35th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment

35th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment
Unit name	35th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment
Dates	August 1862 – June 1865
Country	United States
Allegiance	Union
Branch	Union Army
Type	Infantry
Size	Regiment
Garrison	Boston, Massachusetts
Battles	Maryland Campaign, Battle of Antietam, Battle of Fredericksburg, Siege of Suffolk, Siege of Petersburg, Appomattox Campaign
Notable commanders	Colonel Edward A. Wild, Colonel William F. Bartlett

35th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment The 35th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Union Army during the American Civil War. Organized in Boston, Massachusetts, the regiment participated in major campaigns of the Eastern Theater, including the Maryland Campaign and the Siege of Petersburg, and mustered out in mid-1865 after the Appomattox Campaign. Its service involved cooperation with units from Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Maine, and operations under commanders associated with the Army of the Potomac and the Department of Virginia and North Carolina.

Formation and Organization

The regiment was organized at Boston, Massachusetts in August 1862 and drew volunteers from counties including Suffolk County, Massachusetts, Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Essex County, Massachusetts, and Worcester County, Massachusetts. Mustered into federal service under the command of Colonel Edward A. Wild, the 35th was assigned to brigades and divisions serving under corps commanders of the Army of the Potomac such as units led by generals who participated in the Peninsular Campaign, the Northern Virginia Campaign, and later departmental commands in Virginia. Recruitment, training, and organization involved coordination with the Massachusetts Adjutant General's Office and local recruiting agents who had previously assisted other regiments like the 20th Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry and the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment in mobilization.

Service History

Initially attached to defenses of Washington, D.C. and sent into the field during the Maryland Campaign, the 35th Massachusetts took part in movements tied to the Antietam Campaign and later operations in the tidewater region of Virginia. The regiment was transferred at various times between provisional brigades, the VI Corps and forces under the Department of Virginia and North Carolina, conducting garrison duty at places such as Fort Monroe, participating in siege operations at Suffolk, Virginia, and joining expeditions against Confederate infrastructure including actions near Petersburg, Richmond, and along the James River. Throughout 1864–1865 the regiment engaged in trench warfare characterizing the Siege of Petersburg and supported movements during the final offensives that culminated at Appomattox Court House.

Battles and Engagements

The 35th Massachusetts participated in numerous actions. During the Maryland Campaign the regiment was present for operations around the Battle of Antietam, and later elements saw combat at the Battle of Fredericksburg and in the extended defenses and sieges around Suffolk, Virginia. In 1864 the regiment was involved in the protracted Siege of Petersburg with engagements at trenches and lines associated with operations near Hatcher's Run and Five Forks, and supported the Appomattox Campaign which included movements linked to the surrender of forces under General Robert E. Lee. The regiment’s actions intersected with campaigns and battles involving commanders such as George B. McClellan, Ambrose Burnside, George G. Meade, and Ulysses S. Grant.

Commanders and Personnel

Command leadership included Colonel Edward A. Wild, whose prior service and political profile intersected with abolitionist circles and medical personnel networks, and officers such as Colonel William F. Bartlett, linked to other Massachusetts formations and postwar veteran organizations. Company officers and noncommissioned officers were drawn from municipal leaders, tradesmen, and illustrators of civic society in Boston, interacting with state figures like Governor John Albion Andrew and federal military staff. The regiment’s ranks included soldiers who later appeared in veterans’ associations, Grand Army of the Republic posts, and in Massachusetts militia lineage connected to units such as the 1st Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry.

Casualties and Losses

The 35th Massachusetts sustained casualties from combat, disease, and the harsh conditions of siege operations. Losses mirrored patterns seen in other Eastern Theater regiments and included deaths at battles, mortal wounds during assaults on fortified lines, and sickness common to campaigns in the tidewater and trench environments similar to those experienced by the 20th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment and the 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment. Surviving veterans mustered out in 1865 and contributed to postwar commemorative efforts and regimental records maintained by the Massachusetts Historical Society.

Uniforms, Equipment, and Insignia

Soldiers were issued standard United States Army regulation uniforms of the period, including the dark blue frock coat, sky-blue trousers, and forage caps or kepis like those catalogued in collections at the National Museum of American History and the Massachusetts State Archives. The regiment was equipped with rifled muskets common to Union infantry such as the Springfield Model 1861 and accoutrements produced by manufacturers familiar to northeastern armories and suppliers in Providence, Rhode Island and Springfield. Unit designation appeared on muster rolls and flag patterns consistent with state-issued colors, veterans’ banners, and battle streaming adopted by other Massachusetts regiments.

Legacy and Commemoration

Remembrance of the 35th Massachusetts is preserved in regimental histories, wartime correspondence archived at the Massachusetts Historical Society, cemetery monuments in Massachusetts and Virginia, and entries in compendia produced by the U.S. War Department and postwar veterans' organizations. Monuments and plaques erected in towns that furnished companies honor names recorded on rolls, while reunion activities and veteran obituaries appeared in periodicals such as the New York Times and local Massachusetts newspapers. The regiment’s service contributes to scholarly studies of the American Civil War and regional memory initiatives maintained by institutions like the American Battlefield Trust and state historical commissions.

Category:Units and formations of the Union Army from Massachusetts Category:Military units and formations established in 1862 Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1865