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8th Alabama Infantry

Editor’s Note: Do you have information on this regiment’s role at the Siege of Petersburg?  Please contact us using the Contact button in the menu at the top of the screen.  We are happy to exchange information with other researchers.

Muster In: June 10, 18611
Muster Out: April 9, 18652

Commander(s):
Colonel Hilary A. Herbert
Image Needed

Lieutenant Colonel John P. Emrich
Commander Image

Captain William W. Mordecai
Commander Image

Commander 3
Commander Image

First Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Anderson’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army3

  • Commander: Colonel Hilary A. Herbert?4
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Second Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Anderson’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army5

  • Commander: Colonel Hilary A. Herbert6
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Third Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Anderson’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army7

  • Commander: Captain William W. Mordecai8,9
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Fourth Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Mahone’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army10

  • Commander:
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Fifth Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Mahone’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army11,12

  • Commander: Major John P. Emrich (wounded October ??, 1864)13
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Sixth Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Mahone’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army14

  • Commander:
    • Major John P. Emrich (wounded October ??, 1864)15
    • ? (after Emrich’s wounding)
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Seventh Offensive Order of Battle: Sanders’ Brigade | Mahone’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army16,17

  • Commander: Major (Lieutenant Colonel) John P. Emrich (November & December 1864)18,19
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Eighth Offensive Order of Battle: Forney’s Brigade | Mahone’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army20,21,22,23

  • Commander: Lieutenant Colonel John P. Emrich (January & February 1865)(definitely January 18, 1865)24,25,26
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Ninth Offensive Order of Battle: Forney’s Brigade | Mahone’s Division | Third Corps | Army of Northern Virginia | Confederate Army27,28

  • Commander: Lieutenant Colonel John P. Emrich (March & April 1-2, 1865)29,30
  • Unit Strength:
  • Weapons:

Dyer’s/Sifakis’ Compendium Info:
Petersburg Campaign Battles31:

  • The Crater (July 30, 1864)
  • Capture of Union Pickets at Fort Davis (October 30, 1864) (???)32

Bibliography:

    Petersburg Campaign Documents Which Mention This Unit:

    Sources:

    1. Compendium of the Confederate Armies: Alabama by Stewart Sifakis, pages 66-67
    2. Compendium of the Confederate Armies: Alabama by Stewart Sifakis, pages 66-67
    3. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 111
    4. On at least June 22, 1864. The Last Citadel: Petersburg, Virginia, June 1864-April 1865 by Noah Andre Trudeau , page 79
    5. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 111
    6. On at least June 22, 1864. The Last Citadel: Petersburg, Virginia, June 1864-April 1865 by Noah Andre Trudeau , page 79
    7. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 121
    8. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 121
    9.  “Graphic Account Battle of Crater.” Richmond Times-Dispatch. October 22, 1905 p. 16, col. 1-6: “This brigade was composed of the Eighth Alabama, Captain W. W. Mordecai, commanding; Ninth Alabama, Colonel J. H. King, commanding; Tenth Alabama, Captain W. L. Brewster, commanding; Eleventh Alabama, Lieutenant-Colonel George E. Tayloe, commanding; Fourteenth Alabama, Captain Elias Folk, commanding.”
    10. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 130
    11. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 139
    12. Sommers, Richard J. “Grant’s Fifth Offensive at Petersburg: A Study in Strategy, Tactics, and Generalship.  The Battle of Poplar Spring Church, the First Battle of the Darbytown Road, the Second Battle of the Squirrel Level Road, the Second Battle of the Darbytown Road (Ulysses S. Grant, Virginia).” Doctoral Thesis. Rice University, 1970. Print. p. 1312.
    13. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 149: I don’t have access to the source Sibley used to indicate Emrich’s wounding, and he doesn’t elaborate with a specific date.  If Emrich was wounded after October 13, 1864, he should not be listed as commander of the regiment for the Fifth Offensive.
    14. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 149
    15. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 149: I don’t have access to the source Sibley used to indicate Emrich’s wounding, and he doesn’t elaborate with a specific date.  If Emrich was wounded on or before October 13, 1864 and didn’t return prior to November 1, he should not be listed as commander of the regiment for the Sixth Offensive.
    16. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 157
    17. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 166
    18. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 157
    19. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 166
    20. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 175
    21. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 2 (Serial Number 96), page 1174: “Organization of the Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by General R. E. Lee, January 31, 1865”; This list contains many commanders who were not there.  They were the “official” commanders but may have been gone on leave.  I have used none of the leaders from this list as a result.
    22. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 185
    23. The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Volume XLVI, Part 2 (Serial Number 96), page 1272: “Organization of the Infantry and Cavalry of the Army of Northern Virginia, General R. E. Lee, C. S. Army, commanding, February 28, 1865”; This order of battle was based off of inspection reports from February 28, 1865.  However, leaders listed are from January.  I’ve chosen to ignore the leaders and just use this source for the organization of the order of battle.
    24. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 175
    25. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 185
    26. Per brigade historian David White, Compiled Service Records of Confederate Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Alabama, National Archives, Roll 762 (William H. Forney, 10th Alabama, Fold3.com Page 99): “Letter recommending Colonel Forney for promotion to Brigadier General.” Multiple officers signed this letter, including Emrich, and he indicated he was commanding the regiment on January 18, 1865.
    27. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 194
    28. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 203
    29. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 194
    30. The Confederate Order of Battle, Volume 1: The Army of Northern Virginia by F. Ray Sibley, Jr., page 203
    31. Compendium of the Confederate Armies: Alabama by Stewart Sifakis, pages 66-67
    32. I am unsure if this small action involved the entire regiment, portions of the regiment, or just the men attached to King’s sharpshooter battalion. Martin Husk, in a comment on my post detailing the fight on October 30, notes he found a source which included the 8th Alabama as well.  He chose not to include the source in his book because he could not corroborate the statement with another source. More research is needed.
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