Overview
The 41st Pennsylvania Infantry (12th Pennsylvania Reserve) was an infantry regiment organized at Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, for three years’ service in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Mustered into U.S. service at Camp Curtin on August 10, 1861, the regiment was part of the Pennsylvania Reserves Division and served primarily in the Eastern Theater. It was also known as the 12th Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment.
The regiment gained distinction for its discipline and performance in several major campaigns and battles, including the Seven Days Battles, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Gettysburg, and the Wilderness Campaign. Its service concluded in June 1864, with veterans and recruits transferred to the 190th Pennsylvania Infantry.
Organization & Service
The 41st Pennsylvania Infantry (12th Pennsylvania Reserve) was organized at Harrisburg and mustered into federal service at Camp Curtin on August 10, 1861, for a three-year term. Its initial duty involved guarding the state arsenal, which was threatened by unrest among recently discharged three months’ troops. In late August 1861, the regiment moved to Tennallytown, Maryland, joining the Pennsylvania Reserves and being assigned to the 3rd Brigade.
After encamping at Langley, Virginia, the regiment participated in the action at Dranesville in December 1861. In April 1862, it was detached for guard duty at Catlett’s Station before rejoining the main force for the Peninsula Campaign. The regiment fought at Mechanicsville, Gaines’ Mill, and Glendale, earning a reputation for steadiness under fire. Remaining with the 3rd Brigade, it took part in the Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, and Fredericksburg campaigns. The unit returned to Washington, D.C., with the Reserves for the winter of 1862–63.
In 1863, the regiment was engaged at Gettysburg, Bristoe Station, Rappahannock Station, and Mine Run, spending the winter near Catlett’s Station. During the Overland Campaign in May 1864, it fought in the Wilderness and at Bethesda Church, its final engagement. Afterward, veterans and recruits were transferred to the 190th Pennsylvania Infantry. The regiment returned to Harrisburg and was mustered out on June 11, 1864.
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
- Dranesville (December 1861)
- Peninsula Campaign (Mechanicsville, Gaines’ Mill, Glendale)
- Second Bull Run
- South Mountain
- Antietam
- Fredericksburg
- Gettysburg
- Bristoe Station
- Rappahannock Station
- Mine Run
- Wilderness Campaign (including Bethesda Church)
Casualties
Specific casualty figures for the 41st Pennsylvania Infantry (12th Pennsylvania Reserve) are not fully detailed in all primary sources. Fox’s Regimental Losses and state reports indicate the regiment suffered significant losses in several major battles, but exact numbers for killed, wounded, and died of disease are not consistently reported.
Some details are incomplete in surviving primary sources.
Field Officers & Commanders
- Colonel John H. Taggart
- Colonel Martin D. Hardin
- Lieutenant Colonel Samuel N. Bailey
- Lieutenant Colonel Martin D. Hardin
- Lieutenant Colonel Peter Baldy
- Lieutenant Colonel Richard Gustin
- Major Peter Baldy
- Major Andrew J. Bolar
- Major Charles W. Diven
Regimental Roster
The full roster of the 41st Pennsylvania Infantry (12th Pennsylvania Reserve) includes officers and enlisted men who served during its three years of service. This roster provides names, ranks, and service details valuable for genealogical and historical research.
To view the complete roster, visit the 41st Pennsylvania Infantry (12th Pennsylvania Reserve) Roster page.
Sources & References
- Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Series I, various volumes and parts (Army of the Potomac, Pennsylvania Reserves Division)
- Pennsylvania State Adjutant General’s Report, 1861–1865
- Dyer, Frederick H., A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion
- Fox, William F., Regimental Losses in the American Civil War
- The Union Army, Federal Publishing Company, 1908, Vol. 1