Overview
The 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry (Three Months’ Service) was an infantry regiment organized at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for Union service at the outset of the Civil War. Mustered in on April 20, 1861, the regiment drew its companies from Franklin, Perry, Adams, Lancaster, Chester, Centre, Dauphin, and York counties. The unit served in the Eastern Theater as part of the initial mobilization following the call for volunteers in April 1861.
This regiment served a three months’ term and should not be confused with later Pennsylvania regiments of the same number with different service terms.
Organization & Service
The 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry (Three Months’ Service) was organized at Harrisburg on April 20, 1861. The regiment was composed of men from several central and southeastern Pennsylvania counties. Upon organization, it was ordered to Cockeysville, Maryland, and subsequently moved to York and Chambersburg, Pennsylvania.
The regiment was assigned to the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, Department of Washington, alongside the 1st and 3rd Pennsylvania Infantry (Three Months’ Service). Its primary duties involved movements and stationing in the vicinity of Funkstown and Martinsburg, in support of operations in western Maryland and the lower Shenandoah Valley. In July, as part of General Robert Patterson’s army, the regiment marched to Bunker Hill on July 15, 1861, but soon returned to Charlestown on July 17. The 2nd Pennsylvania remained at Charlestown until ordered back to Harrisburg, where it was mustered out of service on July 26, 1861.
Research This Regiment Further
If you’d like to explore this unit’s history in more depth, regimental histories and Civil War reference works offer valuable detail.
Engagements & Campaigns
- Duty at Cockeysville, York, and Chambersburg (April–May 1861)
- Operations near Funkstown and Martinsburg (May–July 1861)
- March to Bunker Hill (July 15, 1861)
- Return to Charlestown (July 17, 1861)
Casualties
Specific casualty figures for the 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry (Three Months’ Service) are not detailed in primary sources. Available records indicate the regiment did not participate in major combat and suffered minimal losses during its term of service.
Field Officers & Commanders
- Colonel Frederick S. Stumbaugh
- Lieutenant Colonel Thomas Welsh
- Major James Given
Regimental Roster
The full roster of the 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry (Three Months’ Service), including officers and enlisted men from each company, is available for genealogical and historical research. This roster provides names, ranks, and counties of origin for those who served during the regiment’s three months’ term.
To view the complete roster, visit the 2nd Pennsylvania Infantry (Three Months’ Service) Roster page.
Sources & References
- Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, Vol. 2
- Pennsylvania Adjutant General’s Report, 1861
- Dyer, Frederick H., A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion
- The Union Army, Vol. 1 (Federal Publishing Company, 1908)