Their New Colonel

The 5^th United States Infantry was stationed in New Mexico when on June 1^st 1863 it officially got its new Colonel; Union Major General John F Reynolds, he would not take command.

The 5^th United States Infantry traces its origins back to 1808, however technically the regiment was created March 3^rd 1815 by an Act of Congress reducing the Regular Army from 46 infantry and 4 rifle regiments with the ending of the War of 1812, to peace time numbers of 8 infantry.  Six old regiments were consolidated into the 5^th, and placed under command of Colonel James Miller.

In the spring of 1861 when the Civil War got started, the 5^th was ordered to concentrate at Albuquerque, New Mexico for a move east.  But, with some Western Departmental pressure placed on Washington, DC, the 5^th was left on the frontier.  When Confederates from Texas invaded New Mexico in early 1862, four companies of the 5^th were the rear Union guard at Valverde on February 21^st 1862, in which the Confederates were victorious.  Two other companies captured a field piece on March 28^th 1862 at the Battle of Glorieta Pass, defeating the Confederates.

On June 1^st 1863 the 5^th received a new Colonel, Union Major General John F Reynolds.  He was of course on detached service commanding volunteers with the Army of the Potomac, and was killed one month later at the Battle of Gettysburg.  After Reynolds’ death the army appointed another Army of the Potomac general, Daniel Butterfield to be the Colonel of the 5^th, but he also was wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg, and would not join the regiment while the war was going on.

The 5^th would remain throughout the Civil War on frontier duty watching for another Confederate attack. After the war ended the 5^th was transferred to the east moving to Fort Riley in Kansas.

The High Water Mark Of The West

On the Santa Fe Trail on March 28th 1862 the end of the Confederate push happened at the Glorieta Pass.

The Glorieta Pass is to the southeast of Santa Fe, New Mexico on the southern tip of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. On the morning of March 26th 1862 Union Major John M Chivington led about 400 troops to the pass. At about noon they captured some advanced Confederate soldiers. This was when they learned about the 300 Texans under Confederate Major Charles Pyron. The Union force moved on the Confederates, but were pushed back by artillery fire. Chivington than split his men in half and caught the Confederates in a crossfire. Pyron pulled his men back to a narrow part of the pass and prepared a defensive line. Again the Union caught them in a crossfire, this time forcing the Confederates into a camp at Kozlowski’s Ranch.

The next day, March 27th 1862,  there was no fighting. Lieutenant Colonel William R Scurry reinforced the confederates with about 1000 troops, while the Union line saw an increase of about 900 men arriving with Colonel John P Slough. Both sides decided to attack early on March 28th 1862, and they met in the canyon at about eleven. The Confederate held their ground through out the afternoon. When the fighting ended Slough retired to the Ranch with Scurry following him thinking he had won the battle.

Chivington’s Union soldiers however had destroyed all of Scurry’s animals and supplies. This forced the Confederates to have to retreat to Santa Fe, and on back to San Antonio Texas, making this the Confederate high water mark in the west. The Battle at Glorieta Pass became the turning point of the Civil War in the New Mexico territory.