ILLINOIS ONE HUNDRED AND THIRD INFANTRY (Three Years)

One Hundred and Third Infantry.Col. Willard A. Dickerman; Lieut.-Cols., George W. Wright, Asias Wiilison; Majs., George W. Wright, Asias Willison, Charles Wills. About Aug. 6, 1862, Hon. A. C. Babcock, Capt. G. W. Wright ,Mr. Peterson and other influential men of the county, concluded that it was possible to form an entire regiment from Fulton county. On Sept. 6, nine companies arrived at Peoria, went into camp, and organized as the 103d regiment. It had been understood with Gov. Yates that in case Fulton county could not furnish a sufficient number of men to form a regiment by Oct. 1 he would send a company from some other county, but on Sept. 27, it was found there were men enough to muster ten companies and on Oct. 2 the regiment was mustered into the U. S. service. On Oct. 24 it received orders to be ready to move at a moments warning and on the 30th orders came to move by the Illinois Central railroad to Cairo. At the latter place it took boat for Columbus, Ky., where it was again placed on cars and at night arrived at Bolivar, Tenn., having made the trip from Peoria in 52 hours. The first year's service of the regiment was devoted to marching, guard duty, etc., in northern Mississippi and Tennessee but in Nov., 1863, it participated in the battle of Missionary ridge. Eight companies of the regiment were in the engagement, mustering 237 men, and of this number 1 commissioned officer and 19 enlisted men were killed on the field, and 68 were wounded, 5 or 6 of whom died of their wounds. The regiment began its part of the Atlanta campaign at Resaca, where it lost 1 man killed and several wounded. At Dallas it had quite a lively skirmish, but with no loss to the regiment, though in the battle of the following day it lost 2 killed and 35 wounded. On June l5 it moved to the extreme left of the army, and by a rapid movement of the brigade captured some 470 of the enemy, the loss of the regiment being 4 killed and 8 wounded. In the assault on Kennesaw mountain, of 12 officers of the regiment who went into the action, 3 were killed and 4 wounded, and of the enlisted men 19 were killed, the number of wounded not being reported. During the battle of Atlanta on July 22 the regiment captured about 300 prisoners and suffered a comparatively small loss, 4 men being killed. It started on the march to the sea with Sherman and in the battle of Griswoldsville lost 3 killed and 2 who later died of wounds. During the campaign of the Carolinas it participated in all the skirmishes and battles in which the 1st division of the 15th corps was engaged. After the surrender of Johnston it marched to Washington and participated in the grand review, then camped 3 or 4 miles north of the city until ordered to Louisville, where, on June 14, 1865, the order for muster out was received by telegraph, and on the 21st, the necessary rolls having been prepared, the regiment was mustered out, having been in the service 2 years, 8 months and 20 days. The number originally mustered in was 808; recruits, 84; making a total enrollment of 892, which, with the addition of 33 field, staff and line officers made the aggregate 925. But of the 84 recruits, 9 never joined the regiment, and the record of the 916 men was as follows: Killed in battle and died of wounds, 89; killed by accident, 2; died in the field and at home, 130; died in Andersonville, 7; making the total killed and died, 228. There were discharged on account of wounds and disease, 134; transferred to 40th Ill., 30; transferred to veteran reserve and invalid corps, 45; officers resigned, 23, dishonorably discharged, 4; honorably discharged, 2; mustered out, 450.

Source: The Union Army, vol. 3

Illinois 103rd Volunteer Infantry (Union)

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