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86th New
York Infantry
Online Books:
86th New York
Infantry Soldier
Roster - Annual Report of the Adjutant General of the State of New York For the Year
1893, Volume 30 View the Entire Book
| Regimental History |
| Eighty-sixth New York Infantry. — Cols., Benijah P. Bailey, Benjamin L.
Higgins, Jacob H. Lansing, Nathan H. Vincent; Lieut.-Cols., Barnard J. Chapin, Benjamin L.
Higgins, Jacob H. Lansing, Michael B. Stafford, Nathan H. Vincent, Luzern Todd; Majs.,
Seyman G. Rheinvault, Benjamin L. Higgins, Jacob H. Lansing, Michael B. Stafford, Nathan
H. Vincent, Frederick Van Tine, Luzern Todd, Samuel H. Leavitt. The 86th, known as the
Steuben Rangers, was recruited in Steuben, Chemung and Onondaga counties, mustered into
the U. S. service at Elmira, Nov. 20 to 23, 1861, and left for Washington on Nov. 23. It
passed the first winter in the performance of guard duty at or near Washington and was not
ordered to the front until Aug., 1862, when it joined the forces under Gen. Pope and lost
118 in killed, wounded and missing at the second Bull Run. It then moved to
Fredericksburg, participated in the battle there with the 1st brigade, 3d division, 3d
corps, and then went into winter quarters near Falmouth. It bore a prominent part in the
battle of Chancellorsville, was engaged at Brandy Station, and was in the thick of the
fight at Gettysburg. Moving southward via Wapping heights, Auburn and Kelly's ford, no
further loss was met with until the Mine Run campaign, when the regiment lost 32 in the
action at Locust Grove. At Brandy Station, where the Army of the Potomac made its winter
quarters, a large number of the regiment reenlisted and received their veteran furlough in
Jan., 1864, and the 86th continued in the field as a veteran regiment. Camp was broken in
April for the Wilderness campaign, the regiment being assigned to the 1st brigade, 3d
division, 2nd corps, with which it fought through all the battles of that memorable
advance toward Richmond, meeting its heaviest loss at the Po river, where 96 were killed,
wounded or captured. It accompanied its brigade and division to Petersburg, shared in the
first assault, the engagements at the Weldon railroad, Deep Bottom, Strawberry- Plains,
Poplar Spring Church, the Boydton road, the Hicksford raid, Hatcher's run and in the
Appomattox campaign, winning renown as a fighting regiment. It was commonly named
"The fighting regiment of the Southern Tier." Out of a total enrollment of
1,318, the regiment lost 98 killed in action, 73 died from wounds, and 153 from other
causes during service. The loss in officers was also heavy. Lieut. -Col. Chapin was killed
and Maj. Higgins severely wounded at Chancellorsville, and Lieut. -Col. Stafford fell
before Petersburg. |
Footnotes:
Regimental history taken from "The Union Army" by Federal Publishing
Company, 1908 - Volume 2
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