Attempted organization in March-April, 1862; regimental organization never completed, and four companies consolidated into one, July, 1862, which became Company “F”, 1st Confederate Infantry Battalion.
Colonel B. Desha Harman was authorized to raise a regiment of Infantry, and three companies were mustered in in March, one in April, 1862. Another, H. C. Davis’ Company, appears to have been a Tennessee company which voluntarily attached itself to Harman’s Regiment in March or April, 1862. These companies were:
CAPTAINS
- Christopher Sherwin, Co. “A”, formerly Captain Co. “I”, 154th Senior Tennessee Infantry Regiment. Organized March 8, 1862 at Memphis.
- A. B. Bartlett, Co. “B”. Organized March 20, 1862 at Memphis. No muster roll of this company was found.
- Lambert May, Co. “C”. Organized April 1, 1862 at Grand Junction, Hardeman County. No muster roll of this company.
- William S. McMahon, Co. “K”. Organized March 20, 1862 at Memphis.
Captain H. C. Davis’ Company. Date and place of organization not known. The captain and 1st Lieutenant Nuttall resigned, and the remnant of the company (13 enlisted men) was reported to have transferred to some company which has not been identified. There was no muster roll.
On May 28, 1862, General Bragg ordered Colonel Harman, at Grand Junction: “Move all stores and supplies of every kind immediately to Grenada, Mississippi. Hold your command in readiness to move at any hour, and leave for Grenada when you hear the enemy has reached Pocahontas. Destroy all bridges east of Grand Junction on Memphis and Charleston Railroad. Telegraph General Villepigue, at Fort Pillow, when your troops leave Grand Junction.”
On June 5, Colonel Harman, still at Grand Junction, advised Brigadier General Daniel Ruggles at Grenada: “We will have to fall back shortly unless reinforced. You have ordered me to destroy bridges on both roads. Do you mean toward Memphis, on Memphis and Charleston, and toward Holly Springs, on Mississippi Central? We have not sufficient force to destroy bridges toward Memphis.”
On June 12, 1862, Brigadier General John B. Villepigue, at Grenada, Mississippi reported: “Since the morning report, four companies of Harman’s Regiment arrived. Have 130 mixed guns in good order.”
On June 23, 1862, Brigadier General Ruggles, on leaving Grenada, assigned Colonel Harman to command of the post at Grenada, with instruction to send all unarmed troops forward as rapidly as possible to Jackson, Mississippi. Shortly after this, the four companies were consolidated into one in July, 1862, and the company was assigned to the 1st Confederate Infantry Battalion as Company “F”.
This unit history was extracted from Tennesseans in the Civil War, Vol 1. Copyrighted 1964 by the Civil War Centennial Commission of Tennessee and is published here with their permission. This history may not be republished for any reason without the written permission of the copyright owner.