The 103rd Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served for three years during the American Civil War. Organized in Peoria, Illinois, and formed from men entirely within Fulton County, Illinois, the group left Illinois, serving with Sherman through the Atlanta Campaign, March to the Sea and Carolina Campaign. Finally, the regiment participated in the troop review in Washington, D.C., before mustering out in Chicago, and traveling back to their homes.
Service
The regiment was formed entirely with men from Fulton County, Illinois, and was called up as part of the recruitment drive during the summer and fall of 1862 after a series of Union setbacks. The men were organized and trained in Peoria, Illinois, before being mustered into service on October 2, 1862, with a strength of 804 men. Many of the officers were veterans of early battles in the war; most had come from the 17th Illinois Infantry Regiment. The Adjutant General's Report of 1901 notes that due to the experience of the veteran officers, heavy emphasis was placed on training. Training took place in Peoria for a month before they boarded trains and headed south to Cairo, Illinois
The 103rd Illinois was to join Major General Ulysses S. Grant's army in west Tennessee, attached to the XIII Corps. They participated in operations in Tennessee and northern Mississippi in late 1862 and early 1863. With the dawn of 1863 in the war's western front, the emphasis was Vicksburg, Mississippi. The strategy was to completely take control of the Mississippi River, thereby cutting the nation in two; this effectively would eliminate the west to east transportation of troops and supplies from locations like Texas. Starting this new phase, the regiment was attached to the XVI Corps in a brigade commanded by Stephen G. Hicks. While the vast majority of the Army of the Tennessee participated in operations against Vicksburg, the 103rd Illinois remained in La Grange, Tennessee, protecting the Union supply lines into northern Mississippi. In this capacity, they helped provide support from Grierson's Raid in April 1863. By June the regiment was sent to the Yazoo River and temporarily attached the IX Corps. They participated in the fortification of Snyder's Bluff, helping to guard the army's rear from attacks by Confederate forces. After the surrender of Vicksburg on July 4, the 103rd was assigned to the XV Corps under Major General William T. Sherman. They participated in a foray to the Mississippi capital of Jackson and spent the rest of the summer in and around Vicksburg.
With the Army of the Cumberland trapped at Chattanooga, Tennessee, Sherman led the XV Corps to their relief. The 103rd left Vicksburg on September 28 traveling north to Memphis, then continuing overland to Chattanooga. They crossed the Tennessee River with the rest of the XV Corps on November 24 and participated in the attack on Goat Hill at the north end of Missionary Ridge. Although the men of the 103rd had been in the army for over a year, this was their first major engagement with the enemy. The next day, November 25, the regiment took part in the assault on Tunnel Hill, Georgia. The Federals endured withering fire from Confederates under Major General Patrick R. Cleburne, who were strongly entrenched on the hill. The men of the 103rd got within a few yards of the enemy breastworks, but the fire from the enemy was so strong they could not break the enemy line and were ordered to withdraw. During their baptism of fire, the regiment lost one officer and twenty-four men killed, and sixty-three men wounded (37% of those engaged). Fortunately for the Federals, the center of the Confederate line on Missionary Ridge collapsed and the battle was won.
The 103rd with the rest of Sherman's command continued westward after the Battle of Chattanooga to relieve General Ambrose Burnside, whose army was besieged by Confederate general James Longstreet at Knoxville. Finding that Longstreet had already given up on the siege by the time they arrived in Knoxville, Sherman returned to Chattanooga. During the winter of 1863-1864, the 103rd spent time in winter quarters and guard duty in Cleveland, Tennessee. They rejoined the XV Corps just in time to participate in the Atlanta Campaign beginning on May 3, 1864. They were lightly engaged at the Battle of Resaca on May 14, losing one man killed and several wounded and participated heavily in the Battle of Dallas two weeks later. Among the slain was the regimental commander, Colonel Willard A. Dickerman who was mortally wounded.