Adventures, Struggles, Trials and Services of the 5th Regiment, Virginia Vol. Infantry

Between December 22, 1864 and May 4, 1865, the Ironton Register in Lawrence County, Ohio, published a service history in fourteen installments of the Fifth West Virginia Infantry. The writer, who appears to have been a member of the regiment, chose to remain anonymous. Each chapter is enhanced by footnotes which were added by the editor for more clarity and a better understanding of events. It was the writer’s hope that, “some one who has the opportunity, will preserve a record of the veterans of the Fifth, that the readers of this paper may know the fate of those to whom their attention has been directed for the past few weeks.” 150 years after original publication, Adventures, Struggles, Trials and Services of the 5th Regiment, Virginia Vol. Infantry still remains the only service history in existence for the Fifth West Virginia Infantry. Two short service histories from Dyer’s Compendium as well as the West Virginia Adjutant General’s Report are included in this publication.