1864
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.
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.
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. In 1864, the governors of several Northern states convinced federal authorities to call up state militia forces for regular military duty. The governors believed that these militiamen would free regular soldiers currently serving in forts or guarding other important sites in Northern states for duty with the Union's invading armies in the Confederacy. Hopefully this surge of men, known as Hundred Days' Men, would allow the North to defeat the South in one hundred days or less while keeping Northern states safe from Confederate attack and anti-war unrest.
On May 8, 1864, the 155th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry mustered into service at Camp Dennison, near Cincinnati, Ohio. The men in the regiment were to serve one hundred days. The regiment primarily consisted of the 92nd Regiment Ohio National Guard and the 44th Battalion Ohio National Guard.
On May 9, 1864, authorities dispatched the 155th to New Creek, West Virginia. Officials quickly sent the regiment to Martinsburg, West Virginia, where the 155th performed garrison duty and also escorted supply trains. On June 3, 1864, authorities ordered the regiment to Washington, DC, and then to White House, Virginia, Bermuda Hundred, Virginia, City Point, Virginia, and Norfolk, Virginia, where the 155th arrived late in June. Most of the regiment remained at Norfolk performing guard duty for the rest of its term of service. Officials did dispatch five hundred men to Elizabeth City, North Carolina, to support Northern cavalry forces raiding the countryside, but these soldiers soon returned to Norfolk. On August 19, 1864, the regiment left for Camp Dennison, arriving on August 24. The 155th mustered out of service at Camp Dennison on August 27, 1864.
During the 155th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry’s term of service, twenty men perished from disease or accidents. No men died from wounds received on the battlefield.
