The 5th West Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Service The 5th West Virginia Infantry Regiment was organized at Ceredo, West Virginia, beginning on September 3, 1861, and mustered in on October 18, 1861. Originally mustered into service as the 5th Virginia Regiment of the Union Army, it became the 5th West Virginia when West Virginia was designated a distinct state. Organized in southwestern West Virginia, the majority of men were recruited from southern Ohio and eastern Kentucky, with many others from Wayne County, West Virginia.Dickinson, Jack L., Wayne County, West Virginia, in the Civil War, Higginson Book Co., 2003, pg. 136 Lawrence County, Ohio alone provided 419 men to the regiment.Taylor, Charles B., ed., A Standard History of the Hanging Rock Iron Region of Ohio..., Lewis Publishing Co, 1916, pg. 290
Under Gen. Robert H. Milroy, the regiment fought at the Battle of McDowell on May 8, 1862, and the Battle of Cross Keys on June 8, 1862, with Col. John L. Ziegler in command.
The regiment's assignments were as follows:
Dates Assignment To March 1862 Unattached, District of the Kanawha, West Virginia To April 1862 District of Cumberland, Maryland, Mountain Department To June 1862 Milroy's Independent Brigade, Mountain Department To September 1862 Milroy's Independent Brigade, 1st Army Corps, Army of Virginia To October 1862 Defenses of Washington, D.C. To January 1863 District of the Kanawha, West Virginia, Department of Ohio To March 1863 Unattached, District of the Kanawha, West Virginia To June 1863 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, 8th Army Corps, Middle Department To December 1863 1st Brigade, Scammon's Division, Department of West Virginia To April 1864 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, West Virginia To November 1864 1st Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division, West Virginia
Detailed Service The regiment performed duty at Ceredo and in the Kanawha Valley until December 10, 1861, when it moved to Parkersburg, West Virginia, then on to New Creek, West Virginia, in February 1862. A detachment was at Linn Creek, Logan County, on February 8. The regiment remained on duty at New Creek until May, when it joined Milroy's Brigade on May 2.
The regiment then saw action in the Shenandoah Valley campaign of 1862, participating in the following engagements:
Date Engagement / Location May 8, 1862 Battle of McDowell May 10–12, 26, 1862 Near Franklin June 8, 1862 Battle of Cross Keys June 20 – July 5, 1862 At Strasburg July 5–11, 1862 Advance to Luray
The regiment moved to Sperryville on July 11, then to Woodville on July 22, remaining there on duty until August 9. It then participated in Gen. Pope's Northern Virginia Campaign:
Date Engagement / Location August 9, 1862 Battle of Cedar Mountain August 10, 1862 Cedar Run August 16 – September 2, 1862 Pope's Campaign in Northern Virginia August 20–23, 1862 Fords of the Rappahannock August 22, 1862 Freeman's Ford, Hazel River August 22, 1862 Johnson's Ford August 24–25, 1862 Waterloo Bridge August 28, 1862 Gainesville August 29, 1862 Groveton
During the Second Battle of Bull Run on August 30, 1862, the regiment was sent by Gen. Milroy to link up with an Ohio infantry regiment to support units attempting to hold Gen. Stonewall Jackson's line at the unfinished railroad tracks below Henry Hill. The units became disoriented and found themselves in the middle of Jackson's line. After a brief skirmish, the 5th West Virginia withdrew to regroup, before being directed to support Union troops defending Henry Hill, where Gen. Milroy was seen waving his saber in a desperate attempt to stem the Confederate onslaught.
The regiment then performed duty in the Defenses of Washington, D.C., until September 29, before moving to Beverly, West Virginia (September 29 – October 9), then Parkersburg on October 10. It remained on duty at Ceredo until March 1863, scouting the Little Kanawha and the east side of the Big Sandy Rivers. In March it was ordered to Wayne Court House, skirmishing at Hurricane Creek on March 28. The regiment served at Charlestown, Barboursville, Hurricane Bridge, and other points in the Kanawha Valley until April 1864, including Scammon's demonstration from the Kanawha Valley (December 8–25, 1863).
The regiment participated in Crook's Raid on the Virginia & Tennessee Railroad (May 2–19, 1864) and Hunter's Expedition to Lynchburg (May 26 – July 1, 1864):
Date Engagement / Location May 6, 1864 Rocky Gap May 9, 1864 Battle of Cloyd's Mountain May 10, 1864 New River Bridge May 10, 1864 Blacksburg May 12, 1864 Union May 24, 1864 Meadow Bluff June 11–12, 1864 Lexington June 14, 1864 Buchanan June 16, 1864 Otter Creek June 17, 1864 Diamond Hill June 17–18, 1864 Lynchburg June 19, 1864 Buford's Gap June 21, 1864 Salem
The regiment moved to the Shenandoah Valley on July 13–15, 1864, and participated in Sheridan's Shenandoah Valley Campaign (August 6 – November 1, 1864):
Date Engagement / Location July 19, 1864 Kablestown July 23–24, 1864 Battle of Kernstown, Winchester July 25, 1864 Martinsburg August 15, 1864 Strasburg August 2, 1864 Halltown August 24, 1864 Summit Point September 3, 1864 Berryville September 19, 1864 Battle of Opequan, Winchester September 22, 1864 Fisher's Hill October 19, 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek
Veterans of the regiment were consolidated with the 9th West Virginia Infantry Regiment on November 9, 1864, to form the 1st West Virginia Veteran Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
Casualties The 5th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment suffered 4 officers and 57 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded in battle and 2 officers and 88 enlisted men dead from disease for a total of 151 fatalities.
Commanders Colonel John L. Zeigler (resigned April 14, 1863) Colonel Abais Allen Tomlinson
See also West Virginia Units in the Civil War West Virginia in the Civil War
References
The Civil War Archive