Soldiers Shot by Minie/Minnie Balls
Soldiers Shot by Minie/Minnie Balls
The Minié Ball
The correct historical name is Minié ball, named for French Army officer Claude-Étienne Minié (pronounced approximately “min-YAY”). Developed in the mid-nineteenth century, the Minié ball was not actually a round ball. It was a conical, soft-lead bullet with a hollow base, designed for use in muzzle-loading rifled muskets.
Earlier rifles could be slow and difficult to load because a projectile had to fit tightly enough to engage the spiral grooves, or rifling, inside the barrel. The Minié ball was made slightly smaller than the bore so that it could be loaded rapidly. When the weapon was fired, expanding powder gases forced the hollow base of the bullet outward into the rifling. The rifling then gave the projectile a stabilizing spin, greatly improving range and accuracy.
The design was developed by Minié in 1849 and was subsequently improved for American military use. By the Civil War, Minié-type ammunition was widely used with rifled muskets by both Union and Confederate forces. Its combination of accuracy, range, and a relatively large soft-lead projectile made it capable of inflicting devastating wounds, particularly when it struck bone.
Civil War soldiers and clerks frequently Americanized the name as “minnie ball,” and records also contain the spelling “minie ball.” In modern editorial text, “Minié ball” is the preferred spelling.
Not every Civil War gunshot or bullet wound can safely be identified as a Minié-ball wound. Other projectiles were in use. For that reason, the list below generally includes only wounds for which Maryland's Black Civil War Soldiers explicitly identifies a minie/minnie/Minié ball.
Gettysburg - July 1863 (before joining the 19th USCT)
Joseph B. Read
Action/location: Battle of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, July 1863 — while serving with Company H, 2nd New Hampshire Volunteers, before joining the 19th USCT.
Wound: Wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg by a Minié ball in the left thigh while serving as a Sergeant in Company H, 2nd New Hampshire Volunteers. An Army surgeon removed the ball in the field.
Effect on health/service: Read spent approximately two months recuperating in Army hospitals. He recovered sufficiently to continue his military career. In December 1863 he left the 2nd New Hampshire as a Sergeant to accept appointment as a Captain in the 19th U.S. Colored Troops. He later served with the 19th through the war and in Texas before resigning his commission on January 20, 1866.
Battle of the Crater — July 30, 1864, Petersburg, Virginia
Adam Bentley
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Wounded by a minnie ball in the thigh.
Effect on health/service: Hospitalized at L’Ouverture Hospital in Alexandria until April 28, 1865, then returned to the regiment. Later mustered out with the regiment in Texas.
Howard Graham
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the left hand; the second finger of the left hand was amputated.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals; returned to duty February 8, 1865 and later served in Texas. Permanent loss of the finger.
William H. Roberts
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Wounded by a minnie ball in the upper left thigh.
Effect on health/service: Recuperated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals until returning to duty December 12, 1864. Later served in Texas and mustered out with the regiment.
Joseph Bond
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the left side, breaking a rib.
Effect on health/service: Remained on sick status for several months, then returned to active service and later went to Texas. The book does not attribute a lasting disability to the wound.
Alfred Cottman
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Wounded by a minnie ball; anatomical site not stated in the book.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals and returned to duty September 14, 1864. He later died of typhoid fever in Texas on August 22, 1865; the book does not connect that illness with the wound.
Robert Derrickson
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Not stated. Received a severe gunshot wound from a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Never returned to the regiment and was medically discharged from the Fort Monroe army hospital on December 15, 1865.
John S. Simpson
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Not stated. Shot by a minnie ball while in action.
Effect on health/service: Treated at City Point and Summit House; returned to duty October 12, 1864, was later promoted, served in Texas, and mustered out with the regiment.
Alexander Joshua
Action/location: Battle of the Crater (also called the Battle of Cemetery Hill), Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Upper left thigh / left leg. Shot in the upper left thigh. Later records described a gunshot wound of the left leg with varicose veins.
Effect on health/service: Never returned to the regiment. After prolonged hospitalization, he was medically discharged January 3, 1866. His record said he was totally disabled for military service and civil occupation.
Shadrach King
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the right wrist by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals; returned to duty January 11, 1865 and later served as a company cook. Mustered out in Texas.
Alexander Ringgold
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Left shoulder / left arm. Ball entered the anterior surface, passed through the axilla, and exited posteriorly.
Effect on health/service: The wound caused weakness of the hand and forearm. Ringgold never returned to the regiment and was discharged for disability June 28, 1865.
Henry Pipes
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot by a minnie ball that fractured the right foot.
Effect on health/service: Treated at L’Ouverture Hospital and discharged from the hospital and Army on June 22, 1865 with an honorable discharge.
James R. Slater
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Minié-ball gunshot wound in the right thigh.
Effect on health/service: Treated at L’Ouverture Hospital for several months and returned to duty February 9, 1865. Later served in Texas.
John S. Barnes
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the left hand by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at City Point and Summit House; returned to duty February 8, 1865 and later served in Texas. The book does not state a permanent impairment.
Samuel Fountain
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the right elbow by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House; returned to duty November 28, 1864 and completed his service, including Texas.
Adolphus Harp
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the right thigh by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Never returned to the regiment and was medically discharged from L’Ouverture Hospital on June 22, 1865.
George Holmes
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the right hand by a minnie ball; right thumb was amputated.
Effect on health/service: Treated at City Point and Summit House. He returned to duty for a time but was eventually discharged for disability on June 15, 1865. Permanent loss of the thumb.
John A. Turner
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the left elbow by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee, Freedmen’s, and L’Ouverture hospitals; returned to duty November 2, 1864 and later served in Texas.
Henry Bellows
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the back with a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Recuperated in a Philadelphia army hospital during August and rejoined the regiment in September 1864. He remained in service through Texas.
Lewis Carter
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Wounded in the right foot by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals; returned to duty September 27, 1864 and later completed his service in Texas.
Peter Showell
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the right thigh by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Summit House until February 10, 1865, when he returned to duty. Later promoted to Corporal in Texas and mustered out with the regiment.
Robert R. Clark
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Wounded in the leg by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals. He never returned to duty with the regiment and was medically discharged June 3, 1865.
Edward Fletcher
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Over right scapula. Wounded over the right scapula by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at L’Ouverture Hospital and medically discharged June 28, 1865 because of disability from wounds received in action.
Joshua Johnson
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the left shoulder by a minnie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House; returned to duty November 23, 1864. He later became ill in May 1865 and was medically discharged June 14, 1865; the book does not state that this later illness was caused by the wound.
Henry Speaks
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Right hand; also right thigh and back. A minnie ball struck the right hand, causing loss of the third and fourth fingers; he was also wounded in the right thigh and back.
Effect on health/service: Sent to Satterlee Hospital to recuperate. He later returned to service, mustered out in Texas, and lived after the war in Washington, D.C. Permanent loss of two fingers.
Winder Churn
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Right thigh / leg. Shot in the right thigh by a minnie ball, breaking the leg.
Effect on health/service: Hospitalized for about half a year at City Point, Satterlee, and Summit House; returned to duty February 8, 1865 and later mustered out with the regiment.
George Henry Turner
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Right side of neck; also right shoulder shell wound. Shot in the right side of the neck by a minnie ball; also wounded in the right shoulder by an exploding shell.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House; returned to duty November 23, 1864 and was later promoted for meritorious conduct at the Crater.
James T. Neal
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Wounded by a minie-ball gunshot; anatomical site not stated in the book.
Effect on health/service: Evacuated to Summit House Hospital and returned to duty November 23, 1864. He later completed his service in Texas.
Handy Robbins
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot by a minie ball; anatomical site not stated in the book.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals and returned to duty November 21, 1864. The book does not state a permanent impairment.
John Smith
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the right hand by a minie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at City Point, Satterlee, Summit House, and Islington Lane hospitals. He died at Islington Lane Hospital of smallpox on April 1, 1865; the book does not say the Minié-ball wound caused his death.
Thomas Ward
Action/location: Battle of the Crater, Petersburg, Virginia, July 30, 1864.
Wound: Shot in the face by a minie ball.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Satterlee and Summit House hospitals and discharged from the Army for disability on June 26, 1865.
Other Petersburg-area actions
Joshua Wallace
Action/location: Action near Petersburg, Virginia, August 12, 1864; the book does not give a specific battle name.
Wound: Not stated. Wounded in action by a minnie ball near Petersburg on August 12, 1864.
Effect on health/service: Treated at Summit House and Satterlee hospitals; returned to the regiment February 17, 1865 and later completed service in Texas.
John F. Butler
Action/location: Action at Petersburg, Virginia, September 30, 1864; the book does not give a specific battle name.
Wound: Not stated. Wounded by a minnie ball at Petersburg on September 30, 1864.
Effect on health/service: Sent to Summit House Hospital, where he died of erysipelas on March 20, 1865. The book records the infection as the cause of death.
William Hackett
Action/location: Picket-line action near the Weldon Railroad, Petersburg, Virginia, October 1, 1864.
Wound: Left hand. Wounded by a minnie ball on October 1, 1864 on the picket line near the Weldon Railroad. The injury required amputation of the second metacarpal bone and loss of the index finger.
Effect on health/service: Never returned to the regiment and was medically discharged June 24, 1865. Permanent loss of the index finger and part of the hand.
Samuel Salter
Action/location: Action at Petersburg, Virginia, October 1, 1864; the book does not give a more specific battle name.
Wound: Shot by a minnie ball in the left forearm at Petersburg on October 1, 1864.
Effect on health/service: Treated at L’Ouverture Hospital and returned to the regiment in March 1865. Later served in Texas and mustered out with the regiment.
Virginia recruiting expedition — April 1864
Benjamin Curtis
Action/location: Regimental recruiting expedition in Virginia, April 1864, on the road between Berryville and Winchester. He was struck during the incident in which Union scouts dressed in gray fired on the 19th USCT.
Wound: Forehead / head; left eye damaged. Struck in the forehead by a minnie ball while the regiment was between Berryville and Winchester, Virginia. The shot knocked out a piece of skull described as about the size of a silver half dollar.
Effect on health/service: Spent seven months at McKim’s Mansion Hospital in Baltimore and returned to the regiment in November 1864. His left eye was severely damaged and he eventually lost sight in that eye. He later developed lifelong rheumatism from winter exposure at Fort Harrison; the book treats that rheumatism as a separate service-related condition, not an effect of the Minié-ball wound.
Summary
The book explicitly identifies 35 enlisted men of the 19th USCT as having been wounded by a Minié/minnie ball. Thirty were wounded at the Battle of the Crater on July 30, 1864; four in other Petersburg-area actions later in 1864; and Benjamin Curtis during the regiment’s April 1864 recruiting expedition in Virginia. In addition, Captain Joseph B. Read was wounded by a Minié ball in the left thigh at Gettysburg in July 1863 while serving with the 2nd New Hampshire Volunteers, before joining the 19th USCT. The most serious documented lasting effects among the 19th USCT men included amputated fingers or a thumb, loss of sight in one eye, fractures, weakness of the hand and forearm, and several disability discharges. In a number of cases, the men recovered sufficiently to return to duty.
Source
Primary soldier source: Robert K. Summers, Maryland's Black Civil War Soldiers, individual 19th USCT entries. Background on the Minié ball checked against the Smithsonian National Museum of American History, the Library of Congress, the National Park Service, and the U.S. Army Center of Military History.