The 3rd Louisiana Infantry Regiment was a unit of foot soldiers from Louisiana that fought in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The regiment distinguished itself at Wilson's Creek in 1861. The 3rd Louisiana fought at Pea Ridge, First Corinth, Iuka, and Second Corinth in 1862. The unit defended Vicksburg in 1863 where it was captured. At Vicksburg, the unit's fortification was twice blown up by powerful land mines. The surviving soldiers were paroled and exchanged, after which they performed guard duty for the rest of the war.
Formation
On 11 May 1861, the 3rd Louisiana Infantry Regiment organized at Camp Walker in New Orleans with 1,037 soldiers. The unit's original field officers were Colonel Louis Hebert, Lieutenant Colonel Samuel M. Hyams, and Major William F. Tunnard. On 20 May, the regiment started to travel to Fort Smith, Arkansas. Captains, company nicknames, and parishes where the men were recruited are listed below.
Key: k = killed, m = mortally wounded, p = promoted, r = resigned, t = transferred, x = dropped 8 May 1862.
History
1861
The 3rd Louisiana Infantry served in Benjamin McCulloch's brigade from May–September 1861. When the indifferently-dressed pro-Southern Missourians first saw Hebert's regiment, they were impressed with its neat gray uniforms and the officers' gold braid. On 10 August 1861 in the Battle of Wilson's Creek, 5,400 Union soldiers with 16 guns under Nathaniel Lyon attacked 10,175 Confederate troops with 15 guns led by Sterling Price, Nicholas Bartlett Pearce, and McCulloch. Lyon's attack was a complete surprise. As his main column advanced from the north, Lyon sent 300 U.S. regular infantry under J. B. Plummer to protect his left flank. The 3rd Louisiana and the 2nd Arkansas Mounted Rifles met the regulars in a cornfield and defeated them after a fight lasting one hour. A second Union column led by Franz Sigel advanced from the south and enjoyed a brief success. After its successful cornfield fight, Hebert's Pelican Rifles moved to face the new threat. Sigel's men held their fire because the Louisianans looked like an Iowa regiment. Sigel's troops were routed after being blasted by a volley. Finally, the 3rd Louisiana joined the main battle against Lyon on Oak Hill, taking a position on the right flank next to the 3rd Texas Cavalry Regiment. After repelling four Confederate attacks, Lyon was killed and the Federals retreated after suffering 1,317 casualties. Confederate losses numbered 1,230. The 3rd Louisiana lost 9 killed and 48 wounded at Wilson's Creek, including Captain Hinson (B Company) killed.
1862
In the Battle of Pea Ridge on 7–8 March 1862, the 3rd Louisiana was commanded by Major Tunnard since Colonel Hebert was promoted to brigade commander. The regiment sustained casualties of 10 killed, 15 wounded, and 42 missing during the fighting. On 7 March, McCulloch was killed early in the fighting and the division's second-in-command James M. McIntosh was shot dead soon afterward. At about the same time, Hebert (who was third-in-command) led the 3rd Louisiana and the 4th, 14th, and 15th Arkansas Infantry Regiments into Morgan's Woods. When the staff officers of the fallen generals went looking for Hebert, he had disappeared into the woods, leaving McCulloch's division leaderless. After extremely confused fighting, Hebert's regiments were defeated and withdrew from the woods. Hebert and about 30 others became separated from his brigade and the group was later captured by Union cavalry. Tunnard, who had passed out from exhaustion, was also captured. McCulloch's division dispersed; about 1,200 soldiers left the battlefield, 2,000 went with Albert Pike to join Earl Van Dorn, and another 3,500, including the survivors of the 3rd Louisiana, went with Elkanah Greer to join Van Dorn. On 15 March, Hebert and Tunnard were released from captivity in exchange for two captured Federal officers, Francis J. Herron and William P. Chandler. After Pea Ridge, the Confederate soldiers endured a terrible retreat in cold weather. Because Van Dorn's logistics broke down, they were forced to steal food from the local people. William Watson of the 3rd Louisiana called it a "miniature Moscow retreat". Two weeks after the battle, Tunnard reported that there were only 270 demoralized men in the regiment and that their uniforms were in tatters. Many more drifted in afterward.