84th New York (14th Militia)
Posted to the Project on 24 Apr 08
The 84th New York was also known as the 14th Brooklyn or the 14th militia. It was recruited from Kings County and mustered in during May and August 1861. (The militia unit itself traced back to 1844.) Sometimes also called the Brooklyn Chasseurs, the regiment numbered 356 at Gettysburg under the command of Col. Edward B. Fowler (1828-1896), a bookkeeper from Brooklyn.
The monument to the 84th is topped by an 8′ tall soldier in the position “handle cartridge.” It is made of Westerly granite. It depicts a soldier in chasseur garb; the chaussers were the light infantry of the French army. The kepi of the 84th was red, while the coat was blue and trimmed with red piping. The men also wore white gaiters. At Manassas, the Confederates nicknamed the 84th New York “The Red Legged Devils.”
Lieutenant Henry W. Mitchell posed as the model for the statue at Gettysburg. Mitchell was wounded on July 1. The regimental monument was dedicated on October 19, 1887. The sculptor was R.D. Barr and it cost $3,510.00. It is located off Reynolds Avenue near the Railroad Cut.
There are also markers to this unit along Stone Avenue and on Slocum Avenue (Culp’s Hill).
84th New York (14th Brooklyn)
1st Corps, 1st Division, 2nd Brigade
Engaged: 356; 13 killed, 105 wounded, 99 missing
Monument: Reynolds Avenue
April 24th, 2008 at 5:39 pm
Minor detail: the correct spelling is “chasseur”.
If you ever get interested in naval history, there was a US privateer schooner of that name, Thomas Boyle commanding, that operated in the Irish sea and English Channel with notable success during the War of 1812.
April 25th, 2008 at 5:11 pm
Thanks. =) I can’t spell. I’d blame chemo brain, but I never could spell.