Alabama 15th Infantry Regiment
HISTORICAL NOTES:
The 15th Alabama Volunteer Infantry Regiment
was organized at Fort Mitchell, Alabama, in August, 1861, with eleven companies recruited from Barbour, Dale, Henry, Macon, Pike, and Russell counties. With over 900 men, the regiment was moved into East Tennessee and then Virginia. It joined the main army near Manassas and was brigaded with the 21st Georgia, 21st North Carolina, and 16th Mississippi Regiments under Maj. Gen'l G. B. Crittenden of Kentucky (Brig. Gen'l Isaac R. Trimble succeeded Crittenden in December). When the army moved over to Yorktown, the 15th remained on the Shenandoah in Maj. Gen'l Thomas J. 'Stonewall' Jackson's Division to participate in the Valley Campaign. It was engaged with slight loss at Front Royal (23 May 1862) and Winchester (25 May), but it lost 9 killed and 33 wounded out of 425 engaged at Cross Keys (8 June).
Moving over to Richmond in Jackson's flank attack against Union Maj. Gen'l George B. McClellan, the 15th entered the first battle of Cold Harbor (27-28 June) with 412 men and lost 34 killed and 110 wounded. The regiment suffered slightly at Malvern Hill on 1 July. It was engaged at Hazel River (22 August) and at Manassas Junction with a loss of 6 killed and 22 wounded. The 15th Alabama participated in the 2nd Battle of Manassas (30 August), losing 21 killed and 91 wounded out of 440 men engaged. At Chantilly (1 September), the regiment lost 4 killed and 14 wounded and took part in the investment of Harper's Ferry, with trivial loss. At Sharpsburg (17 September), of 300 men engaged, 9 were killed and 75 wounded. Under fire at Fredericksburg on 15 December, the regiment had casualties of one killed and 34 wounded.
The 15th Alabama was placed in the Alabama Brigade under Gen'l Evander McIver Law (with the 4th, 44th, 47th and 48th Alabama regiments) on 19 January 1863.
On detached duty at Suffolk until May, the regiment lost 4 killed and 18 wounded. Later that summer, the regiment took part in the assault on Gettysburg (1-3 July) with Hood's Division, and within a few minutes lost 72 killed, 190 wounded, and 81 missing of the 644 men engaged. The 15th suffered lightly at Battle Mountain, and, transferred to the West with Braxton Bragg's army, fought at Chicamauga (19-20 September), where it lost 19 killed and 123 wounded, out of 425 engaged. In the fierce fights at Brown's Ferry (27 October) and Lookout Valley, the regiment lost 15 killed and 40 wounded. At Knoxville (17 November-4 December), 6 were killed and 21 wounded; at Bean's Station (14 December), losses were slight.
In 1864, the 15th took 450 men into the fight at The Wilderness (5-7 May) and Spottsylvania (8-18 May) where it lost 18 killed and 48 wounded. At Hanover Court House (30 May) and the 2nd Battle of Cold Harbor (1-12 June), the loss was 6 killed and 16 wounded. During the Petersburg defense, the 15th lost a third of its 275 men at Deep Bottom (14-18 August), and at Fussell's Mill, the loss was 13 killed and 90 wounded. The 15th took part in the subsequent severe fighting and surrendered 170 men at Appomattox. Of 1633 on the rolls, over 260 fell in battle, 440 died in the service, and 231 were transferred or discharged.
OFFICERS:
Cantey, James Cantey - Colonel (Russell County) Promoted
Treutlen, John Fletcher - Lt. Colonel, Colonel (Barbour County) Resigned, 28 April 1861
Oates, William Calvin - Colonel (Henry County) Wounded, Brown's Ferry.
Lowther, Alexander A. - Lt. Colonel, Colonel (Russell County) Wounded, Fussell's Mill, Wounded The Wilderness
Feagin, Isaac Ball - Lt. Colonel (Barbour County) Wounded, Gettysburg, retired, 7 Dec 1864
Daniel, John Wilhite Lewis - Lt. Colonel (Barbour County) Resigned, 25 Jan 1862
Weems, Locke Weems - Adjutant (Russell County) Died in service, 16 July 1862
Waddell, D. B. Waddell - Adjutant. Ttransferred to line.
ASSIGNMENTS:
Maj. Gen'l G. B. Crittenden's Brigade
BATTLES:
Brown's Ferry
Fussell's Mill
The Wilderness
Appomattox
COMPANIES:
The roster of this regiment contains the names of 2979 men.
Co. "A", Cantey Rifles (Russell County) -- Alexander A. Lowther (promoted); Locke Weems (mortally wounded, Gaines' Mill); Francis Key Shaaf
Co. "B", Midway Southern Guards (Barbour County) -- John Wilhite Lewis Daniel (promoted); Isaac Ball Feagin (promoted); Richard E. Wright (wounded, 2nd Manassas; retired, 8 Aug 1863); Noah B. Feagin
Co. "C" (Macon County) -- Peter V. Guerry (KIA, 1st Cold Harbor); James H. Ellison (KIA, Gettysburg); LeGrand
Co. "D", Fort Browder Roughs (Barbour County) -- Worthington (died in service); Blanton Aabram Hill (KIA, Fussell's Mill)
Co. "E" (Dale County) -- Esau Brooks (resigned, 8 Feb 1862); William A. Edwards (resigned, 28 Aug 1863); G. A. C. Mathews (wounded, near Richmond; retired); Glover (KIA, Petersburg)
Co. "F", Brundridge Guards (Pike County) -- Benjamin Hutchinson Lewis (resigned, 7 Feb 1862); George Y. Malone (wounded, 1st Cold Harbor; retired, 18 March 63); DeKalb Williams
Co. "G" (Henry County) -- William Calvin Oates (promoted); Henry C. Brainard (KIA, Gettysburg); John C. Oates (mortally wounded, Gettysburg); D. B. Waddell
Co. "H", Glenville Guards (Barbour and Dale Counties) -- William N. Richardson (captured, East Tennessee)
Co. "I" (Pike County) -- Benjamin Gardner (resigned, 15 Dec 1861); Frank Park (KIA, Knoxville); W. H. Stricklan (wounded, Fussell's Mill)
Co. "K", Eufaula City Guard (Barbour County) -- Henry C. Hart (resigned, 13 Sept 1862); William J. Bethune (wounded, Gettysburg); John E. Jones
Co. "L" (Pike County) -- Robert H. Hill (KIA, Cross Keys); Lee E. Bryan (wounded, 1st Cold Harbor; retired, 28 March 1863); James J. Hatcher
Source:
Brewer, William Brief Historical Sketches of Military Organizations Raised in Alabama During the Civil War
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Rigdon, John C. A Guide to Alabama Civil War Research, Cartersville, GA: Eastern Digital Resources, 2011.
The 15th Alabama Volunteer Infantry Regiment was organized at Fort Mitchell, Alabama, in August, 1861, with eleven companies recruited from Barbour, Dale, Henry, Macon, Pike, and Russell counties. With over 900 men, the regiment was moved into East Tennessee and then Virginia. It joined the main army near Manassas and was brigaded with the 21st Georgia, 21st North Carolina, and 16th Mississippi Regiments under Maj. Gen'l G. B. Crittenden of Kentucky (Brig. Gen'l Isaac R. Trimble succeeded Crittenden in December). When the army moved over to Yorktown, the 15th remained on the Shenandoah in Maj. Gen'l Thomas J. 'Stonewall' Jackson's Division to participate in the Valley Campaign. It was engaged with slight loss at Front Royal (23 May 1862) and Winchester (25 May), but it lost 9 killed and 33 wounded out of 425 engaged at Cross Keys (8 June).
Moving over to Richmond in Jackson's flank attack against Union Maj. Gen'l George B. McClellan, the 15th entered the first battle of Cold Harbor (27-28 June) with 412 men and lost 34 killed and 110 wounded. The regiment suffered slightly at Malvern Hill on 1 July. It was engaged at Hazel River (22 August) and at Manassas Junction with a loss of 6 killed and 22 wounded. The 15th Alabama participated in the 2nd Battle of Manassas (30 August), losing 21 killed and 91 wounded out of 440 men engaged. At Chantilly (1 September), the regiment lost 4 killed and 14 wounded and took part in the investment of Harper's Ferry, with trivial loss. At Sharpsburg (17 September), of 300 men engaged, 9 were killed and 75 wounded. Under fire at Fredericksburg on 15 December, the regiment had casualties of one killed and 34 wounded.
The 15th Alabama was placed in the Alabama Brigade under Gen'l Evander McIver Law (with the 4th, 44th, 47th and 48th Alabama regiments) on 19 January 1863.
On detached duty at Suffolk until May, the regiment lost 4 killed and 18 wounded. Later that summer, the regiment took part in the assault on Gettysburg (1-3 July) with Hood's Division, and within a few minutes lost 72 killed, 190 wounded, and 81 missing of the 644 men engaged. The 15th suffered lightly at Battle Mountain, and, transferred to the West with Braxton Bragg's army, fought at Chicamauga (19-20 September), where it lost 19 killed and 123 wounded, out of 425 engaged. In the fierce fights at Brown's Ferry (27 October) and Lookout Valley, the regiment lost 15 killed and 40 wounded. At Knoxville (17 November-4 December), 6 were killed and 21 wounded; at Bean's Station (14 December), losses were slight.
In 1864, the 15th took 450 men into the fight at The Wilderness (5-7 May) and Spottsylvania (8-18 May) where it lost 18 killed and 48 wounded. At Hanover Court House (30 May) and the 2nd Battle of Cold Harbor (1-12 June), the loss was 6 killed and 16 wounded. During the Petersburg defense, the 15th lost a third of its 275 men at Deep Bottom (14-18 August), and at Fussell's Mill, the loss was 13 killed and 90 wounded. The 15th took part in the subsequent severe fighting and surrendered 170 men at Appomattox. Of 1633 on the rolls, over 260 fell in battle, 440 died in the service, and 231 were transferred or discharged.
Cantey, James Cantey - Colonel (Russell County) Promoted
Treutlen, John Fletcher - Lt. Colonel, Colonel (Barbour County) Resigned, 28 April 1861
Oates, William Calvin - Colonel (Henry County) Wounded, Brown's Ferry.
Lowther, Alexander A. - Lt. Colonel, Colonel (Russell County) Wounded, Fussell's Mill, Wounded The Wilderness
Feagin, Isaac Ball - Lt. Colonel (Barbour County) Wounded, Gettysburg, retired, 7 Dec 1864
Daniel, John Wilhite Lewis - Lt. Colonel (Barbour County) Resigned, 25 Jan 1862
Weems, Locke Weems - Adjutant (Russell County) Died in service, 16 July 1862
Waddell, D. B. Waddell - Adjutant. Ttransferred to line.
Fussell's Mill
The Wilderness
Appomattox
Co. "A", Cantey Rifles (Russell County) -- Alexander A. Lowther (promoted); Locke Weems (mortally wounded, Gaines' Mill); Francis Key Shaaf
Co. "B", Midway Southern Guards (Barbour County) -- John Wilhite Lewis Daniel (promoted); Isaac Ball Feagin (promoted); Richard E. Wright (wounded, 2nd Manassas; retired, 8 Aug 1863); Noah B. Feagin
Co. "C" (Macon County) -- Peter V. Guerry (KIA, 1st Cold Harbor); James H. Ellison (KIA, Gettysburg); LeGrand
Co. "D", Fort Browder Roughs (Barbour County) -- Worthington (died in service); Blanton Aabram Hill (KIA, Fussell's Mill)
Co. "E" (Dale County) -- Esau Brooks (resigned, 8 Feb 1862); William A. Edwards (resigned, 28 Aug 1863); G. A. C. Mathews (wounded, near Richmond; retired); Glover (KIA, Petersburg)
Co. "F", Brundridge Guards (Pike County) -- Benjamin Hutchinson Lewis (resigned, 7 Feb 1862); George Y. Malone (wounded, 1st Cold Harbor; retired, 18 March 63); DeKalb Williams
Co. "G" (Henry County) -- William Calvin Oates (promoted); Henry C. Brainard (KIA, Gettysburg); John C. Oates (mortally wounded, Gettysburg); D. B. Waddell
Co. "H", Glenville Guards (Barbour and Dale Counties) -- William N. Richardson (captured, East Tennessee)
Co. "I" (Pike County) -- Benjamin Gardner (resigned, 15 Dec 1861); Frank Park (KIA, Knoxville); W. H. Stricklan (wounded, Fussell's Mill)
Co. "K", Eufaula City Guard (Barbour County) -- Henry C. Hart (resigned, 13 Sept 1862); William J. Bethune (wounded, Gettysburg); John E. Jones
Co. "L" (Pike County) -- Robert H. Hill (KIA, Cross Keys); Lee E. Bryan (wounded, 1st Cold Harbor; retired, 28 March 1863); James J. Hatcher