The 16th Maine Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was particularly noted for its service during the 1863 Battle of Gettysburg.
Organization and assignments
The 16th Maine was organized at Augusta, Maine, and mustered into Federal service for a three-year enlistment on August 14, 1862. It departed for Washington, D.C. in 1862. It was assigned to: 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, III Corps, Army of Virginia (AoV), to September, 1862. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, I Corps, Army of the Potomac (AoP), to May, 1863. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, I Corps, AoP, to March, 1864. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, V Corps, AoP, to June, 1864. 1st Brigade, 3rd Division, V Corps, AoP, to August, 1864 or later. 2nd Brigade, 3rd Division, V Corps, AoP, by February 7, 1865, to April 9, 1865, or perhaps to June, 1865.
1862
Served in the Maryland Campaign September to October.
To repel the invasion of Maryland by the Confederates, the Army of the Potomac moved northward from Washington with its front extending from near the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad to the Potomac River. On September 12, the First Corps bivouacked on the south side of the Monocacy near the crossing of the National Road (now called the Old National Road, old US 40). At the Battle of South Mountain on September 14, Joseph Hooker's I Corps attacked the Confederates holding Turner's Pass while preventing a potential flanking maneuver to its north.
The 16th Maine was detached as railroad guard during the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862, according to the Antietam Union order of battle. At Pleasant Valley / Sharpsburg until October 30.
Movement to Warrenton, thence to Falmouth, Virginia, October 30 to November 19. Fought at the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia, from December 12 to 15.
1863
The regiment was part of the infamous "Mud March" January 20–24, 1863. At Falmouth and Belle Plain until April 27. Participated in the Chancellorsville Campaign April 27 to May 6. Operations at Pollock's Mill Creek April 29-May 2. Fitzhugh's Crossing April 29–30. Battle of Chancellorsville May 2–5. Gettysburg Campaign June 11-July 24. Battle of Gettysburg July 1–3. Picket duty along the Rapidan until October --. Bristoe Campaign October 9–22. Advance to line of the Rappahanock November 7–8. Mine Run Campaign November 26-December 2.
Gettysburg
Around 11: 30 on the morning of July 1, 1863, two divisions of the 1st Corps, Army of the Potomac arrived to join a fight that had been raging all morning, as the Confederates advanced on Gettysburg from the west and from the north. Among them was the 16th Maine. The regiment, along with the rest of the army, had been marching since June 12 up from Virginia, through Maryland, and into southern Pennsylvania. They were headed toward an eventual clash with the Confederate Army that was fated to take place in and around the little market town of Gettysburg. The 16th Maine fought bitterly for approximately three hours in the fields north of the Chambersburg Pike; but by mid-afternoon, it was evident that, even with the addition of the rest of the 1st Corps and the entire 11th Corps, the position of the Union forces could not be held. They began to fall back toward the town of Gettysburg.
The 16th Maine was then ordered to withdraw to a new position to the east of where they had been fighting. "Take that position and hold it at any cost!" was the command. This meant that those of the 275 officers and men of the regiment who had not already become casualties had to sacrifice themselves to allow some 16,000 other men to retreat. This they valiantly did, but they were soon overwhelmed and forced to surrender to the Confederates. Historians say the 16th Maine fought valiantly, but its soldiers turned their attention to saving their beloved flags when they realized that defeat was inevitable. As the Southern troops bore down upon them, the men of the 16th Maine spontaneously began to tear up into little pieces their "colors."