2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry

2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry
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Unit name	2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry
Dates	May 1861 – July 1865
Country	United States
Allegiance	Union
Branch	United States Army
Type	Infantry
Size	Regiment
Garrison	Providence, Rhode Island
Notable commanders	John S. Slocum; Thomas W. Sherman; Samuel G. Arnold

2nd Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment raised in Rhode Island for service in the American Civil War. Organized in May 1861 from volunteers in Providence and surrounding towns, the regiment served in multiple campaigns with the Army of the Potomac, participating in operations across Virginia, Maryland, and elsewhere until mustering out in July 1865. The unit's service intersected with major figures and formations including elements of the Department of Washington, II Corps, and commanders from George B. McClellan to Ulysses S. Grant.

Formation and Organization

The regiment was formed under authorization by the War Department and state authorities in the wake of President Abraham Lincoln's call for troops after the Battle of Fort Sumter. Recruiting centered in Providence, Rhode Island, Newport, Woonsocket, and Bristol County. Officers received commissions from the Rhode Island General Assembly and were mustered into federal service at Camp Greene and later at Camp Sprague. The regiment organized companies A through K with volunteers influenced by local militia traditions such as the First Light Infantry Regiment (Rhode Island). Early training covered drill and musketry under instructors connected to West Point graduates and veterans of the Mexican–American War.

Service History

Upon federal muster, the regiment deployed to the defenses of Washington, D.C., joining units in the Department of Washington under commanders like Irvin McDowell before transferring to the Army of the Potomac for the Peninsula Campaign. The 2nd Rhode Island was attached at various times to brigades and divisions led by officers such as William B. Franklin, George G. Meade, and Daniel Sickles. It participated in campaigns including the Peninsula Campaign, the Seven Days Battles, the Maryland Campaign, the Fredericksburg Campaign, the Chancellorsville Campaign, the Gettysburg Campaign, and the Overland Campaign culminating in the Siege of Petersburg. During 1864 many soldiers reenlisted or were transferred to regiments such as the 1st Rhode Island Volunteer Infantry and the 9th Rhode Island Infantry Regiment to consolidate forces. The regiment also saw service in North Carolina and in occupation duties during the Appomattox Campaign and the final Appomattox surrender.

Engagements and Battles

Major actions that involved the regiment included skirmishes and large-scale battles: the Battle of Big Bethel (as context in the theater), the Battle of Gaines' Mill, the Battle of Malvern Hill, the Battle of South Mountain, the Battle of Antietam, the Battle of Fredericksburg, the Battle of Chancellorsville, the Battle of Gettysburg, the Battle of the Wilderness, the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, the Battle of Cold Harbor, and operations around the Siege of Petersburg. The regiment was present during assaults, defensive stands, reconnaissance in force, and march operations tied to George H. Thomas's movements and Philip H. Sheridan's cavalry raids. Elements engaged Confederate formations commanded by generals such as Robert E. Lee, Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson, and James Longstreet.

Commanders and Notable Personnel

Regimental commanders included colonels commissioned from Rhode Island political and social circles, among them John S. Slocum, Thomas W. Sherman (not to be confused with William Tecumseh Sherman), and Samuel G. Arnold, whose leadership intersected with state politics including figures like Ambrose Burnside and William Sprague IV. Officers and enlisted men later became prominent in civic life, joining organizations such as the Grand Army of the Republic and serving in state government, federal appointments, and veteran societies. Notable individuals connected to the regiment had associations with contemporaries including Winfield Scott Hancock, Oliver O. Howard, and Henry J. Hunt.

Casualties and Losses

The regiment sustained casualties from combat, disease, and accidents typical of Civil War units in sustained campaigns. Losses occurred in major battles such as Antietam and Gettysburg and during the 1864 operations around Petersburg. Men were also taken prisoner in actions connected to raids and rear-guard fights, with some sent to prison camps like Andersonville Prison and Libby Prison. The regiment's muster rolls reflect deaths from disease including dysentery, typhoid fever, and pneumonia, consistent with sanitary conditions examined by surgeons and investigators like Jonathan Letterman and public health reformers such as Dorothea Dix. Postwar pension claims and regimental returns were processed through the Bureau of Pensions (United States).

Uniforms, Equipment, and Insignia

As a Union regiment, soldiers wore regulation uniforms supplied through contracts negotiated by the Quartermaster Department and outfitted locally by Providence tailors. Uniforms included regulation frock coats, sack coats, and forage caps patterned after 1851 model and later modifications. Equipment comprised Springfield Model 1861 rifled muskets, cartridge boxes, bayonets, knapsacks, haversacks, and cartridges produced in armories like the Springfield Armory and ammunition plants in Massachusetts. Regimental insignia, company letters, and standardized buttons bore federal motifs found on accouterments used by contemporaneous units such as the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Veteran reunion badges and campaign streamers were adopted in reunion years reflecting participation in named battles.

Legacy and Commemoration

After mustering out, veterans of the regiment participated in memorialization through monuments, veteran reunions, and publications including regimental histories published in Providence and circulation in veteran networks like the Grand Army of the Republic. Monuments commemorating the regiment or Rhode Island contributions appear at major battlefield parks such as Antietam National Battlefield, Gettysburg National Military Park, and Petersburg National Battlefield. Alumni figures influenced Rhode Island civic institutions including Brown University alumni networks and state politics through men such as Samuel G. Arnold. Annual observances by historical societies, preservation efforts by organizations like the Civil War Trust and state archival collections in the Rhode Island Historical Society continue to document the regiment's records, muster rolls, letters, and diaries for scholarship in American Civil War studies and public history.

Category:Units and formations of the Union Army from Rhode Island Category:1861 establishments in Rhode Island