The 7TH OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY REGIMENT, 1861-64, was the first CIVIL WAR regiment rendezvoused and organized in Cleveland. Three companies were composed solely of Clevelanders, while Clevelanders served as officers in other companies, giving the unit a total of 610 local men. The 7th was raised at Camp Taylor (see CIVIL WAR CAMPS IN CLEVELAND) on 22-25 Apr. 1861 and mustered into federal service on 30 Apr.
The 7th was one of the most experienced regiments of the Union armies. They served in three different Union armies: the Army of Virginia, under US General John Pope, the Army of the Potomac, and the Army of the Cumberland. They saw action all across the eastern theater, fighting in many of the major campaigns. The list of their battles includes Cedar Mountain, Second Bull Run, Antietam, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Ringgold Gap, and Resaca.
In addition to its battlefield experience, the 7th was also sent to help quell the New York City draft riots in Aug.-Sept. 1863.
The regiment left the front on 11 June 1864 as the soldiers’ terms expired. It was then mustered out and its men paid off and discharged at Camp Cleveland on 6 July 1864. Veterans who wished to continue serving were reenlisted and transferred to the 5th Ohio. The unit lost 10 officers and 174 men to hostile action and 2 officers and 87 men to disease.
The History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, compiled by Crisfield Johnson, asserts that “Taking it all in all, considering the number of its battles, its marches, its losses, its conduct in action, it may safely be said that not a single regiment in the United States gained more lasting honor or deserved better of its country than the Seventh Ohio Volunteer Infantry.”
Numerous monuments were erected to the 7th and their service after the war. One pillar is in WOODLAND CEMETERY in Cleveland. Another is located near Culp’s Hill in Gettysburg. In addition, they share a monument with the 5th and 66th Ohio at Antietam.
Unit Assignments:
| Railroad District, WV | June-Dec. 1861 |
| 3d Brigade, Lander's Div., Army of the Potomac | Jan.-Mar. 1862 |
| 3d Brigade, 2d Div., 5th Army Corps, Dept. of the Shenandoah | Mar.-May 1862 |
| 3d Brigade, Shield's Div., Dept. of the Rappahannock | May-June 1862 |
| 2d Brigade, 1st Div., 2d Corps, Army of Virginia | June-Aug. 1862 |
| 1st Brigade, 2d Div., 2d Corps, Army of Virginia | Aug.-Sept. 1862 |
| 1st Brigade, 2d Div., 12th Army Corps, Army of the Potomac | Sept. 1862 - Oct. 1863 |
| Army of the Cumberland | Oct. 1863 - Apr. 1864 |
| 1st Brigade, 2d Div., 20th Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland | May-July 1864 |
Updated by Meghan Schill
Finding Aid for the Regimental Papers of the Civil War, WRHS.
View more at Cleveland Historical.
Wilder, George L. The History of Co. C, Seventh Regiment, O.V.I. (1866).
Wood, George L. The Seventh Regiment (1865).