88TH BRIGADE HISTORY
The
present 88th Brigade, New York Guard has its origins in the New York State
Militia Law of 1847. This act
completely reorganized the deeply resented and widely evaded enrolled
militia which had existed since Dutch times.
While a universal obligation to serve was maintained, mandatory
service was abolished and a voluntary militia system was created.
The New York State Militia Law of 1847 reduced the number of regiments from about 300 to 71, mostly through mergers or redesignation of the largest, most effective, and most enthusiastic of the existing units. Regiments were given territorial bases, with those in New York and other large cities assigned specific wards as their recruiting districts. Eight divisions were formed, each comprising four brigades of two to six regiments. The numbering of regiments, brigades, and divisions began with those in New York City: thus the 1st Division's 1st Brigade --the present 88th Brigade-- comprised the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Regiments.<1> On mobilization the militia was supposed to provide about 50,000 men, but in peace numbers hovered around 20,000. It was this act that gave most of the famous old New York militia regiments the designations which have the most historic associations, such as the 7th, 8th, 9th, 69th, and 71st, the latter two having been raised after the new militia system was in place.
This
reorganization led to much higher professional standard in the state's
militia.<2> As a
result, by 1855 the 5,500 strong 1st Division was officially declared
"the most perfect and complete division in the Union."
During the Civil War the 1st Brigade was called to Federal service
on three occasions.
PERIOD,
AREA and CIRCUMSTANCES
August-Sep
1862 – Baltimore – Lee’s invasion of Maryland (Antietam)
Jun-Aug
1863 – Pennsylvania – Lee’s invasion of Pennsylvania (Gettysburg)
Jun – Nov 1864 – Washington – Grant’s Overland Campaign (Wilderness)
***
The
end of the Civil War brought a considerable reduction in the size of the
state's militia, which had been officially designated the National Guard
in 1862. During the war the
militia had risen to over 32,500 men, exclusive of those in Federal
service. Many of those men
wished to resume their service with the state.
This was obviously too many troops for the state to support. The Militia Law of 1867 revised that of 1847.
There was a great deal of consolidation of units, and many older
regiments disappeared. As a
result, the active strength of the militia dropped to about 27,500 men.
New York City's contingent remained the 1st Division, of four
brigades, with about 11,500 men, slightly more than half of the state's
strength.<3> Over the next thirty years strength declined to about 19,000
men, but the basic organization remained substantially the same.
Under
the terms of the Federal Militia Act of 1903, better known as the Dick
Act, the New York National Guard received Federal recognition and
increased funding. By 1912
the state possessed a single division, of three infantry brigades complete
with artillery, engineers, cavalry, and ancillary contingents, plus
several coast artillery units. As
had been the case since 1847, the 1st Brigade continued to he
headquartered in New York City.
On
18 June 1916 President Wilson called the National Guard into Federal
service for the first time. About
15,300 officers and men of the New York National Guard's approximately
18,000 troops were federalized, designated the 6th Division, and sent to
the Mexican Border. The
results were surprisingly satisfactory, as the National Guardsmen proved
themselves pretty good soldiers.<4>
Of course, since virtually the entire New York National Guard was
on active service the state was left with very slender military resource
in the event of an emergency. It
was this development which led to the creation of what became the New York
Guard.
On
22 June 1916 the "Second Division" of the New York militia was
created. This was a wholly
state-controlled organization, not liable to federalization.
In it were incorporated the depots of the federalized organizations
and those units not called-up,<5> plus men on the waiting list for
enlistment in the National Guard, those on the National Guard reserve
list, and men enlisted especially for limited state service.
Within a short time the Second Division attained an active strength
of about 6,200 men. The return of the troops from the Mexican Border led to the
dissolution of the new division on 6 October 1916.<6>
Although short, the period of Federal service by the National Guard
was important in demonstrating both the strengths and weaknesses in the
nation's new military system, an experience which proved a useful
preparation for World War I. Not
least of the lessons learned was the need of the states for a force to
replace the National Guard in the event of its activation.
When
the United States declared war on Germany on 6 April 1917, 62,000 National
Guardsmen were still serving on the Mexican Border, albeit none from New
York. Mobilization quickly
brought the New York National Guard back into Federal service. It was at this time that National Guard formations were given
Federal designations, so that the New York Division became the 27th.
Within the division, the 1st Brigade became the 53rd Brigade.
Of course, once again the state was left without a military force
for emergencies. With the
experience of 1916 in mind, on 3 August 1917 the state created the New
York Guard.
For
each regiment taken into Federal service, a new one was created out of its
depot unit, retirees, and volunteers otherwise exempt or disqualified from
active service. Intended to
completely substitute for the absent National Guard, the New York Guard
comprised a very under strength division of four infantry brigades, an
artillery brigade, a cavalry regiment, and supporting services,
supplemented by three regiments of coast artillerymen serving as infantry
as needed. The new organization's 1st Brigade comprised the six infantry
regiments in Manhattan and the Bronx.<7>
Elements of the 1st Brigade performed internal security duties and
emergency service throughout the war.
With
the return of the National Guard to state control in 1919, the New York
Guard was disbanded, its units and personnel being reincorporated into
their parent outfits on 29 December 1919, with HQ, 1st Brigade, becoming
part of the HQ, 53rd Brigade. The
53rd Brigade remained active in the New York National Guard throughout the
interwar period, and was called to Federal service once again in late
1940.
On
15 October 1940 the Adjutant General issued a table of organization for
the revived State Guard, which was to consist of twenty regiments, for a
total of nearly 14,000 men, a figure that gradually rose to over 27,000.
As with the State Guard in World War I, the new units were mated to
the activated units of the National Guard.
The first men were enrolled on 9 December 1940.
The new New York Guard constituted a division, initially of five,
but later of four brigades. Most
of the State Guard's strength was in the 1st Brigade, in New York
City.<8> The 1st
Brigade performed internal security and emergency service throughout the
war, most notably during the blizzard of January 1945.
At the end of World War II the State Guard was not disbanded.
With the threat of a third world war hanging over the nation for
more than forty years, the 1st Brigade continued to serve as the
headquarters for the state militia in New York City, a duty that it has
performed since 1847.<9>
In
1994 the 1st Brigade, New York Guard, was redesignated the 88th Brigade,
New York Guard, to commemorate the 88th New York Volunteer Infantry
Regiment. The 88th N.Y.V.I.
was raised by Col. Thomas Francis Meagher<10> for his "Irish
Brigade" in late 1861.
Although
the 88th never constituted an element of the New York State militia, its
brigade-mate, the 69th N.Y.V.I. was a clone of the famous Irish 69th
Militia, and many of the 88th's officers and men had seen service in the
old 69th Militia. When raised
the regiment was nicknamed "Mrs. Meagher's Own," and was
sometimes known as the "2nd or 4th Regiment, Irish
Brigade."
(Photo Above, Right: Commanding officers of the Irish Brigade in 1865. From left to right: MAJ Seward F. Gould, 4th NY Heavy Artillery; LTC James J. Smith, 69th NY; MAJ W. H. Terwilliger, 63rd NY. Seated in front from left to right, COL Denis F. Burke, 88th NY; Brevet BG Robert Nugent, Irish Brigade and LTC James Flemming, 28th Massachusetts.
The
regiment was accepted for Federal service at Fort Schuyler on 11 December
1861. Although largely raised
in New York City, there were some Brooklyn men in Companies D and I, and
some Jersey City men in Company G. The
regiment's service reads like the roll of the campaigns of the Army of the
Potomac: The Peninsula, Antietam (27 KIA, 75 WIA), Fredericksburg (17 KIA,
97 WIA, 13 MIA), Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, the Wilderness,
Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, and Saylor's Creek, to name but the
most notable. In the process
the 88th lost 150 men killed in action or mortally wounded and 71 others
dead of disease or of privation in Confederate prisoner of war camps, plus
395 men less seriously wounded, and 145 missing in action, most of whom
latter turned up as deserters. Along
with the other hard-hit regiments of the Irish Brigade, in June of 1863
the 88th was reorganized as a battalion of two companies, and had only 90
men at Gettysburg. The regiment was mustered out of Federal service near
Alexandria, Virginia, 30 June 1865. The
88th New York is listed in William Fox's "300 fightingest"
regiments in the Union Army.<11>
Addendum: In recent years, members of the 88th Brigade have: (1) Participated in providing support during Desert Shield and Desert Storm (2) been activated during natural disasters and (3) successfully participated in efforts to eliminate any Y2K problems within New York State. Several have received decorations for bravery in saving lives of civilians.
LTC Michael G. Leventhal
Notes
<1>
The division included fourteen regiments.
The 1st through the 12th comprised the four regular brigades, with
the 69th Infantry and the 71st, a rifle regiment, as well as an
independent battalion from Staten Island, attached.
<2>
One result of the increased professionalism was the creation of the
"Military Association of the State of New York," among the first
professional organizations for militiamen in the country.
<3>
As reorganized the division comprised the 1st-9th, 11th, 12th, 22nd, 37th,
55th, 69th (formed through the merger of the 69th Militia and the 69th
Volunteers), 71st, 79th, and 84th Infantry; the 1st Artillery; the 1st and
3rd Cavalry; and 1st Battalion, Washington Grays.
<4>
In fact New York's National Guardsmen proved themselves more or less
technically equal to the Regulars: the New York Division even had an
"aero squadron," paid for by patriotic millionaires, which
equaled the available air strength of the Signal Corps Air Service.
With last minute enlistments, the New York National Guard sent
about 18,500 men into Federal service.
<5>
The 8th, 9th, and 13th Coast Defense Commands plus the 1st, 10th, and 15th
Infantry Regiments were not called up.
The 15th, the state's "Colored" regiment, was still in
the process of formation, with only about 750 officers and men, and had
not yet received Federal recognition.
<6>
For the "Second Division" see the Adjutant General, >Annual
Report, 1916<, pp. 27-33.
<7>
The 7th, 12th, 15th, 23rd, 69th, and 71st Infantry.
<8>
The 5th (activated in the armory of the 105th Field Artillery), 7th (107th
Infantry), 8th (258th Field Artillery), 9th (244th Coast Artillery), 12th
(212th Coast Artillery), 15th (369th Infantry), 17th (71st Infantry), 22nd
(102nd Engineers), 51st (Sqn A, 101st Cavalry), and 69th (165th Infantry)
<9>
The 53rd Brigade, the National Guard equivalent of the 1st Brigade, formed
part of the 27th Division on 1 September 1942, when the division was
"triangularized." The
brigade headquarters company was then reorganized and redesignated as the
27th Reconnaissance Company, in which guise it continued to serve with the
27th Division.
<10>
Meagher (pronounced "Marr") was a famous Irish patriot of the
day. His activities in
Ireland led exile in Tasmania in 1849.
He escaped to the United States in 1852, and immediately plunged
into Irish nationalist politics. At
the start of the Civil War he raised a company for the 69th New York
Militia (A development which greatly discomfited some Irishmen in
Charleston, South Carolina, who had raised a company of their countrymen
for Confederate service and named it "The Meagher Guards"; it
was shortly renamed "The Emerald Light Infantry.").
Meagher served in the 69th during its tour of militia duty in the
Spring of 1861, being present as a major at Bull Run.
When the regiment was mustered out, he raised the "Irish
Brigade" (63th, 69th, and 88th New York Volunteers, plus sundry units
from Massachusetts and Pennsylvania) in the summer and autumn of that
year, and commanded it almost continuously (except when he was wounded or
injured) until May 8, 1863, serving during the Peninsula Campaign, at
Antietam, at Fredericksburg, and Chancellorsville, before becoming so
embroiled in army politics that he was sent to a minor command in the
west. For a biography see
Michael Cavanagh, >Memoirs of General Thomas Francis Meagher<.
<11> See William Fox, >Regimental Losses in the Civil War< (New York: 1889). For the regiment's Civil War service see Frederick Phisterer, >New York in the War of the Rebellion< (Albany: 1905), pp. 2977-2992.
