Guide: Civil War in Indiana

Primary Documents | Secondary Documents | Internet Resources | Images and Maps

This resource aims to collect in one place the various digital government documents pertaining to Indiana's involvement in the War of the Rebellion. Much of what Indiana created during the years from 1861 until 1865 is digitized, though no single resource has collected them together. This site attempts to pull Indiana primary documents from many of the largest online archives, like HathiTrust and Archive.org as well as important secondary documents, internet resources, and maps from throughout the digital world.

Primary Documents

Indiana in the War of the Rebellion: Volumes 1-8.

Terrell, William H.H. Indiana in the War of the Rebellion; Report of the Adjunct General. Vol.1. Indianapolis, Douglass and Connor Printers. 1869.: E 506.2 .I6; Archive.org
Report showing what was done by the State in carrying on the War, with an appendix of statistics and documents.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.2. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1865.: E 506.2 .I6 v.2
Archive.org
Roster of officers from the Governors staff, list of Indiana officers commissioned by the President in volunteer and reserve service and Veteran Reserve Corps, and rosters of Indiana volunteer officers in regiments from the 6th to the 74th. Also historical sketches of the service, campaigns, and battles of each regiment.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.3. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1866.: E 506.2 .I6 v.3
Archive.org
More officers not mentioned in Vol. II commencing with the 75th and ending with the 156th. Also includes rosters of the 28th regiment black troops, Indiana batteries of light infantry from the 1st to the 26th, officers in the US Navy, and officers of the Indiana Legion. Historical sketches are continued, and an index to Vol. II and III is included, containing over 18,000 officer names.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.4. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1866.: E 506.2 .I6 v.4
Archive.org
Rosters of enlisted men, with ranks, residencies, dates of muster, and remarks on date of discharge, deaths, etc from the 6th regiment to the 29th.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.5. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1866.: E 506.2 .I6 v.5
Archive.org
Rosters of enlisted men, with ranks, residencies, dates of muster and remarks on date of discharge, deaths, etc. Begins with the 30th Regiment and ends with the 59th Regiment.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.6. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1866.: E 506.2 .I6 v.6
Archive.org
Rosters of enlisted men on the same order as Vol. IV and V. Covers Regiments 60th to 110th.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.7. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1867.: E 506.2 .I6 v.7
Archive.org
Rosters of enlisted men on the same order as Vol. IV through VI. Commences with the 111th Regiment to the 156th. Also includes all African-American troops and the twenty-six batteries of light artillery.
Indiana Adjunct General’s office and William H.H. Terrell. Report of the Adjunct General of the State of Indiana Vol.8. Indianapolis, A.H. Connor state printer. 1868.: E 506.2 .I6 v.8
Archive.org
Additional rosters of officers and men not previously reported. Also contains corrections from previous volumes, a list of officers and enlisted men who lost their lives in the service, and a list of deserters.

Journal of the Indiana State Senate

The Journal of the Indiana State Senate contains the written report of the proceedings held on the Senate floor during the years 1861-1865. It is not a verbatim report of the dealings on the Senate floor; rather, it contains procedural documentation of legislation which may contain some debates. The Senate convened only every other year, leaving gaps for 1862 and 1864. The special and called sessions are in response to the outbreak and conclusion of the War of the Rebellion.
Citation:: Indiana General Assembly, Senate. Journal of the Indiana State Senate during the 41st session of the General assembly, commencing Thursday, January tenth, 1861. Indianapolis: Berry R. Sulgrove, State Printer. 1861
Call Number J87 .I6B
1861: Regular Session from Archive.org or HathiTrust 10 January, 1861; Special Session from HathiTrust 24 April, 1861
1863: Regular Session from Archive.org here or here, and HathiTrust 8 January, 1863
1865: Regular Session from Archive.org 5 January, 1865; Special Session from Archive.org or HathiTrust 13 November, 1865

Journal of the House of Representatives

The Journal of the House of Representatives of the State of Indiana contains the written report of the proceedings held on the Senate floor during the years 1861-1865. Like the Journal of the Indiana Senate it is not a verbatim report of the dealings on the floor; rather, it contains procedural documentation of legislation which may contain some debates. The Senate convened only every other year, leaving gaps for 1862 and 1864. The special and called sessions are in response to the outbreak and conclusion of the War of the Rebellion.

Citation:: Indiana General Assembly, House. Journal of the House of Representatives of the State of Indiana during the Forty-First Regular Session of the General Assembly, commencing Thursday, January 10, 1861. Indianapolis: Berry R. Sulgrove, State Printer. 1861.
Call number: J87 I6C
1861: Regular Session from Archive.org 10 January, 1861; Special Session from Archive.org or HathiTrust 24 April, 1861
1863: Regular Session from Archive.org or HathiTrust 8 January, 1863
1865: Regular Session from Archive.org 5 January, 1865; Called Session from Archive.org 13 November, 1865

Documentary Journal of Indiana
(AKA Indiana Documentary Journal)

The Documentary Journal of Indiana contains reports delivered to the Governor and the Legislature from the various state agencies. Many of these reports are financial in nature and detail the allotment of moneys given to various agencies by the Legislature.

Citation:: Indiana. General Assembly. Reports of the Officers of State of the State of Indiana, to the Governor. For the Years 1860 and 1861. Indianapolis: Berry R. Sulgrove, State Printer. 1862.
Call Number: J87 .I6Q
1860, 1861 Part II From Archive.org or HathiTrust
1861 Part I
1862 From Archive.org or HathiTrust
1863
1863 Part 2-Vol.I
1863 Part 2-Vol.II
1863 Part 2-Vol. III
1864 Part I
1864 Part II

Brevier Legislative Reports

From the IU Maurer School of Law: “The Brevier Legislative Reports were published biennially from 1858 to 1887 and are a verbatim report of the legislative history of the Indiana General Assembly during those years. The volumes also include veto statements and other messages from the Governor. These are a unique set of documents because there is no other detailed and comprehensive record of the debates and speeches from the floor of the Indiana Senate chamber and the Hall of the House of Representatives for this time period. The volumes also contain a record of each bill introduced in the House and Senate, and on a broader scale they are rich with detailed firsthand accounts that reflect the conditions of the times and aid in the understanding of the issues present in Indiana in the mid to late nineteenth century.” The Civil War years can also be found on IU's Digital Library Program.

Citation:: Drapier, Ariel and W.H. Brevier Legislative Reports: Embracing short-hand sketches of the journals and debates of the General Assembly of the state of Indiana, convened in regular session on the tenth day of January, 1861, Vol. IV. Indianapolis: Daily Indiana State Sentinel, Print. 1861.
Call number: J87 .I6a

All links are to the Indiana Memory Collection

Miscellaneous Government Publications- Indiana

The miscellaneous state publications cover interesting topics from the time, such as the debate over what to do with free African-American residents of the state, treasonable arrests, and the relationship between Indiana and the federal government.

Indiana State Board of Colonization. Report on Colonization for 1860 to the Legislature. Indianapolis: J.C. Walker, 1861.: E448 .I6 1860.
HathiTrust
Interesting look at the attitudes surrounding the colonization of African-Americans in Indiana at the time of the Civil war, and what the state should do about removing them back to Africa. Volumes exist for other years as well in the IU Catalog.
Indiana. General Assembly. House. Report and Evidence of the Committee on Arbitrary Arrests, in the State of Indiana, authorized by resolution of the house of representatives, January 9, 1863. Indianapolis: Joseph J. Bingham, State Printer. 1863.: HathiTrust
Interesting look at arrests made during the Civil War for offenses such as: Treasonable practices, obstructing the draft, disloyal practices, and “no cause at all.”
Indiana. General Assembly. Senate. Report of the Committee on Federal Relations. Indianapolis: Joseph J. Bingham, State Printer. 1863.: From Archive.org here or here

Miscellaneous Government Publications- Federal

These are good sources for locating federal primary documents for the War of the Rebellion.

ProQuest Congressional

ProQuest Statistical Insight

Nineteenth Century Masterfile

Personal Letters and Accounts

Civil War Letter of the J.W. Smith Family- Indiana State University Archives

Civil War Letters of Benjamin Boring- Indiana State University Archives

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Secondary Documents

The Secondary Documents cover much of the early literature regarding Indiana and the War of the Rebellion. Many documents cover the various regiments involved and to what extent they participated in the fighting. Most of the items covered here represent a pre-20th century take on Indiana's Civil War soliders.

Thornbrough, Emma Lou. Indiana in the Civil War Era, 1850-1880. Indianapolis: Indiana Historical Bureau, 1965.: F526 .I68 v.3
One of the classic works on Indiana during the Civil War. Thornbrough’s work is a must for any researcher of Indiana during the War of the Rebellion.
Brown, Edmund R. The Twenty-Seventh Indiana Volunteer Infantry in the War of the Rebellion, 1861 to 1865. First Division, 12th and 20th Corps. Monticello, Ind. 1899.: E 506.5 27th
HathiTrust
Bryant, C.C. History of the Sixth Regiment Indiana Volunteer Infantry: of both the Three Months and three years services. Indianapolis: W.B. Burford, Printer and Binder. 1891.: E 506.5 6th
Archive.org
French, William M. ed. Life, speeches, State Papers and Public Services of Governor Oliver P. Morton. Cincinnati: Moore, Wilstach and Baldwin, Printers. 1864.: E 506.M8 F9 1866
Archive.org
Grose, William. The Story of the marches, battles and incidents of the 36th regiment Indiana volunteer Infantry. New Castle, Indiana: The Courier Company Press. 1891: E 506.5 36th
Archive.org
Harper, Francis P. Catalogue of an Unusual Collection of Books and Pamphlets relating to the Rebellion and Slavery. New York. [1894].: Z 1242.Z9 H29 1894
HathiTrust
Hartpence, William R. History of the 51st Indiana Veteran Volunteer Infantry: A narrative of its organization, marches, battles and other experiences in camp and in prison, from 1861 to 1866. Harrison, OH: Published by the Author, Cincinnati, OH.: The Robert Clarke Company, Printers and Binders. 1894: E 506.5 51st
Archive.org
Hunter, Alfred G. History of the Eighty-Second Indiana Volunteer Infantry , its organizations campaigns and battles. Indianapolis: W.B. Burford, Printer and Binder. 1893.: E 506.5 82nd
Archive.org
Indiana -Vicksburg National Military Park Commission and Henry C. Adams. Indiana at Vicksburg. Indianapolis: W.B. Burford, Contractor for State Printing and Binding, 1910: E 475.27 .I6
Archive.org
Lewis, Daniel R. New history of the 99th Indiana Infantry: Containing Official Reports, anecdotes, incidents, biographies and complete rolls. Rockford, Ill: Horner Printing Co. 1900.: E 506.5 99th .L8 1900. Not available at IU Bloomington
Archive.org
[Merrill, Catharine]. The Solider of Indiana in the War for the Union Vol. 1. Indianapolis: Merrill and Co. 1866.: E 506.M5 v.1
Archive.org
Merrill, Catharine. The Solider of Indiana in the War for the Union Vol. 2. Indianapolis: Merrill and Co. 1869.: E 506.M5 v.2
Archive.org
Merrill, Samuel. The Seventieth Indiana Volunteer Infantry in the War of the Rebellion. Indianapolis: The Bowen-Merrill Company Publishers. 1900.: E 506.5 70th
Archive.org
Pickerill, William N. History of the Third Indiana Calvary. Indianapolis: Aetna Printing Co.1906: E 506.6 3d
Archive.org
Schribner, Theodore T. and David Stevenson. Indiana’s Roll of Honor Vol. 2. Indianapolis: A.D. Streight. 1866: E 506.S8 v.2.
Archive.org
Scott, Reuben B. The history of the 67th Regiment Indiana Infantry Volunteers, War of the Rebellion (1892). Bedford, In.: Herald Book and Job Print. 1892.: E506.5 67th
Archive.org
Sherlock, E.J. Memorabilia of the marches and battles in which the One Hundredth Regiment of Indiana Infantry Volunteers took an active part. War of Rebellion, 1861-5. Kansas City, Mo: Press of Gerard-Woody Printing Co. 1896.: HathiTrust
Smith, John T. A History of the Thirty-First Regiment of Indiana Volunteer Infantry in the War of the Rebellion. Cincinnati: Western Methodist Book Concern. 1900.: E 506.5 31st
HathiTrust
Stevenson, David A.M. Indiana’s Roll of Honor Vol. 1. Indianapolis: A.D. Streight. 1864.: E 506.S8 v.1
Archive.org
Stormont, Col. Gil R. Gibson County in the Civil War: An address by Col. Gil R. Stormont at the Dedication of the Gibson County Soldiers Monument at Princeton, Indiana on Nov. 12. 1913. Princeton, In.: William Mowry Printing Company. [1913]: F532 .G4 S78
HathiTrust

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Internet Resources

Primary Document Resources:

Abraham Lincoln Papers at the Library of Congress

Civil War Records in the Indiana State Archives

Indiana Historical Society Civil War materials collection

Indiana State Digital Archive: Civil War Individual Search

IUPUI Civil War- Governor Morton Telegraph Books

Nineteenth Century Masterfile

Secondary Document Resources:

Indiana Magazine of History

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Images and Maps

The Civil War is often heralded as the first conflict where citizens were exposed to the horros of war through new photographic technology. As a result, there are many images available online which aim to document the War. Maps also played a key role in the fighting, and digital map collections for this period are becoming increasingly available, largely through governmental sources.

Allen County Public Library Abraham Lincoln Photographs

Civil War Images from Ball State University
Search specific collection- BSU: Civil War Collection

Civil War Maritime Map Collection

Civil War Photographs from the Indiana Historical Society

Library of Congress, American Memory. Civil War Maps

Return to Government Information, Maps, and Microform Services.

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