{"history":[],"article":{"id":"acd77ab0-aef4-4199-8fde-2de405a667a8","title":"20th Indiana Infantry Regiment","slug":"20th-indiana-infantry-regiment","content":":::summary\n![Surviving members of the 20th Indiana Regt. gather at the Gettysburg Battleground for the dedication of a monument in their honor, 1885.](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/1885///reunion///20th///Indiana.jpg)\n**Unit Name:** 20th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment \n**Image Size:** 256 \n**Dates:** July 22, 1861, to July 12, 1865 \n**Country:** [United States](https://bliptext.com/articles/united-states) \n**Allegiance:** [Union](https://bliptext.com/articles/union-american-civil-war) \n**Branch:** [Infantry](https://bliptext.com/articles/infantry) \n**Type:** [Rifle regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/rifle-regiment) \n**Size:** [Regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/regiment) \n**Battles:** [Battle of Hampton Roads](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-hampton-roads)
[Peninsular Campaign](https://bliptext.com/articles/peninsular-campaign)
[Battle of Second Bull Run](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-second-bull-run)
[Battle of Chantilly](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-chantilly)
[Battle of Chancellorsville](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-chancellorsville)
[Battle of Fredericksburg](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-fredericksburg)
[Battle of Gettysburg](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-gettysburg)
[Battle of the Wilderness](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-the-wilderness)
[Battle of Spotsylvania](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-spotsylvania)
[Battle of Cold Harbor](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-cold-harbor)
[Siege of Petersburg](https://bliptext.com/articles/siege-of-petersburg) \n:::\n\n# \nThe **20th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment** was an [infantry](https://bliptext.com/articles/infantry) [regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/regiment) that served in the [Union Army](https://bliptext.com/articles/union-army) during the [American Civil War](https://bliptext.com/articles/american-civil-war).\nThe Regiment was officially raised on July 22, 1861, by William L. Brown, the first Colonel of the Regiment, in response to President [Lincoln's](https://bliptext.com/articles/abraham-lincoln) call for volunteers.\nAt the time of muster, the regiment had 9 fighting companies lettered A-K along with a staff company for a total of 10 companies, roughly 1000 men.\nThe 20th Indiana saw engagements in most of the major battles of the American Civil War, including the action between the first ironclads at Hampton Roads, the Battle of Fredericksburg, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Siege of Petersburg.\nThe Regiment was part of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, [III Corps](https://bliptext.com/articles/iii-corps-union-army) for the duration of the war.\n\n# Service\nThe 20th Indiana Volunteer Infantry was organized at [Lafayette, Indiana](https://bliptext.com/articles/lafayette-indiana), on July 22, 1861.\nThe regiment mustered out of service on July 12, 1865.\nIt spent the entirety of its service in the eastern theater of the war.\n\n# Creation of the Regiment\nWilliam L. Brown, a veteran of the Mexican–American War, was given permission by the United States [Secretary of War](https://bliptext.com/articles/secretary-of-war) to raise a volunteer [rifle regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/rifle-regiment) to be mustered into service with the [United States Army](https://bliptext.com/articles/united-states-army).\nBrown went across Indiana talking to friends in order to raise enough companies for the regiment.\nThis was accomplished by various people in various counties over the course of June, 1861.\nBrown set the date of July 4, 1861, as the date for all companies to rendezvous in [Lafayette, Indiana](https://bliptext.com/articles/lafayette-indiana), in order to be properly mustered into service.\nThe Regiment was assembled between July 20–22, with the latter date being when it was officially mustered into service.\nThe mustering process was markedly simple, due to the dire need of fighting men.\nThe process consisted of the various companies being assembled in a large, open field.\nA mustering officer would walk among the ranks of the companies, looking at the general physical appearance of each man along with his hands.\nThere are at least two documented instances of the mustering officer stopping to question the ability or age of prospective volunteers.\nThe first instance involved a man by the name of Smith who had lost is right index finger in a farm accident.\nThe mustering officer questioned how accurate Smith could be with a weapon, if he could hold a weapon at all with his disability.\nWhen the mustering officer asked Smith if he could \"hit a man at 400 yards\", Smith retorted \"I wish you would step out there and let me try\".\nSmith was sworn into the Regiment.\nThe second occurrence involved a young boy by the name of Boulson who was standing on blocks in an attempt to make his stature look like someone who was of age to fight.\nThe mustering officer quickly dismissed the boy, admonishing him to return to his mother.\nBoulson indignantly refused, and eventually ended up as a serving boy to one of the officers of I Company, [1st Lt. Erasmus Gilbreath](https://bliptext.com/articles/erasmus-corwin-gilbreath).\nIn this way, Boulson was able to stay with the regiment until he was of age to enlist, becoming a fifer in I Company and eventually Chief of Field Music for the Regiment.\nAt the time of muster, the Regiment's officers and companies were as follows:\nThe Regiment, at that point totaling roughly 1200 men, left Lafayette on the 25th of July for [Indianapolis](https://bliptext.com/articles/indianapolis), where they would be properly equipped with weapons, uniforms, and other standard-issue items.\nUpon arriving in Indianapolis, the Regiment made camp at Camp Morton.\nMeanwhile, William Brown, who had been made Colonel of the Regiment, gave the governor and the local quartermaster exact figures for equipping the Regiment.\nThe officers in the regiment were told to procure their uniforms and weapons on their own, the enlisted men of the regiment received their equipment from the government supply.\nStandard issue uniforms for enlisted men, according to the journal of Erasmus Gilbreath, consisted of \"a jeans suit, gray in color, and the coat or jacket was of Zouave shape with rounded corners and a braided edge\".\nAccording to Gilbreath, the troops expected to be equipped with the new model [1861 Springfield Rifle](https://bliptext.com/articles/springfield-model-1861).\nAt that point in the war, the government did not have enough rifles to equip both the regular army as well as the newly recruited regiments, leading the government to substitute the more modern rifles with the much older [1855 Springfield Musket](https://bliptext.com/articles/model-1855-musket), which had been modified to use percussion caps.\nThe regiment was reportedly so disgusted with their equipment that they threw their weapons down in the street in indignation.\nThe Governor attempted to cool the situation by promising the first few companies would have the new model rifles at an expedited time and the rest of the regiment would have them as soon as possible.\nFrom Indianapolis, the Regiment was transferred by train to [Baltimore](https://bliptext.com/articles/baltimore).\nAlong the way, the Regiment busied itself by guarding various bridges along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.\nUpon arriving in Baltimore, Col. Brown ordered the Regiments' weapons to be loaded and on half-cock, essentially indicating a preparedness to fire.\nThis was due to the recent [Baltimore riot of 1861](https://bliptext.com/articles/baltimore-riot-of-1861), which was led by a group of Confederate sympathizers against the Union troops stationed in the city.\nCol. Brown, feeling that the populace might still be hostile to Union troops, ordered the regiment to load their weapons.\nFrom Baltimore the regiment was sent by steam ship to [Fort Monroe](https://bliptext.com/articles/fort-monroe), where they were camped until September 26, 1861.\n# [An example of troops being mustered into service during the Civil War. This photo taken in front of the United States Capitol Building. | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Troops///muster///by///capitol///AOC.png]\n# [Col. William Brown, creator of the 20th Indiana Volunteer Regiment and first commanding officer of the regiment. | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Colwilliambrown.jpg]\n\n# Deployment to Hatteras Inlet\nOn the 26th of September, the regiment moved from Fort Monroe to Fort Hatteras, recently taken from the Confederates during the [Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-hatteras-inlet-batteries), on [Hatteras Island](https://bliptext.com/articles/hatteras-island) in preparation for an assault against Confederate troops defending further up the inlet.\n500 men in 7 companies were deployed to Chicamicomico Beach, Hatteras Island, on September 29, 1861.\nTheir main objective was to dislodge an enemy force from Roanoke Island.\nThe commanding officer of Fort Hatteras was in such a haste to have this objective accomplished that the men landed at Chicamicomico Beach without supplies or tents.\nRegimental Quartermaster Isaac W. Hart and a small detail arrived with proper supplies on October 1.\nHowever, the gunboat carrying Hart and the supplies was attacked by three Confederate gunboats shortly after Hart began unloading the supplies that afternoon.\nHart and 47 men were taken prisoner, and the supplies and equipment were captured by the Confederate gunboats, who had kept the Regiment under suppressing fire to prevent any interference from land\nOn the morning of October 4, Gilbreath sighted a Confederate fleet of nine ships steaming towards the current position of the detachment.\nIt was believed that the fleet was carrying a detachment of Confederate soldiers that were destined to cut off the regiment from Fort Hatteras, leading Col. Brown to decide to retreat.\nThe Regiment returned to Fort Hatteras on October 5.\nDue to some good luck, the 20th Indiana was able to make it back to Fort Hatteras without any serious incident, as the Confederate ships carrying the majority of their troops had run aground far from the Regiment's position.\nIt was later found out, after the Regiment had returned to Fort Hatteras, that in comparison to their 500 troops, who were all equipped with smooth-bore muskets and no artillery, the Confederates had sent down over 2000 troops to potentially capture the Union force.\nLittle occurred following October 5.\nOn November 3, a steamship arrived with the much anticipated shipment of rifles.\nOn November 10, the regiment was ordered back to Fort Monroe.\n\n# Battle of the Ironclads\nWhile stationed at Fort Monroe, the 20th Indiana was witness to the Battle of Hampton Roads, also known as the Battle of the Ironclads.\nDuring the CSS Virginia's initial successes, during which it sank the USS Cumberland (1842) and burned the USS Congress (1841), the 20th Indiana aided wounded sailors who washed up on the beach and provided small arms support for the USS Monitor upon its arrival.\nGeneral [Joseph K. Mansfield](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-k-mansfield), commanding officer of the Coastal Batteries overlooking the battle, is reported to have become so engrossed in the battle that he \"...forgot all else. At one shot from the Monitor, he would exclaim 'Damned it you're firing too high!', or to the Merrimac [when it engaged the Monitor] 'You cussed Rebel, you didn't hurt us a bit!'\".\n# [Mural painted by Crown Point artist Marion Kellum depicting the 20th Indiana's service at the Battle of Hampton Roads. The mural adorns a wall at Crown Point's Col. John Wheeler Middle School. | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/20thindianaironclads.jpg]\n\n# Seven Days Battles\nIn early 1862, General [George B. McClellan](https://bliptext.com/articles/george-b-mcclellan) devised a plan to take [Richmond](https://bliptext.com/articles/richmond-virginia) by transporting his forces via steamship to [Urbanna, Virginia](https://bliptext.com/articles/urbanna-virginia) and outflank the Confederate forces outside Washington.\nThis became known as the [Peninsular Campaign](https://bliptext.com/articles/peninsular-campaign).\nUnion forces maneuvered up the [James River](https://bliptext.com/articles/james-river) and disembarked at [Harrison's Landing](https://bliptext.com/articles/harrison-s-landing), then marching towards Richmond.\nThe Union forces split at the [Chickahominy River](https://bliptext.com/articles/chickahominy-river), with a smaller force on the southern side of the river.\nOn May 31, Confederate General [Joseph E. Johnston](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-e-johnston), firmly believing the city could not withstand a major siege, counterattacked.\nThe following battle became known as the [Battle of Seven Pines](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-seven-pines) (or Battle of Fair Oakes).\nAlthough the result was inconclusive, the Confederates unknowingly managed to halt McClellan's march towards Richmond.\nFollowing the Battle of Seven Pines, the regiment was officially transferred to the Army of the Potomac, under General McClellan.\nThe regiment was assigned to the 1st Brigade (\"Robinson's Brigade\"), of the 3rd Division (Kearney's Division), of the [III Corps](https://bliptext.com/articles/iii-corps-union-army), commanded by General Samuel P. Heintzelman.\nAlthough the commanders of the Brigade, Division, and Corps changed throughout the war, the 20th was never reassigned.\n\n## Battle of Oak Grove\nComing nearly three weeks after the Battle of Seven Pines, the Battle of Oak Grove was McClellan's only offensive movement during the Peninsular Campaign.\nThe action was meant to secure the Union left flank, so that McClellan could bring his siege guns into position just south of [Old Tavern](https://bliptext.com/articles/old-tavern-virginia).\nThe 20th Indiana was located on the left side of the advancing Union picket line.\nThe regiment began advancing with the rest of the picket line at 8:30 A.M., and encountered mild resistance, with the majority of the fighting taking place on the far right flank of the Union line.\nMcClellan ordered the advance to halt at 1 P.M., fearing that casualties would be too high.\nUpon surveying the field for himself, he allowed the advance to continue.\nDuring this pause, Confederate troops seized the opportunity to regroup, and at 5:30 P.M., launched a counterattack against the Union left flank, the location of the 20th Indiana.\nThe 87th New York Regiment, which was in the immediate right of the 20th Indiana, broke under heavy pressure from the Confederate charge, just as the 20th was beginning a charge of its own against the confederate positions.\nThis fully exposed the right flank of the 20th Indiana to the Confederate attack.\nAlthough the regiment initially fell back in \"great confusion\".\nPrivate Joshua Lewis of the 20th Indiana wrote that upon encountering the deadly flanking fire of the enemy, the men of the regiment broke ranks, and \"So it was then, every man for himself...SO I ran as fast as I could, some ran for camp, but...stopped as soon as they were out of immediate danger.\"\nThe regiment did rally on its colors and re-establish its picket line in roughly the same position it started when the attack began, and in doing so drove off three different Confederate attacks.\nThe 20th Indiana incurred 125 casualties during the Battle of Oak Grove, with 11 dead, 82 wounded, and 32 captured.\nThe 20th Indiana's losses were second only to that of the 1st Louisiana Regiment.\nAlthough it was the 20th Indiana's first time in action, it was highly praised for its ruggedness and ability to withstand fire.\n\n## Battle of Savage's Station\nBy the 27th of June, believing that he was vastly outnumbered, General McClellan decided to pull his army back to the James River in a [tactical retreat](https://bliptext.com/articles/tactical-retreat).\nAs McClellan did this, General [Robert E. Lee](https://bliptext.com/articles/robert-e-lee) formulated a plan to strike at the flank of the Army of the Potomac, potentially destroying it.\nHis plan was, however, hampered by an unusual slowness that plagued Jackson throughout the Seven Days' Battles, as well as \"poor staff work, faulty maps, geographical obstacles, timid division commanders (especially Magruder and Benjamin Huger), stout Yankee resistance\" all worked to plague Lee's plan.\nBetween the 28th and 29 June, most of the Union forces had pulled back to [Savage's Station](https://bliptext.com/articles/savage-s-station), one of McClellan's main supply dumps.\nThe 20th Indiana bore witness to the Battle at Savages station, and was tasked with holding the station during the night until all possible Union forces had been evacuated.\nThe regiment repelled two further Confederate attacks that night, eventually withdrawing with the rest of the Army towards [White Oak Swamp](https://bliptext.com/articles/white-oak-swamp).\nIt is theorized that the main failure of Lee to destroy the Union rear guard at Savage's Station is due to General [John Magruder](https://bliptext.com/articles/john-b-magruder)'s sluggishness to get his troops into battle, poor staff work at Lee's headquarters, and General Jackson's continuing sluggishness.\n# [George McClellan's headquarters at Savage's Station | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Savagehead1862.jpg]\n\n## Battle of Glendale\nThe day after the inconclusive fight at Savage's station, Lee hoped once more to destroy the Union army with a concentric assault from seven divisions near the village of Glendale.\nGlendale was of vital importance to the Union withdrawal, as it was a major crossroads and rail junction.\nWithout these intersections, the Army's march towards the James River would be cut off.\nThe Confederate assault once more became mired due to Jackson's sluggishness, leaving only General [James Longstreet's](https://bliptext.com/articles/james-longstreet) and General [A.P. Hill's](https://bliptext.com/articles/a-p-hill) divisions to engage the five Union divisions stationed at Glendale.\nThe 20th Indiana was deployed on the right flank of the Union line, under the immediate command of General [Phillip Kearny](https://bliptext.com/articles/phillip-kearny), with General [George A. McCall](https://bliptext.com/articles/george-a-mccall) commanding the Union center and General [Joseph Hooker](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-hooker) commanding the Union left flank.\nThe attack started at 2:30 P.M., with Longstreet charging McCall's troops and breaking them, capturing McCall in the action.\nHooker acted quickly and reversed the Southern breakthrough.\nLongstreet then turned his attention to the Union right flank, sending troops under command of Generals Pryor, [Featherston](https://bliptext.com/articles/winfield-s-featherston), and Gregg in such great amounts, it led General Kearny to exclaim \"such masses had I never witnessed!\"\nThe Confederates charged a total of three times, managing after each unsuccessful charge to regroup and renew the attack.\nCol. Brown of the 20th Indiana had taken the precaution of establishing a breastwork of rails and timber before the assaults, sparing numerous lives.\nPrivate Joshua Lewis of the 20th Indiana wrote that he was certain the other regiments behind the 20th, who did not have breastworks, certainly suffered greater than the 20th.\nDuring one charge, Kearny was in danger of losing his artillery batteries.\nKearney charged the rebel line with the 63rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment, the 37th New York Volunteer Regiment, and the 20th Indiana, and succeeded in routing the Confederate advance and saving the battery.\nThe battle continued until 9:30 P.M., with near constant firing.\nPrivate Lewis wrote that \"We fired so rapidly our guns became too hot to hold on to\".\nAs light grew dim, it became difficult to distinguish friend from foe, leading one officer of the 20th to advance forward to identify troops he thought to be friendly, only be politely told by a Southern colonel that he was now a prisoner of the Confederate Army.\nTwo companies of the 20th Indiana were deployed to the front, but in the darkness they went beyond their intended positions, prompting a minor Confederate assault on the two companies.\nThis assault cost the 20th Indiana two officers, 1st Lt. Andrew of Company E (Killed) and Capt. Reed of Company K (Captured), along with 34 enlisted men.\nDuring the engagement, Brown reported that the regiment \"'Behaved with great coolness', the men engaged in jesting, cracking jokes, and loading and firing deliberately as if [they were shooting at] target\".\n\n## Battle of Malvern Hill\nFollowing the failure to destroy the Union army at Glendale, Lee had one last hope to destroy \"those people\" (his term for the enemy).\nThe Union army had taken up a position three miles south of Glendale on Malvern Hill.\nThis position was 150 ft. high and surrounded by deep ravines, forcing Lee into a frontal assault on the defenders.\nThe Union defenses consisted of four divisions and roughly 100 pieces of artillery, with about the same number in reserve.\nLee believed, however, that the Union army was demoralized, and about to break.\nHe came to this assumption based on various pieces of evidence from the past few days of fighting, such as the route of retreat being littered with abandoned equipment (including over 30,000 small arms), the capture of over 6,000 Union stragglers, and the sheer fact that the Army of the Potomac was in retreat.\nThe Army of the Potomac, however, was not demoralized.\n1st Lt. Gilbreath of I Company wrote that his men, although currently retreating from the enemy and having suffered significant losses during the previous battles, remained in high spirits.\nDisjointed communications led to the Confederate army advancing in small sections rather than all at once, which allowed the Union guns on top of Malvern Hill to pulverized the advancing Confederates.\nThe 20th Indiana, along with the rest of III Corps, was held in reserve and did not see action during the battle, however the regiment did receive shots from the initial Confederate barrage, leaving 13 dead.\n\n# Second Battle of Bull Run\nThe failure of McClellan's Peninsular Campaign prompted president Lincoln to appoint General [John Pope](https://bliptext.com/articles/john-pope-military-officer) to the newly formed Army of Virginia.\nPope's objectives were to protect Washington and the Shenandoah Valley from Confederate raids or invasion, and to keep the Confederate army from attacking the Army of the Potomac by moving towards Gordonsville.\nLee, having reorganized his army into two easily controllable groups under Longstreet and Jackson, saw no need to attack McClellan as he no longer saw him as a threat and advanced his groups to Gordonsville to meet Pope.\nOn August 27, 1862, Jackson maneuvered around Pope and sought to destroy the major supply depot at Mannassass Junction.\nPope, seeing this as an opportunity to get rid of Jackson, rapidly got his disjointed Corps together during the night of August 28–29 through a series of forced marches, and then hurriedly threw them piecemeal at Jackson in an attempt to break his line.\nBecause of this, Pope was unable to get more than 32,000 men into action against Jackson's 22,000.\nEven though Union troops broke Confederate lines at points, the Confederates hung on tenaciously and quickly filled the gaps.\nThe 20th Indiana was rushed into the action on the evening of the 27th and arrived early in the morning of the 28th.\nOn the 29th, the Regiment was maneuvered into position opposite an unfinished railroad which served as a sort of breastwork for the Confederate forces.\nAfter forming a skirmish line, the regiment advanced roughly two miles to drive the confederates out of their positions.\nThe regiment suffered the majority of their losses in this action, but were successful in temporarily breaking the Confederate line.\nBy 4:00 P.M., the regiment had crossed the railroad and had slowed their advance.\nWhile the 20th Indiana had been advancing, the rest of the army had come under significant pressure from Confederate forces, breaking parts of the Union lines.\nThis prompted General [Phillip Kearny](https://bliptext.com/articles/phillip-kearny) to order the 20th Indiana to wheel left in order to prevent a potential flank attack.\nMoving into position, the regiment took cover among the high grass and brush provided by the immediate area.\nThis maneuver prevented the regiment from being attacked head-on by a group of Confederate soldiers.\nAs the Confederates passed by the regiment, Private Peter Schwartz of Company I suddenly stood up and opened fire on the Confederates.\nThe regiment quickly followed Schwartz's example, completely destroying the extreme left wing of the Confederate advance.\nShortly after this success, during a withdrawal ordered by General Kearny, Col William Brown was shot through the temple by a Confederate sharpshooter.\nMaj. Wheeler assumed command of the regiment.\nThe regiment spent the night of August 29–30 in the field near the railroad.\nIn the morning they were relieved and relegated to minor support roles during the rest of the battle.\n# [Colonel John Wheeler | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Col///wheeler///mug.jpg]\n\n# Battle of Fredericksburg\nAlthough General McClellan had routed General [Lee's](https://bliptext.com/articles/robert-e-lee) army at the Battle of Antietam, he did not attempt to pursue or destroy it.\nThis irritated President Abraham Lincoln, who was looking to destroy the Confederacy quickly, leading to McClellan's removal as commander of the Army of the Potomac.\nGeneral [Ambrose E. Burnside](https://bliptext.com/articles/ambrose-e-burnside) replaced McClellan, and quickly came up with a strategy to take Richmond.\nBurnside's plan involved travelling up the Rappahannock river to the town of Fredericksburg, Virginia.\nWhile he did this, he would send a sizeable detachment in the opposite direction towards Lee's fortifications at Richmond to keep Lee guessing as to what Burnside was attempting to do.\nBurnside would then cross the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg, wheel his army left, and then advance towards Richmond behind Lee's fortifications, forcing him into an open battle where the North's superior numbers would inevitably win.\nDue to bureaucratic delays, delays in the vital pontoons needed to cross the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg, and luck on General Lee's part, Burnside was unable to attack until December 11, long after Lee had moved the majority of his forces from Richmond to the outskirts of Fredericksburg.\nFollowing the death of Col. Brown, Lt. Col. John van Valkenburg was promoted to command, with John Wheeler being promoted to Lt. Col. of the regiment.\nThe Regiment formed part of the Center Grand Division, and was maneuvered to the middle-left flank of Stafford Heights.\nOn Dec. 13, General [Meade](https://bliptext.com/articles/gordon-meade) was instructed to assault the Confederate right flank, positioned around Prospect Hill.\nAlthough Meade succeeded in breaking the Confederate line, General [Franklin](https://bliptext.com/articles/william-b-franklin) did not send reinforcements to strengthen Meade's position.\nMeade's troops began to run low on ammunition, prompting Meade to withdraw from Prospect Hill towards his lines.\nIn order to try to relieve the pressure on the Confederate troops, General Jackson ordered General [Taliaferro](https://bliptext.com/articles/william-b-taliaferro) forward to plug the gaps.\nThis coincided with Meade's retreat and resulted in Meade's troops being pursued by Taliaferro's troops towards Union lines.\nThe 20th Indiana sent into action to stop the Confederate pursuit.\nCrossing the southern pontoon bridges at double-quick speed, the regiment charged into the Confederate pursuit at approximate 1 P.M., taking 27 casualties.\nThe Brigade the 20th was attached to took a total of 146 casualties.\nFollowing the battle, the regiment withdrew to its previous position near the town of [Falmouth](https://bliptext.com/articles/falmouth-virginia) where they camped throughout the winter.\nDuring the Winter, Col. van Valkenburg was mustered out of service for disloyalty.\nAlthough many of the men firmly believed he was not disloyal to the cause, it was a well known fact that he was a very ardent admirer of McClellan, and had been indiscreet about his opinions on McClellan's removal from command.\nHe was replaced by Col. John Wheeler.\n\n# Battle of Chancellorsville\nFollowing the defeat at Fredericksburg, General Burnside offered President Lincoln his resignation from both the Army of the Potomac and the Army itself.\nLincoln persuaded Burnside to stay in the army, transferring him to the western theater.\nCommand of the Army of the Potomac was given to General [Joseph \"Fighting Joe\" Hooker](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-hooker).\nPresident Lincoln had since come to a firm decision that the primary objective of the Army of the Potomac was to destroy General Lee's army, rather than to capture a geographic strongpoint, such as Richmond.\nHooker constructed a plan which would involve splitting his army in two, with one pincer attacking Lee's front and the other pincer maneuvering around Lee's rear to attack him from behind simultaneously.\nHowever, a combination of General Lee's daring and General Hooker's loss of nerve prevented this from happening.\nThe Regiment arrived at Chancellorsville around 11:00 A.M. on May 1, and was sent into the field around 5:00 P.M. towards Hazel Grove, where the pickets were established for the night.\nThe next morning, General [Dan Sickles](https://bliptext.com/articles/daniel-sickles), commander of the III Corps, took note of a large Confederate column advancing along [Catherine Furnace](https://bliptext.com/articles/catherine-furnace).\nBelieving the column to be a flanking maneuver, Sickles ordered the 20th Indiana, along with the rest of Birney's division, forward to disrupt it.\nThe division ran headlong into the 23rd Georgia Vol. Regt., routing and capturing hundreds of unsuspecting Georgians.\nThe division advanced further and eventually stopped past a railroad cut near Welford House.\nWhile the surprise was sudden and very unwelcome for the Georgians, General Jackson had taken the calculated risk.\nUnderstanding that his movements along Catherine Furnace were being watched by the Union, Jackson had gone ahead and sent numerous regiments and supply trains down the road, seemingly daring the Union troops to come and attack them.\nWhen the Union did as Jackson expected, he took the opportunity to quickly surround the troops, which were suddenly separated from the main force.\nDuring the night of May 2–3, the 20th Indiana regularly increased their picket line until it was evident that they were surrounded by Confederates.\nBy Midnight, they had learned that the Confederates had attacked the right flank of the army, cutting them off.\nSilently, the 20th Indiana and [63rd Pennsylvania](https://bliptext.com/articles/63rd-pennsylvania-infantry) withdrew their pickets and attempted to return to the line in the darkness, at points getting so close to enemy encampments that they could hear role being called.\nUpon successfully returning to the line, the 20th Indiana was placed in a new line supporting the artillery of Battery E, 1st Rhode Island Artillery, where they remained until the close of the battle.\nThe regiment was attacked often, each time successfully repulsing the attacks.\n\n# Gettysburg\nThe beating that the 20th Indiana received on July 2 on Houck's Ridge was severe.\nThe regiment suffered 152 casualties, of which 32 were killed outright including Col. John Wheeler who was struck, fell from his horse and died.\nCapt. Gilbreath recalled that it was a “sorrowful little band” after their participation in the battle.\n[Oliver P. Rood](https://bliptext.com/articles/oliver-p-rood), a private, earned the Medal of Honor on the third day of the battle for capturing the flag of the 21st North Carolina.\n\n# Total strength and casualties\nUpon its inception, the 20th Indiana had 1403 men.\nDuring the war, 201 men were killed in action, and 570 were wounded, 144 were captured, 25 of whom died in Confederate prisons.\nThe regiment had a 14.3% killed to enrollment ratio.\nA list of officers killed in action was kept by Capt. Erasmus Corwin Gilbreath of I Company, and is as follows:\n\n# Commanders\n\n# Notable Members","current_revision":null,"created_by":"kACnuQmH5k9Nr5VNVEpVeg7XpvUmMctD","created_at":"2025-01-26T10:18:45.807Z","updated_at":"2025-01-26T10:18:45.807Z","search_vector":"'20th':1 'indiana':2 'infantri':3 'regiment':4","search_content":" \n \n**Unit Name:** 20th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment \n**Image Size:** 256 \n**Dates:** July 22, 1861, to July 12, 1865 \n**Country:** [United States](https://bliptext.com/articles/united-states) \n**Allegiance:** [Union](https://bliptext.com/articles/union-american-civil-war) \n**Branch:** [Infantry](https://bliptext.com/articles/infantry) \n**Type:** [Rifle regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/rifle-regiment) \n**Size:** [Regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/regiment) \n**Battles:** [Battle of Hampton Roads](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-hampton-roads) [Peninsular Campaign](https://bliptext.com/articles/peninsular-campaign) [Battle of Second Bull Run](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-second-bull-run) [Battle of Chantilly](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-chantilly) [Battle of Chancellorsville](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-chancellorsville) [Battle of Fredericksburg](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-fredericksburg) [Battle of Gettysburg](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-gettysburg) [Battle of the Wilderness](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-the-wilderness) [Battle of Spotsylvania](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-spotsylvania) [Battle of Cold Harbor](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-cold-harbor) [Siege of Petersburg](https://bliptext.com/articles/siege-of-petersburg) \n \n\n# \nThe **20th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment** was an [infantry](https://bliptext.com/articles/infantry) [regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/regiment) that served in the [Union Army](https://bliptext.com/articles/union-army) during the [American Civil War](https://bliptext.com/articles/american-civil-war).\nThe Regiment was officially raised on July 22, 1861, by William L. Brown, the first Colonel of the Regiment, in response to President [Lincoln's](https://bliptext.com/articles/abraham-lincoln) call for volunteers.\nAt the time of muster, the regiment had 9 fighting companies lettered A-K along with a staff company for a total of 10 companies, roughly 1000 men.\nThe 20th Indiana saw engagements in most of the major battles of the American Civil War, including the action between the first ironclads at Hampton Roads, the Battle of Fredericksburg, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Siege of Petersburg.\nThe Regiment was part of the 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, [III Corps](https://bliptext.com/articles/iii-corps-union-army) for the duration of the war.\n\n# Service\nThe 20th Indiana Volunteer Infantry was organized at [Lafayette, Indiana](https://bliptext.com/articles/lafayette-indiana), on July 22, 1861.\nThe regiment mustered out of service on July 12, 1865.\nIt spent the entirety of its service in the eastern theater of the war.\n\n# Creation of the Regiment\nWilliam L. Brown, a veteran of the Mexican–American War, was given permission by the United States [Secretary of War](https://bliptext.com/articles/secretary-of-war) to raise a volunteer [rifle regiment](https://bliptext.com/articles/rifle-regiment) to be mustered into service with the [United States Army](https://bliptext.com/articles/united-states-army).\nBrown went across Indiana talking to friends in order to raise enough companies for the regiment.\nThis was accomplished by various people in various counties over the course of June, 1861.\nBrown set the date of July 4, 1861, as the date for all companies to rendezvous in [Lafayette, Indiana](https://bliptext.com/articles/lafayette-indiana), in order to be properly mustered into service.\nThe Regiment was assembled between July 20–22, with the latter date being when it was officially mustered into service.\nThe mustering process was markedly simple, due to the dire need of fighting men.\nThe process consisted of the various companies being assembled in a large, open field.\nA mustering officer would walk among the ranks of the companies, looking at the general physical appearance of each man along with his hands.\nThere are at least two documented instances of the mustering officer stopping to question the ability or age of prospective volunteers.\nThe first instance involved a man by the name of Smith who had lost is right index finger in a farm accident.\nThe mustering officer questioned how accurate Smith could be with a weapon, if he could hold a weapon at all with his disability.\nWhen the mustering officer asked Smith if he could \"hit a man at 400 yards\", Smith retorted \"I wish you would step out there and let me try\".\nSmith was sworn into the Regiment.\nThe second occurrence involved a young boy by the name of Boulson who was standing on blocks in an attempt to make his stature look like someone who was of age to fight.\nThe mustering officer quickly dismissed the boy, admonishing him to return to his mother.\nBoulson indignantly refused, and eventually ended up as a serving boy to one of the officers of I Company, [1st Lt. Erasmus Gilbreath](https://bliptext.com/articles/erasmus-corwin-gilbreath).\nIn this way, Boulson was able to stay with the regiment until he was of age to enlist, becoming a fifer in I Company and eventually Chief of Field Music for the Regiment.\nAt the time of muster, the Regiment's officers and companies were as follows:\nThe Regiment, at that point totaling roughly 1200 men, left Lafayette on the 25th of July for [Indianapolis](https://bliptext.com/articles/indianapolis), where they would be properly equipped with weapons, uniforms, and other standard-issue items.\nUpon arriving in Indianapolis, the Regiment made camp at Camp Morton.\nMeanwhile, William Brown, who had been made Colonel of the Regiment, gave the governor and the local quartermaster exact figures for equipping the Regiment.\nThe officers in the regiment were told to procure their uniforms and weapons on their own, the enlisted men of the regiment received their equipment from the government supply.\nStandard issue uniforms for enlisted men, according to the journal of Erasmus Gilbreath, consisted of \"a jeans suit, gray in color, and the coat or jacket was of Zouave shape with rounded corners and a braided edge\".\nAccording to Gilbreath, the troops expected to be equipped with the new model [1861 Springfield Rifle](https://bliptext.com/articles/springfield-model-1861).\nAt that point in the war, the government did not have enough rifles to equip both the regular army as well as the newly recruited regiments, leading the government to substitute the more modern rifles with the much older [1855 Springfield Musket](https://bliptext.com/articles/model-1855-musket), which had been modified to use percussion caps.\nThe regiment was reportedly so disgusted with their equipment that they threw their weapons down in the street in indignation.\nThe Governor attempted to cool the situation by promising the first few companies would have the new model rifles at an expedited time and the rest of the regiment would have them as soon as possible.\nFrom Indianapolis, the Regiment was transferred by train to [Baltimore](https://bliptext.com/articles/baltimore).\nAlong the way, the Regiment busied itself by guarding various bridges along the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad.\nUpon arriving in Baltimore, Col. Brown ordered the Regiments' weapons to be loaded and on half-cock, essentially indicating a preparedness to fire.\nThis was due to the recent [Baltimore riot of 1861](https://bliptext.com/articles/baltimore-riot-of-1861), which was led by a group of Confederate sympathizers against the Union troops stationed in the city.\nCol. Brown, feeling that the populace might still be hostile to Union troops, ordered the regiment to load their weapons.\nFrom Baltimore the regiment was sent by steam ship to [Fort Monroe](https://bliptext.com/articles/fort-monroe), where they were camped until September 26, 1861.\n# [An example of troops being mustered into service during the Civil War. This photo taken in front of the United States Capitol Building. | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Troops///muster///by///capitol///AOC.png]\n# [Col. William Brown, creator of the 20th Indiana Volunteer Regiment and first commanding officer of the regiment. | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a6/Colwilliambrown.jpg]\n\n# Deployment to Hatteras Inlet\nOn the 26th of September, the regiment moved from Fort Monroe to Fort Hatteras, recently taken from the Confederates during the [Battle of Hatteras Inlet Batteries](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-hatteras-inlet-batteries), on [Hatteras Island](https://bliptext.com/articles/hatteras-island) in preparation for an assault against Confederate troops defending further up the inlet.\n500 men in 7 companies were deployed to Chicamicomico Beach, Hatteras Island, on September 29, 1861.\nTheir main objective was to dislodge an enemy force from Roanoke Island.\nThe commanding officer of Fort Hatteras was in such a haste to have this objective accomplished that the men landed at Chicamicomico Beach without supplies or tents.\nRegimental Quartermaster Isaac W. Hart and a small detail arrived with proper supplies on October 1.\nHowever, the gunboat carrying Hart and the supplies was attacked by three Confederate gunboats shortly after Hart began unloading the supplies that afternoon.\nHart and 47 men were taken prisoner, and the supplies and equipment were captured by the Confederate gunboats, who had kept the Regiment under suppressing fire to prevent any interference from land\nOn the morning of October 4, Gilbreath sighted a Confederate fleet of nine ships steaming towards the current position of the detachment.\nIt was believed that the fleet was carrying a detachment of Confederate soldiers that were destined to cut off the regiment from Fort Hatteras, leading Col. Brown to decide to retreat.\nThe Regiment returned to Fort Hatteras on October 5.\nDue to some good luck, the 20th Indiana was able to make it back to Fort Hatteras without any serious incident, as the Confederate ships carrying the majority of their troops had run aground far from the Regiment's position.\nIt was later found out, after the Regiment had returned to Fort Hatteras, that in comparison to their 500 troops, who were all equipped with smooth-bore muskets and no artillery, the Confederates had sent down over 2000 troops to potentially capture the Union force.\nLittle occurred following October 5.\nOn November 3, a steamship arrived with the much anticipated shipment of rifles.\nOn November 10, the regiment was ordered back to Fort Monroe.\n\n# Battle of the Ironclads\nWhile stationed at Fort Monroe, the 20th Indiana was witness to the Battle of Hampton Roads, also known as the Battle of the Ironclads.\nDuring the CSS Virginia's initial successes, during which it sank the USS Cumberland (1842) and burned the USS Congress (1841), the 20th Indiana aided wounded sailors who washed up on the beach and provided small arms support for the USS Monitor upon its arrival.\nGeneral [Joseph K. Mansfield](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-k-mansfield), commanding officer of the Coastal Batteries overlooking the battle, is reported to have become so engrossed in the battle that he \"...forgot all else. At one shot from the Monitor, he would exclaim 'Damned it you're firing too high!', or to the Merrimac [when it engaged the Monitor] 'You cussed Rebel, you didn't hurt us a bit!'\".\n# [Mural painted by Crown Point artist Marion Kellum depicting the 20th Indiana's service at the Battle of Hampton Roads. The mural adorns a wall at Crown Point's Col. John Wheeler Middle School. | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/83/20thindianaironclads.jpg]\n\n# Seven Days Battles\nIn early 1862, General [George B. McClellan](https://bliptext.com/articles/george-b-mcclellan) devised a plan to take [Richmond](https://bliptext.com/articles/richmond-virginia) by transporting his forces via steamship to [Urbanna, Virginia](https://bliptext.com/articles/urbanna-virginia) and outflank the Confederate forces outside Washington.\nThis became known as the [Peninsular Campaign](https://bliptext.com/articles/peninsular-campaign).\nUnion forces maneuvered up the [James River](https://bliptext.com/articles/james-river) and disembarked at [Harrison's Landing](https://bliptext.com/articles/harrison-s-landing), then marching towards Richmond.\nThe Union forces split at the [Chickahominy River](https://bliptext.com/articles/chickahominy-river), with a smaller force on the southern side of the river.\nOn May 31, Confederate General [Joseph E. Johnston](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-e-johnston), firmly believing the city could not withstand a major siege, counterattacked.\nThe following battle became known as the [Battle of Seven Pines](https://bliptext.com/articles/battle-of-seven-pines) (or Battle of Fair Oakes).\nAlthough the result was inconclusive, the Confederates unknowingly managed to halt McClellan's march towards Richmond.\nFollowing the Battle of Seven Pines, the regiment was officially transferred to the Army of the Potomac, under General McClellan.\nThe regiment was assigned to the 1st Brigade (\"Robinson's Brigade\"), of the 3rd Division (Kearney's Division), of the [III Corps](https://bliptext.com/articles/iii-corps-union-army), commanded by General Samuel P. Heintzelman.\nAlthough the commanders of the Brigade, Division, and Corps changed throughout the war, the 20th was never reassigned.\n\n## Battle of Oak Grove\nComing nearly three weeks after the Battle of Seven Pines, the Battle of Oak Grove was McClellan's only offensive movement during the Peninsular Campaign.\nThe action was meant to secure the Union left flank, so that McClellan could bring his siege guns into position just south of [Old Tavern](https://bliptext.com/articles/old-tavern-virginia).\nThe 20th Indiana was located on the left side of the advancing Union picket line.\nThe regiment began advancing with the rest of the picket line at 8:30 A.M., and encountered mild resistance, with the majority of the fighting taking place on the far right flank of the Union line.\nMcClellan ordered the advance to halt at 1 P.M., fearing that casualties would be too high.\nUpon surveying the field for himself, he allowed the advance to continue.\nDuring this pause, Confederate troops seized the opportunity to regroup, and at 5:30 P.M., launched a counterattack against the Union left flank, the location of the 20th Indiana.\nThe 87th New York Regiment, which was in the immediate right of the 20th Indiana, broke under heavy pressure from the Confederate charge, just as the 20th was beginning a charge of its own against the confederate positions.\nThis fully exposed the right flank of the 20th Indiana to the Confederate attack.\nAlthough the regiment initially fell back in \"great confusion\".\nPrivate Joshua Lewis of the 20th Indiana wrote that upon encountering the deadly flanking fire of the enemy, the men of the regiment broke ranks, and \"So it was then, every man for himself...SO I ran as fast as I could, some ran for camp, but...stopped as soon as they were out of immediate danger.\"\nThe regiment did rally on its colors and re-establish its picket line in roughly the same position it started when the attack began, and in doing so drove off three different Confederate attacks.\nThe 20th Indiana incurred 125 casualties during the Battle of Oak Grove, with 11 dead, 82 wounded, and 32 captured.\nThe 20th Indiana's losses were second only to that of the 1st Louisiana Regiment.\nAlthough it was the 20th Indiana's first time in action, it was highly praised for its ruggedness and ability to withstand fire.\n\n## Battle of Savage's Station\nBy the 27th of June, believing that he was vastly outnumbered, General McClellan decided to pull his army back to the James River in a [tactical retreat](https://bliptext.com/articles/tactical-retreat).\nAs McClellan did this, General [Robert E. Lee](https://bliptext.com/articles/robert-e-lee) formulated a plan to strike at the flank of the Army of the Potomac, potentially destroying it.\nHis plan was, however, hampered by an unusual slowness that plagued Jackson throughout the Seven Days' Battles, as well as \"poor staff work, faulty maps, geographical obstacles, timid division commanders (especially Magruder and Benjamin Huger), stout Yankee resistance\" all worked to plague Lee's plan.\nBetween the 28th and 29 June, most of the Union forces had pulled back to [Savage's Station](https://bliptext.com/articles/savage-s-station), one of McClellan's main supply dumps.\nThe 20th Indiana bore witness to the Battle at Savages station, and was tasked with holding the station during the night until all possible Union forces had been evacuated.\nThe regiment repelled two further Confederate attacks that night, eventually withdrawing with the rest of the Army towards [White Oak Swamp](https://bliptext.com/articles/white-oak-swamp).\nIt is theorized that the main failure of Lee to destroy the Union rear guard at Savage's Station is due to General [John Magruder](https://bliptext.com/articles/john-b-magruder)'s sluggishness to get his troops into battle, poor staff work at Lee's headquarters, and General Jackson's continuing sluggishness.\n# [George McClellan's headquarters at Savage's Station | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c8/Savagehead1862.jpg]\n\n## Battle of Glendale\nThe day after the inconclusive fight at Savage's station, Lee hoped once more to destroy the Union army with a concentric assault from seven divisions near the village of Glendale.\nGlendale was of vital importance to the Union withdrawal, as it was a major crossroads and rail junction.\nWithout these intersections, the Army's march towards the James River would be cut off.\nThe Confederate assault once more became mired due to Jackson's sluggishness, leaving only General [James Longstreet's](https://bliptext.com/articles/james-longstreet) and General [A.P. Hill's](https://bliptext.com/articles/a-p-hill) divisions to engage the five Union divisions stationed at Glendale.\nThe 20th Indiana was deployed on the right flank of the Union line, under the immediate command of General [Phillip Kearny](https://bliptext.com/articles/phillip-kearny), with General [George A. McCall](https://bliptext.com/articles/george-a-mccall) commanding the Union center and General [Joseph Hooker](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-hooker) commanding the Union left flank.\nThe attack started at 2:30 P.M., with Longstreet charging McCall's troops and breaking them, capturing McCall in the action.\nHooker acted quickly and reversed the Southern breakthrough.\nLongstreet then turned his attention to the Union right flank, sending troops under command of Generals Pryor, [Featherston](https://bliptext.com/articles/winfield-s-featherston), and Gregg in such great amounts, it led General Kearny to exclaim \"such masses had I never witnessed!\"\nThe Confederates charged a total of three times, managing after each unsuccessful charge to regroup and renew the attack.\nCol. Brown of the 20th Indiana had taken the precaution of establishing a breastwork of rails and timber before the assaults, sparing numerous lives.\nPrivate Joshua Lewis of the 20th Indiana wrote that he was certain the other regiments behind the 20th, who did not have breastworks, certainly suffered greater than the 20th.\nDuring one charge, Kearny was in danger of losing his artillery batteries.\nKearney charged the rebel line with the 63rd Pennsylvania Volunteer Regiment, the 37th New York Volunteer Regiment, and the 20th Indiana, and succeeded in routing the Confederate advance and saving the battery.\nThe battle continued until 9:30 P.M., with near constant firing.\nPrivate Lewis wrote that \"We fired so rapidly our guns became too hot to hold on to\".\nAs light grew dim, it became difficult to distinguish friend from foe, leading one officer of the 20th to advance forward to identify troops he thought to be friendly, only be politely told by a Southern colonel that he was now a prisoner of the Confederate Army.\nTwo companies of the 20th Indiana were deployed to the front, but in the darkness they went beyond their intended positions, prompting a minor Confederate assault on the two companies.\nThis assault cost the 20th Indiana two officers, 1st Lt. Andrew of Company E (Killed) and Capt. Reed of Company K (Captured), along with 34 enlisted men.\nDuring the engagement, Brown reported that the regiment \"'Behaved with great coolness', the men engaged in jesting, cracking jokes, and loading and firing deliberately as if [they were shooting at] target\".\n\n## Battle of Malvern Hill\nFollowing the failure to destroy the Union army at Glendale, Lee had one last hope to destroy \"those people\" (his term for the enemy).\nThe Union army had taken up a position three miles south of Glendale on Malvern Hill.\nThis position was 150 ft. high and surrounded by deep ravines, forcing Lee into a frontal assault on the defenders.\nThe Union defenses consisted of four divisions and roughly 100 pieces of artillery, with about the same number in reserve.\nLee believed, however, that the Union army was demoralized, and about to break.\nHe came to this assumption based on various pieces of evidence from the past few days of fighting, such as the route of retreat being littered with abandoned equipment (including over 30,000 small arms), the capture of over 6,000 Union stragglers, and the sheer fact that the Army of the Potomac was in retreat.\nThe Army of the Potomac, however, was not demoralized.\n1st Lt. Gilbreath of I Company wrote that his men, although currently retreating from the enemy and having suffered significant losses during the previous battles, remained in high spirits.\nDisjointed communications led to the Confederate army advancing in small sections rather than all at once, which allowed the Union guns on top of Malvern Hill to pulverized the advancing Confederates.\nThe 20th Indiana, along with the rest of III Corps, was held in reserve and did not see action during the battle, however the regiment did receive shots from the initial Confederate barrage, leaving 13 dead.\n\n# Second Battle of Bull Run\nThe failure of McClellan's Peninsular Campaign prompted president Lincoln to appoint General [John Pope](https://bliptext.com/articles/john-pope-military-officer) to the newly formed Army of Virginia.\nPope's objectives were to protect Washington and the Shenandoah Valley from Confederate raids or invasion, and to keep the Confederate army from attacking the Army of the Potomac by moving towards Gordonsville.\nLee, having reorganized his army into two easily controllable groups under Longstreet and Jackson, saw no need to attack McClellan as he no longer saw him as a threat and advanced his groups to Gordonsville to meet Pope.\nOn August 27, 1862, Jackson maneuvered around Pope and sought to destroy the major supply depot at Mannassass Junction.\nPope, seeing this as an opportunity to get rid of Jackson, rapidly got his disjointed Corps together during the night of August 28–29 through a series of forced marches, and then hurriedly threw them piecemeal at Jackson in an attempt to break his line.\nBecause of this, Pope was unable to get more than 32,000 men into action against Jackson's 22,000.\nEven though Union troops broke Confederate lines at points, the Confederates hung on tenaciously and quickly filled the gaps.\nThe 20th Indiana was rushed into the action on the evening of the 27th and arrived early in the morning of the 28th.\nOn the 29th, the Regiment was maneuvered into position opposite an unfinished railroad which served as a sort of breastwork for the Confederate forces.\nAfter forming a skirmish line, the regiment advanced roughly two miles to drive the confederates out of their positions.\nThe regiment suffered the majority of their losses in this action, but were successful in temporarily breaking the Confederate line.\nBy 4:00 P.M., the regiment had crossed the railroad and had slowed their advance.\nWhile the 20th Indiana had been advancing, the rest of the army had come under significant pressure from Confederate forces, breaking parts of the Union lines.\nThis prompted General [Phillip Kearny](https://bliptext.com/articles/phillip-kearny) to order the 20th Indiana to wheel left in order to prevent a potential flank attack.\nMoving into position, the regiment took cover among the high grass and brush provided by the immediate area.\nThis maneuver prevented the regiment from being attacked head-on by a group of Confederate soldiers.\nAs the Confederates passed by the regiment, Private Peter Schwartz of Company I suddenly stood up and opened fire on the Confederates.\nThe regiment quickly followed Schwartz's example, completely destroying the extreme left wing of the Confederate advance.\nShortly after this success, during a withdrawal ordered by General Kearny, Col William Brown was shot through the temple by a Confederate sharpshooter.\nMaj. Wheeler assumed command of the regiment.\nThe regiment spent the night of August 29–30 in the field near the railroad.\nIn the morning they were relieved and relegated to minor support roles during the rest of the battle.\n# [Colonel John Wheeler | upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/71/Col///wheeler///mug.jpg]\n\n# Battle of Fredericksburg\nAlthough General McClellan had routed General [Lee's](https://bliptext.com/articles/robert-e-lee) army at the Battle of Antietam, he did not attempt to pursue or destroy it.\nThis irritated President Abraham Lincoln, who was looking to destroy the Confederacy quickly, leading to McClellan's removal as commander of the Army of the Potomac.\nGeneral [Ambrose E. Burnside](https://bliptext.com/articles/ambrose-e-burnside) replaced McClellan, and quickly came up with a strategy to take Richmond.\nBurnside's plan involved travelling up the Rappahannock river to the town of Fredericksburg, Virginia.\nWhile he did this, he would send a sizeable detachment in the opposite direction towards Lee's fortifications at Richmond to keep Lee guessing as to what Burnside was attempting to do.\nBurnside would then cross the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg, wheel his army left, and then advance towards Richmond behind Lee's fortifications, forcing him into an open battle where the North's superior numbers would inevitably win.\nDue to bureaucratic delays, delays in the vital pontoons needed to cross the Rappahannock at Fredericksburg, and luck on General Lee's part, Burnside was unable to attack until December 11, long after Lee had moved the majority of his forces from Richmond to the outskirts of Fredericksburg.\nFollowing the death of Col. Brown, Lt. Col. John van Valkenburg was promoted to command, with John Wheeler being promoted to Lt. Col. of the regiment.\nThe Regiment formed part of the Center Grand Division, and was maneuvered to the middle-left flank of Stafford Heights.\nOn Dec. 13, General [Meade](https://bliptext.com/articles/gordon-meade) was instructed to assault the Confederate right flank, positioned around Prospect Hill.\nAlthough Meade succeeded in breaking the Confederate line, General [Franklin](https://bliptext.com/articles/william-b-franklin) did not send reinforcements to strengthen Meade's position.\nMeade's troops began to run low on ammunition, prompting Meade to withdraw from Prospect Hill towards his lines.\nIn order to try to relieve the pressure on the Confederate troops, General Jackson ordered General [Taliaferro](https://bliptext.com/articles/william-b-taliaferro) forward to plug the gaps.\nThis coincided with Meade's retreat and resulted in Meade's troops being pursued by Taliaferro's troops towards Union lines.\nThe 20th Indiana sent into action to stop the Confederate pursuit.\nCrossing the southern pontoon bridges at double-quick speed, the regiment charged into the Confederate pursuit at approximate 1 P.M., taking 27 casualties.\nThe Brigade the 20th was attached to took a total of 146 casualties.\nFollowing the battle, the regiment withdrew to its previous position near the town of [Falmouth](https://bliptext.com/articles/falmouth-virginia) where they camped throughout the winter.\nDuring the Winter, Col. van Valkenburg was mustered out of service for disloyalty.\nAlthough many of the men firmly believed he was not disloyal to the cause, it was a well known fact that he was a very ardent admirer of McClellan, and had been indiscreet about his opinions on McClellan's removal from command.\nHe was replaced by Col. John Wheeler.\n\n# Battle of Chancellorsville\nFollowing the defeat at Fredericksburg, General Burnside offered President Lincoln his resignation from both the Army of the Potomac and the Army itself.\nLincoln persuaded Burnside to stay in the army, transferring him to the western theater.\nCommand of the Army of the Potomac was given to General [Joseph \"Fighting Joe\" Hooker](https://bliptext.com/articles/joseph-hooker).\nPresident Lincoln had since come to a firm decision that the primary objective of the Army of the Potomac was to destroy General Lee's army, rather than to capture a geographic strongpoint, such as Richmond.\nHooker constructed a plan which would involve splitting his army in two, with one pincer attacking Lee's front and the other pincer maneuvering around Lee's rear to attack him from behind simultaneously.\nHowever, a combination of General Lee's daring and General Hooker's loss of nerve prevented this from happening.\nThe Regiment arrived at Chancellorsville around 11:00 A.M. on May 1, and was sent into the field around 5:00 P.M. towards Hazel Grove, where the pickets were established for the night.\nThe next morning, General [Dan Sickles](https://bliptext.com/articles/daniel-sickles), commander of the III Corps, took note of a large Confederate column advancing along [Catherine Furnace](https://bliptext.com/articles/catherine-furnace).\nBelieving the column to be a flanking maneuver, Sickles ordered the 20th Indiana, along with the rest of Birney's division, forward to disrupt it.\nThe division ran headlong into the 23rd Georgia Vol. Regt., routing and capturing hundreds of unsuspecting Georgians.\nThe division advanced further and eventually stopped past a railroad cut near Welford House.\nWhile the surprise was sudden and very unwelcome for the Georgians, General Jackson had taken the calculated risk.\nUnderstanding that his movements along Catherine Furnace were being watched by the Union, Jackson had gone ahead and sent numerous regiments and supply trains down the road, seemingly daring the Union troops to come and attack them.\nWhen the Union did as Jackson expected, he took the opportunity to quickly surround the troops, which were suddenly separated from the main force.\nDuring the night of May 2–3, the 20th Indiana regularly increased their picket line until it was evident that they were surrounded by Confederates.\nBy Midnight, they had learned that the Confederates had attacked the right flank of the army, cutting them off.\nSilently, the 20th Indiana and [63rd Pennsylvania](https://bliptext.com/articles/63rd-pennsylvania-infantry) withdrew their pickets and attempted to return to the line in the darkness, at points getting so close to enemy encampments that they could hear role being called.\nUpon successfully returning to the line, the 20th Indiana was placed in a new line supporting the artillery of Battery E, 1st Rhode Island Artillery, where they remained until the close of the battle.\nThe regiment was attacked often, each time successfully repulsing the attacks.\n\n# Gettysburg\nThe beating that the 20th Indiana received on July 2 on Houck's Ridge was severe.\nThe regiment suffered 152 casualties, of which 32 were killed outright including Col. John Wheeler who was struck, fell from his horse and died.\nCapt. Gilbreath recalled that it was a “sorrowful little band” after their participation in the battle.\n[Oliver P. Rood](https://bliptext.com/articles/oliver-p-rood), a private, earned the Medal of Honor on the third day of the battle for capturing the flag of the 21st North Carolina.\n\n# Total strength and casualties\nUpon its inception, the 20th Indiana had 1403 men.\nDuring the war, 201 men were killed in action, and 570 were wounded, 144 were captured, 25 of whom died in Confederate prisons.\nThe regiment had a 14.3% killed to enrollment ratio.\nA list of officers killed in action was kept by Capt. Erasmus Corwin Gilbreath of I Company, and is as follows:\n\n# Commanders\n\n# Notable Members","revisionCount":0},"hasMore":false,"nextCursor":null}

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