Commanding Officer on the Antietam Campaign:
Col Thomas H Ruger
This Regiment's Chain of Command:
Army - Army of the Potomac
Corps - Twelfth Army Corps
Division - 1st Division, 12th Corps
Brigade - 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, 12th Corps
Unit history
Formed in the initial Federal call for 75,000 volunteers, the 3rd's first Colonel was Charles S. Hamilton, with West Point graduate Thomas Ruger as Lieutenant Colonel. They first saw action 16 October 1861 in a skirmish at Bolivar Heights, Virginia. They were in Banks' Corps in the Valley Campaign in Spring 1862, and were in combat at Cedar Mountain in August, after which they became part of the XII Corps, Army of the Potomac.
On the Antietam Campaign
The unit was posted just north of the Miller Cornfield at dawn on 17 September, and was hit by Hood's Division emerging from the corn at about 7:30 am. Colonel Ruger was slightly wounded there in leading the regiment, but remained in command and on the field.
" 'The Third Wisconsin was in a very exposed position,' wrote Lieutenant Bryant, 'and it's lines thinned rapidly. It stood on higher ground than the Confederates, the sky behind it, in good musket range and close line -- a good target.' "
A short time later, as Hood's attack receded, " General Hooker was seen galloping up, blood dripping from his boot. He ordered the Wisconsin men to fix bayonets and pursue. There are only 60 men left! Joining them was the Twenty-Seventh Indiana, which increased the number to about 150. 'With a whoop and hurrah, our regiment and the Twenty-Seventh Indiana started down through the cornfield,' [wrote Captain] Hinkley. 'General Hooker himself leading like a captain.' "
"At charge-bayonets, the two western units advanced across the cornfield. The flags of Indiana and Wisconsin flapped wildly in the breeze. The ground was strewn with the bodies of the Confederates. Towards the woods, at the edge of the cornfield, they marched. Suddenly a staff officer gallopped up and ordered the small attacking line of blue to halt and get out of the way. A division was advancing towards that position from the east. 'This was all that prevented us from assaulting a position with about a hundred and fifty men,' reported Hinkley, 'which a few minutes later Sedgwick's division, with five or six thousand, failed to carry.' "
(quoted from Wozny)
Statistics
Initial Strength: 340; Killed in Action (KIA): 27; Wounded (WIA): 173;
Losses, % of Initial Strength: 58.8%
Maps Showing this Unit
Detail Map #2: Hood's Division Retakes Miller's Cornfield (7-8 am)
Detail Map #3: Mansfield's Twelfth Corps Attacks into Miller's Cornfield (7-9 am)
Detail Map #4: Greene's High-Water Mark in the West Woods (9am-noon)
Detail Map #5: Sedgwick is Flanked in the West Woods (9-10am)
Battlefield Tablets for this Unit
Tablet #120: Army of the Potomac - 17 Sep, 5 AM to 17 Sep, 12 PM
Tablet #54: Gordon's Brigade, Williams' Division - 17 Sep, 6 AM to 17 Sep, 10 AM
Tablet #27: Twelfth Army Corps - 17 Sep, 6 AM to 17 Sep, 12 PM
Tablet #28: Williams' Division, Twelfth Army Corps - 17 Sep, 6 AM to 17 Sep, 5 PM
Tablet #55: Gordon's Brigade, Williams' Division - 17 Sep, 9 AM to 17 Sep, 10 AM
After the Antietam Campaign
The regiment was at Chancellorsville, Brandy Station, and Gettysburg. Near Christmas 1863, the entire regiment reenlisted for 3 more years' service, later seing action on General Sherman's Atlanta, Savannah, and Carolina Campaigns of 1864 - 5. They mustered out of Federal service at Louisville, KY, 18 July 1865, and returned to Madison, WI where they were disbanded.
References & Notes
Source: Pass the Flag, an article about the 3rd Wisconsin at Antietam by Michael A. Wozny, and other excellent material posted online at the Third Wisconsin Veteran Volunteer reenactors' site, webmaster David Frohmader.
We have 230 individuals in the AotW database who were on the Maryland Campaign with this unit:
Co. | Rank | Name | Casualty? | Details* |
---|---|---|---|---|
A | Pvt | Becker, Hermann | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Bradley, John | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Bragg, John Addis | Died (d) 09/26 | |
A | Sgt | Burns, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Davids, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Donovan, John F. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Sgt | Glaser, Frederick | MWIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Godfrey, Isaac T. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Gorman, Patrick | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Corp | Hagerman, Charles | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Hart, Hubbard Lemuel | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Corp | Kittleson, William O. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Mann, Arnold | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Martch, William F. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Corp | Montaney, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Nettleton, Nathan B. | KIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Perkins, Charles | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Richer, Reuben T. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Rollhagen, Carl | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Stabelfeldt, Ernst | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Strohn, Daniel W. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Tanner, George W.W. | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Corp | Tuttle, Daniel A. | KIA 09/17 | |
A | Pvt | Wood, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
A | Corp | Woodruff, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Barker, George W. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Sgt | Blake, Colburn | KIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Cowling, George | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Deschamps, Hilaire | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Corp | Dibble, Cyrus | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Lt | Dick(s), William B. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Durfee, John Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Evans, Griffith | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Hinman, David | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Hollister, Joseph R. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Corp | Isbell, Henry Clay | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Lewis, James E. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Logan, Richard K. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Maglosky, Frederick | KIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Mason, William | KIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | McMullen, John | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Meyer, Charles | AWOL 09/10 | |
B | Pvt | Meyer, Frederick | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Purath, August | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Purath, Ernst | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Ransom, Seth N. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Richmond, Tabor Cary | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Robbins, Leonard | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Robinson, William J. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Corp | Savage, James Guthrie | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Capt | Stevenson, George W. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Stroud, Milo S. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Tesch, Gustavus | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Walsh, Frank | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Sgt | Way, David M. | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Mus | Wright, Jefferson | WIA 09/17 | |
B | Pvt | Wright, Joseph | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Allen, Oliver Maine | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Betts, Adelbert Alonzo | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Booth, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Boyer, Joseph Lybrand | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Sgt | Brisbin, William Luther | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Sgt | Conroy, Thomas | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Cook, Ziba Alden | WIA/POW 09/17 | |
C | Corp | Coon, John Dennis | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Corp | Diffenderfer, Charles F. | WIA/POW 09/17 | |
C | Sgt | Foster, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Frasher, John Bath | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Fuller, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Corp | Gay, George J. | KIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Green, John M. | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Hopkins, Melville | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Johnson, William | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Corp | Kimberly, William A. | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Corp | Leonard, Jr., Benjamin Franklin | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Lovelace, Jefferson | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Sgt | Loveland, Franklin | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Lt | Parks, Warham | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Sgt | Pierce, Josiah Dwight | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Richardson, George H. | WIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Sheffield, Seymour J. | KIA 09/17 | |
C | Sgt | Thurlow, Albion | ||
C | Pvt | Thurlow, Isaac | KIA 09/17 | |
C | Pvt | Witter, Eugene Robert | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Bechtel, Samuel | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Sgt | Clark, Dewitt C. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Collins, Hiram | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Collins, Joseph E. | ||
D | Corp | Cook, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Elmore, William | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Gee, Charles H. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Gee, John W. | MWIA 09/17 | |
D | Lt | Hinkley, Julian Wisner | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Last, Ferdinand | KIA 09/17 | |
D | Sgt | Lindsley, Charles H. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Sgt | Oliver, Robert L. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Corp | Page, Clinton W. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Preston, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Smith, Samuel | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Sgt | Snyder, Edwin R. | MWIA 09/17 | |
D | Corp | Spies, John | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Temple, Jonathan L. | KIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Ullom, Silas Waters | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Sgt | Wilkes, Joseph | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Wood, Lorenzo D. | WIA 09/17 | |
D | Pvt | Zeigler, Adam | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Arms, Joseph H. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Bergmann, Christian Gottlieb | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Bergmann, Ehrenfried | KIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Bergmann, Ernst | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Sgt | Blanchard, Edmund Lewis | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Brocket, George G. | KIA 09/17 | |
E | Sgt | Chubb, Charles | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Corey, Warner Joseph | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Frey, Frederick | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Goensch, Martin | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Haskins, Charles Wesley | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Sgt | Hinton, Philip C. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Hopf, George M. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Sgt | Jones, Augustine L. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Corp | Kinyon, Wilson B. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Klass, Henry W. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Kollhammer, Jacob | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Corp | Krause, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Krueger, Franz | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Krueger, Karl | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Laurisch, Johann C. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Sgt | Lueschen, John L. | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Qualman, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Reschke, Frederick | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Lt | Snow, William Morton | WIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Van Norman, George W. | KIA 09/17 | |
E | Pvt | Weber, George | MWIA 09/17 | |
F | Sgt | Bartholomew, Samuel | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Corp | Bashford, Frank W. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Beauprey, Leon | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Sgt | Beebe, William Homer | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Sgt | Brown, William C. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Buchner, Herman Theodore | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Sgt | Costly, Francis M. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Duncan, Thomas F. | MWIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Fulton, Robert | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | George, Adam | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Hall, George H. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Harshbarger, John G. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Sgt | Holmes, William H.S. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Kolb, John | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Lyons, Frank W. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Murphy, James A. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Corp | Notton, Richard C. | WIA 09/17 | |
F | Pvt | Oleson, John | KIA 09/17 | |
F | Corp | Spooner, Albert | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Allen, Richard | KIA 09/17 | |
G | Corp | Beebe, Chauncey S. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Blake, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Briggs, Caleb C. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Briggs, Hiram E. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Corp | Freeman, William W. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Griffin, John W. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Sgt | Lee, Frank | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Leonard, William T. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Mason, William H. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Corp | McCoy, Alexander | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | McNary, Augustus | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Neilson, Christian J. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Phetteplace, Luther A. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Prouty, Jr., Ira N. | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Ransom, Leonard | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Robbins, Ervin | WIA 09/17 | |
G | Lt | Shepard, Joseph Preston | MWIA 09/17 | |
G | Pvt | Willard, Van Rensselaer | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Corp | Agnew, David | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Sgt | Agnew, James P. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Sgt | Agnew, John L. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Anderson, Albert | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Arnold, Joseph S. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Beers, Elon | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Sgt | Beers, Elon G. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Benson, Thomas | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Cherry, William | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Cook, Riley R. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Sgt | Early, James | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Fessenden, Sylvanus | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Lt | Field, Chauncey | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Fulp, Russell | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | George, J. Andrew | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Haughawout, Wilbur Fisk | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Johns, Joshua P. | KIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Jones, Moses W. | Died (d) 10/23 | |
H | Pvt | Krohn, George | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | McKnight, James F. | KIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Moyer, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Persons, Thomas B. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Pierce, Charles A. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Thomas, William N. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Watts, William Harrison | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Capt | Whitman, George J. | WIA 09/17 | |
H | Pvt | Wilcox, William | KIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Belonger, Michael | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Bryant, Francis M. | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Deming, Demas W. | KIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Fawcett, George N. | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Folts, Richard | Died (d) 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Hill, James | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Johnson, Richard M. | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Kempthorne, Charles | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Knapp, James B. | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Madison, John | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Lt | Reed, Alexander N. | KIA 09/17 | |
I | Corp | Rickeman, George Adam | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Southwick, Hiram K. | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Corp | Sullivan, Michael | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Thomas, William | KIA 09/17 | |
I | Corp | Townsend, Addison A. | WIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Ware, Edward | KIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Wescott, Charles A. | MWIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | White, Thomas A. | KIA 09/17 | |
I | Pvt | Wiley, Alexander | KIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Blazier, Benjamin | WIA 09/17 | |
K | Corp | Condert, Jacob | KIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Dailey, George Fernando | WIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Floom, Botolf A. | WIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Glimsdahl, John T. | KIA 09/17 | |
K | Corp | Johnson, Emmet Theodore | KIA 09/17 | |
K | Sgt | Jones, Robert W. | WIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Paulson, Michael A. | WIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Peter, Henry | WIA 09/17 | |
K | Pvt | Waterhouse, Milo James | MWIA 09/17 | |
F&S | Lt | Bryant, Edwin Eustace | ||
F&S | Col | Ruger, Thomas Howard |
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