8th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry - Confederate

Brief History
The 8th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry was organized at Camp Trousdale, Sumner County, Tennessee, in May, 1861. Only a remnant surrendered on April 26, 1865.

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.

"All company letters were changed at the reorganization of May 8, 1862, and those shown are the letters used after reorganization."


 * Company A - Captain William G. Burford, I.A. McCall, J.A. McCall, D.O. Puryear - Men from Smith County.
 * Company B - Captain Tim S. McHenry, James C. Chowning, W.B. Petty - Men from Overton County.
 * Company C - Captain A.M. Hall, B.E. Malear, William H. Blake, William D. Bonds - Men from Lincoln County.
 * Company D - Captain George W. Higgins, M.C. Shook, T.A. Yant - "The Norris Creek Guards" - Men from Lincoln County.
 * Company E - Captain Bane McKinney, N.M. Bearden, J.S. Brown - "The Comargo Guards" - Men from Lincoln County.
 * Company F - Captain Calvin E. Meyers, James I. Cullom - Men from Overton County, some from Fentress County.
 * Company G - Captain William Gore, William Sadlery, John S. Quarles - Men from Jackson County, some from Putnam County.
 * Company H - Captain L.T. Armstrong, A.J. B. Walker, J.B. Overstreet, Thomas Jefferson Davis - Men from Celina, Jackson County (now Clay County).
 * Company I - Captain James L. Bryant, Ben B. Bowers, James M. McAfee - Men from Marshall County.
 * Company K - Captain William Lawson Moore, W.J. Thrash, John D. Tolley, Moses B. Shores - "The Mulberry Riflemen" - Men from Lincoln and Moore Counties.

The information about the companies is from Tennesseans in the Civil War, (accessed 19 Nov 2011).

Eighth regiment of Tennessee Infantry

New Hope Company (Captain J. L. Bryant) - many men from Marshall County

The information above is from Goodspeed's History of Tennessee. Vol 8

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 1,856 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 or sailor. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in 'Tennessee 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.


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


 * Bible, James. Civil War history of Company C, 8th Reg., Tenn. Vol. Inf. (Nashville, Tennessee : Tennessee State Library and Archives, [197_?]),


 * Carrigan, Joseph G. Cheat Mountain, or, Unwritten chapter of the late war. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1990),


 * Confederate Military Rosters Online, 8th Infantry Regiment, (accessed 26 Feb 2012). Transcribed by Linda Rives, extracted from "Campaigns and Battles of the Sixteenth Regiment, Tennessee Volunteers".  Published in 1885.


 * Lindsley, John B. The Military Annals of Tennessee: Confederate, First Series; Embracing a Review of Military Operations, with Regimental Histories and Memorial Rolls, Compiled from Original and Official Sources. 1886. Reprint. Spartanburg, South Carolina: Reprint Co., 1974. (FS Library book 976.8 M2L.) Digital versions at FamilySearch; Internet Archive.  Memorial rolls for the 8th Tennessee Infantry start on page 265.


 * Ragan, R. A. (Robert A.). Escape from East Tennessee to the Federal lines : the history, given as nearly as possible by Capt. R.A. Ragan of his individual experiences during the War of the Rebellion from 1861 to 1864. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1990),


 * 8th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Tennesseans in the Civil War, (accessed 19 Nov 2011). Brief history and organization.


 * The Eighth Tennessee (Confederate) Regiment, a brief history, (accessed 28 Dec 2011).