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by Joanna R. Hagopian (Editor), David A. Powell (Editor)
Horatio Quiggle's enduring Civil War service reveals a soldier's unbroken devotion and transformative wartime experience.
Horatio Quiggle was that rarest of Civil War soldiers, serving continuously from the conflict's outset to its conclusion. He initially joined the 14th Ohio Infantry, a three-month militia unit from northwestern Ohio, in April 1861. After its term expired that August, he promptly reenrolled in the three-year organization of the 14th, serving with the Army of the Ohio (later christened the Army of the Cumberland). On December 17, 1863, he again reenlisted for the duration of the war, not mustering out until the summer of 1865. His enduring commitment offers a unique perspective on the entire wartime experience.
Through the Civil War with the 14th Ohio Infantry: Horatio Quiggle's Memoir of Service, 1861-1865 presents a fascinating, previously unpublished glimpse into the life of this "fighting regiment" and the men who filled its ranks. The 14th Ohio earned its reputation as a formidable combat unit. Out of a total enrollment of 1,404, the regiment suffered significant losses: 146 men killed in action, 186 to disease and accident, and 329 to non-lethal wounds. It fought at Mill Springs in early 1862 and engaged repeatedly under Generals Don C. Buell, William S. Rosecrans, and George H. Thomas. Among its most brutal engagements were the battles in Georgia at Chickamauga in September 1863, and a year later at Jonesboro outside Atlanta. Quiggle's firsthand descriptions of Chickamauga's bloody scenes are particularly striking, offering vivid insight into the realities of combat.
Though he escaped serious physical injury, Quiggle endured profound personal loss, including his brother, late in the war. His memoir offers a poignant and often humorous recounting of his experiences, imbued with deep humanity. Enlisting as a 23-year-old farmer, he emerged from the conflict a profoundly transformed individual. While rich in detail and drawn from his wartime diary, Quiggle's memoir does not present a purely tactical or analytical history of the 14th Ohio Infantry. Given the scarcity of other primary sources for the 14th, the Quiggle manuscript stands as an invaluable addition to the history of the 14th Ohio and the broader narrative of the war in the Western Theater.
