1st Colorado Volunteers
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| 1st Colorado Volunteer Infantry Regiment | |
|---|---|
 Flag of Colorado |
|
| Active | 1861 to |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | Union |
| Branch | Infantry |
The 1st Colorado Volunteers (officially the 1st Regiment of Colorado Volunteers) was a volunteer infantry regiment of the United States Army formed in the Colorado Territory in 1861 and active in the American West in the late 19th century.
The regiment was formed shortly after the outbreak of the American Civil War by order of William Gilpin, the first governor of the territory. Recruiters began enlisting men in August 1861, just six months after the organization of the territory. Known as "Gilpin's Pet Lambs" for the involvement of the governor in its formation, the regiment served in the Western Theater, notably in the New Mexico Campaign in the spring of 1862, in which they helped repulsed the advance of a Confederate army under Henry Hopkins Sibley at the Battle of Glorieta Pass. The first colonel of the regiment was John P. Slough, replaced in April 1862 by Major John Chivington, later chastised for his role as commander of the 1st Colorado Cavalry in the November 1864 Sand Creek Massacre.
