With the Civil War’s outbreak, both the North and the South were ill prepared for the conflict. Ohio Governor William Dennison hoped to utilize the state’s militia forces to assist President Abraham Lincoln in reuniting the nation.
With the Civil War’s outbreak, both the North and the South were ill prepared for the conflict. Ohio Governor William Dennison hoped to utilize the state’s militia forces to assist President Abraham Lincoln in reuniting the nation. Unfortunately for Dennison, many of Ohio’s militia units were no longer in existence. Those units that continued to operate were primarily social organizations that rarely practiced military maneuvers. Following the Confederate attack on Fort Sumter in Charleston, South Carolina, in April 1861, President Lincoln called for seventy-five thousand volunteers to subdue the Confederate States of America. Despite the lack of a well-trained militia, Governor Dennison beseeched communities to send their militia companies to Columbus, Ohio for possible use by the North during the American Civil War.
To process Ohio’s volunteers, Governor Dennison ordered the creation of Camp Jackson at Columbus. To help speed soldiers’ inductions into Ohio’s military, Dennison soon authorized the establishment of other camps across the state, including Camp Ammen at Ripley, Ohio. Also known as Camp Ripley, Camp Ammen was located at the Ripley fairgrounds. Camp Ammen was named after the camp's first commanding officer, Captain Jacob Ammen. The base remained in use from 1861 to 1864. The 12th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 34th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 59th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 70th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 89th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 91st Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 100th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 188th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry, the 7th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, the 10th Kentucky Infantry Regiment, the 16th Kentucky Infantry Regiment, 100th Regiment Massachusetts Infantry, and Battery F of the Ohio Light Artillery Regiment organized at Camp Ammen. Camp Ammen was located off of modern-day State Route 52, between Maplewood Cemetery and Williams Street.
