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Federal Battery

1st New York Light Artillery, Battery M

"Cothran's Battery"

 

Commanding Officer on the Antietam Campaign:
  Capt. George W. Cothran

 

Arms:
  4   10-pdr. Parrott
  2   3-in. Ordnance Rifle

 

This Battery's Chain of Command:
  Army - Army of the Potomac
  Corps - Twelfth Army Corps
  Division - Twelfth Corps Artillery


On the Antietam Campaign

"At the battle of Antietam, Battery M and Knap's Pennsylvania Battery were ordered to the front from a point just in rear of the East Woods, just after the killing of General Mansfield and wounding of General Hooker, and just as the Union forces were driven back out of the West Woods, across the Hagers-town Pike, past the Dunker Church, and across the open fields and into the East Woods. Passing rapidly throught the East Woods the batteries took position under a severe musketry fire from the enemy advancing across the Hagerstown Pike, — Knap's, across the road leading from the East Woods to the Dunker Church — and Battery M, with the leading gun 200 yards to the right of this road and 120 rods from the church, forming line by inversion, the left gun on the right, about 80 rods from the Hagerstown Pike. By the use of canister, and without aid from the infantry, these batteries stopped the enemy's advance, and drove them back across the Pike into the West Woods, holding this line for about five hours against repeated charges of the enemy, who on one or two of the charges were assisted by a Rebel battery on high ground on our front and right."
- from the Final Report on the Battlefield of Gettysburg or New York at Gettysburg (1902).

Statistics

Initial Strength: 124; Wounded (WIA): 6;
Losses, % of Initial Strength: 4.8%

Maps Showing this Unit

Battlefield Tablets for this Unit

Tablet #120: Army of the Potomac - 17 Sep, 5 AM to 17 Sep, 12 PM
Tablet #27: Twelfth Army Corps - 17 Sep, 6 AM to 17 Sep, 12 PM

We have one individual in the AotW database who was on the Maryland Campaign with this unit:

 

Co. Rank Name Casualty? Details*
--CaptCothran, George W.        We have some details for this person

 

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