15th Regiment, Illinois Infantry

Brief History
The 15th Regiment, Illinois Infantry was organized at Freeport, Illinois, and mustered in May 24, 1861. It mustered out at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, September 16, 1865.

The 15th Regiment consolidated with 14th Infantry Regiment on July 1, 1864 to form the Veteran Battalion, 14th and 15th Regiment, Illinois Infantry. On April 28, 1865, the battalion was reorganized into a regiment again with new recruits.

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


 * The Civil War Archive section, 15th Regiment Infantry, (accessed 14 June 2012).
 * The Wikipedia article, 15th 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 McHenry County - McHenry County web site

Company B - many men from Boone County - Boone County web site

Company C - many men from Winnebago County - Winnebago County web site

Company D - many men from McHenry County - McHenry County web site

Company E - many men from Jo Daviess County - Jo Daviess County web site

Company F - many men from McHenry County - McHenry County web site

Company G - many men from Stephenson County - Stephenson County web site

Company H - many men from Ogle County - Ogle County web site

Company I - many men from Lake County - Lake County web site

Company K - many men from Carroll County - Carroll County web site

Unassigned Recruits -

15th (Reorganized) Illinois Infantry Regiment -- April 28, 1865. Scroll to bottom of page for information about counties of origin and rosters.

The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors database lists 2,763 men on its roster for this unit. Roster.

Regimental History and Roster

 * Army Memoirs of Lucius W. Barber, Company "D," 15th Illinois Volunteer Infantry : by Lucius W Barber, Publisher Alexandria, Va. : Time-Life Books, 1984, Online at:Internet Archive

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.


 * Illinois Civil War Rosters from the Adjutant General's Report, 15th Regiment (accessed 10 May 2011) includes rosters of all the regiments and information on the different companies in each regiment.

BOOKS


 * Puterbaugh, John W. March and countermarch, letters from a Union soldier, May 14, 1861-April 3, 1862 : a collection of 72 letters from 2nd Lt. John Puterbaugh, Co. K, 15th Infantry Regiment, Illinois Vols. ([S.l. : s.n.], c1995),.