The 10th Illinois Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army between April 20, 1861, and July 11, 1865, during the American Civil War.
Service Initial 3 month service The Tenth Illinois Volunteer Infantry was one of the six Regiments called for by the Governor Yates's order of Tuesday, April 16, 1861. The infantry regiment was organized at Springfield, Illinois, from the first four companies reporting on April 20, 1861. They were ordered to Cairo, Illinois, on April 22 where it became fully organized by an additional three companies, three artillery companies and mustered in for a three-month service by Captain John Pope, United States Army, on April 29, 1861. Armed with a mix of imported Enfield and various Springfield Model 1855 and Model 1861 rifle-muskets, it went into service clad in militia gray with gray broad-rimmed hats. The governor appointed Benjamin Mayberry Prentiss as Colonel, James D. Morgan, as Lieutenant Colonel, and Charles H. Adams as Major. The early promotion of Prentiss to a Brigadier General made Morgan Colonel, Adams Lieutenant Colonel and John Tillson Major. Thus organized, it remained at Cairo, doing garrison duty, during its three months' service; twice making movements of reconnaissance, one toward Columbus, KY, and again to Benton, MO. They were attached to Prentiss' Brigade on garrison duty at Cairo, Illinois until being mustered out on July 29, 1861.
3 year service enlistment and Pope's operations
It enlisted and was mustered into the three years' service, July 29, 1861, by Captain T. G. Pitcher at Cairo; thence was soon removed to Mound City, IL, where it remained through the winter, taking part in January 1862, in the movement of Grant's forces toward Columbus and Paducah. In February it was stationed at Bird's Point, MO, and while there, March 1, had brisk engagement with Rebel cavalry, near Sikeston, MO, taking several prisoners and two field pieces.
In March, the 10th Illinois was attached to General Pope's Army of the Mississippi (AoM), in a brigade composed of the 10th, 16th (its "Twin", under Colonel Smith), and a battalion (under Lt. Col. Williams) of 64th Illinois Infantry regiments. As the senior colonel, Morgan took command of the brigade with command of the regiment passing to Tillson. It became the 1st Brigade in Paine's 4th Division.
Island Number Ten, a small island at the (Tennessee) base of a tight double turn in the Mississippi river, was taken by the Rebels early in the war providing a major impediment to any U. S. efforts to regain control of the Confederacy by river, as ships had to approach the island bows on and then slow to make the turns. Its innate weakness was a single road for supplies and reinforcements. If U.S. forces cut that road, the garrison would be isolated and eventually be forced to surrender.
Pope began his siege in March 1862, shortly after the Confederate Army abandoned their position at Columbus, Kentucky. He made the first probes, coming overland through Missouri and occupying the town of Point Pleasant, Missouri, almost directly west of the island and south of New Madrid. Pope's army then moved north and soon brought siege guns to bear on New Madrid on Wednesday, March 12.
In a night movement, that night, the 10th Illinois in the 1st Brigade advanced on New Madrid, driving in the enemy's pickets, establishing earthworks and planting four field pieces commanding the rebel forts, without raising alarm until daylight, when Pope's artiullery opened fire. Throughout Thursday, the regiment held position under fire of the Rebels' two forts and five gunboats. During the day, it made sorties in which lost one Captain (Carr of Co. H,) and two men killed. The Confederate commander, Brig. Gen. John P. McCown, decided to evacuate the town after only one day of heavy bombardment, moving most of his troops to Island No. 10, abandoning his heavy artillery and most of his supplies.
Following the loss of New Madrid, some of the units at the bend were withdrawn to Fort Pillow, not quite as the crow flies to the south, but almost twice that by the river. The U.S. Navy's The gunboats under Flag Officer Andrew H. Foote gunboats and mortars arrived on March 15. The 10th Illinois and the AoM, in New Madrid, and the naval forces, upstream of the bend, were kept apart by Island No. 10. Pope wanted immediate action against the island while Foote hoped to subdue the island by the slow process of bombardment. As early as March 17, Pope was asking that two or three gunboats run past the Confederate batteries, to enable him to cross the river and trap the entire garrison. Foote demurred, arguing that his boats were not invincible, that a chance disabling shot would deliver a boat into Confederate hands, and that gunboat could then threaten all the Northern cities along the Mississippi and its tributaries.
For the next two weeks, fighting consisted of bombardment of the island at rather long range, mostly conducted by the mortars, and occasionally replied to by the Confederate batteries. After Foote had flatly rejected Pope's request that gunboats run past Island No. 10, someone on Pope's staff suggested that perhaps a canal could be cut to enable Union vessels to bypass the batteries. Completed in two weeks, while not deep enough to provide passage for the gunboats, it was deep enough for transports and supply vessels, so that Pope did not have to depend on land communications. When Halleck told Foote, to, "Give him (Pope) all the assistance in your power," Foote gathered his officers on March 29, and the was prepared for the run and waited for a sufficiently dark night to make her run.
To reduce the danger as much as possible, a raid by sailors and soldiers overran Battery No. 1 and spiked its guns on Tuesday night, April 1. On Wednesday, the flotilla, including both mortars and gunboats, concentrated its fire on the Rebel's floating battery New Orleans, knocking her out of action sending her drifting downstream out of the war. On Friday night. April 4, conditions for the run were satisfactory with a moonless night and a thunderstorm. Carondelet took off and was not discovered until she was abreast of the Confederate Battery No. 2 which opened up to no effect, and Carondelet completed the run unscathed. Pope asked Foote for another gunboat, and on Sunday night, April 6, made a similar run.
Now able to cross the river without interference from Confederate gunboats, Pope could also suppress enemy fire that may have opposed their landing. On Monday, he made his move, and sent the gunboats to destroy the batteries at Watson's Landing, his landing site, and once this was accomplished, the transports carried the troops across, and the landings proceeded without opposition. The 10th Illinois landed in the first wave.
A few hours elapsed until Mackall, the Rebel commander, realized that his position was hopeless, he put the men on the mainland in motion in the direction of Tiptonville. The motion was detected, and Pope then diverted his soldiers to Tiptonville. The 10th Illinois and its comrades found themselves in a footrace rather than the expected battle. The U.S. Navy's gunboats delayed the Rebels long enough for thwe 10th Illinois and its brigade to intercept their retreat, bringing to surrender at Tiptonville Mackall with 2,500 men. While this was taking place, the demoralized garrison of Island No. 10 surrendered separately to Flag Officer Foote and his gunboats. In total, 6,000 men and a large amount of field artillery and small arms were captured and the Mississippi was open as far as Fort Pillow.
On Sunday, April 13, the 10th Illinois embarked on a steamer for Forts Wright and Pillow; returned up Mississippi on Friday, and landed at Hamburg on the Tennessee, Thursday, April 24.
Siege of Corinth
Following the victories at Island Number Ten and Shiloh, Halleck united the three U.S. armies —the Army of the Tennessee (AoT), the Army of the Ohio (AoO), and the AoM — to advance on the vital rail center of Corinth, Mississippi. Cautious due to staggering losses at Shiloh, his advance was a slow campaign of offensive entrenchment, fortifying after each advance. Hallack organized his force into two wings, a center, and a reserve. The right wing was commanded by Grant in his capacity of District of West Tennessee commander with the AoT providing the Right Wing (five divisions under Thomas) and Halleck's reserves (two divisions under McClernand). The center was buell's AoO (with four divisions). The AoM, under Pope, made up the left wing. Pope further organized his troops into two further wings (of two and three divisions) keeping his cavalry division, Reserve Brigade, Artillery Brigade, a Regular Cavalry regiment, a Regular Infantry regiment, and a regiment of Missouri Engineers as direct reports.
On April 24, the 10th Illinois' brigade was assigned to the new 2nd Brigade of Paine's new 1st Division in the two-division Right Wing commanded initially by Pope who then assigned it to Rosecrans. Col. Morgan assumed command of the brigade until May 1, when Brig. Gen. Daniel Tyler took command. The brigae now had six volunteer infantry regiments, four Illinois and two Michigan. Joining the 10th and its twin, the 16th Illinois were the 60th Illinois (under Col. Toler), Yates' Sharpshooters, and the 10th and 14th Michigan.
Of Halleck's wing commanders Pope proved to be the most aggressive during the campaign. Pope led the army's Left Wing and was furthest away from Halleck's headquarters. On May 3, Pope moved forward. He had Paine leave his camp about 10:00 a.m. and take the road to Farmington. After advancing , Paine sent a detachment towards Nichols' ford, and the 10th Illinois and the balance of the division descended into Four Mile Swamp on either side of the direct road to Farmington with Yates' sharpshooters being deployed as skirmishers. The skirmishers soon made contact and, reinforced by the 10th Illinois and the rest of its brigade, succeeded in forcing passage through the swamp, driving the Rebels across Seven-Mile Creek. In this action, the regiment lost two men killed and five wounded, capturing 15 Rebels, and killing an equal number.
After this advance, instead of moving the center wing under Buell forward, Halleck ordered Pope to withdraw and realign with Buell. Almost a week later, on Friday, May 9, Beauregard ordered Van Dorn and Bragg to attack Pope, as the 10th Illinois successfully withdrew as part of Pope's realignment with Buell. Pope's 12,000 men were barely engaged by Van Dorn's corps, who barely engaged, had 9 casualties while Bragg's Corp, which bore the brunt of the fighting, suffered casualties of 8 dead, 89 wounded and two missing or captured. Halleck's total losses were 16 killed, 148 wounded and 14 missing or captured.
Over the next two weeks, Halleck's wings continued to advance on and around Corinth. By Sunday, May 25, after moving in three weeks, Halleck was in position to lay siege to the town. On Tuesday, Halleck sent Sherman to drive the Confederates from Double Log House along the Corinth Road and Buell to clear the Rebels off the Surratt Hill. The nnext day, May 27, Buell had sent a force who seize a Confederate-held crossing of Bridge Creek, a small tributary of the Tuscumbia River, forcing the Rebels to abandon the bridge completely.k