3rd Battery, Louisiana Light Artillery (Benton's)- Confederate

Brief History
Organized at Monroe, Ouachita Parish, in April or May 1862 with 108 men. It was nicknamed the "Bell Battery" because the cannons manufactured for its use were made from bells donated by planters in Ouachita, Caldwell, and Morehouse parishes. Other than a brief stint in Arkansas, the battery served in Louisiana for the bulk of the war. The men surrendered at Grand Ecore in June, 1865. The battery was sometimes called Benton's Battery after Captain Thomas O. Benton.

"Units of the Confederate States Army" by Joseph H. Crute, Jr. contains no history for this unit.

Companies in this Regiment with the Counties of Origin

 * Organized at Ouachita Parish.

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 101 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

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 ‘Louisiana 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.


 * Louisiana in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Louisiana, 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.