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28th New York Infantry Regiment

Niagara Rifles; Scott Life Guard

Colonel Dudley Donnelly Colonel Edwin F. Brown

A Unit History

The First Volunteers

The 28th New York one of the early regiments of the war and was one of the first volunteer regiments to march to the aid of Washington after the Southern States seceded from the Union.

Following the bombardment of Fort Sumter on April 12th 1861, which started the war between the states, the immediate concern within the Union was the Capital, Washington, with the exception of a few local militia, was almost completely undefended. A number of the more prepared militia regiments rushed to the defense of Washington. However, it was clear that the war would take more than the service of the militia. On April 15th, Abraham Lincoln made a call for 75,000 volunteers to enlist for two years.

On the morning of April 15th, a number of people became aware that the President was going to call for Volunteers that afternoon and by the time the President made the request recruitment stands were already in place across parts of the Union. Within Western New York recruitment stands in Lockport and Batavia were established by Elliot W Cook, William W Bush and James B Mitchell. By the time of the call for 75,000 volunteers, the men who would become companies A, B and F were already being recruited.

William W Bush, a tavern owner from Lockport, was officially recognized as "The First Volunteer". The companies of the 28th New York were principally recruited from Niagara, Orleans, Genesee, Ontario and Sullivan counties and, as companies were completed, they were sent to rendezvous at Albany. By May 18th the required number of companies were complete and, following the election of Officer - five weeks after the start of the war - the regiment was mustered into the service of the United States in Albany on May 22nd.

The men who had enlisted where the first volunteers from Western New York and some of the first volunteers in the Union. They are officially recognized as being the first volunteers from Genesee, Niagara and Ontario counties of New York State. These men enlisted without bounty or draft. They served the Union because they knew that it was the right thing to do rather than because it was what they were told to do.

At the time of it's formation, the regiment was commanded by Colonel Dudley Donnelly. Prior to this he had been magistrate in the City of Lockport and had been Lieutenant-Colonel of the 66th New York Militia (Based in Niagara County) before he volunteered in April 1861.

When mustered, the regiment consisted of around 800 officers and enlisted men. The companies which formed the 28th New York were recruited from the following areas of New York state:

A, B, C and K recruited at Lockport; D at Medina; E at Canandaigua; F at Batavia; G at Albion; H at Monticello and I at Niagara Falls.

1861, From Albany on to Washington.

Having completed a month of training at Albany, the 28th New York was ordered to Washington on June 24th 1861. The journey took them down the Hudson River by barge to Elizabethport, New Jersey. From there the regiment continued into Maryland by railroad.

On June 26th, the regiment was required to de-train at Baltimore and marched through the city two months after the 6th Mass was attacked by Southern sympathizers, however, apart from a few cheers for Jeff Davis the regiment passed unmolested.

The 28th arrived in Washington that evening and camped a mile north of the city on New York Avenue. The camp was named in honor of Senator Harris of New York State. On July 4th, the 28th New York participated in the first Grand Review of the war involving all of the soldiers who were in Washington at that time before President Lincoln, General Winfield Scott and the Cabinet.

The 28th New York spent 10 days at Fort Harris drilling. However, on July 6th, the regiment marched west to link up with the army of the Shenandoah under the command of General Patterson at Martinsburg in West Virginia.

Isaac W Sly - The first to fall.

The 28th New York forded the Potomac River on July 8th and arrived at Martinsburg that evening. On the first night in Virginia the 28th New York saw enemies everywhere. One picket reported having fired 30 rounds into a tree stump to ensure that it was not an enemy combatant.

On July 10th, companies A & C, under the command of Captain Cook and Captain Mapes, moved several miles north to guard the forage train of Captain Skeels. Company A was extended as skirmishers.

A company of about fifty Confederate cavalry charged and the skirmish line withdrew to a tree line, firing as they fell back. It was at this time, taking aim while falling back, that Private Isaac W Sly, of Company A, was hit in the chin. The bullet passed through his spinal column and killed him instantly.

With reserves brought up the Confederates withdrew leaving three men killed and several wounded in the skirmish.

Isaac Sly's body was brought back to Martinsburg and was buried on July 11th with military honors.

Into the Valley with Patterson & Banks, 1861 to 1862

At the time of the First Battle of Bull Run, the 28th New York was under the command of General Patterson, in the Shenandoah Valley and, due to tactical errors by Patterson, was neither present at that battle nor able to carry out its primary orders: To prevent Confederate reinforcements from arriving at Manassas.

People in the northern states went into the First Battle of Bull Run expecting a quick victory in the war. The Union defeat at 1st Bull Run hit morale across the entire army very hard and proved that the Southern States would not just roll over without a fight.

After 1st Bull Run, General Patterson was removed as Division commander and was replaced by General Nathaniel Banks.

Following the replacement of Patterson as Division commander, the 28th moved to Harpers Ferry where it spent the month of August 1861 encamped. In late August, following the restructuring of the Union forces, the regiment marched to Darnestown and joined the brigade with which it would serve out the rest of it's enlistment, under the command of General Alpheus Starkey Williams.

The 28th New York camped at Darnestown for two months through to October 21st. At that time, the 28th was suddenly ordered to make a forced night march to Ball's Bluff where a battle was taking place. The 28th arrived the following morning and for the first time saw the aftermath of battle. Ambulances containing dead and wounded were lining the road and wounded soldiers lay on the ground with no protection from the October rain which was falling.

Ball's Bluff was an attempted crossing of the Potomac which resulted in the Union soldiers being driven into the river and shot as they attempted to swim back. Stories are told of blue-clad bodies drifting down the Potomac and through Washington.

The Confederates who had defended Ball's Bluff withdrew the following day and the Union army crossed the Potomac on October 25th. On the 26th the regiment arrived in Muddy Branch, MD, where log cabins were built in preparation for winter. The official history of the regiment goes into great detail regarding these log cabins and they were obviously constructed with great pride. The 28th spent Thanksgiving here.

However, much to the disappointment of the men of the regiment, on Dec 4th, they were ordered to march and leave the log cabins to another regiment. In an act which does not put certain, unknown, members of the regiment in a very good light, by the time the regiment had fallen in to march off, the entire camp was ablaze.

The 28th New York spent the next three days marching the 35 miles from Muddy Branch to Frederick, MD. Once here they set up camp in a maple grove overlooking Frederick City. A sketch of the camp where the 28th New York spent December 1861 and early January 1862 is shown below.

Camp White - Winter encampment at Frederick, MD

In early January 1862, Confederate movements north out of Winchester, VA, towards Hancock MD, called for additional soldiers to be moved to Hancock and General Williams brigade spent three days marching through snowstorms from Frederick. However, the winter conditions made it difficult for the Confederates to move their artillery and eventually withdrew to Winchester. The 28th, and William's brigade, spent the next two months encamped at Hancock and saw no sight of their foe until the arrival of spring 1862.

Spring 1862, Down the Shenandoah.

----Rewriting Regimental History---

1862, Winchester and Cedar Mountain

During operations along the Shenandoah Valley, Confederate forces, under Jackson, outmaneuvered the Union Army of the Shenandoah and managed to threaten their supply lines. As a result, Banks was forced to withdraw his Division towards Winchester to protect his rear.

Jackson, outnumbering Banks by several thousand soldiers, pursued the withdrawing Union army. Banks decided to make a stand to the south of the city of Winchester on May 25th, 1862.

The 28th New York was positioned on the left of the Union defensive position and managed to repulse the initial Confederate attack. However, as the battle progressed, the Confederates positioned artillery on a hill overlooking the right of the line and used their numerical superiority to move men further around the right and left of the Union position. The right flank, under pressure from Confederate artillery broke and the Union line was forced to withdraw.

As the Union army withdrew through Winchester, the 28th New York was the last Union regiment to leave the field of battle

The 28th New York was next involved in the battle of Cedar Mountain on August 9th 1862. During this battle, the 1st (Crawford's) Brigade (of which the 28th New York was a member) was ordered to advance across an open field against dug-in Confederate Infantry and Artillery. They made the charge and took two Confederate guns, however they received no support and, as the Confederates brought up reinforcements, the 28th New York and 1st Brigade was forced to withdraw across the open field taking huge casualties.

The advance of Crawford's Brigade at Cedar Mountain

During the battle, the 1st Brigade lost over 50% of its entire strength with the 28th New York losing 59% of it's available manpower including 10 officers and 82 enlisted men captured (this included the loss of the regimental colors to the 5th VA). Every officer who took the field with the 28th was either killed, wounded or captured including the regiments leader, Colonel Dudley Donnelly, who died of wounds received during the battle. For the 28th New York, the battle deserved it alternate name… Slaughter Mountain.

Four days after the Battle of Cedar Mountain the 28th New York took part in a Brigade review for General Crawford and had only 78 men fit to participate.

The 28th New York was at the Second Battle of Bull Run but their involvement was minimal. Now being well under full strength, they were ordered to guard railway cars at Bristol Station during the battle. After the battle, the 28th was ordered to burn the wagons to prevent the supplies from falling into the hands of the enemy.

The Antietam Campaign

At Antietam, on Sept 17th 1862, the 28th New York was clearly still suffering from the number of officers and men who were lost at Cedar Mountain as they found themselves commanded by a Captain, William H H Mapes (pictured below). During the battle they were positioned, along with the 1st (Crawford) Brigade, 1st (Williams) Division, 12th Corps, on the right of the Union line in the rear of the Dunkard Church.

At noon, the Union 12th Corps moved forward in support of the 1st Corps, which had attacked the Confederate position on the extreme right of the line and was engaged in heavy fighting at the Corn Field against the 6th North Carolina and 4th Alabama of Law's Brigade, Hoods Division.

Due to the arrival of support being mistimed; the heavily defended Confederate position; poor terrain and with the commanders of both the 1st and 12th Corps replaced due to being wounded during the fight, the attack on the right came to a halt.

As the day progressed the emphasis of the battle switching further to the left of the Union line. The 28th New York, along with the rest of Crawford’s Brigade, were moved to support Sedgewick’s Division and then formed up in support of the 6th Corps towards the end of the day.

The 28th New York spent winter of 1862 encamped in Pleasant Valley, MD, in preparation for 1863.

1863, The Battle of Chancellorsville.

At Chancellorsville, May 1st – 3rd 1863, 1st (Crawford's) Brigade, 1st (Williams) Division was heavily involved in battle. Few more so than the 28th New York. The four companies present at the battle, with about 100 men in total, were involved in an advance over an open field during the first day of battle against Confederate artillery and a hidden skirmish line. After an hour long firefight, and having uncovered the enemy position, they withdrew with one man killed and 6 wounded.

On the morning of May 2nd, the regiment, along with Crawford's Brigade was positioned in log breastworks on the extreme right of the 12th Corps with the 11th Corps to their front and right and the 3rd Corps to their left.

In the early afternoon on May 2nd, the 12th Corps was ordered to move forward to align with the 3rd Corps. However, General Williams, commanding the 1st Division, bearing in mind that the enlistment of the 28th New York was nearly ended, ordered the men of the 28th New York back to the breastworks. The 100 men of the 28th New York returned to occupy the breastworks which had, until recently, been occupied by the entire 1st Brigade. In hindsight, General Williams was sending the 28th New York into the eye of the storm.

For the next few hours, the 28th New York rested, with the 11th Corps over a mile to their front. Then, at 5pm on May 2nd, out of nowhere the sounds of battle was upon them. Through the woods to their front came the fleeing mob of the 11th Corps.

During the previous night, the entire Corps of Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson had made a flank movement round the extreme right of the Union line and caught the 11th Corps completely by surprise. With the 11th Corps routed and the 12th Corps moved off to the left, the 28th New York now stood alone in the path of the main Confederate advance.

Colonel Cook concentrated the 28th New York on the breastworks at the road and they, along with many of the officers of the 11th Corps attempted, mostly in vain, to rally the routed men of the 11th Corps.

At the first sight of Confederate infantry to their front, the few men of the 11th Corps who had rallied turned and ran again leaving the 28th New York alone to defend the breastworks.

Under cover of darkness, and with nobody to the right of the 28th New York, the confederates easily moved men around the flank of the small Union force. The 28th found themselves surrounded on the right and rear by the 5th Alabama.

With his command surrounded, Colonel Cook ordered his men to cease fire and surrendered. A few of the men on the left of the position retreated rather than surrender, however, out of 100 men present on the field of battle, 76 men surrendered.

To add insult to injury, the now POW members of the 28th New York came under fire from Federal field guns as they were being taken back through the Confederate lines.

It was during this engagement that "Stonewall" Jackson was accidentally shot by his own pickets and died of wounds eight days after the battle.

Mustered out.

Chancellorsville was the final battle for the 28th New York. On June 2nd, having completed there two year enlistment, they were honorably discharged and mustered out by Colonel Edwin F Brown.

For the 28th, it was the fortune of war that in every engagement which the regiment served they found the soldiers of one of the most gifted Confederate officers, General Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson, facing them. Yet, despite this fact, the 28th served their enlistment with honor and, despite any odds, did all they were asked in each engagement.

During the 2 year enlistment, the 28th New York lost 2 officers and 60 enlisted men to enemy fire and 47 enlisted men to other illnesses. In addition, taking paroles into account, 14 officers and 235 enlisted men were reported as missing during the course of regiment’s existence. Most were taken prisoner by Confederate forces during the battles at Cedar Mountain and Chancellorsville and several men had the dubious honor of being taken prisoner on more than one occasion.

In the months following the mustering out of the 28th New York at Lockport, NY, and with the Civil War far from over, a large number of the men of the 28th rejoined the Union army and served in every branch of service through to the conclusion of the war in 1865.