[View Thread] [Reply] [Return to Index] [Previous] [Next] Re: Fifty Division Mississsippi MilitiaBy:David Upton
Date: Friday, 27 August 2010, 2:08 pm In Response To: Fifty Division Mississsippi Militia (Robert W. Turner)
You've found a reference to the Military Division of the State of Mississippi, a law enacted in 1838, and was to satisfy a federal law to organize militias in each state. According to the 1860 returns to Congress, Mississippi had not given its returns to the United States Adjutant General of Militia since 1838 and so it still had on its books the total number of militia at around 45,000 men.
There was a Fifth Division and a Fiftieth Regiment from the revised miliitia law of 1857. As far as I know, it was mostly paper army, and was reorganized again after secession.
The 1838 Mississippi Law stated the militia of this state shall be arranged into divisions, brigades, regiments, battalions and companies. The counties Hinds, Warren, Claiborne, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Lawrence, Copiah, Washington, Vazoo, Madison, Rankin, Covington, Simpson, Lowndes, and Monroe shall compose the first division ; and the counties of Wilkinson, Amite, Pike, Marion, Hancock, Jackson, Green, Perry, Wayne and Jones shall constitute the second division.
Sec. 3. Each division shall consist of two or more brigades, as follows, (to wit,) Jefferson, Claiborne, Warren, and Washington, shall compose the first brigade of the first division; — that the counties of Adams, Franklin, Lawrence, Covington and Simpson shall compose the second brigade of the first division ; — that the counties of Copiah, Rankin, Hinds, Madison and Yazoo, shall compose the third brigade of the first division ; — that the counties of Lowndes and Monroe shall compose the fourth brigade of the first division. In like manner, the militia of the counties of Wilkinson, Amite, Pike and Marion shall compose the first brigade of the second division ; and the militia of the counties of Hancock, Jackson, Green, Wayne, Perry and Jones shall compose the second brigade of the second division.
Sec. 4. Brigades shall be subdivided into regiments, and numbered as follows: The militia of the county of Warren Regiments shall be the first regiment; of the county of Claiborne, the second ; of the county of Jefferson, the third ; of the county of Adams, the fourth ; of Wilkinson, the fifth ; of Amite, the sixth ; of Franklin, the seventh ; of Lawrence, the eighth ; of Pike, the ninth ; of Marion, the tenth; of Wayne, the eleventh; of Greene, the twelfth; of Jackson, the thirteenth; of Hancock the fourteenth; of Covington, the fifteenth ; of Perry, the sixteenth ; of Monroe the seventeenth ; of Hinds, the eighteenth ; of Lowndes, the nineteenth ; of Yazoo, the twentieth ; of Copiah, the twentyfirst ; of Simpson, the twenty-second ; of Jones, the twentythird ; of Madison, the twenty-fourth; of Washington, the twenty-fifth ; of Rankin, the twenty-sixth regiment.
Sec. 5. Each regiment shall consist of two battalions, to be termed the first and second battalions, which shall severally include all the companies within their respective limits ; the companies of the respective regiments, (except in uniform companies,) shall be designated by the letters of the alphabet, commencing with the oldest and ending with the last organized.
This law was revised in 1857...
Art. 1. The militia of the State shall be arranged into divisions, brigades, regiments, battalions and companies.
Art. 2. The regiments shall be arranged into divisions as follows: the first division shall consist of the regiments of the counties of Simpson, Copiah, Claiborne, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Lawrence, Covington, Jones, Wayne, Green, Perry, Marion, Pike, Amite, Wilkinson, Hancock, Harrison, and Jackson.
The second division shall consist of the regiments of the counties of Washington, Holmes, Madison, Yazoo, Issaquena, Warren, Hinds, Rankin, Scott, Newton, Clarke, Jasper, Smith, and Lauderdale.
The third division shall consist of the regiments of the counties of Carroll, Choctaw, Octibbeha, Lowndes, Noxubee, Winston, Attala, Leake, Neshoba, and Kemper.
The fourth division shall consist of the regiments of the counties of Pontotoc, Itawamba, Monroe, Chickasaw, Calhoun, Yalobusha, Tallahatchie, Sunflower, and Bolivar.
The fifth division shall consist of the regiments of the counties of Tishomingo, Tippah, Marshall, De Soto, Tunica, Coahoma, Panola, and Lafayette.
Art. 3. The regiments shall be arranged into brigades as follows: the regiments of the counties of Claiborne, Jefferson, Adams, Franklin, Copiah, Amite, Wilkinson, and Pike, shall compose the first brigade; and those of the counties of Covington, Jones, Wayne, Green, Perry, Marion, Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, Lawrence, and Simpson, the second brigade of the first division.
The regiments of the counties of Washington, Warren, Holmes, Madison, Yazoo, and Issaquena, shall compose the first brigade, and those of the counties of Hinds, Rankin, Scott, Newton, Clarke, Jasper, Smith, and Lauderdale, the second brigade of the second division.
The regiments of the counties of Carroll, Choctaw, Attala, Winston, and Leake, shall compose the first brigade, and those of the counties of Neshoba, Kemper, Noxubee, Lowndes, and Octibbeha, the second brigade of the third division.
The regiments of the counties of Pontotoc, Itawamba, Monroe, and Chickasaw, shall compose the first brigade, and those of the counties of Calhoun, Yalobusha, Tallahatchie, Sunflower, and Bolivar, the second brigade of the fourth division.
The regiments of the counties of Tishomingo, Tippah, and Marshall, shall compose the first brigade, and those of the counties of De Soto, Tunica, Coahoma, Panola, and Lafayette, the second brigade of the fifth division.
Art. 4. The regiments shall be constituted and numbered as follows:
The militia of the county of Warren shall compose the first regiment.
Of the county of Claiborne, the second.
Of the county of Jefferson, the third.
Of the county of Adams, the fourth.
Of the county of Wilkinson, the fifth.
Of the county of Amite, the sixth.
Of the county of Franklin, the seventh.
Of the county of Lawrence, the eighth.
Of the county of Pike, the ninth.
Of the county of Marion, the tenth.
Of the county of Wayne, the eleventh.
Of the county of Green, the twelfth.
Of the county of Jackson, the thirteenth.
Of the county of Hancock, the fourteenth.
Of the county of Covington, the fifteenth.
Of the county of Perry, the sixteenth.
Of the county of Monroe, the seventeenth.
Of the county of Hinds, the eighteenth.
Of the county of Lowndes, the nineteenth.
Of the county of Yazoo, the twentieth.
Of the county of Copiah, the twenty-first.
Of the county of Rankin, the twenty-second.
Of the county of Jones, the twenty-third.
Of the county of Washington, the twenty-fourth.
Of the county of Madison, the twenty-fifth.
Of the county of Simpson, the twenty-sixth.
Of the county of Holmes, the twenty-seventh.
Of the county of Noxubee, the twenty-eighth.
Of the county of Kemper, the twenty-ninth.
Of the county of Lauderdale, the thirtieth.
Of the county of Clarke, the thirty-first.
Of the county of Octibbeha, the thirty-second.
Of the county of Winston, the thirty-third.
Of the county of Choctaw, the thirty-fourth.
Of the county of Tallahatchie, the thirty-fifth.
Of the county of Yalobusha, the thirty-sixth.
Of the county of Carroll, the thirty-seventh.
Of the county of Jasper, the thirty-eighth.
Of the county of Neshoba, the thirty-ninth.
Of the county of Smith, the fortieth.
Of the county of Scott, the forty-first.
Of the county of Leake, the forty-second.
Of the county of Attala, the forty-third.
Of the county of Newton, the forty-fourth.
Of the county of Chickasaw, the forty-fifth.
Of the county of Itawamba, the forty-sixth.
Of the county of Tishomingo, the forty-seventh.
Of the county of Pontotoc, the forty-eighth.
Of the county of Tippah, the forty-ninth.
Of the county of Marshall, the fiftieth.
Of the county of De Soto, the fifty-first.
Of the county of Tunica, fifty-second.
Of the county of Bolivar, the fifty-third.
Of the county of Panola, the fifty-fourth. Of the county of Lafayette, the fifty-fifth. Of the county of Coahoma, the fifty-sixth. Of the county of Harrison, the fifty-seventh. Of the county of Sunflower, the fifty-eighth. Of the county of Issaquena, the fifty-ninth. Of the county of Calhoun, the sixtieth. Art. 5. Each regiment shall consist of two battalions, one of which shall be termed the first, and the other the second battalion, and shall include all companies within their respective limits.
Art. 6. Each battalion shall consist of so many companies as shall be prescribed by the colonel of the regiment, with the approbation of the lieutenant-colonel and major thereof, which shall be designated by the letters of the alphabet, commencing with the oldest and ending with the last organized.
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David Upton