Responding to President Lincoln’s initial call for troops, the 18th New York Infantry emerged as one of the Excelsior State’s first regiments and mustered many of its earliest volunteers. Formed of companies from across the state, the unit saw combat early, suffering the first casualties of the Bull Run campaign when they were ambushed on the march four days before the battle. As part of the Army of the Potomac, they fought at Gaines’s Mill, Crampton’s Gap, Antietam, Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. Drawing on numerous sources including several unpublished letters and diaries, this book gives the complete history of the 18th—from the first enlistee to the last surviving veteran (who died in 1938)—with an emphasis on the experiences of individual soldiers.

Ryan A. Conklin is a descendant of an 18th New York Infantry volunteer and a veteran of the Iraq War. He lives in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

Ryan A. Conklin
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 496
Bibliographic Info: 128 photos, 15 maps, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2016
pISBN: 978-1-4766-6716-4
eISBN: 978-1-4766-2651-2
Imprint: McFarland

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments 1
Introduction 7
1. A Call to Arms: April 12, 1861–May 11, 1861 9
2. Birth of a Regiment: May 12, 1861–June 18, 1861 34
3. To the War Front: June 19, 1861–July 12, 1861 62
4. First Blood: July 12, 1861–August 3, 1861 79
5. The Makeover of an Army: August 4, 1861–September 30, 1861 106
6. Losing Time, People and Patience: October 1, 1861–December 13, 1861 131
7. With Winter Comes Changes: December 14, 1861–March 1, 1862 156
8. Making Moves: March 2, 1862–April 1, 1862 171
9. A New Campaign: April 2, 1862–May 3, 1862 178
10. Like Devils Incarnate: May 4, 1862–June 26, 1862 186
11. Battle of Gaines’s Mill: June 27, 1862 210
12. A Change of Front Is a Retreat: June 28, 1862–August 24, 1862 234
13. From One Campaign to the Next: August 24, 1862–September 13, 1862 255
14. Battle of Crampton’s Gap: September 14, 1862 264
15. The Worst Bloodshed Imaginable: September 15, 1862–October 31, 1862 284
16. No End in Sight: November 1, 1862–December 31, 1862 300
17. A Bleak Winter: January 1, 1863–April 26, 1863 316
18. Committed to the End: April 27, 1863–June 4, 1863 333
Epilogue: The Boys in Blue Fade to Gray 361
Roster 385
Chapter Notes 447
Bibliography 473
Index 481

“This volume is one of the better regimental histories I’ve had the privilege of reading. Conklin did an amazing amount of primary research to put this together…fantastic photographs and maps…recommend[ed]”—Civil War News.