1st New York Artillery, Battery I

United States Regiments & Batteries > New York

The battery lost 1 officer and 12 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 1 officer and 15 enlisted men to disease during the Civil War. The battery is honored by a monument at Gettysburg.

1861
Organized at Buffalo, N.Y. from a German-American militia battery attached to the 65th New York State Militia under Captain Michael Wiedrich.
October 16 Left Buffalo for Albany
November 15 Left Albany for Washington and duty in the Defenses of Washington, D.C. attached to Blenker’s Division, Army of the Potomac
1862
March 10 Advance on Manassas, Va. attached to 3rd Brigade, Blenker’s Division, 2nd Army Corps, Army of the Potomac
March 11-24 At Fairfax Court House
April Ordered to join Fremont in West Virginia, and pursuit of Jackson up the Valley, attached to 3rd Brigade, Blenker’s Division, Mountain Department
June 1 Near Strasburg
June 5 Union Church
June 8
Battle of Cross Keys

The battery lost 3 killed and 6 wounded in its baptism of fire against the Louisiana Tigers.
June 9 Near Port Republic
June-August At Sperryville attached to Reserve Artillery, 1st Corps, Army of Virginia
August 16-
September 2		 Pope’s Campaign in Northern Virginia
August 20-23
Fords of the Rappahannock

The battery lost 1 killed and 3 wounded at Waterloo Briagde
August 23-24 Sulphur Springs
August 27-29 Plains of Manassas
August 30
Second Battle of Bull Run

The battery lost 15 wounded, including Lieutenant Schenkelberger, who lost his leg to a shell fragment. Only one gun was effective by the end of the battle. All the guns were brought off the field, although several caissons and limbers were lost.
September Duty in the Defenses of Washington attached to Artillery, 3rd Division, 11th Army Corps, Army of the Potomac so that the battery could refit. The battery received 6 three-inch Rodman rifles and 40 recruits.
October Attached to Artillery, 2nd Division, 11th Army Corps
December 10-16 March to Fredericksburg
December Duty at Falmouth and Brook’s Station
1863
January 20-24 “Mud March”
April 27-May 6 Chancellorsville Campaign
May 1-5
Battle of Chancellorsville

the battery lost 4 killed and 10 wounded, and losing two guns.
May Attached to Artillery Brigade, 11th Army Corps. The battery refitted near Brooke’s Station, receiving three year men from the Second New York Independent Battery, whose term of enlistment had expired.
June 12 Left camp at Brooke’s Station on the Gettysburg Campaign
July 1-3
Battle of Gettysburg

The battery brought 141 men and 6 Ordnance Rifles to the field, and lost 3 men killed and 10 wounded. Most of the battery was placed on East Cemetery Hil, while one section under Lieutenant Christopher Schmidt took position on the west side of the hill. The battery was greatly annoyed by sharpshooters firing from a steeple in town, losing Lieutenants Nicholas Sahm and Christian Stock and several men wounded until against orders they fired a shell at the steeple.

The assault by Hays’ Confederate Brigade late on July 2nd led to hand to hand fighting among the pieces with rammers, sponge-staffs and stones. One set of Confederate colors was planted on one of the battery’s lunettes before its bearer was knocked down with a handspike and the flag captured. The battery also suffered through the great artillery barage that preceded Picktt’s Charge.
July 5-24 Pursuit of Lee
August-September Near Bristoe Station
September 24-October 3 Movement by rail to Bridgeport, Ala. in the Western Theater.
October 26-29 Reopening Tennessee River attached to Artillery Brigade, 11th Army Corps, Dept. of the Cumberland
October 28-29 Battle of Wauhatchie, Lookout Valley, Tenn.
November 23-27 Chattanooga-Ringgold Campaign
November 23-24 Battle of Lookout Mountain
November 25 Mission Ridge
November 28-December 17 March to relief of Knoxville
1864
January At Bridgeport, Ala. attached to Artillery, 2nd Division, 11th Army Corps
March Captain Wiedrich resigned to take command of the 15th New York Heavy Artillery Regiment. First Lieutenant Nicholas Sahm was promoted to captain and took command of the battery.
April Attached to Artillery, 1st Division, 20th Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland
May 1 to September 8
Atlanta Campaign

Captain Sahm died and First Lieutenant Schmidt resigned, so First Lieutenant Charles E. Winegar of Battery M, First New York Light Artillery was promoted to captain in command of Battery I.
May 8-11 Operations about Rocky Faced Ridge, Tunnel Hill, and Buzzard’s Roost Gap
May 14-15 Battle of Resaca
May 17-18 Adairsville
May 19 Cassville
May 23-25 Advance on Dallas
May 25 New Hope Church
May 25-June 5 Operations on line of Pumpkin Vine Creek and battles about Dallas, New Hope Church and Allatoona Hills
June 10-July 2 Operations about Marietta and against Kenesaw Mountain
June 11-14 Pine Mountain
June 15-17 Lost Mountain
June 15 Gilgal (or Golgotha Church)
June 17 Muddy Creek
June 19 Noyes’ Creek
June 22 Kolb’s Farm
June 27 Assault on Kenesaw
July 4 Ruff’s Station, Smyrna Camp Ground
July 5-17 Chattahoochee River
July 19-20 Peach Tree Creek
July 22-August 25 Siege of Atlanta, attached to Artillery Brigade, 20th Army Corps
August 26-September 2 Operations at Chattahoochee River Bridge
September 2-November 15 Occupation of Atlanta
November 15-December 10
March to the sea

Two members of the battery were killed by bushwackers while foraging during the march.
December 10-21
Siege of Savannah

The battery engaged a Confederae gunboat and two tenders, sinking the gunboat and one tender.
1865
January to April Campaign of the Carolinas
February 2 Lawtonville, S.C.
March 16 Averysboro, N. C.
March 19-21 Battle of Bentonville
March 24 Occupation of Goldsboro
April 14 Occupation of Raleigh
April 26
Bennett’s House

Surrender of Johnston and his army.
April 29-May 20 March to Washington, D.C., via Richmond, Va.
May 24 Grand Review
June 23 Mustered out