17th Regiment, Maine Infantry

Brief History
The 17th Regiment, Maine Infantry organized at Camp King, Cape Elizabeth, and mustered in August 18, 1862. They mustered out June 4, 1865,and were discharged at Portland, Me., June 10, 1865.

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


 * The Civil War Archive section,17th Regiment Infantry, (accessed 30 May 2012).
 * The Wikipedia article, 17th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment, (accessed 6 July 2012).

17th Regiment, Maine Infantry timeline from organization to discharge.

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 2,920 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 ‘Maine 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.


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


 * Jordan, William B. Red Diamond Regiment: the 17th Maine Infantry, 1862-1865.  (Shippensburg, Pennsylvania : White Mane Publishing Company, c1996),

Regimental History and Roster

 * Seventeenth Maine regiment at Gettysburg, regiment, n.p., n.p., 1880, Online at: