John C Rigdon

Historical Sketch and Roster of the Tennessee 31st Infantry Regiment (A. H. Bradford's) John C Rigdon

The Tennessee Thirty-first Infantry Regiment was raised in Weakley, Haywood, Madison, McNairy and Decatur Counties, and was organized during the summer of 1861 with A. H. Bradford, colonel, and November 29 marched for Columbus, Ky., where it remained until the surrender of Fort Donelson in February, 1862. It then moved to Tiptonville, then to Fort Pillow, and, after the battle of Shiloh, to Corinth. Later it was moved to Chattanooga, and then moved north campaigning through Kentucky with Bragg. At Perryville the regiment had its first heavy engagement, displaying great gallantry and losing many valuable soldiers. Egbert E. Tansil succeeded Bradford as colonel. It marched south with the army and December 31 fought with conspicuous courage at Murfreesboro, and retreated south with the army, and in September, 1863, fought in the awful battle of Chickamauga, losing nearly half its men. In 1864, in the Georgia campaign, it was engaged in nearly all the principal battles, losing heavily in the aggregate. In the Tennessee campaign of Hood it fought at Franklin, losing over half the number engaged. Col. Stafford was killed on the enemy's line, to which he had penetrated. Again it fought at Nashville, then moved to North Carolina, where it surrendered. Companies: Company A - Captains Egbert E. Tansil, B. J. Roberts - "The Western Stars." Men from Weakley County. Company B - Captains Caleb McKnight, james G. House - Men from McNairy County. Company C - Captains C. M. Cason, W. B. Clayton, J. K. P. Randolph - Men from McNairy County. Company D - Captains A. H. Bradford, L. Houk, John R. Wills - Men from Haywood County. Company E - Captains B. Robertson, A. T. Gay, D. H. Blankenship - Men from Gibson County. Company F - Captains F. E. P. Stafford, J. T. Jacocks - Men from Madison County. Company G - Captains W. Y. Baker, Samuel Sharp, W. R. Ramer - Men from McNairy County. Company H - Captains Jonathan Luton, George W. Bright - Men from Decatur County. Company I - Captains Thomas L. Bell, W. V. Sims - Men from Weakley County. Company K - Captains John Elliott, John A. Hatler, George C. Thomas - Men from Weakley County.