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The 117th Illinois Infantry Volunteers
"In your hands, my dissatisfied fellow countrymen, and not in mine, is the momentous issue of civil war. ... Sumter, Lincoln called upon the states to send 75,000 volunteers to put down the rebellion. ... They joined the 9th Illinois US Infantry, the 22nd Illinois US Infantry, the 43rd Illinois US Infantry, and many other regiments. One courageous army, in particular, that answered Lincoln’s call was the 117th Illinois Infantry Volunteers. The 117th Illinois Infantry was organized in O’Fallon on May 1862 and consisted of 41 men. After months of training, the company left O’Fallon and marched 114 miles towards Camp Butler in Springfield, Illinois. ...
After about two months of marching, the 117th Infantry arrived at Fort Pickering on November 17, 1862. ... Since they could not have replacement weapons delivered to them, the 117th was left behind while the other regiments marched towards Vicksburg. ... During the Civil War the 117th Illinois Infantry Volunteers fought courageously in a total of five major campaigns. ... Under the command of General Sherman at this time, the 117th, along with the rest of Sherman’s troops, left Vicksburg on February 4 and marched east, passing through Jackson, Mississippi and ending in Meridian. ...
The next campaign that the 117th participated in was the Red River Campaign, which lasted from March 10 to May 22,1864. ... The 117th Illinois Infantry Volunteers were positioned on a high ridge. ... Hood began his assault on November 30 and the 117th arrived in Nashville on December 1st. At daybreak, the 117th immediately took their position in the line of battle. ... After the battle was over, the 117th marched all the way to Clifton, Tennessee and from there by boat to Eastport, Mississippi where they camped for the winter.
The last major campaign the 117th fought in was the Siege of Mobile. ... The 117th was in this latter group. ... According to a letter written by Colonel Ridson Moore, “the 117th Illinois took [part] in the siege and capture of Fort Blakley.
Approximate Word count = 1860
Approximate Pages = 7.4
(250 words per page double spaced)
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