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5th Regiment United States Colored Infantry

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Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Ohiomap
Surnames/tags: black_heritage us_civil_war
Profile managers: Christy Melick private message [send private message] and Amy Johnson private message [send private message]
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US Black Heritage: Military and War Portal

Contents

Regiment Information

This infantry regiment consisted of African American enlisted men and white officers who fought for the Union Army during the American Civil war. It was initially formed as the 127th Ohio Volunteer Infantry (OVI), but within a few months, as the United States Colored Infantry (USCI) was organized, it became the 5th Regiment of the USCI.

Recruiting for the 127th OVI first began under the "Contraband Law" which allowed African Americans working for the United States to earn $10 per month - $3 for clothing and $7 as pay. The regiment was organized at Camp Delaware, Ohio and recruiting was slow at first. Its companies were mustered in on the following dates:

  • Companies B, C, E, G and H on 23 Jul 1863
  • Company A on 7 Aug 1863
  • Company D on 20 Aug 1863
  • Company F on 9 Sep 1863
  • Company I on 17 Oct 1863
  • Company K on 15 Jan 1864

In Nov 1863, the company was moved to Norfolk, Virginia and James W. Conine was appointed as its Colonel. Battles that the regiment participated in include:

  • New Kent C.H., Virginia; 2 May 1864
  • City Point, Virginia; 6 May 1864
  • Fort Darling, Virginia; 12-16 May 1864
  • Siege of Petersburg, Virginia; 15 Jun 1864-31 Aug 1864
  • New Market Heights, Virginia; 28-30 Sep 1864
  • Fair Oaks, Virginia; 27-28 Oct 1864
  • Sugar Loaf Hill, North Carolina; 19 Jan 1865
  • Federal Point, North Carolina; 11 Feb 1865
  • Wilmington, North Carolina; 22 Feb 1865

Four soldiers from the 5th USCI were awarded the Medal of Honor for their actions at the Battle of Chaffin's Farm during the Siege of Petersburg: Powhatan Beaty, James H Bronson, Milton Murray Holland, and Robert A Pinn.

The Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1866, Volume I says that 266 soldiers of the 5th Regiment died while serving. See WikiTree+ reports of soldiers from the 5th Regiment that:

The regiment was mustered out on 20 Sep 1865 in Carolina City, North Carolina.

Field And Staff Officers

The following men served as officers in the regimental "Field & Staff." See Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War of the Rebellion, 1861-1866, Volume I , page 593 for details.

  • James W. Conine, Colonel
  • Giles W. Shurtleff, Colonel
  • John B. Cook, Lieutenant Colonel
  • Ira C. Terry, Major
  • William R. Brazie, Major
  • Lyman Allen, Surgeon
  • George V.R. Merrill, Surgeon
  • Reuben Hunter, Surgeon
  • Joseph A. Eastman, Assistant Surgeon
  • Henry Broadway Collins Merryweather, Assistant Surgeon
  • A. Judson Gray, Assisstant Surgeon
  • Elliott F. Grabill, Adjutant
  • Henry L. Turner, Adjutant
  • Basil S. Spangler, Adjutant
  • James B. F. Marsh, R. Q. M.
  • J. R. Brown, Chaplain
  • James L. Patton, Chaplain
  • John W. Jackson, Ser. Maj.
  • James S. Tyler, Q. M. S.
  • Thomas S. Grimes Com. Ser.
  • Henry Self, Com. Ser.
  • D. S. Bolsinger, Hos. St'd

Rosters of Company Officers and Enlisted Men

The following space pages have rosters for each company of the 5th USCI. If you create a profile for one of these soldiers, please add their WikiTree ID to the roster table for their company.

Resources for Researching Unit Members


Stickers and Categories for Profiles

The following stickers and categories can be added as appropriate to profiles for soldiers from the 5th USCI to further honor their military service.
General military sticker for 5th USCI: Copy and paste the template below, then change ONLY the enlisted date, mustered date [this will be date they were mustered out or died], and rank. Leave everything else exactly the same. Adding this template will add the profile to the category for the 5th USCI. See Template:US_Civil_War for more details.
{{US Civil War
|side = USA
|enlisted = 1 Aug 1863
|mustered = 8 Jan 1864
|rank= Private
|regiment name=5th US Colored Inf.
|unit= 5th Regiment, United States Colored Infantry
}}
Roll of Honor Sticker: The example is for someone who was killed in action. If the soldier was in a different Roll of Honor group, replace the category and description lines with the appropriate ones from below - copy and paste so that it is exactly as written. If the soldier was a rank other than private, change that too. See Template:Roll_of_Honor for more details.
{{Roll of Honor
|category=Killed in Action, United States of America, United States Civil War
|description = killed in action
|rank = Private
|image = Roll_of_Honor_Template.jpg
|war = the United States Civil War
}}
|category=Died of Wounds, United States of America, United States Civil War
|description = died of wounds
|category=Died of Disease, United States of America, United States Civil War
|description = died of disease
|category=Wounded in Action, United States of America, United States Civil War
|description = wounded in action
|category=Missing in Action, United States of America, United States Civil War
|description = missing in action
Categories:
  • [[Category:Battle of Chaffin's Farm]] : this category would be appropriate for any one who was killed or wounded in the Battle of Chaffin's Farm (sometimes referred to as the Battle of Chapin's Farm or Battle of New Market Heights). This was the battle that caused the most casualties in the 5th USCI.
  • [[Category: Siege of Petersburg]] : this category would be appropriate for any one who was killed or wounded in the Siege of Petersburg - most of the 5th USCI's casualties from the siege occurred in Jun 1864.

Task List

Completed Tasks

  • Died in service: All soldiers from the regiment who died in service have had profiles created during US Black Heritage Project Weekend Sprints in 2023 and 2024. Thanks to everyone who helped with this!

Sources

See also:





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Categories: 5th Regiment, United States Colored Infantry, United States Civil War