Battery L 1st Ohio Light Artillery..

Just to let you know I haven't been completely idle in this fairly long interval between posts, can I now introduce you to the first Union artillery element, namely Battery L, 1st Ohio Light Artillery.. the poster by the way, is an authentic, actual, recruiting poster for the battery! Click on it, or any of the other pictures in the post, for a much larger view...

Like the other American Civil war units I've so far painted and researched, there is a pleasing quantity of information available for this unit, including a unit of re-enactors solely representing this battery!

The regiment came into being in 1860 under the Ohio Militia laws, and was commanded by Colonel James Barnett. It consisted of twelve batteries in total, and after doing their initial service in West Virginia the regiment was enlisted for three years service on September 3, 1861.

Each Battery in the regiment went on to have a separate history, as the regiment was split up amongst the various Union armies.

Batteries A, B, C, D, E, F, G, and M were with the Army of the Cumberland under Buell, where they served at Shiloh, and took part in the battles of Stone River, Perryville, Chickamauga and Mission Ridge. They also served during Sherman's Atlanta campaign, and with Thomas in the battles about Franklin and Nashville.

Batteries H and L (of which we have particular and most interest) were with the Army of the Potomac and fought all through the first battles (including Kernstown).

Batteries I and K fought both east and west, as they were transferred with Hooker's Corps to the west in 1863.

Battery L were commanded by a certain 44 year old Captain Lucius N. Robinson until he resigned on November 11th, 1862 (8 months after Kernstown and just two or three weeks before Fredericksburg), on account of physical disability. If you look on the poster you can see he was originally a Lieutenant.

He was superseded by Captain Frank C. Gibbs (a mere 26 - war is young mans occupation!) who commanded the battery until the end of the war. The battery comprised six 12pdr Napoleon's....

The following is excellent and is repeated verbatim - from this site http://www.civilwararchive.com/Unreghst/unohart1.htm

"From Dyer's Compendium

Deployments:

Organized at Portsmouth, Ohio, and mustered in at Camp Dennison, Ohio, October 8, 1861, to January 20, 1862.
Moved to Patterson's Creek, Va., January 20-27, 1862.
Attached to Landers' Division, Army of the Potomac, to March, 1862.
Artillery, Shields' 2nd Division, Banks' 5th Army Corps and Dept. of the Shenandoah to May, 1862.
Artillery, Shields' Division, Dept. of the Rappahannock, to June, 1862.
Alexandria, Va., Military District of Washington, D.C., to September, 1862.
Artillery, 3rd Division, 5th Army Corps, Army of the Potomac, to October, 1862.
Artillery, 2nd Division, 5th Army Corps, to May, 1863.
Artillery Brigade, 5th Army Corps, to April, 1864.
Camp Barry, Defences of Washington, D.C.. 22nd Army Corps, to May, 1864.
2nd Brigade, Hardin's Division, 22nd Army Corps, to July, 1864.
Artillery, 1st Division, 19th Army Corps, Middle Military Division, to August, 1864.
Reserve Division, Dept. of West Virginia, to September, 1864.
Artillery Brigade, Dept. of West Virginia, to January, 1865. 1st Separate Brigade. 3rd Division, West Virginia, to April, 1865.
Artillery, 2nd Division, Dept. of West Virginia, to July, 1865.

SERVICE.

Advance on Winchester, Va., March 7-15, 1862.
Reconnoissance to Strasburg March 19-20.
Battle of Winchester [a.k.a Kernstown] March 23. [At Kernstown they were part of the Artillery Corps under Lt. Colonel Daum, in Brigadier General James Shields First Division of V Corps, Army of the Potomac]
Occupation of Mt. Jackson April 17.
March to Fredericksburg May 12-21, and return to Front Royal May 25-30.
Moved to Alexandria June 29, and duty in the Defences of Washington till September. Movement to Falmouth, Va., October-November.
Battle of Fredericksburg December 12-15.
At Falmouth till April. 1863.
Chancellorsville Campaign April 27-May 6.
Battle of Chancellorsville May 1-5.
Gettysburg (Pa.) Campaign June 11-July 24.
Battle of Gettysburg July 1-3.
Duty on line of the Rappahannock and Rapidan till October.
Bristoe Campaign October 9-22.
Advance to line of the Rappahannock November 7-8.
Rappahannock Station November 7.
Mine Run Campaign November 26-December 2.
Duty at Camp Barry and at Forts Sumner and Kearney, Defences of Washington, till July, 1864.
Repulse of Early's attack on Washington July 11-12.
Expedition to Snicker's Gap July 14-23.
Sheridan's Shenandoah Valley Campaign.
Berryville September 3.
Battle of Opequan, Winchester, September 19.
Fisher's Hill September 22.
Battle of Cedar Creek October 19.
Duty at Winchester till December 28, and at New Creek till June 30, 1865.
Ordered to Columbus, Ohio, June 30.
Mustered out July 4, 1865.

Battery lost during service 1 Officer and 7 Enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 1 Officer and 15 Enlisted men by disease. Total 24."

Very pleased with these guys as the uniforms came up particularly well... hell... I even managed to get the stripe on the side of the trousers!

Figures are Newline Designs, and are 20mm. For this limber I tried the alternative basing method I mentioned in my last post, and rather than have the limber as one long base I split it into three - two pairs of horses, and then the horse and limber.. I think it works well and I may still go back and re-base the Confederate limber at some time.

The artillery is based so as to be able to remove the guns from the base - it was a bit of a close fit with these guys as I also painted up some barrels and a crate to add interest!