"The Civil War as seen from the front ranks of a legendary fighting unit"--Cover.

On Many a Bloody Field follows one of the Civil War's most famous combat organizations - Company B, 19th Indiana Volunteers of the Iron Brigade, in a vivid account of ordinary people thrust into extraordinary circumstances. Alan D. Gaff follows the men from recruitment through mustering out, from the tedium of camp to the excitement of battle. Marches and battles are described in detail, but Gaff also devotes close attention to how the war affected individuals, both physically and emotionally. Formed into a brigade with the 2nd, 6th, and 7th Wisconsin, these Indiana soldiers fought their first real battle at Brawner Farm. Over four difficult years they fought on many a bloody field: Second Bull Run, South Mountain, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Fitzhugh Crossing, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Laurel Hill, North Anna River, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, and Weldon Railroad. With meticulous care, Alan Gaff recounts the experience of war from the soldier's perspective, often in the words of the men themselves. This intimate portrait of men at war is an important contribution to the literature of the Civil War.

In the tradition of the great regimental histories of the past, this book records the fire which seared the ranks of the Twenty-Four Michigan Regiment of the legendary “Iron Brigade.” Born as the result of a riot, led by a Virginian, met with coldness and hostility by the black-hatted veterans of the brigade, the Twenty-Fourth swore it would win their respect…and so they did with a vengeance. At Fredericksburg, in “artillery hell” and under a murderous crossfire from the guns of “Stonewall” Jackson and “Jeb” Stuart, they performed the manual of arms to stead the line. The first day at Gettysburg they sparked this remark from the confederate ranks…”That ain’t no milishy, there’s those damn black hats again.” With the immortal First Corps they were ordered west of the town to hold long enough for the army to occupy the strategic heights behind them. They held, and by evening they had lost more men than any of the 400-odd Union regiments engaged in the battle. Still later they marched down “that crimson strip across the maps,” which marked Grant’s Wilderness Campaign; they bled at Petersburg and then, their ranks almost decimated, were sent to guard bounty jumpers. The last tribute to their gallant service came as they were chosen the Guard of Honor for Lincoln’s funeral. In a little more than two years of bloody fighting they found their way to nineteenth place on the list of “300 Fighting Regiments.” To read this book is to consort with heroes who, 100 years ago, stood watching their world writhe in agony. It gives hope that in matching their courage, our country will emerge from the cauldron triumphant.

NEW: Fifty-five (55) Illustrations, Notes, Bibliography, Index, and General Rufus R. Dawes' Battle Record! They were fierce! They were tough! The famous Iron Brigade was one of the most celebrated brigades in the history of the Civil War! But how did they earn their title? Reflecting upon the Battle of South Mountain, General McClellan said, “My Headquarters were where I could see every move of the troops taking the gorge on the Pike. With my glass I saw the men fighting against great odd, when General Hooker came in great haste for some orders. I asked him what troops were those fighting on the Pike. His answer was, ‘General Gibbon’s Brigade of Western men.’ I said, ‘They must be made of iron.’ He replied, ‘By the Eternal they are iron. If you had seen them at Second Bull Run as I did, you would know them to be iron.’ I replied, ‘Why, General Hooker, they fight equal to the best troops in the world.’ Composed originally of the 2nd, 6th, and 7th Wisconsin, 19th Indiana, and Battery B of the 4th U.S. Artillery, and then later reinforced by the 24th Michigan, the famed brigade did not come without experiencing losses. Colonel Fox wrote in a report documenting war casualties: “The Iron Brigade suffered a greater proportionate loss in battle than any other brigade in the Army of the Union.” Service With the Sixth Wisconsin details first-hand accounts of the bloody campaign of forty-five days, which covers the battles of Gainesville and Bull Run Second under General Pope, and the battles of South Mountain and Antietam, in the Maryland campaign. Dawes and his regiment fought in these and other major battles including Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor and Petersburg. Includes details about soldiers and military camp life! Table of Contents: LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PREFACE. CHAPTER I. (Mustered in, Plug Uglies Attack) CHAPTER II. (The “Iron Brigade” in Embryo) CHAPTER III. (Fredericks Hall Raid, Battle of Gainesville, Battle of Bull Run Second) CHAPTER IV. (Battle of South Mountain) CHAPTER V. (Battle of Fredericksburg, Mud Campaign [Mud March], Northumberland County Raid) CHAPTER VI. (Rufus R. Dawes reported as killed, Pontoon Boats, Fitz Hugh’s Crossing) CHAPTER VII. (Camp Near White Oak Church, Expedition Down the Northern Neck, The Battle as Reported to M. B. G.) CHAPTER VIII. (The Sixth Wisconsin at Gettysburg) CHAPTER IX. (South of the Rappahannock, Echoes of the Morgan Raid, Friendly Call on the Enemy) CHAPTER X. (Retreat to Centreville, Skirmish at Haymarket, Adjutant Brooks Captured by Rebels, Mine Run Campaign) CHAPTER XI. (Kelly’s Ford, Dawes is Married) CHAPTER XII. (Battle of the Wilderness, “Bloody Angle,” Laurel Hill) CHAPTER XIII. (Battle of Jericho Ford, Battle of the North Anna, Battle of Bethesda Church, Battle of Cold Harbor) CHAPTER XIV. (Captain Kellogg in Rebel Prison and His Escape, Trenches Before Petersburg, Mine Explosion) CHAPTER XV. (Battle on the Weldon Road, Major E. C. Dawes surgery, After Seventeen Years) Battle Record of Rufus R. Dawes NOTES BIBLIOGRAPHY INDEX Available now in Hardcover, Paperback, eBook. Add Service With the Sixth Wisconsin to your library today! civil war, civil war books, antietam, battle of antietam, bethesda church, battle of bethesda church, bull run, bull run second, second bull run, battle of second bull run, battle of bull run second, battle of chantilly, battle of cold harbor, battle of dallas georgia, battle of fitz hugh's crossing, hugh's crossing, battle of fredericksburgh, fredericksburgh, battle of gainesville, gainesville, civil war battles, gettysburg, battle of gettysburg, pennsylvania, wisconsin, jericho ford, battle of jericho ford, battle of north anna, confederates, confederate soldiers, union soldiers, battle of pittsburg landing, pittsburg landing, shiloh, battle of shiloh, south mountain, battle of south mountain, spottsylvania, battle of spottsylvania, battle of weldon road, battle of the wilderness, frederick's hall raid, northumberland, northumberland raid, crawford division, doubleday, doubleday division, ewell division, 4th division, franklin division, franklin grand division, gibbon's division, griffin's division, hatch division, general edward johnson, kearney's division, king's division, mcdowell's division, mccall's division, meade's division, pennsylvania reserves, 2nd division 5th corps, 2nd division 15th corps, shield's division, steinwehr's division, stonewall jackson's division, wadsworth's division, regiment

This volume of essays by renowned Civil War historians provides a comprehensive history of the legendary Iron Brigade and its service to the Union. Fighting in the Civil War for the Union Army of the Potomac, Brigadier General Rufus King’s Wisconsin Brigade was the only all-Western Brigade to fight for the Eastern armies of the Union. Known as "The Black Hat Brigade" because the soldiers wore the regular army’s dress black hat instead of the more typical blue cap, they were renowned for their discipline and valor in combat. From Brawner Farm and Second Bull Run to Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, the Western soldiers were giants of the battlefield, earning their reputation as “The Iron Brigade.” And when the war was over, the records showed that it led all federal brigades in percentage of deaths in battle. These essays, by some of the most renowned Civil War historians and experts on the brigade, spotlight significant moments in the history of this celebrated unit. "Editors Alan Nolan and Sharon Eggleston Vipond's insightful essays provide fresh perspectives on the Iron Brigade's exploits, detailing military and political events in the words of actual combatants."—Military Review

The Iron Brigade is one of the most celebrated military organisations of the American Civil War. Although it is primarily known for its remarkable stand on the first bloody day at Gettysburg, its stellar service from the earliest days of the war all the way to Appomattox Court House is routinely ignored. The Iron Brigade in the Civil War is based on decades of archival research and includes scores of previously unpublished letters, photos, journals, and other primary accounts. This well researched and written tour de force, which includes reunion and memorial coverage until the final expiration of the last surviving member, will be the last word on the Iron Brigade for the foreseeable future. "When we were young", explained one Black Hat veteran many years after the war, "we hardly realised that we had fought on more fields of battle than the Old Guard of Napoleon, and have stood fire in far greater firmness." Here, at long last, is the full story of how young farm boys, shopkeepers, river men and piney camp boys in a brigade forged with iron helped save the Union. AUTHOR: Lance J. Herdegen is the award-winning author of several books on Civil War topics. His latest work, Those Damned Black Hats: The Iron Brigade in the Gettysburg Campaign, won the Army Historical Foundation's Distinguished Writing Award. Lance is the former director of the Institute for Civil War Studies at Carroll University and presently chairs the Wisconsin Civil War Sesquicentennial Commission. He was recently inducted into the Milwaukee Press Club's Hall of Fame and lives in Spring Prairie, Walworth County, Wisconsin. SELLING POINTS: The first book-length account of this legendary combat unit from Bull Run to the grand march up Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington ILLUSTRATIONS: 68 b/w photographs & 15 maps

"I am immensely impressed . . . this particular Brigade needed a book of its own and now it has one which is definitely first-rate. . . . A fine book." —Bruce Catton "One of the '100 best books ever written on the Civil War.'" —Civil War Times Illustrated " . . . remains one of the best unit histories of the Union Army during the Civil War." —Southern Historian ". . . The Iron Brigade is the title for anyone desiring complete information on this military unit . . ." —Spring Creek Packet, Chuck Hamsa This is the story of the most famous unit in the Union Army, the only all-Western brigade in the Eastern armies of the Union—made up of troops from Indiana, Wisconsin, and Michigan.