55th Regiment, Illinois Infantry

Brief History
The 55th Regiment, Illinois Infantry was organized at Camp Douglas, Chicago, Illinois, and mustered in on October 31, 1861. The regiment moved to Little Rock, Arkansas on June 30-July 6 and mustered out on August 14, 1865.

For more information on the history of the 55th Regiment, Illinois Infantry, see the following:


 * Wikipedia, (accessed 23 Dec 2010) article on the 55th Illinois Volunteer Infantry.


 * The Civil War Archive. (accessed 23 Dec 2010) Brief history of the 55th Regiment Infantry.

Companies in this Regiment with County 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 following counties of origin are taken from the Adjutant General's Report, found on the Illinois Civil War Rosters web site. Roster pages are from the same report found on the Internet Archives web site. The rosters show the men who served in each regiment, their residences, dates of enlistment and mustering out, and other remarks.

Company A - many men from Fulton County - Fulton County web site- Roster, vol. 3, pages 687-690.

Company B - many men from Cook, Coles, Ogle, and DeKalb counties - Cook, Coles, Ogle, and DeKalb county web sites - Roster, vol. 3, pages 690-692.

Roster, vol. 3, pages Company C - many men from Winnebago County - Winnebago County web site- Roster, vol. 3, pages 692-694.

Company D - many men from Fulton County - Fulton County web site- Roster, vol. 3, pages 694-696.

Company E - many men from DuPage and Kane counties - DuPage and Kanecounty web sites - Roster, vol. 3, pages 697-699.

Company F - many men from McDonough County - McDonough County web site- Roster, vol. 3, pages 699-701.

Company G - many men from LaSalle and McDonough counties - LaSalle and McDonough county web sites - Roster, vol. 3, pages 710-703.

Company H - many men from Carroll and Ogle counties - Carroll and Ogle county web sites - Roster, vol. 3, pages 704-705.

Company I - many men Grundy and LaSalle counties - Grundy and LaSalle county web sites - Roster, vol. 3, pages 706-708.

Company K - many men from Knox County - Knox County web site- Roster, vol. 3, pages 708-710.

Unassigned Recruits - Roster, vol. 3, pages 710-711.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 2,022 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Other Sources
WEB SITES


 * 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 ‘Illinois 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.


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


 * Illinois Civil War Rosters from the Adjutant General's Report, 55th Regiment (accessed 19 Feb. 2011) includes rosters of all the regiments and information on the different companies in each.


 * Illinois State Archives - Illinois Civil War Muster and Descriptive Rolls Database (accessed 14 June 2011). Search by residence, unit, regiment, company or soldier.


 * The ILGenWeb Civil War Scrapbook, (accessed 9 Aug 2011) contains links to various documents such as personal letters, military papers, articles, histories, obituaries, biographies, etc. Documents are listed by regiment, then by the soldier and his company.

BOOKS AND FILMS


 * Civil War Centennial Commission of Illinois. Illinois Military Units in the Civil War. (Springfield, [Ill.]:Civil War Centennial Commission of Illinois, c1962). . FS Library US/CAN Book 977.3 M2im and FS Library US/CAN Film 6334558. Other libraries with this book. Includes military units by county, infantry, cavalry, and artillery regiments, including independent artillery.


 * Hewett, Janet B and United States. War Department. Supplement to the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. (Wilmington, North Carolina : Broadfoot Pub. Co., c1994-2001). Part II v. 12 (Union Infantry 50th-60th). FS Library US/CAN Book 973 M29u ser. 1 supp. pt. 2 v. 12. Other libraries with this book.


 * Crooker, Lucien B, Lucien B and Henry S Nourse; John G Brown; Milton L Haney; Association of the Fifty-fifth Illinois Vet. Vol. Infantry. Committee of the Regiment. The story of the Fifty-fifth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War, 1861-1865. (Huntington, W. Va. : Blue Acorn Press, c1993.). Libraries with this book. Google Books. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1993) and A section of a battle : observations upon the conduct of the 55th Illinois Infantry in the first day's battle of Shiloh, a missing link supplied, prepared for the first reunion of that Regiment, held at Canton, Illinois, October 30th and 31st, 1884.


 * United States. Army. Illinois Infantry Regiment, 55th (1861-1865. The Story of the Fifty-fifth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War, 1861-1865 by a Committee of the Regiment. (Salt Lake City, Utah: Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1972). FS Library CAN/US Film 874292 item 2.


 * United States. Army. Illinois Infantry Regiment, 55th (1861-1865. The Story of the Fifty-fifth Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War, 1861-1865 ([Clinton, Mass.: Printed by W.J. Coulter], c1887). FS Library CAN/US Book 977.3 M2ff. Other libraries with this book.


 * United States. War Department. Record and Pension Office. Compiled Records Showing Service of Military Units in Volunteer Union Organizations. (Washington, District of Columbia : The National Archives, c1964). 54th-58th Infantry FS Library US/CAN Film 1488475. Other libraries with this microfilm. View online at Internet Archives.


 * United States. Army. Illinois Infantry Regiment, 55th (1861-1865), Roster of the Volunteer Infantry in the Civil War. (Washington, District of Columbia: Library of Congress, [19--]).. FS Library US/CAN Film 989214.


 * Vance, Joseph W and Illinois. Adjutant General's Office. Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Illinois, 1861-1866 .(Salt Lake City, Utah : Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, 1957, 1980).FS Library US/CAN Film 7692. Other libraries with this book. View online at Internet Archives. Rosters of officers and enlisted men and historical memorandum of the regiments.


 * Wood, John and Illinois. Quartermaster General's Dept.; Illinois. General Assembly. Abstracts of Issues to Fifty-third, Fifty-fourth, Fifty-sixth, Fifty-seventh, Fifty-eighth, Sixtieth, Sixty-fourth and Sixty-fifth Regiments of Infantry. (Springfield, Ill. : Baker &amp; Phillips, Printers, c1865.) Other libraries with this book. Report of the Quartermaster General of the State of Illinois.