Iron Brigade

The nickname "Iron Brigade," with its connotation of fighting men with iron dispositions, was applied formally or informally to a number of units in the Civil War and in later conflicts. The Iron Brigade of the West was the unit that received the most lasting publicity in its use of the nickname.

The Iron Brigade, also known as The Black Hats, Black Hat Brigade, Iron Brigade of the West, and originally King's Wisconsin Brigade, was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. Although it fought entirely in the Eastern Theater, it was composed of regiments from three Western states that are now within the region of the Midwest: Wisconsin, Indiana, and Michigan. Noted for its excellent discipline, ferocity in battle, and extraordinarily strong morale, the Iron Brigade suffered a higher percentage of soldiers killed in combat or from battle wounds than any other brigade in the Union army during the war.

Quick Facts

Dates

October 1861–June 1865

Country

United States of America

Allegiance

Union

Branch

Union Army

Command structure

1st Division
I Corps
Army of the Potomac

Nickname

The Black Hats
Black Hat Brigade
Iron Brigade of the West
King's Wisconsin Brigade

Lore & Background

The Iron Brigade initially consisted of the 2nd, 6th, and 7th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiments, the 19th Indiana, Battery B of the 4th U.S. Light Artillery, and was later joined by the 24th Michigan. This particular composition of men, from the three Western states, led it to be sometimes referred to as the "Iron Brigade of the West." They were known throughout the war as the "Black Hats" because they wore the black 1858 model Hardee hats issued to Army regulars, rather than the blue forage caps worn by most other Union Army volunteer units.

The all-Western brigade earned their famous nickname while under the command of Brig. Gen. John Gibbon. On August 28, 1862, during the preliminary phases of the Second Battle of Bull Run, it stood up against attacks from a superior force under Maj. Gen Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson at Brawner's Farm.

The brigade lost 800 casualties, the 2nd Wisconsin losing 276 out of 430 who went into the fight, and at least half of their wounded being shot twice. The designation "Iron Brigade" is said to have originated during the brigade's action at Turners Gap, during the Battle of South Mountain. Maj. Gen. Joseph Hooker, commanding I Corps, approached Army of the Potomac commander Maj.

Gen. George B. McClellan, seeking orders. As the Western men advanced up the National Road, forcing the Confederate line back to the gap, McClellan asked, "What troops are those fighting in the Pike?" Hooker replied, "[Brigadier] General Gibbon's brigade of Western men." Hooker then remarked, "They must be made of iron." McClellan said that the brigade consisted of the "best troops in the world."

Reader's Guide

The brigade commanders, disregarding temporary assignments, were: Brig. Gen. Rufus King: September 28, 1861 – May 7, 1862; Brig. Gen. John Gibbon: May 7, 1862 – November 4, 1862; Brig. Gen. Solomon Meredith: November 25, 1862 – July 1, 1863 (wounded at Gettysburg).