I woke up one day and had this nagging sense that this website wasn’t complete without telling the story of lesser wars / operations. The three that stuck out that I felt would have had a direct impact to Connecticut and specifically Norwalk, were the French-Indian War (1754-1763), the War of 1812 (1812-1815), and the Spanish-American War (April to August 1898).
Looking at the dates alone, the lower hanging fruit for this attempt to tell a local story about Connecticut or Norwalk, is the Spanish-American War. I thought, “4 months, how impactful was it?”
A very specific e-mail to the Connecticut Historical Society bore fruit less than a week later. While the numbers aren’t specific to Norwalk, but more on a larger scale in Connecticut, they still tell a story which I’ll get to after one more paragraph.
This 4-month interaction was the training ground for those who would see action in World War I less than 20 years later. Teenagers in 1898, were now seasoned National Guardsman who drilled and exercised battle scenarios, especially after WWI began in 1914. After the U.S. entered WWI in 1917, some of the same veterans of the Spanish – American War, were elevated to higher levels of leadership as 30-somethings with experience under their belt.
If you made it this far, this is how the 4-month ‘war’ ended in casualty numbers … and if you make it all the way to the end, you win a prize (not really):
CONNECTICUT
1st Connecticut Volunteer Infantry
Mustered In: 17 May-14 July 1898 in Connecticut
Mustered Out: 31 October 1898 at Hartford, Connecticut
Service Beyond the United States: NONE
Mustered In:
Officers: 42
Enlisted Men: 798
Mustered Out:
Officers: 45
Enlisted Men: 1,230
Total Number Accounted for on Muster Out Roll:
Officers: 48
Enlisted Men: 1,265
Losses While in Service:
Officers:
Promoted or Transferred: 0
Resigned or Discharged: 3
Dismissed: 0
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds: 0
Died of Disease: 0
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered: 0
TOTAL OFFICER LOSSES: 3
Enlisted Men:
Transferred: 3
Discharged for Disability: 6
Discharged by General Court Martial: 0
Discharged by Order: 5
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds Received in Action: 0
Died of Disease: 18
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered or Homicide: 0
Deserted: 3
TOTAL ENLISTED LOSSES: 35
3d Connecticut Volunteer Infantry
Mustered In: 2-6 July 1898 at Niantic, Connecticut
Mustered Out: 20 March 1899 at Savannah, Georgia
Service Beyond the United States: NONE
Mustered In:
Officers: 45
Enlisted Men: 1,232
Mustered Out:
Officers: 45
Enlisted Men: 1,105
Total Number Accounted for on Muster Out Roll:
Officers: 61
Enlisted Men: 1,291
Losses While in Service:
Officers:
Promoted or Transferred: 0
Resigned or Discharged: 16
Dismissed: 0
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds: 0
Died of Disease: 0
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered: 0
TOTAL OFFICER LOSSES: 16
Enlisted Men:
Transferred: 8
Discharged for Disability: 9
Discharged by General Court Martial: 11
Discharged by Order: 92
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds Received in Action: 0
Died of Disease: 15
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered or Homicide: 0
Deserted: 51
TOTAL ENLISTED LOSSES: 186
Light Battery A, Connecticut Volunteer Artillery
Mustered In: 19 May 1898 at Niantic, Connecticut
Mustered Out: 25 October 1898 at New Haven, Connecticut
Service Beyond the United States: NONE
Mustered In:
Officers: 5
Enlisted Men: 120
Mustered Out:
Officers: 5
Enlisted Men: 157
Total Number Accounted for on Muster Out Roll:
Officers: 5
Enlisted Men: 172
Losses While in Service:
Officers:
Promoted or Transferred: 0
Resigned or Discharged: 0
Dismissed: 0
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds: 0
Died of Disease: 0
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered: 0
TOTAL OFFICER LOSSES: 0
Enlisted Men:
Transferred: 1
Discharged for Disability: 5
Discharged by General Court Martial: 0
Discharged by Order: 8
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds Received in Action: 0
Died of Disease: 1
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered or Homicide: 0
Deserted: 0
TOTAL ENLISTED LOSSES: 15
Heavy Battery B, Connecticut Volunteer Artillery
Mustered In: 19 May 1898 at Niantic, Connecticut
Mustered Out: 20 December 1898 at Bridgeport, Connecticut
Service Beyond the United States: NONE
Mustered In:
Officers: 4
Enlisted Men: 146
Mustered Out:
Officers: 4
Enlisted Men: 174
Total Number Accounted for on Muster Out Roll:
Officers: 4
Enlisted Men: 203
Losses While in Service:
Officers:
Promoted or Transferred: 0
Resigned or Discharged: 0
Dismissed: 0
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds: 0
Died of Disease: 0
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered: 0
TOTAL OFFICER LOSSES: 0
Enlisted Men:
Transferred: 1
Discharged for Disability: 2
Discharged by General Court Martial: 0
Discharged by Order: 25
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds Received in Action: 0
Died of Disease: 0
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered or Homicide: 0
Deserted: 1
TOTAL ENLISTED LOSSES: 29
Heavy Battery C, Connecticut Volunteer Artillery
Mustered In: 19 May 1898 at Niantic, Connecticut
Mustered Out: 29 October 1898 at New Haven, Connecticut
Service Beyond the United States: NONE
Mustered In:
Officers: 4
Enlisted Men: 140
Mustered Out:
Officers: 4
Enlisted Men: 184
Total Number Accounted for on Muster Out Roll:
Officers: 6
Enlisted Men: 196
Losses While in Service:
Officers:
Promoted or Transferred: 0
Resigned or Discharged: 1
Dismissed: 0
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds: 0
Died of Disease: 1
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered: 0
TOTAL OFFICER LOSSES: 2
Enlisted Men:
Transferred: 0
Discharged for Disability: 2
Discharged by General Court Martial: 1
Discharged by Order: 2
Killed in Action: 0
Died of Wounds Received in Action: 0
Died of Disease: 4
Died of Accident: 0
Drowned: 0
Suicide: 0
Murdered or Homicide: 0
Deserted: 3
TOTAL ENLISTED LOSSES: 12
Honor Norwalk CT veterans 