View source for 28th United States Colored Infantry Regiment

{{Infobox military unit
|unit_name= 28th United States Colored Infantry Regiment
| image=28th-Regiment-US-Colored-Troops.png
| image_size = 300
|caption=Regimental Flag
|dates= December 24, 1863 – November 8, 1865
|country= [[United States]]
|allegiance= [[United States|United States of America]]<br/>[[Union (American Civil War)|Union]]
|branch= [[Infantry]]
|equipment=
|colonel_of_the_regiment=[[Charles Sawyer Russell]]
<!-- Culture and history -->
|battles=[[American Civil War]]
*[[Siege of Petersburg]]
*[[Battle of the Crater]]
}}
The '''28th United States Colored Infantry''', also called the '''28th Indiana Infantry (Colored)''',<sup>[[#Notes|1]]</sup> was an [[African American]] [[infantry]] [[regiment]] from the state of [[Indiana]] that fought in the [[American Civil War]].
==History==
On November 30, 1863, the [[United States Department of War]] authorized Indiana Governor [[Oliver P. Morton]] to raise one regiment of infantry composed of [[African American]]s. On  December 3, the state's  [[adjutant general#United States|adjutant general]] issued orders to begin accepting enlistments, which began December 24. On January 12, 1864, the War Department notified Morton that the regiment would be called the "28th Regiment of U.S. Colored Troops."
[[Willis Revels|Reverend Willis Revels]] and [[Garland H. White]], both ministers of the [[African Methodist Episcopal Church]] in [[Indianapolis, Indiana]] was the chief recruiting officer. Recruits trained until the end of March at a camp established on land owned by [[Calvin Fletcher]], a prominent citizen.  The camp was named "[[Camp Fremont]]" in honor of [[John C. Frémont]], the 1856 [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] presidential nominee and [[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] army general.
Placed in charge of the newly formed unit was [[Charles Sawyer Russell]], a captain of the [[11th Infantry Regiment (United States)|11th U.S. Infantry Regiment]] who was (on 1 May 1864) appointed Lieutenant Colonel and battalion commander of the six organized companies. On April 25, the six companies of the 28th left Indianapolis for [[Washington, D.C.]], where they were attached to the capital's defenses.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Terrell|first1=W.H.H.|title=Report of The Adjutant General of the State of Indiana|date=1866|publisher=Samuel Douglas|location=Indianapolis Indiana|page=384|edition=Vol. III}}</ref>
The 28th sustained heavy casualties in the [[Battle of the Crater]] at the [[Siege of Petersburg]], Virginia, on July 30, 1864, when nearly half of its soldiers were killed or wounded.  [[William F. Fox|William Fox]] (''see references'') put the 28th's losses at 11 killed, 64 wounded and 13 missing, a total of 88.  Following the Battle of the Crater, the depleted ranks of the 28th were filled with four more companies of recruits raised in Indiana and sent to make the command a full regiment.  The commander, Lieutenant Colonel Russell, was reappointed as the regimental commander with the rank of Colonel on 23 August 1864.  Russell was also brevetted Brigadier General on 30 July 1864 in recognition of the 28th's performance at The Crater.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Terrell|first1=W.H.H.|title=Report of The Adjutant General of the State of Indiana|date=1866|publisher=Samuel Douglas|location=Indianapolis Indiana|page=384|edition=Vol. III}}</ref>
After the [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] surrender at [[Battle of Appomattox Courthouse|Appomattox]], the 28th was moved to the [[Mexico|Mexican]] border in [[Texas]] as part of the American response to the [[Second French intervention in Mexico|French intervention in Mexico]].
The 28th was formally mustered out in Corpus Christi, Texas on November 8, 1865.<ref>"The Union Army" by Federal Publishing Company, 1908 - Volume 3</ref>  It returned to Indianapolis January 6, 1866, to a reception in its honor.  According to [[Frederick H. Dyer]] (''see references)'', the regiment suffered a total of 212 fatalities: two officers and 45 enlistees killed and mortally wounded in combat and one officer and 164 enlistees who died of disease.
An Indiana historical marker commemorating the regiment was erected in Indianapolis in 2004.
==Service==
*Organized December 24, 1863
*[[Battle of the Crater]] at the [[Siege of Petersburg]], Virginia, on July 30, 1864
*Moved to the [[Mexico|Mexican]] border in [[Texas]] as part of the American response to the [[Second French intervention in Mexico|French intervention in Mexico]]
*Mustered out on November 8, 1865
==See also==
{{Portal|American Civil War|Indiana}}
*[[United States Colored Troops]]
*[[List of United States Colored Troops Civil War Units]]
==Notes==
* The regiment is distinct from the 28th Regiment Indiana Volunteers, which was the infantry designation assigned to the [[1st Regiment Indiana Cavalry]].
==References==
{{Reflist}}
*Dyer, Frederick Henry, ''A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion'', Des Moines: Dyer Publishing Co., 1908. [http://www.bjmjr.com/cwnorth/28usci.htm]
*Fox, William F., ''Regimental Losses in the American Civil War 1861–1865'', Albany, NY: Albany Publishing Co., 1889, Chapter VI. [http://www.civilwarhome.com/chapt6.htm]
*Indiana Battle Flag Commission, ''Indiana Battle Flags and a Record of Indiana Organizations in the Mexican, Civil and Spanish–American Wars,'' Indianapolis, 1929, pp.&nbsp;211–213.
*Indiana Historical Bureau, Historical Marker Database: 28th Regiment USCT, annotation of marker text. [http://199.8.200.229/db/markers_display.asp?ID=3]{{Dead link|date=September 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}
**Terrell, W.H.H., ''Report of the Adjutant General of the State of Indiana'', 8 vols., Indianapolis: A. H. Connor, State Printer, 1865–1869.
**Thornbrough, Emma Lou, ''The Negro in Indiana: A Study of a Minority'', Indianapolis, 1957; reprinted, 1985.
**Thornbrough, Gayle et al. (eds.), ''The Diary of Calvin Fletcher'', 9 vols., Indianapolis, 1972–1983.
==External links==
*[http://www.in.gov/history/files/7023.pdf ''Indiana's 28th Regiment: Black Soldiers for the Union'', Indiana Historian, Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Bureau, February 1994]
*[http://www.in.gov/iwm/2397.htm Indiana War Memorial Battle Flag Collection: 28th Regiment United States Colored Troops]
{{Indiana in the Civil War}}
[[Category:United States Colored Troops Civil War units and formations]]
[[Category:Units and formations of the Union army from Indiana|28]]
[[Category:Military units and formations established in 1864]]
[[Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1865]]
[[Category:1863 establishments in Indiana]]