15th Engineer Regiment
Civil War
New York Sappers and Miners

History
The following is taken from New York in the War of the Rebellion, 3rd ed. Frederick Phisterer. Albany: J. B. Lyon Company, 1912.

Mustered in as 15th Regiment of Infantry: June 17, 1861
Designated 15th Regiment of Engineers: October 25, 1861
Mustered out by companies: June 13 to July 2, 1865

This regiment was accepted by the State May 9, 1861, and designated the 15th Regiment of Infantry. It was organized in New York city, and there mustered in the service of the United States for two years June 17, 1861. The regiment was intended and recruited for an engineer regiment, and was converted to that arm of the service by the War Department October 25, 1861. In January, 1862, Company I was reorganized of three years' recruits. June 18, 1863, the three years' men in the regiment were transferred to Companies A, B and C, and June 25, 1863, the two years' men of these three companies and all the other companies, their term of service having expired, were, commanded by Col. Clinton G. Colgate, honorably discharged and mustered out at New York city. To the battalion left in the field, there was assigned as Company D the company enlisted for the 2d Volunteer Engineers, on the 9th of October, 1863, and in March, 1864, another company recruited for the regiment joined it as Company E. In November, 1864, the reorganization of the regiment was completed by the addition of seven companies as F, G, H, I, K, L and M; Companies H, I and K were formed of recruits originally enlisted for the 50th Engineers; Company M was originally organized for the 175th Infantry, and Company L had originally been organized as a company of the 189th Infantry. The new companies were mustered in the United States service, D and E for three years; F and L for one and three years, and G, H, I, K and M for one year.

The companies were recruited principally — first organization - A, E and F, also G -New York Light Infantry — in New York city; B and C in Brooklyn; D in New York city, Brooklyn and New Jersey; H in New York city, Brooklyn, Flushing and Williams-burgh; I and K in New York city and Brooklyn; second Company I in New York city; of the second organization, D in New York city; E at Kingston; F at Albany, Kingston, Caneadea, Tarrytown and Salina; G at Malone, Clymer, Harmony, Hector, Union, Newark Valley, Dansville, Lindley, Portville, French Creek, Owego, Lodi and Seneca; H at Malone, Syracuse, Owego, Elmira, Auburn and Dunkirk; I at Elmira, Owego, Avon, Oswego, Utica and Seneca; K at Lima, Goshen, Avon, Cicero and Syracuse; L at Utica, Avon, Auburn, Syracuse, Lyons, Goshen and Elmira; and M at Syracuse, Auburn, Rochester, Owego and Elmira.

The regiment, commanded by Col. J. McLeod Murphy, left the State June 29, 1861; it served as infantry at and near Washington, D. C, from June 30, 1861; in McCunn's Brigade from July 20, 1861; in Franklin's Brigade, Division of Potomac, from August 4,1861; in Newton's Brigade from September 26, 1861; at Alexandria, Va., receiving instruction as engineers from November, 1861, and in the Volunteer Engineer Brigade, Army of the Potomac, from March, 1862; three companies — A, B and D—'With General Terry's force in North Carolina from January, 1865, and with the Army of the Ohio from March, 1865. Commanded by Col. Wesley Brainerd, it was honorably discharged and mustered out at Washington, D. C., Companies E, F, G, H, I, K and L June 13, Company C June 14, and Companies A, B and D July 2, 1865.

During its service the regiment lost, killed in action, 4 enlisted men; of wounds received in action, 1 enlisted man; of disease and other causes, 3 officers, 121 enlisted men; total 3 officers, 126 enlisted men; aggregate, 129; of whom I enlisted man died in the hands of the enemy.

Battles and Casualties Table from Phisterer

Monument at Gettysburg

Civil War Newspaper Clippings

Historical Sketch from the 3rd Annual Report of the Bureau of Military Statistics

15th Engineer Marker

15th Engineer Regimental Flag

Further reading

An appeal to the President, as the constitutional Commander in chief of the Army of the United States, by the recruits who volunteered to fill up the old 15 regiment of N.Y. volunteer engineers to be discharged according to their contract of enlistment, and according to General Order no. 108 of April 28, 1862. Washington: McGill & Witherow, printers, 1864. 59 p.

Reminisco, Don Pedro Quaerendo, pseud. Life in the Union army; or, notings and reminiscences of a two year volunteer. A rhythmical history of the Fifteenth N.Y. volunteer engineers, Colonel John McLeod Murphy, during its recent two years' campaign in and about Washington, and in the State of Virginia, by Don Pedro Quaerendo Reminisco, a private in the ranks. [New York]: H. Dexter, Hamilton & co., [1863]. 147 p.

Reminisco, Don Pedro Quaerendo, pseud. Life in the Union army; or, notings and reminiscences of a two year volunteer. A rhythmical history of the Fifteenth N.Y. volunteer engineers, Colonel John McLeod Murphy, during its recent two years' campaign in and about Washington, and in the State of Virginia, by Don Pedro Quaerendo Reminisco, a private in the ranks. New York: Sinclair Tousey, 1864. 147 p.

Roster of the 50th and 15th regiments, New York state volunteer engineers, Army of the Potomac. Compliments of the Secretary, Sam B. Williams. Rochester: Union and Advertising Press, 1894. 39 p.

Back to Civil War Units other types