Union Regular Army in the Civil War

Introduction
The Union Regular Army was the permanent core of the army. During the Civil War, only about 3% of the army was made up of Regular Army troops. The other 97% was composed of militia and volunteer units organized by states. However, the state units were commanded by federal generals. The state units were called United States Volunteers (USV) to designate them from the Regular Army (USA). Names of regiments with U.S. are Regular Army. Names with states names were USV..

Union Regular Army Units
Most units were numbered, however, some were named. See the table below for lists of the regiments, battalions, batteries, and other units.

The information in the lists of Union Regular Army Units comes from the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors web site. That web site also can be searched by the name of a soldier.

Union Regular Army Units by Number or by Name Union Units 1st-19th 20th-44th A to Z Union Regular Army Units by Type of Unit Union Units Infantry Cavalry Artillery Other

Records

 * United States Army. Registers of Enlistments in the United States Army, 1798-1914. (Washington [District of Columbia] : National Archives. Central Plains Region, 1956). 81 microfilms. The . The films specifically for 1861-1865 are:


 * v. 54-55 A-K 1859-1863, FS Library US/CAN Film 350333 v. 56-57 L-Z 1859-1863, FS Library US/CAN Film 350334 v. 58-59 A-K 1864-1865, FS Library US/CAN Film 350335 v. 60-61 L-Z 1864-1865, FS Library US/CAN Film 350336


 * Online


 * (FamilySearch)


 * United States. War Department. Record and Pension Office (Main Author) 'Compiled records showing service of military units in volunteer Union organizations.' (Washington, District of Columbia : National Archives & Records Administration, 1964),.


 * The "Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army..." by Francis B. Heitman lists Regular Army and volunteer officers from 1789 to 1903 in two volumes giving a brief history of the officers service and awards received. Casualties (including prisoners of war) from 1789 to 1902 are also listed as well as a chronological list of battles, actions, etc., in which troops of the Regular Army have participated.


 * Amann, William Frayne. Personnel of the Civil War. (New York, New York : T. Yoseloff, c1961)


 * Hewett, Janet B. The Roster of Union soldiers, 1861-1865. (Wilmington, North Carolina : Broadfoot Pub. Co., c1997-2000),.


 * Ness, George T. The Regular Army on the Eve of the Civil War. Baltimore, Maryland: Toomey Press, 1990. . Other libraries (WorldCat).


 * Newell, Clayton R. and Charles R. Shrader. Of Duty Well and Faithfully Done. A History of the Regular Army in the Civil War. Lincoln: University of Nebraska Press, 2011. Libraries with book (WorldCat)

Other Sources

 * U.S. War Department. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. 70 Volumes in 127 parts. 1880–1900. Reprint, Gettysburg, Pennsylvania: The National Historical Society, 1985. National Archives Microfilm Publication M262. (FS Library book 973 M29u; films 0845306–426.) This is an FS Library filming of the original volumes. (Also available on CD #51 and #52.) The four series of this compilation, known as the Official Records (OR), contain correspondence, battle reports of officers, information on prisoners, and activities of the war departments of both governments. The Official Records are arranged chronologically within regions. An online version is available at Cornell University Library's "Making of America" site.

A supplement to the official records is also available:


 * Hewitt, Janet B., et. al., editor. Supplement to the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Part I Reports, Part II the Record of Events. Wilmington, North Carolina: Broadfoot Publishing, 1994–. (FS Library book 973 M29u.) Part II the Record of Events is a transcription of the National Archive Microfilm Publication M594 (Union) and M861 (Confederate) Compiled Records Showing Service of Military Units in Volunteer Organizations. For more information see the unit histories sections for Union and Confederate military units.

The following is an index to this set:


 * Ainsworth, Fred C., and Joseph W. Kirkley. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. . . . General Index and Additions and Corrections. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1901. (FS Library book 973 M29u index; film 0430054.) Contains names of officers who submitted reports and the names of military units. The names of individual soldiers who were killed, captured, wounded, missing, drafted, and pensioned and the names of political prisoners are not found in the index. You must search the index under the names of battles, regiments, prisons, government agencies, and bureaus for such lists. References to the OR series number (a Roman numeral) are followed by the number of the volume (an Arabic number). You must then refer to the index in that volume to get the page number.


 * 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 'Florida 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.


 * 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.


 * 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, 1964)


 * The Union Army : a history of military affairs in the loyal states, 1861-65, records of the regiments in the Union Army, cyclopedia of battles, memoirs of commanders and soldiers. (Wilmington, North Carolina : Broadfoot Pub. Co., c1997-1998),.


 * Glazier, Willard W., 1841-1905. Battles for the union : comprising descriptions of many of the most stubbornly contested battles in the War of the Great Rebellion, together with incidents and reminiscences of the camp, the march, and the skirmish line. (Salt Lake City : Digitized by the Genealogical Society), and Three years in the federal cavalry..


 * Hewett, Janet B. The Roster of Union soldiers, 1861-1865.  (Wilmington, North Carolina : Broadfoot Pub. Co., c1997-2000)


 * Madison, Wis. : Federal Pub. Co., 1908. 8 v. The Union Army : a history of military affairs in the loyal states, 1861-65, records of the regiments in the Union Army, cyclopedia of battles, memoirs of commanders and sold. (Wilmington, North Carolina : Broadfoot Pub. Co., c1997-1998)