1st United States Sharpshooters

1st United States Sharpshooters
Unit name	1st United States Sharpshooters
Dates	1861–1865
Country	United States
Allegiance	Union
Branch	United States Army
Type	Infantry (Sharpshooters)
Size	Company/Battalion
Equipment	Sharps rifles, Springfield rifles
Notable commanders	Hiram Berdan, Robert C. Buchanan

1st United States Sharpshooters was a specialized infantry regiment mustered during the American Civil War to provide precision riflemen for the Union Army and operations of the Army of the Potomac. Formed under the advocacy of inventor Hiram Berdan and authorized by the United States Congress, the unit recruited marksmen from across New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Wisconsin, and other northern states to serve in major campaigns including the Peninsula Campaign, the Battle of Gettysburg, and the Overland Campaign. Its companies were attached to divisions led by generals such as Irvin McDowell, George B. McClellan, Ambrose Burnside, Joseph Hooker, George G. Meade, and Ulysses S. Grant.

Formation and Organization

Authorized by an act of Congress and championed by Hiram Berdan, the regiment was organized in 1861 as the 1st regiment of sharpshooters to serve as a national outfit alongside the 5th United States Sharpshooters. Recruitment drew volunteers who passed trials conducted by Berdan and staff including officers from the Regular Army and state militias such as the New York State Militia and Pennsylvania Volunteers. Companies were formed and mustered at posts like Fort Monroe, Camp Parole, and Washington, D.C., then assigned to brigades within the Army of the Potomac and sometimes detached for duty with corps commanded by Daniel Sickles and Ambrose E. Burnside. Organizational tables reflected light infantry doctrine influenced by European sharpshooter models observed during the Crimean War and manuals from United States Rifle Regiment experiments.

Recruitment and Training

Berdan instituted marksmanship trials modeled on competitive shooting clubs such as the Knickerbocker Rifle Club and municipal ranges in New York City, Philadelphia, and Cincinnati. Applicants faced qualification at distances using targets similar to those employed by the NRA founders and state shooting associations, overseen by officers formerly of the United States Military Academy at West Point. Training included range practice, skirmish drills taught in manuals by instructors influenced by tactics of Frederick Townsend Ward and lessons from veterans of the Mexican–American War. Recruits often came from towns with established shooting societies like Schenectady, New York, Erie, Pennsylvania, Cleveland, Ohio, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, bringing civilian marksmanship experience to regimental drills on parade grounds near Alexandria, Virginia.

Equipment and Marksmanship Tactics

The regiment was initially equipped with Sharps rifle breechloaders supplied through Berdan’s advocacy, and later with Springfield Model 1861 rifled muskets or variant long rifles depending on supply from the Ordnance Department. Ammunition logistics tied them to arsenals such as the Frankford Arsenal and Springfield Armory. Tactics emphasized individual precision fire, use of terrain for concealment like the woods of Fredericksburg, Virginia and ridgelines at Antietam, and employment as skirmishers ahead of line infantry from divisions under Winfield Scott Hancock and John Sedgwick. They adopted observation and range-estimating techniques similar to practices in European light infantry units and worked in concert with reconnaissance elements like those under George H. Sharpe and cavalry screens led by Philip Sheridan.

Combat History and Engagements

Companies saw action in earliest operations of 1862 during the Peninsula Campaign and at the Yorktown, providing sharpshooting against entrenchments manned by forces under Joseph E. Johnston. They engaged at the Battle of Seven Pines and held positions during the Seven Days Battles against corps commanded by James Longstreet and Stonewall Jackson. Detached companies fought during the Maryland Campaign at Antietam, then participated in the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Chancellorsville Campaign while attached to corps led by Ambrose Burnside and Joseph Hooker. At the Battle of Gettysburg, sharpshooter detachments harassed brigades under James Longstreet and supported counter-sniping against marksmen associated with Confederate States Army sharpshooter formations. Later, in the Overland Campaign and at the Siege of Petersburg, they served in trench raids, picket duty, and targeted fire during operations coordinated with leaders like Meade and Grant. They also participated in the Appomattox Campaign leading to Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox Court House.

Notable Commanders and Personnel

Leadership included founder Hiram Berdan (commissioned colonel), who advocated for sharpshooter doctrine and advanced rifle procurement, and field officers who served under corps commanders such as Joseph Hooker and George Meade. Members who gained recognition included veteran marksmen who later influenced postwar shooting clubs and organizations like the NRA and the Grand Army of the Republic. Several noncommissioned officers and enlisted men had prior service with state units from New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Wisconsin and later figures in municipal government and veterans’ associations across cities like Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, and Milwaukee.

Casualties and Disbandment

The regiment suffered casualties across major battles, with losses recorded during actions such as Antietam, Gettysburg, and the Wilderness reflecting risks inherent in forward skirmish and picket roles against Confederate sharpshooters including marksmen from units raised by Richard Kirkland’s era and other noted Southern snipers. Disease and exposure at camps like Camp Parole and winter quarters near Brandy Station also contributed to noncombat attrition. Following Robert E. Lee’s surrender, the regiment was mustered out in 1865, and many veterans joined organizations including the Grand Army of the Republic and municipal veteran societies in states such as New York, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania.

Category:Units and formations of the Union Army Category:Sharpshooters (Military)