The 95th Regiment Illinois Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Recruitment
The 95th Illinois was formed as a result of President Abraham Lincoln's call for 300,000 volunteers in the late summer of 1862. All ten companies were formed out of Boone and McHenry Counties and they were mustered into federal service on September 4, 1862. After spending two months training at Camp Fuller near Rockford the regiment took to the field, proceeding to Jackson by way of Cairo and Columbus. There they joined the growing army under Major General Ulysses S. Grant, who was preparing to advance on the Confederate stronghold of Vicksburg.
The 95th was assigned to the XVI Corps and took part in Grant's northern Mississippi Campaign in late 1862. This abortive first move against Vicksburg ended when the Union supply line at Holly Springs was disruption by Confederate cavalry under General Earl Van Dorn. Along with the rest of the army, the 95th retreated back into Tennessee. Reassigned to the XVII Corps under General James McPherson in January 1863, the regiment spent time in occupied Memphis before embarking down the Mississippi River to Lake Providence. There the regiment received its "baptism of fire" by skirmishing with some Confederate raiders on February 10, 1863. In early April they moved to Milliken's Bend in preparation for the beginning of the Vicksburg Campaign.
Vicksburg Campaign
On April 30 the 95th Illinois participated in the crossing of the Mississippi River at Bruinsburg with the rest of McPherson's corps and spent the next two weeks marching along hot and dusty Mississippi roads. They were in the vicinity of fighting at the Battle of Raymond and the Battle of Jackson but were held in reserve. Their brigade was thrown into action at the Battle of Champion Hill but by the time they reached the front the enemy had been defeated and was fleeing back toward Vicksburg. On May 18 Grant's army reached the outskirts of Vicksburg and prepared to assault the Confederate works. The following day the Federal troops tried to storm the defenses. The 95th Illinois, part of Brigadier General Thomas E.G. Ransom's brigade of General John McArthur's division, plunged ahead and gained a point near the Confederate works. In this assault Colonel Thomas Humphrey was wounded in the foot but remained in control of the regiment and led them off the field when ordered to do so. After two days of rest, Grant decided to try again, this time sending most of his army forward against the Confederate entrenchments. Again the 95th gained the crest of a ridge that allowed them to fire down into the Confederate trenches, but they were exposed and absorbing crossfire. After a few minutes, Colonel Humphrey ordered them to retreat. Losses for the regiment in the two assaults totaled 25 killed, 124 wounded, and 10 missing.
Grant and the rest of his army settled down for the Siege of Vicksburg. They had tried to dislodge the Confederates by force and failed; now they would simply starve them out. On July 4, 1863, after nearly two months of siege, the Vicksburg defenders surrendered. After a brief rest the 95th Illinois was sent to Natchez with the rest of Ransom's brigade and occupied the city without any Confederate opposition. After spending the rest of the summer in Natchez, the regiment returned to garrison duty at Vicksburg through the fall and winter of 1863. In February 1864 they participated in the Meridian Expedition under General William T. Sherman but did not see any combat.