23rd Regiment, South Carolina Infantry (Hatch's Coast Rangers)

Brief History
23rd Infantry Regiment [also called Coast Rangers] was assembled at Charleston, South Carolina, in November, 1861. Most of the men were from Horry, Georgetown, Charleston, and Colleton counties. After being stationed in South Carolina, the regiment moved to Virginia and during the war served in General Evans', Elliot's, and Wallace's Brigade.



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.

A Company - (also known as (Bee's Rifles), many men from Charleston District (County): Captain L.P. Miller; Captain John C. Evans

B Company - (also known as Chicora Rifles), many men from Charleston District (County): Captain John M. Whilden; Captain Paul H. Seabrook; Captain J. Walker Duffus; Captain Thomas L. Swinton

C Company - (also known as Johnson Rifles), many men from Charleston District (County): Captain M.V. Bancroft

D Company - (also known as Duryea Guards), many men from Charleston District (County): Captain Edgar O. Murden

E Company - (also known as Coast Rangers): Captain C.J. Fledger; Captain J.C. Finklea

F Company - Captain J.J. McLure; Captain J.F. Atkinson; Captain J.M. Woods; Captain Julius Mills

G Company - (also known as Douglas Rifles), many men from Marlboro District (County): Captain Robert C. Emmanuel; Captain Angus Z. McRae; Captain W.W. Covington

H Company - Captain John Roberts; Captain Solon A. Durham; Captain W. Warren Hamilton

I Company - (also known as Sprott Guards): Captain Henry L. Benbow; Captain Henry H. Lesesne; Captain William J.R. Cantey

K Company - Captain Thomas D. Frierson; Captain Lucius P. Loring; Captain David R. McCallum; Captain John H. Cooper

Regiment formed by adding six companies of 12th Mississippi Volunteers to Hatch's Battalion:

E Company - many men from Marion District (County): Captain Franklin

F Company - many men from Chester District (County)

G Company - many men from Marlboro District (County)

H Company - many men from Marion District (County): Captain Roberts

I Company

K Company - many men from Sumter District (County)

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 1,867 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Other Sources

 * Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System can be searched by soldier's name or by regiment; includes regimental rosters and additional history of the regiment. This site uses Joseph H. Crute's book, Units of the Confederate States Army, as their main source for the regiment history. FS Library book 973 M2crua,, WorldCat.


 * Footnote.com (A subscription website, but is available for use at the Family History Library and some Family History Centers). It has digital Civil War soldier service records and brief regiment histories (located at the bottom of some of the muster rolls).


 * Andrews, W J.  Sketch of Company K., 23rd South Carolina Volunteers in the Civil War from 1862-1865    ( Columbia, S.C. : University of South Carolina, Thomas Cooper Library, Digital Collections Dept., 2009), 33 pages. W.J. Andrews, with the assistance of some of his fellow soldiers, recalls the Company's combat experiences during the second Battle of Bull Run, Virginia (1862; also called Second Manassas) and the siege of Petersburg, Virginia (1864-1865), as well as his own capture and imprisonment at Point Lookout Prison Camp for Confederates in Maryland following the Battle of Fort Stedman. Microfiche copy at  and book available at WorldCat libraries.


 * Blackburn, George A. The life work of John L. Girardeau, D.D., LLd. : late professor in the Presbyterian Theological Seminary, Columbia, S.C. (Columbia, S.C. : The State Co., 1916), 432 pages. Digital copies at Google and Internet Archives. Book available at WorldCatlibraries.


 * Elwell, S.P.H. Recollection of war times : my experience in the West.  (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1990).  Available at the Family History Library,