Andersonville Prisoners from the
111th New York Volunteer Infantry

Background

Located a few miles northeast of Americus in south-central Georgia, Andersonville, the
largest of the many Confederate military prisons established during the Civil War, was
part of the cantonment at Camp Sumter, Georgia. The prison was built in early 1864
after Confederate officials decided to move the large number of Federal prisoners held
in and around Richmond to a place of greater security and more abundant food. During
the 14 months the prison existed, more than 45,000 Union soldiers were confined there.
Of these, almost 13,000 died from disease, poor sanitation, malnutrition, overcrowding,
or exposure to the elements.

The Andersonville prison pen initially covered about 16-1/2 acres of land enclosed by a
15 foot-high stockade of hewed pine logs. It was enlarged to 26-1/2 acres in June 1864.
The prison proper was in the shape of a parallelogram 1,620 feet long and 770 feet wide.
Sentry boxes, or "pigeon-roosts" as the prisoners called them, stood at 30-yard intervals
along the top of the stockade. Inside, about 19 feet from the wall, was the "deadline,"
which the prisoners were forbidden to cross upon threat of death. Two entrances, the
North Gate and the South Gate, were on the west side of the stockade. eight small earthen
forts located around the exterior of the prison were equipped with artillery to put down
disturbances within the compound and to defend against feared Union cavalry attacks.

Recent archeological excavations have discovered that the stockade poles were buried
about 5 feet into the ground. This was accomplished by digging a five foot deep trench,
setting the pole buts in the trench and then back-filling the trench around the poles.
According to some historians the placing of the stockade poles within a trench foiled
some of the excape tunnel attempts.

In late February 1864 the Confederate War Department selected Colonel Alexander W.
Persons to command Camp Sumter; Brigadier General John Winder succeeded Persons
in June 1864 and held the position during the terrible summer months. In October Colonel
George C. Gibbs replaced General Winder and remained commanding officer of Camp Sumter
until the spring of 1865. The difficult position of commandant of the prison itself, by
far the most important component of Camp Sumter, fell to Captain Henry Wirz, formerly of
the 4th Louisiana Infantry, who arrived in late March 1864. To assist Wirz in maintaining
order at the prison was a large guard made up of troops of the 55th, 56th, and 57th
Georgia Infantry; 1st - 4th Georgia Reserve Regiments; 26th Alabama Infantry; and the
Leon Florida Artillery. The size of this Confederate guard fluctuated; during August
1864 it had a mean strength of 3,755,

The first prisoners were brought to Andersonville in February 1864. During the next
few months approximately 400 more arrived each day until, by the end of June, some
26,000 men were confined in a prison area originally intended to hold 10,000. The
largest number held at any one time (in August 1864) was more than 32,000. The
confederate authorities organized the Federal prisoners into squads of 270 and divided
each squad into three messes of 90 men each for the purpose of receiving rations.
The prisoners split themselves into smaller messes of 12, 16, or 20 to achieve a better
distribution of rations. Handicapped by deteriorating economic conditions, an inadequate
transportation system, and the need to concentrate all available resources on its army,
the Confederate Government was unable to provide adequate housing, food, clothing, and
medical care to their Federal captives. These conditions, along with a breakdown of the
prisoner exchange system, created much suffering and a high mortality rate.

When Gen. William T. Sherman's Union forces occupied Atlanta of September 2, 1864,
bringing Federal cavalry columns within easy striking distance of Andersonville,
Confederate authorities moved most of the prisoners to other camps in South Carolina
and coastal Georgia. From October 1864 until April 1865, Andersonville was operated
on a smaller basis. Andersonville prison ceased to exist in April-May 1865.

When the war ended Captain Wirz was arrested and charged with conspiring with high 
Confederate officials to "impair and injure the health and destroy the lives . . . of
Federal prisoners" and "murder, in violation of the laws of war." Although it is unlikely
that such a conspiracy existed, public anger and indignation throughout the North over the
conditions at Andersonville demanded appeasement. Tried and found guilty by a military
tribunal, Wirz was hanged in Washington, DC, on November 10, 1865.
 

Go to Archaeology at Andersonville Pages - Use back to return

Go to Conditions at Andersonville - Use back to return

The following list does not include prisoners who were subsequently paroled.

FROM CODES
C   -  Captured
CIA - Captured in Action
COP - Captured on Picket
WIA - Wounded in Action
Death Codes
DIED - Died
DCD - Died of Chronic Diarrhea
DOD - Died of Disease
DOF - Died of Fever
DOS - Died of Starvation
NFR - No Further Record
Death Date
NO DATE - Date Unknown

Go to 111th NY Infantry Roster Directory

All pages © 1997 by Ken Veneron DBAs/ Ken's Organ Loft