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Illinois 21st Infantry (Union)

6/28/61

Organized - Illinois 21st Infantry - Illinois

4/29/62

Battle - Siege of Corinth - Corinth, Mississippi

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Siege of Corinth

Union forces had captured the railroad junction and important transportation center at Corinth, Mississippi in the spring of 1862 after their victory at Shiloh. After the Battle of Iuka in September, Maj. Gen. Sterling Price's Confederate Army of the West marched to Ripley, Mississippi where it joined Maj. Gen. Earl Van Dorn's Army of West Tennessee. Van Dorn took command of the combined force numbering about 22,000 men. The Rebels marched southeast toward Corinth, hoping to recapture it and then sweep int…READ MORE

10/8/62

Leadership Change - Regiment - Colonel John Washington Shields Alexander

10/8/62

Leadership Change - Brigade - Colonel William Passmore Carlin, and undefined k-0 w-11 m-0 = 11

10/8/62

Leadership Change - Division - undefined 16 guns k-133 w-356 m-58 = 547, undefined 2nd Kansas Cavalry : Sgt Hugh Quinn, Brigadier General Robert Byington Mitchell, undefined Escort:, and undefined Sherer's Independent Cavalry Company: Cpt Samuel B. Sherer

10/8/62

Leadership Change - Division - undefined 2nd Kansas Cavalry : Sgt Hugh Quinn

10/8/62

Battle - Perryville - Perryville, Kentucky

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Perryville

On October 7, 1862, Maj. Gen. Don Carlos Buell's Army of the Ohio, in pursuit of Gen Braxton Bragg's Army of Mississippi, approached the crossroads town of Perryville, Kentucky. Union forces skirmished with Confederates on the Springfield Pike before heavy fighting began on Peters Hill. The next day, fighting continued as a Union division advanced up the pike. After noon, a Confederate division struck the Union left flank and forced it to fall back. When more Confederates joined the fray, the Union line ma…READ MORE

12/31/62

Leadership Change - Regiment - Colonel John W. S. Alexander, and Lieutenant Colonel Warren E. McMackin

12/31/62

Leadership Change - Brigade - Colonel William P. Carlin

12/31/62

Leadership Change - Division - Brigadier General Jefferson C. Davis

Brigadier GeneralJefferson C. Davis

12/31/62

Leadership Change - Regiment - Colonel John W. S. Alexander

12/31/62

Battle - Stones River - Murfreesboro, Tennessee

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Stones River

After his October 1862 defeat at Perryville in Kentucky, Gen. Braxton Bragg withdrew his army into middle Tennessee and resupplied his men near Murfreesboro.READ MORE

9/19/63

Leadership Change - Regiment - Colonel John W. S. Alexander, and Captain Chester K. Knight

9/19/63

Leadership Change - Brigade - Brigadier General William P. Carlin

Brigadier GeneralWilliam P. Carlin

9/19/63

Leadership Change - Regiment - Colonel John W. S. Alexander

9/19/63

Battle - Chickamauga - Catoosa County, Georgia; Walker County, Georgia

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Chickamauga

After the successful Tullahoma Campaign, Maj. Gen. William Rosecrans continued the Union offensive, aiming to force Gen. Braxton Bragg's Confederate army out of Chattanooga. Through a series of skillful marches towards the Confederate-held city, Rosecrans forced Bragg out of Chattanooga and into Georgia. Determined to reoccupy the city, Bragg followed the Federals north, brushing with Rosecrans' army at Davis' Cross Roads. While they marched on September 18th, his cavalry and infantry skirmished with Un…READ MORE

6/27/64

Battle - Kennesaw Mountain - Cobb County, Georgia

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Kennesaw Mountain

Fearing envelopment northwest of Atlanta, Confederate Gen. Joseph E. Johnston withdrew his army to a new defensive position astride Kennesaw Mountain near Marietta. Johnston selected this position in order to protect the Western & Atlantic Railroad, his supply link to Atlanta. Prior to taking up this new line on June 19th, Johnston had pioneers working through the night digging trenches and erecting fortifications, turning Kennesaw into a formidable earthen fortress. Having defeated Lieut. Gen. John…READ MORE

7/20/64

Leadership Change - Brigade - Colonel Isaac M. Kirby

7/20/64

Leadership Change - Division - Major General David S. Stanley

Major GeneralDavid S. Stanley

7/20/64

Battle - Peachtree Creek - Fulton County, Georgia

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Peachtree Creek

Weary of Gen. Joseph E. Johnston's pattern of retreat through northwest Georgia in the face of Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's advancing armies, President Jefferson Davis removed him from command of the Army of Tennessee, replacing him with Lieut. Gen. John B. Hood. On July 20th, Hood determined to take the fight to the enemy by setting upon an isolated portion of Sherman's forces in front of Atlanta. Hood's target would be the Union corps of Maj. Gens. Oliver O. Howard and Joseph Hooker from Maj. Gen. Geo…READ MORE

8/31/64

Leadership Change - Division - Brigadier General Nathan Kimball

Brigadier GeneralNathan Kimball

8/31/64

Battle - Jonesborough - Clayton County, Georgia

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Jonesborough

By late August 1865, the city of Atlanta was not yet subdued by Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's armies. A few supply lines remained open to the city supporting the army of Lieut. Gen. John B. Hood encircled there. Union cavalry raids inflicted only superficial damage, quickly repaired by the Confederates. Sherman determined that if he could destroy the Macon & Western and Atlanta & West Point Railroads to the south the Rebel army would be forced to evacuate the city. On August 25, Union infantry beg…READ MORE

11/30/64

Leadership Change - Regiment - Captain William H. Jamison

11/30/64

Battle - Franklin (1864) - Franklin, Tennessee

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Franklin (1864)

After allowing Maj. Gen. John Schofield's Army of the Ohio to pass him near Spring Hill, Tennessee, the previous morning, Lt. Gen. John Bell Hood led his 30,000-man Army of Tennessee to the outskirts of Franklin on November 30th. Schofield's army had constructed a strong defensive line south of the town. Hood took a position two miles south of Schofield, with open, rolling farm land between them, and prepared to attack. At 4:00 p.m., over 20,000 Confederates moved forward east and west of the Columbia Pike…READ MORE

12/15/64

Battle - Nashville - Nashville, Tennessee

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Nashville

Despite a series of defeats in the closing days of November, 1864, Confederate Lieut. Gen. John Bell Hood continued to drag his bloodied Army of Tennessee, approximately 30,000 strong, north towards Nashville. The city was protected by 55,000 Union soldiers, which should have precluded further offensive operations, but Hood was determined and his situation was dire. Hood reached Nashville on December 2nd and staked out a position south of the city, hoping to draw the Union forces into a costly attack. Ulys…READ MORE

12/16/65

Mustered Out - Illinois 21st Infantry - Illinois

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