Third Infantry.--Cols., George W. Taylor, Henry W. Brown;
Lieut.-Cols., Mark W. Collett, James N. Duffy; Majs., James W.
H. Stickney, William E. Bryan. This regiment, raised under
authority of General Orders No. 15 of May 4, 1861, was fully
organized, equipped and officered by May 18, and on June 4 was
duly mustered into the U. S. service for three years, at Camp
Olden, Trenton. It left the state on June 28, with a full
complement of men--38 officers, 1,013 non-commissioned officers
and privates, total, 1,051. It was assigned to Gen. Kearny's
brigade, with the 1st, 2nd and 4th N. J., composing the 1st New
Jersey brigade. Immediately after the first battle of Bull Run
it joined the 1st and 2nd regiments near Alexandria, having
been stationed at Fairfax during the engagement. It was among
the first to come into direct collision with the pickets of the
enemy and to suffer loss in its ranks from Confederate bullets
at Munson's hill. On March 9, 1862, the 2nd and 3d, with a
squadron of the Lincoln cavalry, occupied Sangster's station,
on the Orange & Alexandria railroad, the 4th acting as a
support to the advance. On the following day the brigade moved
cautiously forward and at 10 o'clock in the morning entered the
abandoned works at Manassas Junction--eight companies of the 3d
being the first to take possession and hoist the regimental
flag. At West Point, Va., the brigade relieved the troops in
advance on the evening of May 6, 1862, and the men lay on their
arms in line of battle until daylight, when they were ordered
forward, the 3d regiment being on the skirmish line. At
Gaines' mill the brigade was formed in two lines, the 3d and
4th in front, and in that order advanced to the brow of a hill,
where the 3d, under Lieut.-Col. Brown, was ordered into the
woods to relieve Newton's brigade, which was sorely pressed by
the enemy. The gallant regiment stood its ground, opening a
galling fire on the enemy and remaining in the woods until the
close of the action, with a loss of 34 killed, 136 wounded and
45 missing. The regiment participated in the battles of
Charles City cross-roads, Malvern hill, Manassas, Chantilly,
Crampton's gap and Antietam, and also in the movement against
Fredericksburg in December. In the spring of 1863 the regiment
took part in the movements of Hooker in the vicinity of
Fredericksburg and fought at Salem church. In the Gettysburg
campaign the brigade, which prior to that movement had been in
various apparently aimless marches in Virginia, was attached to
Wright's division of the 6th corps. Following the Gettysburg
fight the regiment was engaged at Fairfield, Pa., Williamsport
and Funkstown, Md., Rappahannock Station and Mine Run, Va.
Col. Torbert being assigned to the command of a cavalry
division, Col. Brown, of the 3d, temporarily took charge of the
brigade, to which the 10th regiment was added before the grand
advance under Grant. In all the operations in the Wilderness
the Jerseymen behaved with the greatest steadiness. At the
opening of the fight at Spottsylvania, after some playing at
cross-purposes, the 3d and 15th regiments were advanced, the
former under Capt. Dubois deployed as skirmishers, and the
latter under Col. Campbell acting as a support. On May 12, the
brigade was massed for a charge--the 3d being in the second
line-and pushed forward through the woods until within 100
yards of the Confederate works. In the first eleven days of
Grant's campaign against Richmond the 3d regiment sustained the
following losses: Killed 21, wounded 102, missing 33. After
fighting at the North Anna river, Hanover Court House,
Totopotomoy creek and Cold Harbor, the 3d left the front on
June 3 and reached the New Jersey state capital on the night of
the 7th. The men of the regiment who had reenlisted and those
whose terms had not expired were at first transferred to the
4th and 15th, but were subsequently consolidated into the 1st,
2nd and 3d battalions, and with the 4th, 10th and 15th
regiments, from that time forward until Feb., 1865, constituted
the 1st brigade--the 40th regiment being added at the latter
date. The regiment then participated in the final operations
of the war until the surrender of Lee, when it was assigned to
what was known as the provisional corps, Army of the Potomac,
and was mustered out at Hall's hill, Va., June 29, 1865. The
total strength of the regiment was 1,275 and it lost, by
resignation 23, by discharge 383, by promotion 84, by transfer
95, by death 213, by desertion 111, by dismissal 4, not
accounted for 3, leaving 359 that were mustered out.
Source: The Union Army, vol. 3
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