3rd Regiment, Arkansas State Troops

3rd Infantry, Arkansas State Troops

Arkansas state flag
Active 1861
Country Confederate States of America
Allegiance CSA
Branch Infantry
Engagements Battle of Wilson's Creek

The 3rd Infantry, Arkansas State Troops (1861) was an Arkansas State infantry regiment that served during the American Civil War. The regiment was designated as the 2nd Infantry, Arkansas State Troops, by the State Military Board, but it was named the 3rd Arkansas by Brigadier General Nicholas Bartlett Pearce, Commander, 1st Division, Provisional Army of Arkansas.[1] The regiment is generally referred to as the "3rd Regiment, Arkansas State Troops", or "Gratiot's Regiment" in contemporary accounts.[2] This unit is distinguished from the 3rd Arkansas Infantry Regiment which served in the Eastern Theater of War in the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. The unit is also distinguished from a later state organization known as Adams' 3rd Arkansas State Troops, which was organized in 1862 and participated in the Battle of Prairie Grove before being disbanded.

Contents

Organization

At the beginning of the war, the Arkansas Succession Convention created the Provisional Army of Arkansas.[3] The Provisional Army was to consist of two divisions: the 1st Division in the western part of the state was to be commanded by Brigadier General Pearce, and the 2nd Division in the eastern half of the state, commanded by Major General James Yell.[4] The intent of the Secession Convention was to transfer these state troop regiments into Confederate service as quickly as possible, to avoid the cost of paying for a large state army. The troops of the eastern division were transferred to the command of Brigadier General Hardee in July 1861, but the troops of the western division under Brigadier General Pearce were not transferred to Confederate service before they became engaged in the Battle of Wilson's Creek.[5] The unit was composed of the following volunteer companies:[6]

  • Company A: Fort Smith Rifles, commanded by Captain James H. Sparks.[8]
  • Company B: Hempstead Rifles, commanded by Captain John R. Gratiot.[1][9]
  • Company C: Pike Guards, commanded by Captain Samuel R. Bell.
  • Company D: Cane Hill Rifles, commanded by Captain Pleasant W. Buchanan.
  • Company F: Crawford Artillery, commanded by Captain James T. Stewart.
  • Company G: Frontier Guards, commanded by Captain Hugh T. Brown.[10][11]
  • Company H: Johnson Guards, commanded by Captain Alfred D. King.
  • Company K: Crawford Guards, commanded by Captain Joel H. Foster.

Battles

Under the command of Colonel John R. Gratiot, the 3rd Regiment, Arkansas State Troops fought at the Battle of Wilson's Creek, Missouri on August 10, 1861.[2] The unit suffered 109 casualties, including twenty-five killed, out of a force of 500 men.[12] The regiment was marched back to Arkansas and given the opportunity to vote on the issue of being transferred into Confederate service following the battle. The regiment, along with the rest of the 1st Division voted to disband rather than be transferred to Confederate service.[13] Many veterans of the regiments joined other Confederate units later in the war.[1]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Gerdes, Edward G. ""The Hempstead Rifles" , Arkansas State Troops". Edward G. Gerdes Civil War Home Page. http://www.couchgenweb.com/civilwar/hemprifl.html. Retrieved 10 January 2010. 
  2. ^ a b The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies. ; Series 1 - Volume 3
  3. ^ Huff, Col. Leo E., The Military Board in Confederate Arkansas, Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Page 76
  4. ^ Huff, Col. Leo E., The Military Board in Confederate Arkansas, Arkansas Historical Quarterly, Page 76
  5. ^ Huff, Leo E., "The Military Board in Confederate Arkansas", Arkansas Historical Quarterly, XXVI (Spring 1967), p. 84
  6. ^ MILITIA LAW OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS; PUBLISHED BY DIRECTION OF THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF THE ARMY OF THE STATE OF ARKANSAS, AND OF THE MILITIA THEREOF. Retrieved 8 January 2010. See also: Acts Passed at the Fourths Session of the General Assembly of the State of Arkansas, An act for the better organization of the Militia of this State, page 149. Retrieved 8 January 2010. See also: Revised statutes of the State of Arkansas: adopted at the October session of the General Assembly of said State, A.D. 1837, Page 543. Retrieved 10 December 2010.
  7. ^ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named autogenerated13; see Help:Cite errors/Cite error references no text
  8. ^ The Arkansas in the Civil War Message Board – Archive Company Names. Posted By: Bryan Howerton. Retrieved 1 November 2010.
  9. ^ Kie Oldham Papers, Arkansas History Commission, One Capitol Mall, Little Rock Arkansas, Box 2, Items 107b
  10. ^ Kie Oldham Papers, Arkansas History Commission, One Capitol Mall, Little Rock Arkansas, Box 2, Items 108
  11. ^ Gerdes, Edward G. "Van Buren Frontier Guards, Arkansas State Troops". Edward G. Gerdes Civil War Page. http://www.couchgenweb.com/civilwar/frontier.html. Retrieved 10 January 2010. 
  12. ^ Edwin C. Bearss, Battle of Wilson’s Creek (Diamond, MO, 1975), pp. 59, 77–78. See also Huff, “Military Board”, p. 90.
  13. ^ The war of the rebellion: a compilation of the official records of the Union and Confederate armies. ; Series 1 - Volume 3, Page 716. Retrieved 10 January 2010.

External links
  •  American Civil War portal
  •  Military History: American Civil War
  •  Special Project: Brothers at War