Union Unit Histories

Portal:United States Military Records&gt;United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865

Union Unit Histories
Many state volunteer regiments had published histories. The histories have biographical data on officers and unit rosters of members, and they often provide clues to the town or county where the soldiers were living when they enlisted.

The following sources contain organizational unit names and brief service histories of Union Army regiments:


 * Dyer, Frederic. Compendium of the War of the Rebellion, Two Volumes. 1908. Reprint, Dayton, Ohio: The Press of Morningside Bookshop, 1978. (FHL book 973 M2df.)
 * Compiled Records Showing Service of Military Units in Volunteer Union Organizations. 'National Archives Microfilm Publication M594. (FHL films 1488453–677.) Transcribed as Part II Record of Events to Supplement to the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. For additional information, look under “General Reference Sources” in this section on page 24.
 * Fallon, John T. List of Synonyms of Organizations in the Volunteer Service of the United States during the Years 1861, ‘62, ‘63, ‘64, and ‘65. Washington, DC: Government Printing Office, 1885. (FHL film 195490.) Arranged by state, then alphabetical by synonym, with references to its regular or final designation. An additional arrangement of the synonyms alphabetically is included.
 * The Union Army, a History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States 1861–1865; Records of the Regiments in the Union Army, Encyclopedia of Battles, Memoirs of Commanders and Soldiers. Nine Volumes. 1908. Reprint, Wilmington, North Carolina: Broadfoot Publishing, 1998. (FHL book 973 M2ua.) The first four volumes contain regimental sketches. Volumes five and six are an encyclopedia of battles. Volume seven contains naval information, and Volume eight has biographical sketches of Union generals.

The Family History Library has a large collection of regimental histories. To find specific microfilm numbers look in the Author/Title search of the Family History Library Catalog on microfiche under the name of the author.

The library is also in the process of acquiring Civil War Unit Histories: Regimental Histories and Personal Narratives on microfiche from University Publications of America. This collection will include the state adjutant general’s office reports and the unit histories and personal narratives published from 1861 to 1920 that are listed in Charles E. Dornbusch’s previously mentioned Military Bibliography of the Civil War .

The collection is divided into five parts: the Union is covered in parts 2–5; Part 2, New England; Part 3, Mid-Atlantic; Part 4, Midwest and West; Part 5, higher and independent commands and naval forces. A published inventory for each part is available in:

Lester, Robert E., project editor, and Blair D. Hydrick, compiler. A Guide to the Microfiche Edition of Civil War Unit Histories: Regimental Histories and Personal Narratives. Bethesda, Maryland: University of America, 1993. (FHL book 973 M2cwu; Part 2, Part 3, Part 4.)


 * Unit histories often chronicle troop movement by railway. The Tennessee State Library and Archives includes in their online digital map collection Appletons' Railway map of the United States and the Canadas, circa 1864.

For additional information see General Reference Sources.