Civil War: Give Them Cold Steel Boys! By Don Troiani: JEM Genealogy

18th Virginia Infantry Regiment

The 18th Infantry Regiment completed its organization in May, 1861. Its members were recruited at Danville and Farmville, and in the counties of Nottoway, Cumberland, Prince Edward, Appomattox, Pittsylvania, and Charlotte. The unit fought at First Manassas under General Cocke, then was assigned to General Pickett's, Garnett's, and Hunton's Brigade. It participated in the campaigns of the Army of Northern Virginia from Williamsburg to Gettysburg except when it was detached to Suffolk with Longstreet. Later it served in North Carolina, returned to Virginia, and took an active part in the battles of Drewry's Bluff and Cold Harbor. The 18th endured the hardships of the Petersburg trenches north of the James River and saw action around Appomattox. It lost 6 killed and 13 wounded at First Manassas and in April, 1862, had 700 men fit for duty. The unit reported 206 casualties during the Seven Days' Battles, and of the 120 engaged in the Maryland Campaign, thirty-six percent of the 312 in action were killed, wounded, or missing. Many were captured at Sayler's Creek and only 2 officers and 32 men surrendered. The field officers were Colonels Henry A. Carrington and Robert E. Withers, Lieutenant Colonel George C. Cabell, and Major Edwin G. Wall.

» 18th Virginia Infantry Regiment «Prev 1 2 3 4 5 Next» » Slide Show

Give Them Cold Steel Boys! By Don Troiani

Pickett's Charge was a bloodbath. While the Union suffered 1,500 casualties, the Confederates had over 6,000. Over 50% of the men sent across the fields were killed or wounded. Pickett's division alone, out of about 5,500 men, lost 224 killed, 1,140 wounded, and 1,499 missing/captured. Pickett's three brigade commanders and all thirteen of his regimental commanders were casualties. Kemper was wounded, Garnett killed, and Armistead mortally wounded.

Abram Fackler was at Gettysburg with Company I of the 53rd Virginia Infantry Regiment, "The Chatham Greys" of General Lou Armistead's Brigade of Pickett's Division. The sergeant of Company I was Sgt. Robert Tyler Jones, the grandson of former president James Tyler. Seventy-five yards from the stone wall at Gettysburg General Louis Armistead screamed over the sounds of battle to Colonel Rawley W. Martin and said "colonel, we can not stay here" Colonel "Billy Martin screamed back "then sir, we must go foreward. The Don Troiani painting of the battle of Gettysburg is an accurate depiction showing General Armistead leading his men to the stone wall with his hat on the tip of his sword, look close and behind him you will see the fluttering battle flags of the 53rd and 57th Virginia. For a few brief seconds in history, The "Chatham Greys" held the stone wall... and Sgt Robert Tyler Jones fell, Colonel Whitehead fell, Colonel R.W. "Billy" Martin fell with a shattered leg, General Louis Armistead was mortally wounded by the cannon.... and our boys grudgingly retreated.

File name	give_them_cold_steel_boys3.jpg
File Size	457.87k
Dimensions	703 x 492
Linked to	Abram Fackler; Joel Henry Scates
Albums	53rd Virginia Infantry Regiment, 18th Virginia Infantry Regiment

» 18th Virginia Infantry Regiment «Prev 1 2 3 4 5 Next» » Slide Show