The 154th Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry
A "Hundred Days"Civil War Regiment that Served During 1864
Brief History:
One Hundred and Fifty-Fourth Regiment, mustered in at Camp Dennison, May 9th 1864, 842 men, Colonel Robert Stevenson; served in the Piedmont country of Virginia, in guard, escort and picket duty till ordered home; under fire on several occasions; mustered out at Camp Dennison, September 1st, 743 men, Colonel Stevenson commanding.
Quotation from the
book: The Military History of Ohio by H.H. Hardesty, 1887.
The Regiment In Detail:
The 154th Regiment of Ohio Volunteer Infantry was originally the 60th Regiment of Ohio National Guard, and composed of eight companies and mustered about 700 men, mostly from Greene County, Ohio. However in May of 1864 at Camp Dennison, the Regiment was augmented with the Twenty-third Battalion of the Ohio National guard with two full infantry companies from Madison County, Ohio. A number of the soldiers had seen previous service in other organizations during the war. It was at Camp Dennison that the Regiment was mustered into the service of the United States Army, and designated the 154th Ohio Volunteer Infantry.
The makeup of the Regiment is as follows:
Colonel Robert Stevenson
154th Ohio Volunteer Infantry
(Picture Taken in 1865)
From the Book:
"The History and Service of the 154th Ohio Volunteer
Infantry"
By: Joseph A. Stipp.
Hadley & Fullagar Printers and Binders. Toldeo, Ohio. 1896
Field and Staff:
Robert
Stevenson.........Colonel Joseph E.Wilson...........Lieutenant-Colonel George Watt.................Surgeon Leigh McClung.............Assistant Surgeon John B. Hagan..............Adjutant A. Leon Trader.............Regiment Quarter Master Robert McCaslin..........Chaplain Linus P. Bonner............Sergeant Major James H. Miller...........Q.M. Sergeant George L. Paine...........Com. Sergeant John E. Martin.............Hospital Steward Julius Cone...................Principal Musician Newton T. Guthridge....Principal Musician |
The Companies were as follows:
Company A-
Yellow Springs, Greene County, Ohio. Captain, James B. Corry. 1st Lieutenant, John J. Hering. 2nd Lieutenant, Jasper W. Reed. |
Company B-
Xenia, Greene County, Ohio. Captian, Andrew C. Miller. 1st Lieutenant, James H. Matthews. 2nd Lieutenant, Oscar Poole. |
Company C-
West Jefferson, Madison County, Ohio. Captain, Alexander Swanson. 1st Lieutenant, Jeddiah M. Jones. 2nd Lieutenant, Isaac Hamilton. |
Company D-Alpha,
Greene County, Ohio. Captain, Henry B. Guthrie. 1st Lieutenant, George C. Canfield. 2nd Lieutenant, Benjamin F. Darst. |
Company E-
Zimmerman, Greene County, Ohio. Captain, Joseph F. Bouck. 1st Lieutenant, Benjamin H. Barney. 2nd Lieutenant, John W. Tobias. |
Company F-
Xenia, Greene County, Ohio. Captain, Richard F. King. 1st Lieutenant, Daniel McMillen. 2nd Lieutenant, Jesse R. Marshall. |
Company G-
Spring Valley, Greene County, Ohio. Captain, John A. Seiss. 1st Lieutenant, Walker D. Williamson. 2nd Lieutenant, John F. Dougherty. |
Company H-
Paintersville, Greene County, Ohio. Captain, Joel Ary. 1st Lieutenant, Lucein Smith. 2nd Lieutenant, James Thomas. |
Company I-
London, Madison County, Ohio. Captain, David Watson. 1st Lieutenant, Harford Toland. 2nd Lieutenant, Levin Willoughby. |
Company K-
Fairfield, Greene County, Ohio. Captain, Uriah Wilson. 1st Lieutenant, John C. Emmick. 2nd Lieutenant, George W. Beall. |
Source: The History and Service of the 154th Ohio Volunteer Infantry by Joseph A. Stipp. 1896.
Click on the Pages Below for:
Soldiers of the 154th OVI who were Prisoners of War
Firearms of the Regiment
Pvt. Joseph A.
Stipp in his book regarding the 154th OVI, mentions that while
the Regiment was at Camp Dennison, Ohio, it was equipped with
Enfield rifles. Most likely this was the model 1853 "Three
Band" Enfield shown at the top of the page. However, without
any other sources (picture or print) discussing this subject, it
is hard to be totally sure on which model of Enfield rifle was
given to the Regiment. If there is anyone out there who could
shed light on this subject, please feel free to get in touch with
me via E-Mail below.
Maps:
This is a
contemporary map of the Piedmont country of West Virginia.
The line in red denotes the approximate
location of the Baltimore & Ohio Railroad during the Civil
War.
Also note that the town of Keyser on the map had the name of
"New Creek" or "New Creek Station" in 1864.
The town of Piedmont is just northwest of New Creek, while
Moorefield is due south towards the bottom.
Map from August, 1863 of the town of
Piedmont, West Virginia.
Drawn by Lieutenant John R. Meigs, U.S. Engineers.
Company F of the 154th OVI spent almost its entire term
of service stationed there.
Civil War Service
On the 12th of May [1864] the regiment proceeded, via
Columbus and Bellaire, to New Creek, West Virginia, arriving on
the evening of the 14th. The next day -in one of the most violent
storms of the season- it laid out camp and pitched it tents. On
the 22nd Company F was ordered to Piedmont, West Virginia, where
it remained until the regiment started for Ohio for muster-out.
The One Hundred and Fifty-fourth performed guard, picket, and
escort duty until the 29th of May, when one company moved to
Youghiogheny Bridge, and the remaining eight companies to
Greenland Gap. Scouting parties were out almost constantly, and
on the 4th of June a detachment of the regiment had a skirmish
with McNeil's battalion, near Moorfield, in which the rebels were
defeated.
About the 12th of June three hundred men from the One Hundred and
Fifty-fourth, with a cavalry force, were engaged in a ten-day's
scout. Skirmishing was frequent, but the enemy kept so securely
in the mountains that only three rebels were captured in ten
days. On the 23d another scout -of one hundred men and a small
force of cavalry- was ordered out, with three days' rations, but
no enemy was discovered.
On the Fourth of July the regiment fell back to New Creek,
expecting an attack, but the enemy having retired it returned
again to Greenland Gap, arriving on the 7th. Company H -until
this time at Oakland- joined the regiment at New Creek, and
returned with it to the Gap. On the 25th the regiment again fell
back to New Creek, and Greenland Gap ceased to be held as a
military post.
On the 4th of August the rebels, under McCausland and Bradley
Johnson, attacked the force at New Creek, but at night they were
compelled to withdraw, leaving their killed and wounded on the
field.
On the 10th of August a detachment of the One Hundred and
Fifty-fourth proceeded to Camp Chase, in charge of prisoners, and
remained there until the regiment returned to the state. On the
evening of the 22nd the regiment started for Ohio, arriving at
Camp Chase on the 27th, where it was mustered out of the service
on the 1st of September, 1864.
Source: Green County Soldiers in the Late War by Ira S. Owens. 1884.
Click
Here for more Information about the 154th OVI's actions near New
Creek, West Virginia.
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Page Last Updated: 9-8-2001