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Ole Pedersen LenvigSergeant in Company E |
Taken between December 1861 and May 1862
Shows him wearing Corporal
stripes on his sleeves
Photo courtesy of his Great Grandson Doug Purdy
Born April 16, 1829, Lemvig, Luster County, Sogn and Fjordane
fylke, Kingdom of Norway
Immigrated to America, 1847
Married Ingeborg "Ann"
Gunleiksdotter Bringa, August 2, 1852, Dane County, Wisconsin
Killed May 27,
1864, Pickett's Mill, State of Georgia
Buried Section A, Grave 855, Marietta
National Cemetery, City of Marietta, Georgia
Ole Lenvig was enlisted for a 3 year term of service in Company E of the 15th Wisconsin by Captain John Ingmundson on December 18, 1861, at the Town of La Crosse, La Crosse County, State of Wisconsin. The men of Company E called themselves Odin's Rifles. His half-brother Hans Lenvig also enlisted in the same company. Ole was mustered into Federal service as a Private on December 20, 1861, at Camp Randall, near the City of Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin. At the time he was 32 years old and was listed as not being married (in actuality, he was married and had 2 little girls). The army recorded him as being 5 feet 6 inches tall with a light complexion, blue eyes, and dark hair. Ole's residence was listed as the Town of Rushford, Fillmore County, State of Minnesota, and by occupation a shoemaker.
On January 1, 1862, Private Lenvig was appointed as a Corporal in Company E. After several months at Camp Randall learning to be a soldier, Corporal Lenvig left there in early March, 1862, with his company and regiment to join the war. From then until October, 1863, he was recorded as "present." As such he would have been at the successful siege of Island No. 10 on the Mississippi River in the State of Tennessee, and the surprise raid on Union City, Tennessee, in March and April, 1862. That Summer he would have been on the campaign through Tennessee and the States of Mississippi and Alabama. In August and September, 1862, he would have been on the grueling 400 mile retreat with General Buell up to the City of Louisville, State of Kentucky, with the last 2 weeks being on half rations and short of water. He would have been present at the October 8, 1862, Battle of Perryville, Kentucky, which is also called the Battle of Chaplin Hills. In late December he would have participated in the 15th's desperate charge upon a Confederate artillery battery at Knob Gap, Tennessee, just south of the City of Nashville. There the 15th captured a brass cannon. He would have also fought at the long, cold, wet, and bloody Battle of Stone River, Tennessee, also called the Battle of Murfreesboro, at the end of December, 1862. It is there that the 15th first suffered serious battle casualties and was cited for bravery.
On March 1, 1863, Corporal Lenvig was appointed as a Sergeant in Company E. In August and September, 1863, he would have participated in General Rosecran's Chickamauga campaign, including the daring early morning crossing of the Tennessee River on August 28th, which the 15th led. Sergeant Lenvig was present with Company E at the September 19-20, 1863, Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia -- the second bloodiest battle of the Civil War. He survived the vicious fighting around Viniard's Farm on the first afternoon, as well as the near capture of the regiment around midday on the 20th during Longstreet's Breakthrough. Some 63% of the 15th's soldiers who were at Chickamauga were killed, wounded, or taken prisoner. Sergeant Lenvig then served with the regiment during the Confederate siege of Chattanooga, Tennessee, which began right after the battle. The siege caused severe shortages of food and firewood. Starting October 13, 1863, Ole served with the Union supply wagon train from the City of Chattanooga, Tennessee, over the mountains to the Army supply base at the Town of Stevenson, Alabama, and back again. By all accounts this was a challenging and dangerous assignment. He was back with his unit for November and December, 1863, which included the 15th's heroic charge up Mission Ridge which broke the siege and forced the Confederate Army into headlong retreat.
Starting right after Mission Ridge the 15th was engaged in almost non-stop marching and counter-marching all over Eastern Tennessee throughout the Winter of 1863/1864. By many original accounts, this was the worst period of the regiment's 3 year term of service. Poor rations, inadequate clothing and shelter, and unseasonably cold weather made these months nearly unbearable. Sergeant Lenvig was present at the beginning of General Sherman's famous campaign to capture the City of Atlanta, Georgia. On May 11, 1864, his half-brother, Private Hans Lenvig, was killed in the successful attack on Rocky Face Ridge, Georgia. On May 27, 1864, the 15th took part in the disastrous Battle of Pickett's Mill, Georgia, which is often referred to in the original records as the Battle of Dallas or New Hope Church. There the 15th suffered fearful casualties, one of whom was Sergeant Lenvig. He was "wounded in bowels" and died later that day.
Sources: Genealogical data from his Great Grandson, Doug Purdy; Det Femtende Regiment, Wisconsin Frivillage [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers] by Ole A. Buslett (Decorah, Iowa, 1895); Civil War Compiled Military Service Records by Office of Adjutant General of the United States (Washington, DC); and, Regimental Descriptive Rolls, Volume 20 Office of the Adjutant General State of Wisconsin (Madison, Wisconsin, 1885).
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All Rights Reserved. Created April 20, 1999. Last updated October 7,
2000.