The Civil War
was underway. The young state of Minnesota had already been authorized
to raise
four regiments of infantry. On October 23, 1861, the Assistant
Secretary of War for the United States, Thomas A. Scott, sent
correspondence to Governor Alexander Ramsey of Minnesota:
War Department,
Washington,
October 23, 1861.
Hon. Alexander Ramsey,
Governor of Minnesota:
Sir : Please consider yourself authorized to
raise an additional regiment of infantry, being the fifth from your State.
Respectfully,
THOMAS A. SCOTT,
Assistant Secretary of War.
The
Fifth Minnesota Volunteer Infantry Regiment was subsequently organized
at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, from March 15 to
April 30,
1862, and was disbanded September 6, 1865. The 5th Minnesota
participated
in western theater Civil War activities as part of the Union Army; it
also
was employed in managing Indian affairs at times. During its 3 1/2
years
of service, the regiment lost 4 officers and 86 enlisted men killed and
mortally wounded, and 4 officers and 175 enlisted men by disease for a
total loss of 269 men. A synopsis of regiment activities may be viewed
at
http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/regiments.cfm .
This web-site
has information on the
10 companies of the 5th
Minnesota (designated A-I and K) as well as the Field and Staff
officers and Generals who commanded the 5th Minnesota.
I started this
web-site because my
great great grandfather, Johann
"Michael" Herrmann, served in the 5th Minnesota, Company E, from
September 1864 until he was wounded at the Battle of Nashville on
December 16, 1864.
11/14/2009 Added a
link to John Becht's report at Fort DeRussy, Louisiana (below) 11/14/2009 Added a
link
to the web site for historical Fort Abercrombie, Dakota Territory
(below) 11/9/2009 Updated the
URL for the 5th Minnesota, Company C
reenactment web site (below)
10/24/2009 Added a bio
page for Ernst Kunze, Company D 10/20/2009 Added a bio
page for Amos
E. Barber, Company H
10/7/2009 Added a bio
page for Major Francis Hall, Company C
10/5/2009 Added a bio page for Sergeant Charles Grandy, Company C 10/3/2009 Added a bio
page for Sergeant John Godley, Company C 9/29/2009 Added a bio
page for Jacob Zahratka, Company A 9/28/2009 Added more
Wikipedia article links (below)
9/24/2009 Added a bio
page for Lyman Eggleston, Company C
9/22/2009 Added a bio page for Charles Drechsel, Company D 9/21/2009 Added a bio
page for Elihu Cole, Company A 9/21/2009 Added
"Search this Site"
Military
Activities of the 5th
Minnesota
Siege of Corinth, Mississippi, May 26-30, 1862
Dakota War of 1862, Minnesota
Battle of Iuka, September 19, 1862
Battle of Corinth, Mississippi October 3-4, 1862
Grant's Central Mississippi Campaign, November, 1862, to January,
1863
Siege of Vicksburg, Mississippi, May 18-July 4, 1863
Meridian Campaign, February 3-March 2, 1864
Red River Campaign, March 10-May 22, 1864
Battle of Pleasant Hill, April 9, 1864
Action at Old River Lake, June 6, 1864: Defeat of Marmaduke
Battle of Tupelo, Mississippi, July 17, 1864
March through Arkansas and Missouri in pursuit of Price,
September
17-November 15, 1864
Battle of Nashville, Tennessee, December 15-16, 1864
Assault and capture of Fort Blakely, April 9, 1865
Specific
Localities Represented in
the 5th Minnesota
