The 16th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was one of a few Massachusetts regiments whose history was not recorded. From 1861–1864, it was deeply embroiled in the operations of the Army of the Potomac. Suffering from a lack of skilled leadership and later from horrific living conditions, the 16th saw heavy casualties. Of more than 1300 men, 112 were killed in battle, 360 were wounded and 52 died from their wounds. Disease claimed 115 and 65 were taken as prisoners of war, 32 of them dying in Confederate prisons. Another 344 went home afflicted with wounds or disease as disability discharges. This comprehensive biographical sketch chronicles for the first time the story of the 16th Massachusetts and the lives of most of its men, with all available genealogical details provided.

Alden C. Ellis, Jr., is the author of one other book about Massachusetts’s role in the Civil War and served as a consultant and advisor for the Civil War movie Lady in Black. He lives in Medway, Massachusetts.

Alden C. Ellis, Jr.
Format: softcover (7 x 10)
Pages: 331
Bibliographic Info: 41 photos, notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2023
pISBN: 978-1-4766-8993-7
eISBN: 978-1-4766-5018-0
Imprint: McFarland

Acknowledgments vi
Introduction 1
I. Born in Boston, Baptized Near Richmond 5
II. The “Iron Sixteenth” Has Its Mettle Tempered 16
III. Chances Lost in Chancellorsville, Costly Gains in Gettysburg 29
IV. Wilderness, Spotsylvania, the Libation of Blood Is Costly 42
V. From Cold Harbor to Warm Boston 54
Roster and Biographical Sketches 61
Bibliography 303
Index 305

“A masterpiece of historical research…informatively enhanced…impressive…an essential, core addition to personal, professional, community, and academic library American Civil War history collections and supplemental curriculum studies lists”—Midwest Book Review