28th Infantry Regiment
Civil War
Niagara Rifles; Scott Life Guard

History

Mustered in: May 22, 1861
Mustered out: June 2, 1863

The following is taken from New York in the War of the Rebellion, 3rd ed. Frederick Phisterer. Albany: J. B. Lyon Company, 1912.
This regiment, Col. Dudley Donnelly, was accepted by the State May 18, 1861;. organized at Albany, and there mustered in the service of the United States for two years May 22, 1861. Its three years' men were, in May, 1863, transferred to the 60th Infantry.
The companies were recruited principally: A, B, C and K at Lockport; D at Medina; E at Canandaigua; F at Batavia; G at Albion; H at Monticello, and I at Niagara Falls.
The regiment left the State June 24, 1861; served at Washington, D. C., from June 27, 1861; in Butterfield's Brigade, Keim's Division, Patterson's Army, District of Pennsylvania, from July 8, 1861; in Stiles' Brigade, Banks' Division, Army of the Potomac, from October 15, 1861; in 1st Brigade, 1st, Williams', Division, 5th Corps, Army of the Potomac, from March 13, 1862; in same brigade and division, Department of Schenandoah, from May, 1862; in 1st Brigade, 1st Division, 2d Corps, Army of Virginia, from June 26, 1862; in the 1st Brigade, 1st Division, I2th Corps, Army of the Potomac, from September 12, 1862; and was honorably discharged and mustered out under Col. Edwin F. Brown, June 2, 1863, at Albany.
During its service, the regiment lost by death, killed in action, 1 officer, 50 enlisted men; of wounds received in action, I officer, 10 enlisted men; of disease and other causes, 47 enlisted men; total, 2 officers, 167 enlisted men; aggregate, 109; of whom 2 enlisted . men died in the hands of the enemy.

The following is taken from 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. Madison, WI: Federal Pub. Co., 1908. volume II.
Twenty-eighth Infantry.—Cols., Dudley Donnelly, Edwin F. Brown; Lieut.-Cols., Edwin F. Brown, Elliott W. Cook; Majs, James R. Mitchell, Elliott W. Cook, Theophilus Fitzgerald. The 28th, the "Niagara Rifles," was composed of five - companies from Niagara county, two from Orleans county, one from Ontario, one from Genesee and one from Sullivan, and was mustered into the U. S. service for two years on May 22, 1861, at Albany. A month was spent in camp at Camp Morgan and on June 25, the regiment left the state for "Washington. It was assigned on July 7 to But-terfield's brigade, Keim's division of Gen. Patterson's force, which it joined at Martinsburg, W. Va. Camp was occupied at Berlin until Aug. 20, when the force moved to Darnestown and remained there Until Oct. .20, when it was ordered to Ball's bluff but did not arrive in time to take part in the battle. From Dec. 5, 1861, to Jin. 6, 1862, the regiment encamped at Fredericksburg; was then at Hancock until March I, and then moved to Winchester with the 1st brigade, 1st division, 5th corps, Army of the Potomac. Co. E participated in the engagement near Columbia Furnace, Co. I in an encounter near Montevideo, and the entire regiment was trans-ferred to the Department of the Shenandoah in May. It marched to Front Royal, Middletown, Newton, Winchester and Bunker Hill in May; to Williamsport and Front Royal in June, and to Culpeper Court House and Cedar mountain in July. In the battle of Cedar mountain the loss of the 28th was 213 killed, wounded and missing but of 339 engaged, and of these 41 men were mortally wounded On Aug. .21, the regiment was again in action at Rappahannock Station. On June 26 it was assigned to the 1st brigade, 1st division 2nd corps, Army of Virginia, and on Sept. 12, to the same brigade and division of the 12th corps, Army of the Potomac. During the battle of Bull Run (second) the command was posted at Manassas Junction and was then withdrawn to Centerville and Alexandria leaving there Sept. 3 for Maryland. At Antietam the command was closely engaged and the commander of the corps, Gen. Mans-field, was mortally wounded. Gen. Williams succeeded him in com-mand and the corps went into camp at Harper's Ferry. On Dec. 10, the regiment marched toward Dumfries, from there to Fairfax Station, then to Stafford Court House, where it established win-ter quarters, The last battle of the 28th was at Chancellorsville, in which the regiment lost 78 members killed, wounded or missing. Soon after it returned to New York and was mustered out at Albany June 2, 1863. The total loss of the regiment during its term of service was 68 members killed or died of wounds and 49 died from other causes.

Battles and Casualties Table from Phisterer

Historical Sketch from the 3rd Annual Report of the Bureau of Military Statistics

Civil War Newspaper Clippings

Unit Roster

Further Reading
This is meant to be a comprehensive list. If, however, you know of a resource that is not listed below, please send an email to int-historians@ng.army.mil with the name of the resource and where it is located. This can include photographs, letters, articles and other non-book materials. Also, if you have any materials in your possession that you would like to donate, the museum is always looking for items specific to New York's military heritage. Thank you.

Boyce, Charles William. A brief history of the Twenty-eighth regiment, New York state volunteers, First brigade, First division, Twelfth corps, Army of the Potomac, from the author's diary and official reports, with the muster-roll of the Regiment, and many pictures, articles and letters from surviving members and friends, with the report of the proceedings of the thirty-fifth annual reunion held at Albion, New York, May 22, 1896 [by] C. W. Boyce. Buffalo [Matthews- Northrup co., 1896].

Boyce, Charles William. "The story of our flag, how lost, found, and restored." Maine bugle, campaign V (Rockland 1898) 182-9.

Boyce, Charles William. "The story of our flag, how lost, found, and restored. The first reunion of Blue and Gray." BandG I (1893) 377-82.

Boyce, Charles William. "A story of the Shenandoah valley in 1862. The first Provost-Marshal [Erwin A, Bowen] of Harrisonburg, Va." BandG III (1894) 243-8.

Brown, Benjamin Balmer. "Civil war letters." North Dakota historical quarterly I:3 (1926/27) 60-71; no 4 61-8.

Buckley, William. Buckley's history of the great reunion of the North and South, and of the Blue and Gray, by William Buckley . . . [Staunton, c1923]. [An account of the meeting of veterans of the 28th New York regiment and the 5th Virginia regiment at Niagara Falls, May 22, 1883. The meeting was prompted by the Virginia regiment returning the captured flag of the New York regiment.]

King, Horatio Collins. Cedar mountain. [Brooklyn, 1902?] [6] p. 2 plates (illus., port.).[A poem read at the dedication of the monument to the 28th New York on the battlefield of Culpeper, Va., August 8, 1902.]

King, Horatio Collins. Dedication of the monument to the 28th New York volunteers, Culpeper, Va., August 8, 1902.

Report of proceedings of the thirty-fourth annual reunion of the 28th reg't New York volunteers, held at Niagara Falls, New York, Wednesday, May 22d, 1895. [Buffalo, Peter Paul book co., printers, 1895].

Report of proceedings of the thirty-third annual reunion 28th regiment New York volunteers, held at Lockport, New York, Tuesday, May 22d, 1894. [Buffalo, Press of Peter Paul book co., 1894].

Thirty-sixth annual reunion Twenty-eighth regiment New York state volunteers, held at Eldorado, on Grand island, near Buffalo, N. Y., August 26th, 1897. [Buffalo, Paul's press, 1897].

Rowley, William W. "The Signal corps of the army during the rebellion, by Captain W. W. Rowley, 1893." MOLLUS-Wis II 220-9.

Squires, Charles H. The 28th regiment, N.Y. vols., 1st brig.-lst div., 12th army corps, at the battle of Cedar mountain, Va., Aug. 9th, 1862. Lockport, J. H. Murphy, printer [n.d.] broadside, 25 1/2 x 29cm.

Waller, John. "With Banks from Strasburg to the Potomac." BandG III (1894) 194-6.

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