1st Regiment, Rhode Island Infantry (3 months, 1861)

Brief History
The 1st Regiment, Rhode Island Infantry was organized in Rhode Island, April, 1861. It served for 3 moths. They left Washington for home on July 25, 1861. It was mustered out August 2, 1861.

For more information on the history of this unit, see:


 * Th Civil War Archive section, 1st Regiment Infantry, (accessed 6 November 2012).


 * The Wikipedia Article, 1st Rhode Island Infantry, (accessed 6 November 2012).

Companies in this Regiment with the Counties of Origin
Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 1,284 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Regimental History and Roster

 * Compiled service records of volunteer Union soldiers who served in organizations from the state of Missouri [microform]. By United States. National Archives and Records Service. Washington : National Archives and Records Service, 1962. Online at: Internet Archive

Regimental History and Roster

 * Service with Battery F, First Rhode Island light artillery. By Philip Steven Chase. Providence : The Society, 1889. Online at: Internet Archive

Other Sources

 * Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in ‘Mississippi in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).


 * National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.


 * Rhode Island in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Mississippi, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.

Books and Films


 * Ash, Stephen V. Firebrand of liberty : the story of two black regiments that changed the course of the Civil War. (New York, New York : W.W. Norton, c2008)


 * Clarke, Charles H. History of Company F, 1st Regiment, R. I. Volunteers, during the spring and summer of 1861. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1991),


 * United States. Army. Rhode Island Infantry Regiment, 1st (1861-1865). First regiment Rhode Island detached militia. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1991),


 * Woodbury, Augustus. The memory of the first battle : a discourse preached in Westminster Church, Providence, R. I., on the 28th anniversary of the Battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1889, before the veteran associations of the First and Second Rhode Island Regiments and their batteries. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1991), and A narrative of the campaign of the First Rhode Island regiment in the spring and summer of 1861. (Washington [District of Columbia] : Filmed by the Library of Congress Photoduplication Service, 1975),  and (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1991),

Internet sites 


 * American Civil War Pictures &amp; Photos - Photo of Chaplin A. Woodbury


 * Wikipedia.org 1st Rhode Island Infantry


 * Civil War Archive


 * First Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry, R.I.D.M.


 * First Regiment Rhode Island U.S. Volunteers | Ask.com Encyclopedia


 * Rhode Island Grand Army of the Republic Civil War Museum &amp; Library


 * FIRSTBULLRUN.CO.UK


 * Brown's on the Civil War from Rhode Island Kady C. McKenzie Brownellgrave marker, daughter of the regiment.


 * Ancesry.com - First Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry, R.I.D.M.


 * Military History OnlineCivil War Genealogy Database