Marines deployed by the Union Army during the Civil War played an intricate role in battles and skirmishes that took place along rivers and coastlines. The library at Augustana College has compiled and transcribed the diary of Basil H. Messler, a soldier in the Union’s amphibious Mississippi Marine Brigade, which outlines his exploits as a soldier and commissary during the final years of the War. This resource tool is great for anyone looking to get a personal view of how marines operated during the Civil War.
The site also has the diary of Illinois volunteer G.D. Molineaux, as well as a detailed outline of the troop deployments of his 8th Illinois Volunteer Infantry from 1861-1865.
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This sounds very interesting. Were these Marines as in the US Marine Corps or naval marines?
Messler’s Mississippi Marine Brigade was actually a special command in the Regular Army that was given direction by the Union Navy. Although as an actual unit they were not apart of the USMC, their actions of defending Union plantations and towns along the Mississippi River bared a much higher resemblance to Marine operations than the actions of the USMC itself, which was racked with leadership problems and spent most of the Civil War performing guard duties and manning blockades.
I am researching the involvement of the 8th Illinois in the re-printing of the famous “wallpaper edition” of the Vicksburg Daily Citizen. Therefore, I am interrested in the diary of G.D. Molineaux during this period. However, your link is broken. Is there any way you can send me the transcription?
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