26th Regiment, Illinois Infantry

Brief History
The 26th Regiment, Illinois Infantry was organized at Camp Butler, Illinois, and mustered in August 31, 1861. It moved to Louisville, Ky., June, and duty there until July. It mustered out July 20, and discharged at Springfield, Illinois, July 28, 1865. .

For more information on the history of this unit, see:

The Civil War Archive section, 26th Regiment Infantry, (accessed 14 June 2012).

The Wikipedia article, 26th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, (accessed 15 June 2012).

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 Effingham County - Effingham County web site - Roster, vol. 2, pages 356-358.
 * Company B - many men from Stephenson County - Stephenson County web site - Roster, vol. 2, pages 359-362.
 * Company C - many men from Bond County and Mercer County - Bond and Mercer county web sites - Roster, vol. 2, pages 362-364.
 * Company D - many men from Sangamon County - Sangamon County web site - Roster, vol. 2, pages 365-367.
 * Company E - many men from LaSalle County - LaSalle County web site - Roster, vol. 2, pages 367-370.
 * Company F - many men from Champaign County and Madison County - Champaign and Madison county web sites - Roster, vol. 2, pages 370-373.
 * Company G - many men from Edwards County and White County - Edwards and White county web sites - Roster, vol. 2, pages 373-376.
 * Company H - many men from Stephenson County - Stephenson County web site - Roster, vol. 2, pages 376-379.
 * Company I - many men from Champaign County - Champaign County web site - Roster, vol. 2, pages 379-381.
 * Company K - many men from McLean County and DeWitt County - McLean and DeWitt county web sites - Roster, vol. 2, pages 382-385.
 * Unassigned Recruits - Roster, vol. 2, page 385.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 2,164 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Other Sources
WEBSITES


 * 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.


 * 26th Illinois Infantry Regiment, Three Year Service, August 31, 1861 - July 20, 1865, web site, has histories and company rosters. (accessed 16 August 2011).


 * Illinois Civil War Rosters from the Adjutant General's Report, 26th Regiment (accessed 10 May 2011) includes rosters of all the regiments and information on the different companies in each regiment.


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


 * Phillips, M. V. B. Life and death in Andersonville, or, What I saw and experienced during seven months in rebel prisons. (Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1993),