View source for 4th Ohio Infantry Regiment

{{More footnotes needed|date=December 2012}}
{{Infobox Military Unit
|unit_name=4th Ohio Infantry Regiment
|image=
|image_size=
|caption=
|country=[[United States|United States of America]]
|allegiance=[[Union (American Civil War)|Union]]
|type=[[Infantry]]
|branch=Volunteer Army, [[American Civil War]]
|dates=1861–1865
|specialization=
|command_structure=
|size=≈950 soldiers at outset of the war
|current_commander=
|garrison=
|ceremonial_chief=
|nickname=
|motto=
|colors=
|march=
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|battles={{plainlist|
* [[Skirmish at Hanging Rock Pass|Hanging Rock Pass]]
* [[Battle of Fredericksburg|Fredericksburg]]
* [[Battle of Gettysburg|Gettysburg]]
* [[Battle of the Wilderness|The Wilderness]]
* [[Battle of Spotsylvania|Spotsylvania]]
* [[Battle of Cold Harbor|Cold Harbor]]
* [[Siege of Petersburg]]}}
|notable_commanders=
|anniversaries=
}}{{Military unit sidebar
 |title=Ohio  U.S. Volunteer Infantry Regiments 1861-1865
 |previous=[[3rd Ohio Infantry Regiment]]
 |next=[[5th Ohio Infantry Regiment]]
}}

The '''4th Ohio Infantry Regiment''' was an [[infantry]] [[regiment]] in the [[Union Army]] during the [[American Civil War]]. It served in the [[Eastern Theater of the American Civil War|Eastern Theater]] in a number of campaigns and battles, but perhaps is most noted for its actions in helping secure [[Cemetery Hill]] during the [[Battle of Gettysburg]].

==Three-months regiment==
With the outbreak of the Civil War, President [[Abraham Lincoln]] called for 75,000 volunteers to help put down the rebellion. Ohioans responded well, and several new regiments were enrolled for a term of three months, thought to be long enough to end the war. The 4th Ohio Infantry Regiment was organized April 25, 1861, at Camp Jackson in [[Columbus, Ohio|Columbus]], with [[Lorin Andrews]] as its [[colonel]].{{sfnmp|Dyer|1908|1p=1497|Federal Publishing Company|1908|2pp=355-356}} The regiment moved to newly constructed [[Camp Dennison]] near [[Cincinnati, Ohio|Cincinnati]] on May 2, and served on garrison duty there until June 4, at which time, many of the men joined the newly reorganized a three-years regiment with the same numerical designation. Those three months men who elected not to join the three-years regiment were mustered out on July 24, 1861.

Among the enlistees in Company I were future [[United States Congress|U.S. Congressmen]] [[Archibald Lybrand]] and [[James S. Robinson]].

==Three-years regiment==
===Early service===
The three-years 4th Ohio Infantry was organized at Camp Dennison on June 4, 1861.{{sfnmp|Dyer|1908|1pp=1497-1498|Federal Publishing Company|1908|2p=356}} After a few days of training and drilling, it moved to [[Grafton, West Virginia|Grafton, Virginia]] (now [[West Virginia]]) on June 20–23, where it was attached to [[Alexander M. McCook]]'s Advance Brigade, West Virginia, until July. As part of the 3rd Brigade, Army of Occupation, the regiment saw action in the West Virginia Campaign, capturing the [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]]-held town of [[Beverly, West Virginia|Beverly]] on July 12. They remained on duty in western Virginia through the balance of the year, fighting in several small skirmishes and battles.{{sfnp|Baumgartner|2003|p=22}}

In January 1862, the regiment became a part of the 2nd Brigade, [[Frederick W. Lander|Lander's]] Division, [[Army of the Potomac]] until March 1862, when they were reorganized into the 1st Brigade, [[James Shields (politician, born 1810)|Shields']] 2nd Division, [[Nathaniel Banks|Banks']] [[V Corps (ACW)|V Corps]] in the Department of the Shenandoah. The brigade saw considerable action at the [[Battle of Kernstown I|Battle of Kernstown]] on March 23, then advanced up the valley for the next few weeks, fighting again at the [[Battle of Port Republic]] on June 9 before heading to [[Alexandria, Virginia]] to rejoin the [[Army of the Potomac]]. [[Brigade]]d with the [[7th West Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment|7th West Virginia]], [[14th Indiana Infantry Regiment|14th Indiana]], and [[8th Ohio Infantry]] under [[Nathan Kimball]] in the [[II Corps (ACW)|II Corps]], the regiment was briefly stationed in [[Fort Monroe]] before covering [[John Pope (general)|John Pope]]'s retreat from the [[Second Battle of Bull Run]] on September 1.

Although the regiment was forced to miss the subsequent [[Maryland Campaign]] due to regiment-wide sickness, Kimball's Brigade attacked Confederate positions at the Sunken Road at [[Battle of Antietam|Antietam]] and suffered serious losses in a prolonged firefight, earning the nickname "[[Gibraltar Brigade]]." They marched to [[Harpers Ferry]] after [[Robert E. Lee]]'s [[Army of Northern Virginia]] withdrew from Maryland, staying there until October 30, when the brigade marched towards [[Falmouth, Virginia]]. The regiment fought at the disastrous [[Battle of Fredericksburg]] in December; among the losses was their wounded Colonel [[James H. Godman]]. Then it was part of the infamous January "[[Mud March (American Civil War)|Mud March]]," one of [[Ambrose Burnside]]'s follies as the commanding general of the Army of the Potomac. The 4th Ohio next saw action during the [[Battle of Chancellorsville]] under new brigade commander [[Samuel S. Carroll|Samuel "Red" Carroll]].

===Gettysburg and 1863 actions===
After spending over a month in camp after the disaster at Chancellorsville, the regiment broke camp on June 11 and marched northward to [[Maryland]], arriving in southern [[Pennsylvania]] on July 1 well after the start of the [[Battle of Gettysburg]]. They were assigned a position along [[Cemetery Ridge]]. Much of July 2 was spent holding this position in [[Military reserve|reserve]]. The [[8th Ohio Infantry Regiment]] was detached from the brigade and sent forward along the Emmitsburg Road, while the 4th Ohio Infantry and the Indiana and West Virginia regiments were later rushed up the western slope of Cemetery Hill in the gathering darkness. They arrived in time to help repulse the [[Louisiana Tigers]] of [[Harry T. Hays|Harry Hays]], who had seized several Union [[artillery]] pieces. They briefly pursued Lee into Virginia before being ordered to board ships for transport to [[New York City]] to help quell the [[New York Draft Riots]] from August 15 until September 16. Returning to Virginia, they participated in the [[Bristoe Campaign|Bristoe]] and [[Mine Run Campaign]]s, but saw little combat.

===1864 and 1865 actions===
The 4th Ohio did not see significant combat until the [[Overland Campaign]], fighting at the battles of [[Battle of the Wilderness|the Wilderness]] and [[Battle of Spotsylvania Court House|Spotsylvania Court House]] in May. After a series of smaller engagements, the 4th was a part of an ill-advised charge against Confederate entrenchments at the futile [[Battle of Cold Harbor]] in June. They participated in the [[Siege of Petersburg]] from June 16, 1864, to April 2, 1865.

The old members of the regiment (the remainder of the original three-years men) mustered out June 21, 1864, and what was left of the 4th Regiment, Ohio Volunteer Infantry was consolidated to a [[battalion]] five days later. The much depleted 4th saw action in a series of engagements near Petersburg, including Deep Bottom, [[Second Battle of Ream's Station|Ream's Station]], and [[Battle of Hatcher's Run|Hatcher's Run]]. They served in the [[Appomattox Campaign]] from March 28 – April 9, seeing their final major combat in the triumph at the [[Battle of Sayler's Creek]]. The victorious army marched to Washington, D.C. in early May, then participated in the Grand Review on May 23. The 4th Ohio mustered out July 12, 1865, in Columbus.

During its service, the regiment lost 8 officers and 95 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 3 officers and 155 enlisted men by disease, a total of 261 fatalities.

The 4th Ohio Infantry is memorialized with monuments at Antietam and Gettysburg, as well as an inscription at the [[Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument (Cleveland)|Soldiers' and Sailors' Monument]] in Cleveland's [[Public Square, Cleveland|Public Square]]. Its battle flags are in the collection of the [[Ohio Historical Society]] in [[Cleveland]], and some artifacts and records in the [[Western Reserve Historical Society]].

Another regiment (unrelated) known as the 4th Ohio served in the [[Spanish–American War]]. It was also known as the 14th Ohio National Guard.

==Medal of Honor Recipient==
One man from the regiment received the [[Medal of Honor]] for his actions during the Civil War:
* Lewis Morgan, Private, Company I – (Spotsylvania): "Capture of flag from the enemy's works."{{sfnp|VCOnline, ''Lewis Morgan''}}

==See also==
* [[Ohio in the Civil War]]

==References==
<!--===Footnotes===
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===Citations===
{{Reflist|60em}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|60em}}
* {{cite book |last=Baumgartner |first=Richard A. |date=2003 |title=Buckeye Blood: Ohio at Gettysburg |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=O5gVAQAAMAAJ |publisher=Blue Acorn Press |series=Great Lakes Connections: The Civil War |location=Huntington, WV |pages=253 |isbn=978-1-885033-29-1 |oclc=51110579 |language=en |access-date=October 4, 2024 |url-access=subscription }}
* {{cite book |last=Dyer |first=Frederick Henry |author-link=Frederick H. Dyer |title=A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion |publisher=Dyer Pub. Co. |place=[[Des Moines, IA]] |date=1908 |oclc=8697590 |lccn=09005239 |url=https://archive.org/details/08697590.3359.emory.edu/page/1497/mode/2up |language=en |format=PDF |access-date=August 8, 2015 |pages=1497–1498 |asin=B01BUFJ76Q |url-access=registration}}{{PD-notice}}
* {{cite book |author=Federal Publishing Company |title=Military Affairs and Regimental Histories of New York, Maryland, West Virginia, And Ohio |publisher=Federal Publishing Company |series=The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States, 1861–65 – Records of the Regiments in the Union army – Cyclopedia of battles – Memoirs of Commanders and Soldiers. |volume=II |date=1908 |location=[[Madison, WI]] |url=https://archive.org/details/unionarmyhistory02madi/page/355/mode/1up |oclc=1086145633 |format=PDF |pages=355–356 |access-date=October 10, 2024}}{{PD-notice}}
* {{cite book | author =Ohio Roster Commission | title =1861 Three-Month Organizations — 1st–22nd Regiments, Etc.| publisher =The Werner Company| series =Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War on the Rebellion, 1861–1865| volume =I| year =1893| location =Akron, OH| pages = 810 | hdl=2027/mdp.39015004198746 |oclc =633556}}
* {{cite book | author =Ohio Roster Commission  | title =1st–20th Regiments-Infantry | publisher =Wilstach Baldwin & Co| series =Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War on the Rebellion, 1861–1865| volume =II| year =1886| location =Cincinnati, OH| pages = 840 | hdl=2027/mdp.39015004198787 |oclc =633556}}
* {{cite book | last =Reid| first =Whitelaw| author-link =Whitelaw Reid| title =The History of Her Regiments, and Other Military Organizations| publisher =Moore, Wilstach, & Baldwin| series =Ohio in the War: Her Statesmen, Her Generals, and Soldiers| volume =II| year =1868| location =Cincinnati, OH| pages =1002| url =https://archive.org/details/00444862.3383.emory.edu/page/n9/mode/2up| isbn =9781154801965| oclc =11632330 }}
* {{cite web | title=Lewis Morgan | website=victoriacrossonline.co.uk | url=https://victoriacrossonline.co.uk/ | ref={{sfnref|VCOnline, ''Lewis Morgan''}} | access-date=October 13, 2024}}

===Further reading===
* Ohio Roster Commission. ''Official Roster of the Soldiers of the State of Ohio in the War on the Rebellion, 1861–1865, compiles under the direction of the Roster commission''. 12 vol. Akron: Werner Co., 1886–95.
{{refend}}

==External links==
* [http://www.ohiocivilwar.com/cw4.html Ohio in the Civil War: 4th OVI by Larry Stevens]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070503001930/http://www.ohiohistory.org/etcetera/exhibits/fftc/relicroom/index.cfm?war=2 Ohio Historical Society: Battleflags and Relics]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060615214411/http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/regiments.htm National Park Service: Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System]
* [https://civilwarindex.com/4th-ohio-infantry-3-months.html Civil War Index: 4th Ohio Infantry - 3 Months Service in the American Civil War]
* [https://civilwarindex.com/4th-ohio-infantry-3-years.html Civil War Index: 4th Ohio Infantry - 3 Years Service in the American Civil War]

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{{American Civil War |expanded=CTCBS}}
{{Ohio in the Civil War}}
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[[Category:Units and formations of the Union army from Ohio]]
[[Category:Gibraltar Brigade]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1861]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1865]]