Florida 1st Regiment Infantry Reserves
HISTORICAL NOTES:
The First Florida Infantry Regiment Reserves consisted of men at the lower and upper ends of conscription age. The exact date of their organization is unknown, but they existed at least as early as February, 1864 when they participated in the Battle of Olustee. During the spring of 1864 a number of companies of "Florida Reserves" were raised for service within the state. These companies eventually were formed into the First Florida Reserve Regiment.
Company "G" of this regiment fought with Gen. Finnegan at Olustee. They fought at Santa Rosa where only 9 men were left from the original group (where they carved their names on a tree which was still standing in the 1970's) and were sent home on foot to sneak their way through enemy lines. They also fought at Pensacola and Natural Bridge. They were part of Florida's legacy of having the only capitol east of the Mississippi not taken during wartime.
In an email from Lisa Phillips, she states:
My great-grandfather (John M. m. Serena C. Raulerson or Raulison) was 18 and his father was 51 when they enlisted and went immediately into battle. My grandmother ran the farm with her husband and oldest son gone for the duration of the war. She supplied them with food from the farm as their encampment was within walking distance. Very few of the remaining men in that company ever took the oath or surrendered. They just walked home at the end of the war. The north didn't care about the citizens of that small "mud puddle" of the south and didn't pursue the matter. My grandfather died in 1922 and she in 1933. The war didn't seem to shorten their life very much.
In January, 1865 James J. Daniels, who had previously commanded a state conscript camp, was elected colonel of the 1st Reserve regiment. The regiment surrendered at Tallahassee and other locations in May 1865.
OFFICERS:
Daniels, James Jacqueline - Colonel
Barnes, William D. - Lt. Colonel
BATTLES:
Olustee
Santa Rosa
Pensacola
Natural Bridge - MAR 5, 1865
ROSTERS:
The Florida 1st Infantry Regiment Reserves was comprised of 12 companies. Men were recruited throughout Florida. Most of the members were too young or old for regular service. The composite rosters of this unit contains the names of 1603 men.
BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Email from Lisa Phillips [campcop1@bellsouth.net]
The First Florida Infantry Regiment Reserves consisted of men at the lower and upper ends of conscription age. The exact date of their organization is unknown, but they existed at least as early as February, 1864 when they participated in the Battle of Olustee. During the spring of 1864 a number of companies of "Florida Reserves" were raised for service within the state. These companies eventually were formed into the First Florida Reserve Regiment.
Company "G" of this regiment fought with Gen. Finnegan at Olustee. They fought at Santa Rosa where only 9 men were left from the original group (where they carved their names on a tree which was still standing in the 1970's) and were sent home on foot to sneak their way through enemy lines. They also fought at Pensacola and Natural Bridge. They were part of Florida's legacy of having the only capitol east of the Mississippi not taken during wartime.
In an email from Lisa Phillips, she states:
In January, 1865 James J. Daniels, who had previously commanded a state conscript camp, was elected colonel of the 1st Reserve regiment. The regiment surrendered at Tallahassee and other locations in May 1865.
Daniels, James Jacqueline - Colonel
Barnes, William D. - Lt. Colonel
Olustee
Santa Rosa
Pensacola
Natural Bridge - MAR 5, 1865
The Florida 1st Infantry Regiment Reserves was comprised of 12 companies. Men were recruited throughout Florida. Most of the members were too young or old for regular service. The composite rosters of this unit contains the names of 1603 men.
Email from Lisa Phillips [campcop1@bellsouth.net]