chattanooga.

Below is given the loss sustained on the afternoon of the 25th instant.

Very respectfully, yours, &c.,

WM. R. TOLLES,

Lieut.-Col., Cmdg. Regt.

Capt. JOHN R. BEATTY,

Acting Assistant Adjutant-Gen.

Except for a brief reconnaissance to Buzzard’s Roost Gap, Georgia, the 105^th remained in the vicinity of Chattanooga until May 1864, when the organization embarked upon General William T. Sherman’s Atlanta Campaign. The regiment participated in numerous skirmishes during the campaign but did not fight in any of the expedition’s major battles. During the movement, the 105^th’s commanding officer issued the following reports:

HDQRS. 105TH REGT. OHIO VOLUNTEERS, Near Atlanta, Ga., August 15, 1864.

SIR: In compliance with instructions contained in circular received this p. m., I have the honor to report the following as the history of the operations of this regiment during the present campaign up to August 6, 1864:

The regiment broke camp at Ringgold, Ga., May 7, and marched to Tunnel Hill; thence it marched via Snake Creek Gap and took a position confronting the rebel position at Resaca; was under fire of the enemy's guns at that place May 14 and 15, but not engaged. After the evacuation of Resaca by the enemy the regiment joined in pursuit and marched to Kingston; thence it marched to Burnt Hickory, where, with the brigade and division, it lay for several days guarding trains. Ordered to the front from this place with the brigade, it took part in the various involvements which compelled the enemy to fall back to their position at Kenesaw Mountain; was under fire of the rebel artillery at Kenesaw Mountain for several days, and after the abandonment of this position by the enemy was stationed with the brigade at Marietta Ga., from July 3 to 13; marched from this point to Chattahoochee River. After crossing this river had some skirmishing with the enemy near Peach Tree Creek, and finally took position before Atlanta, July 22, where it has since remained. The regiment–with the exception of two days when it, with the Thirty-fifth Ohio, was detailed to guard train–has operated with the brigade in all its movements. The casualties during tho entire time are as follows: Killed-enlisted men, 4; wounded-officers, 1: enlisted men, 29.

I am, sir, respectfully, yours, &c.,

GEO. T. PERKINS,

Lieut.-Col., Comdg. 105th Ohio Vol. Infantry.

Capt. S. FORTNER,

Acting Assistant Adjutant-Gen.

HDQRS. 105TH OHIO VOLUNTEERS, Near Atlanta., Ga., September 9, 1864.

SIR: I have the honor to report the following as a brief statement of the operations of this regiment since last report:

The regiment with the brigade remained in front of the rebel position near Atlanta until the morning of August 27. That morning it moved with the brigade at 2 a. m. passing around the left of the rebel army, and crossing the Montgomery railroad seven miles west of East Point. From this point it moved in a southeasterly direction, striking the Macon railroad about a mile north of Jonesborough. On the 1st instant, with the brigade, the regiment came up as a support to the Third Brigade, of the Third Division, Fourteenth Army Corps, but was not engaged. On the 6th instant it took up line of march for Atlanta, near which place it arrived on the 8th instant, and where it now lies. The regiment has moved and operated with the brigade during the entire time. The effective force of the regiment when it left Ringgold was officers, 17; enlisted men, 388. Its present effective force is–officers, 15; enlisted men, 286. Of this number 1 officer has died of disease and 1 resigned. Of the enlisted men as follows: Killed, 4; Sent to hospital wounded, 27; sick, 71; total, 102.

I am, sir, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

GEO. T. PERKINS,

Lieut.-Col., Comdg. 105th Ohio Volunteers.

Capt. C. A. CILLEY,

Assistant Adjutant-Gen., Second Brigade.

With the Union’s capture of Atlanta Georgia in early September 1864, the 105^th remained at this city from September 8 until early October. On October 3, 1864, the regiment joined the Northern pursuit of Confederate General John Bell Hood’s army, which was launching an invasion of northern Alabama, northern Georgia, and central Tennessee. The 105^th pursued the Confederates only as far as Gaylesville, Alabama. The regiment then destroyed railroad track to the east of Atlanta before embarking upon Sherman’s March to the Sea in November 1864. During this movement, the 105^th did not engage Confederate forces, arriving at Savannah, Georgia in late December 1864.

On January 25, 1865, the 105^th joined Sherman’s Carolinas Campaign. The regiment advanced through South Carolina and North Carolina, primarily destroying railroads and corduroying roads due to excessive rainfall. By early April 1865, the organization reached Goldsboro, North Carolina, where the 105^th’s members rested briefly. On April 10, 1865, the regiment advanced towards Raleigh, North Carolina, spending the next four days skirmishing with Confederate cavalry forces. The 105^th next moved towards Charlotte, North Carolina but encamped along the Cape Fear River until Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston’s army surrendered in late April 1865 and the Carolinas Campaign ended. During this campaign, the 105^th’s commanding officer issued the following report:

HDQRS. 105TH OHIO VOLUNTEERS, March 27, 1865.

CAPT.: In compliance with instructions contained in circular just received I have the honor to submit the following as a report of the operations of this regiment since leaving Savannah:

The regiment broke camp January 20, marching toward Sister's Ferry, where it arrived about the 1st of February.

February 5, crossed the Savannah River and marched toward Barnwell; passed through this town and thence north, striking the Branchville, and Augusta Railroad about twenty-five miles east of Augusta, and assisted in tearing up and destroying railroad track. From this point marched in a northerly direction, crossing the South and North Edisto Rivers, and passing through Lexington crossed the Saluda River about-miles and the Broad River about twenty miles from Columbia; thence passing through Winnsborough struck the Catawba River at Kingsbury's Ferry, crossed, and moving in a north-easterly direction crossed the Great Pedee River about ten miles above Cheraw. From this point moved in a northeasterly direction again to Fayetteville, where it remained five or six days; crossing the Cape Fear River marched toward Goldsborough, where it arrived March 23 and went into camp.

The regiment during the campaign has been with and taken a part in all the operations of the brigade and division to which it is attached.

Casualties have been as follow: 3 privates captured by the enemy and 3 wounded (2 accidentally and 1 by the enemy).

I am, captain, very respectfully, your obedient servant,

GEO. T. PERKINS,

Lieut.-Col., Cmdg. 105th Ohio Volunteers.

Capt. S. FORTNER,

Actg. Asst. Adjt. Gen., Second Brigade, Third Division.

On April 29, 1865, the 105^th departed North Carolina for Washington, DC, traveling via Richmond, Virginia. The regiment participated in the Grand Review at Washington on May 24, 1865 and mustered out of service at this city on June 3, 1865. Officials then sent the 105^th to Camp Taylor, where authorities discharged the organization’s members on June 8, 1865.

During its term of service, the 105th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry lost 107 men, including three officers, to wounds. An additional 133 soldiers, including seven officers, died from disease or accidents.

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