Pauline Mitchell Pierce
Some history of the 18th.
Thu Sep 14 15:21:01 2000


The War Record of the Eighteenth Alabama - Infantry.
Taken from ALABAMA: Her History, Resources, War Record, and Public Men, from 1540 to 1872, by
Willis Brewer.

The Eighteenth fought the first day at Shiloh, and lost 125 killed and wounded out of 420 men engaged. It was detailed to escort the brigade of Gen. Prentiss, which it had largely aided to capture, to the rear, and did not take part the second day. It was under fire at Blackland, and soon after was sent to Mobile. At Chickamauga the Eighteenth was terribly mutilated, losing 22 out of 36 officers, and 300 out of 500 men, killed and wounded. At Mission Ridge the Eighteenth was engaged, and lost about 90 men, principally captured.
The 18th surrendered at Meridian, Ms, 4 May 1865, with the military department. The army numbered 858 men in January 1861; it lost 20 killed and 80 wounded at Shiloh, and 56% of the 527 engaged at Chickamauga. It had 209 casualties in Chattanooga and was reduced to 275 effectives in November 1864.

I thought this might be of interest to those researching the 18th Alabama Infantry. I have been unable to find little of the service of the 18th. in print. I found the above in the Ala. archives.

My g.g.grandfather Evan M. Floyd joined the 18th. in Troy, Pike Co, Ala in 1861. He fought in the battles of Shiloh on 4/6/62; Blackland, Perryville in Oct. 62; Chickamouga 9/19/63 & 9/20/63; Lookout Mtns 9/24/63/ Missionary Ridge 11/25/63; Ringgold 11/27/63; Rocky Face Ridge 2/25/64 & captured at Battle of Resacca, Ga. on 15 May 1864. All of this information came from the Alabama Archives.

EVAN M. FLOYD enlisted in Co. H, 18 Reg't. Alabama Infantry on 29 July 1861 at
Troy, Ala, Capt. W. L. Hamner. Pvt., (EVIN) EVAN M. FLOYD was captured at Resacca, Ga. on 15 May 1864.
He appeared on a roll of prisoners of war at Nashville, Tenn., captured by forces under Maj. Gen. Geo. H. Thomas, commanding Dept. of the Cumberland, and forwarded to Capt. S.E. Jones, Pro. Mar. Gen., District of Kentucky, Louisville, Ky., May 20, 1864.
He appeared on a roll of prisoners of war at Louisville, Ky., transferred to Camp Morton, Ind., May 21, 1864.
He was paroled at Camp Morton, Ind., and forwarded to City Point, Va., via Baltimore, Md., for exchange. Roll dated Headquarters Camp Morton, Ind., February 26, 1865.
The records of Camp Morton shows that on the night of 26 Feb. 1865 the temperature was below freezing and a cold rain was falling, the prisoners were loaded into an open cattle car for shipment to City Point, Va. EVIN M. FLOYD
did not survive the ride. He never arrived home. Just where he was buried is unknown.

Camp Morton, Indiana Military Prison, 1862 - 1865.

Located on the state fair grounds in Indianapolis; un floored barracks within an enclosure. Impossible for the prisoners to keep clean - or to keep warm in winter because fuel was extremely scarce despite the large number of trees in the enclosure (which prisoners were forbidden to cut).

During the Civil War there were typically more than 3,500 Confederates held prisoner on the north side of Indianapolis in Camp Morton. Originally, Camp Morton was the principal mustering, recruiting, and rendezvousing encampment for many of the Hoosier regiments. After the fall of Forts Donelson and Henry in early 1862, thousands of captured Confederate soldiers were sent north to prison camps such as Camp Morton. The total number of prisoners held at Camp Morton between 1862 and 1865 amounted to approximately fifteen thousand. As was typical with most prison facilities at that time, Camp Morton was unprepared for such a large number of prisoners. Medical care, food, and health conditions were inadequate. Between 1862 and 1865 there were more than 1,700 Confederate deaths at Camp Morton as a result of poor conditions. Still, the death rates at Camp Morton were lower than most other Northern prison facilities.






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