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Re: Battle-honors for the 55th Illinois

I am glad to hear of your interest in the 55th Illinois. My great-grandmother's oldest brother, Thomas P. Latimer, was one of the First Sergeants in Company K of the 55th. I am in the process of editing 40 of his letters from the front. You might want to look up Dyer's Compendium for a brief history of the regiment. The 55th first saw`action at Shiloh. They went into the battle with 512 officers and men and sustained 250 casualties with 52 killed in action in that battle alone, which was the first of 31 engagements involving the 55th. The regiment saw 9 of its men win the Medal of Honor.

George Rand

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Re: Battle-honors for the 55th Illinois