43rd Massachusetts Infantry Regiment

The 43rd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry was a regiment of infantry that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The unit was first formed in September 1862 in response to President Abraham Lincoln's call for 300,000 men to serve for nine months. The nucleus of the regiment was the Second Battalion Massachusetts Volunteer Militia, a unit dating to 1798 known as the Boston Light Infantry and nicknamed the "Tigers." The 43rd Massachusetts therefore became known as the "Tiger Regiment."

43rd Regiment Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry
Regimental colors for 43rd Mass Volunteer Infantry
Active	September 12, 1862 – July 30, 1863
Country	United States
Allegiance	Union
Branch	Infantry
Part of	In 1863: 1st Brigade, 1st Division, XVIII Corps
Nickname(s)	Tiger Regiment
Engagements	American Civil War
Commanders
Colonel	Charles L. Holbrook
Insignia
Regimental insignia
XVIII Corps, 1st Division badge

43rd Massachusetts drilling at Camp Rogers in New Bern, NC, March 1863

The regiment trained at Camp Meigs in Readville, Massachusetts just outside of Boston. They departed Massachusetts on October 24, assigned to Maj. Gen. John G. Foster's Department of North Carolina, later designated as the XVIII Corps. The regiment was stationed in New Bern, North Carolina. In December, the regiment took part in the Goldsborough Expedition. The objective of this maneuver was to disrupt the Confederate supply line along the Wilmington and Weldon Railroad by destroying the Goldsborough Bridge. During this expedition, was lightly engaged in the Battles of Kinston, White Hall and Goldsborough Bridge.

While based in New Bern, the 43rd Massachusetts participated in patrols and reconnaissance expeditions. The unit returned to Boston in July 1863 and was mustered out on July 30, 1863. The regiment lost two men killed in action and 12 by disease.

See also

• Massachusetts in the Civil War
• List of Massachusetts Civil War units

References

Sources

• Bowen, James L (1889). Massachusetts in the War 1861–1865. Springfield, MA: Clark W Bryer + Co. OCLC 1986476.
• Dyer, Frederick H (1908). A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion. Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co. ASIN B01BUFJ76Q.
• Hall, Charles Winslow (1900). Regiments and Armories of Massachusetts. An Historical Narration of the Massachusetts Volunteer Militia. With Portraits and Biographies of Officers, Past and Present, etc. Vol. 1. Boston, MA: W.H. Potter & Co. OCLC 559765857.
• Headley, Phineas Camp (1866). Massachusetts in the Rebellion: a Record of the Historical Position of the Commonwealth, and the Services of the Leading Statesmen, the Military, the Colleges, and the People, in the Civil War of 1861-65. Boston, MA: Walker, Fuller & Co. OCLC 8406829.
• Higginson, Thomas Wentworth (State Historian (1896). Massachusetts in the Army and Navy During the War of 1861-65, 8 Volumes. Boston, MA: Wright and Potter Printing Co, State Printers. OCLC 1049652105.
• Nason, George W. (1910). History and Complete Roster of the Massachusetts Regiments, Minute Men of '61. Boston, MA: Smith & McCance. OCLC 57590583.
• Rogers, Edward H. (1883). Reminiscences of military service in the Forty-third Regiment, Massachusetts Infantry, during the great Civil War, 1862-63. Boston, MA: Rand, Avery & Co. OCLC 48707166.
• Schouler, William (1868). A History of Massachusetts in the Civil War. Boston, MA: E.P. Dutton & Co. OCLC 2662693.
• Stevens, Jesse F (1931). Massachusetts Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines in the Civil War, in 8 Volumes. Norwood, MA: Norwood Press. ASIN B000UH94DC.
• War Department, U.S. (1880). The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. OCLC 857196196.

External links

• 43rd Massachusetts Infantry in square formation in New Bern, N.C., March 12, 1863
• Civil War Index: 43rd Massachusetts Infantry in the Civil War