Rhode Island sent 23,236 men to fight in the Civil War. They served in eight infantry regiments, three heavy artillery regiments, three regiments and one battalion of cavalry, a company of hospital guards and 10 batteries of light artillery. Hundreds more served in the U.S. Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Rhode Islanders participated in nearly every major battle of the war, firing the first volleys at Bull Run, and some of the last at Appomattox. How many died in the Civil War is a question that has long eluded historians. Drawing on a 20-year study of regimental histories, pension files, letters, diaries, and visits to every cemetery in the state, award-winning Civil War historian Robert Grandchamp documents 2,217 Rhode Islanders who died as a direct result of military service. Each regiment is identified, followed by the name, rank and place of residence for each soldier, the details of their deaths and, where known, their final resting places.

During the Civil War, thousands of wounded Union soldiers and Confederate prisoners convalesced in a general army hospital in rural Portsmouth Grove, Rhode Island. Because of its location on the periphery of the action, the hospital has remained a footnote to the dramatic sweep of Civil War literature. However, its history and the experiences of the doctors, nurses, patients and guards that gave it life provide a new perspective on the interaction between the army and society in wartime and on life in Civil War America. This in-depth account also explores the barbarities of medicine, daily routine in a general army hospital, the role of citizens in providing aid, the later adventures of former patients and staff, and the final resting places of those who died on the grounds.

 Rhode Island sent 23,236 men to fight in the Civil War. They served in eight infantry regiments, three heavy artillery regiments, three regiments and one battalion of cavalry, a company of hospital guards and 10 batteries of light artillery. Hundreds more served in the U.S. Army, Navy and Marine Corps. Rhode Islanders participated in nearly every major battle of the war, firing the first volleys at Bull Run, and some of the last at Appomattox. How many died in the Civil War is a question that has long eluded historians. Drawing on a 20-year study of regimental histories, pension files, letters, diaries, and visits to every cemetery in the state, award-winning Civil War historian Robert Grandchamp documents 2,217 Rhode Islanders who died as a direct result of military service. Each regiment is identified, followed by the name, rank and place of residence for each soldier, the details of their deaths and, where known, their final resting places.

The Ocean State has a remarkable record of service during the Civil War. It supplied over twenty-three thousand men for the infantry, cavalry and artillery units between 1861 and 1865. From Bull Run to Appomattox and many battles along the way, including Antietam, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg, Rhode Island troops were always on the front lines. Civil War historian Robert Grandchamp lets the soldiers tell their stories in their own words, drawing from their letters to retell the accounts of those who fought and died to save the Union. From Woonsocket to Westerly, this book offers a personal connection to Rhode Island during the War Between the States through the voices of its heroic sons.