170th Regiment, New York Infantry

Brief History
The 170th regiment was organized at New York City under Colonel Peter McDermott and Lieutenant Colonel James McIvor. They were mustered in at Staten Island, Richmond County, October 7, 1862. They were associated with Corcoran's Irish Legion during their service. Their final duty was at Washington, D. C., till July, 1865 where they were mustered out July 15, 1865 under Colonel McIvor, Major Charles Hagan.

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


 * The Civil War Archive section, 170th Regiment Infantry "4th Corcoran Legion" (accessed 22 August 2012).

The New York State Military Museumwebsite has a unit history project page for the 170th Infantry Regiment.

The Civil War in the Eastwebsite gives a timeline for the involvement of 170th New York Infantry Regiment in the war.

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.

See the Regiment Roster, for listing of individuals, their company and their involvement.

All companies were principally recruited from New York City and Brooklyn, Kings County

Source Material
Civil War Soldiers & Sailors System has the information listed above and may have additional historical information. Searches can be made by name of a soldier or sailor. Information about cemeteries battles, prisoners, medals of honor and national parks is also included.

Phisterer, Frederick. ''New York in the War of the Rebellion, 1861 to 1865. ''Albany, New York : J.B. Lyon, 1912. Google Books, other libraries with this book,

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, Reprint of original published: Madison, WI.: Federal Pub. Co., 1908. Other libraries with this book,

Frederick Henry Dyer, A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion, (Des Moines, Iowa: Dyer Publishing Co., 1908), as cited at Civil War Soldiers; Sailors System (accessed March 2011)

New York State Division of Military and Naval Affairs. "Unit History Project: New York State Military Museum and Veterans Research Center" citing Frederick Phisterer, New York in the War of the Rebellion, 3rd ed. (Albany, N.Y.: J. B. Lyon Company, 1912). (accessed May 2011)

Hawks, Steve. The Civil War in the East. Database. (accessed May 2011)

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 ‘New York in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).

New York in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for New York, 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.

New York. Adjutant General's Office. Annual report of the Adjutant General of the State of New York for the year 1905,  contains the register for the 170th New York Infantry.