A noted Civil War infantry unit that saw its first combat during the Battle of Antietam is honored with a monument near the battle’s Bloody Lane.
The 14th Regiment of the Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, recruited primarily from towns in central Connecticut, was mustered into service in August of 1862. Less than three weeks later the untested troops were engaged in some of the heaviest fighting of the Civil War.
A granite obelisk honoring the regiment stands a short distance from the sunken farm road at Antietam that became known as Bloody Lane after the roadway was used for an early example of trench warfare.
The front (south) face of the monument reads, “The Fourteenth Connecticut Volunteer Infantry, 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, 2nd Army Corps,” and provides a detailed description of the regiment’s activities during the Battle of Antietam.
The regiment advanced in a charge to the location of the monument, for instance, then fell back 88 yards to a cornfield fence and held that position under fire for nearly two hours before being deployed to another position.
The clover on the south face was the Second Corps emblem.
The monument’s east face bears an inscription reading, “This monument stands on the line of companies B and G, near the left of the regiment. In this battle, the regiment lost 38 killed and mortally wounded, 68 wounded and 21 reported missing.”
The north face bears the Connecticut seal and an inscription reading, “Erected by the State of Connecticut, 1894.”
The west face bears a United States seal and provides a summary of the unit’s history. The regiment mustered into service August 23, 1862, with 1,015 men, and was engaged 34 times between Antietam and Robert E. Lee’s surrender at Appomattox in 1865.
During its service, 202 members were killed or mortally wounded, 186 died of disease, 549 were wounded, and 319 were discharged for disability.
The 14th also performed admirably at Gettysburg, and we’ll profile their service there in a post next month.
Tags: Antietam