Amos Johnson Ingebrigt Johanneson Thorstad Private in Company I 15th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry The Scandinavian Regiment

Image taken in 1891 when Amos was about 60 years old
Photo courtesy of his Great Grandson, Harland Hanson, and Harland's wife Darlene Hanson
Picture shown above has been electronically enhanced by Deep Vee Productions
To view a larger, un-retouched version of this image, click HERE

Born May 8, 1831, at Thorstad Farm, Sogndal, Sogn and Fjordane County, Kingdom of Norway
Parents were Johannes Ingebrigtson (1792-18__) and Ragnilde Johannesdotter Thorstad (1792-1837)
Immigrated to America, 1850, from Bergan, Norway
Married September 17, 1867, to Kristi Urness (1848-1909), at Holmes City, Douglas County, State of Minnesota
Died January 30, 1913, at Elk Lake Township, Grant County, Minnesota
Buried February 4, 1913, at St. Petri Lutheran Church Cemetery, Urness Township, Douglas County, Minnesota

Ingebrigt Johanneson Thorstad changed his name to Amos Johnson at some point after coming to America and before enlisting under Captain August Gasman in Company I of the 15th Wisconsin.  Amos joined up for a 3 year term of service on January 14, 1862, at Camp Randall, near the City of Madison, Dane County, Wisconsin.  The men of Company I called themselves the "Scandinavian Mountaineers" but were also known as the "Waupaca Company" because so many of them were living in that Wisconsin county when they enlisted.  Amos was mustered into Federal service at the rank of Private on January 18, 1862, at Camp Randall.  At the time the Army listed him as being 29 years old and not married.  His residence was recorded as Waushara County, Wisconsin.

After just 6 weeks at Camp Randall learning to be a soldier, Private Johnson left there on March 2, 1862, with his company and regiment to join the war.  From then until August, 1863, he was listed as "present" with his company.  As such he would have participated in 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 when 8 companies of the regiment left Island No. 10, he remained behind with Companies I and G on extended guard duty.  These 2 companies would not rejoin the rest of the regiment for 15 months.  During that time the other 8 companies participated in several campaigns as well as the battles at Perryville in the State of Kentucky, at Murfreesboro (Stone River), Tennessee, and at Chickamauga, in the State of Georgia.

Initially the 15th soldiers were camped across the Mississippi River from Island No. 10 on the Tennessee side near Isler's Landing at what was called New Madrid Bend.  There they were engaged in capturing Confederate soldiers who had escaped when the island was surrendered, as well as hunting down, sometimes on horseback, local groups of rebel guerrillas who were resisting the Union occupation.  The area around Island No. 10 was considered to be unhealthy and many of the 15th soldiers became ill there, with a number of them dying of disease.  

In early October, 1862, their camp, which consisted of 150 men, was attacked just before dawn by 300 Confederate Cavalry.  The attack was badly managed and quickly repulsed with virtually no Federal losses, but afterwards the Union camp was moved over to Island No. 10 as a precaution.  There the 15th soldiers were safe from attack behind the Confederate-built fortifications with their 80 cannons.  A drawing of the 15th's camp on the island can be viewed by clicking HERE [use the Back button on your browser to return to this page].  

In December, 1862, a curious incident threatened their safety and caused the 15th's soldiers to repeatedly refuse orders.  Union General Thomas E. Davis sent an order to the Island ordering the soldiers to spike the cannons and throw their ammunition into the Mississippi River to keep it from being captured by the Confederates.  In reality there were no Confederates nearby and the soldiers were safe from attack on the island, so they repeatedly refused to obey the orders.  Finally the General sent an officer to the island who forced the men to obey.  On the sly the 15th's soldiers managed to save a great deal of the ammunition and to 'destroy' the cannons in such a way that they could still be repaired, though for 3 days afterward the island was almost completely defenseless.  Once General U. S. Grant heard of these strange orders he relieved General Davies of command and life returned to normal at the island.

At some point in January and/or February, 1863, Private Johnson was recorded as "Present sick with Measles."  On August 11, 1863, Captain William A. Montgomery, who was then the commander of Company I, submitted an application requesting that Private Johnson be granted the following.

The application listed Private Johnson as being 33 years old, 5 feet 4 inches high, with a light complexion, blue eyes, dark hair, and by profession a Farmer who had been born in the Kingdom of Norway.  The application also noted that at that time Company I had 54 enlisted men present and 2 on furlough.  Starting August 14, 1863, Private Johnson was officially listed as "Absent on furlough...with 20 days' leave."

On August 19, 1863, Companies G and I exchanged their old Belgian rifled muskets for new British Enfield .58 caliber rifled muskets.  On September 2, 1863, the 2 companies were ordered to rejoin the rest of the 15th.  After a 3 week trip by steamboat, railroad train, and on foot they arrived on September 20, 1863, at the Town of Chattanooga in the State of Tennessee.  That was the second day of the fighting at Chickamauga, Georgia -- the second bloodiest battle of the Civil War -- and they could hear it in the distance.  The rest of the regiment was in the midst of that sound.  The next day the survivors retreated to Chattanooga with the Federal army.  Some 63% of the 15th's soldiers who were at Chickamauga had been killed, wounded, or taken prisoner.  Companies G and I together had twice as many men as all 8 of the regiment's other companies combined.  Their arrival of the 2 companies saved the 15th from being merged into another unit and ceasing to exist.

On September 15, 1863, Private Johnson was recorded as being "Absent sick at Stevenson, Ala." [State of Alabama].  It is believed that he did not rejoin Company I and the rest of the 15th's survivors in Chattanooga until sometime in November, 1863.  At that time the Confederate army had had Chattanooga under siege for about 6 weeks.  This had caused severe shortages of food, medicine, and firewood.  Together with cold, wet weather, the siege had resulted in much suffering, sickness, and death amongst the Union troops.  The Confederate hold on Chattanooga was finally broken by their victorious charge up nearby Mission Ridge on November 25, 1863, which the 15th took part in.  It is not clear whether or not Private Johnson took part in the fighting at Mission Ridge.  Starting on November 28, 1863, he was next recorded as being "Absent sick at Chattanooga."

Starting right after Mission Ridge the 15th was engaged in almost non-stop marching and counter-marching all over Eastern Tennessee during 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.  Private Johnson was once again listed as "Present" with his company from sometime in January or February, 1864, until late May, 1864.

Starting in May, 1864, the 15th participated in U.S. Major General William T. Sherman's famous campaign to capture the City of Atlanta, Georgia.  This campaign was marked by almost daily marching and/or combat for 4 months.  During it the 15th took part in the fighting at Rocky Face Ridge, Georgia, in early May, at the bloody Battle of Resaca, Georgia, on May 14-15, and at the disastrous Battle of Pickett's Mill (often called Dallas or New Hope Church) on May 27, 1864.  It was there that the 15th suffered 50% casualties, including 25 soldiers who were taken prisoner and ended up in the infamous Andersonville Prison Camp (many permanently).  One of the casualties at Pickett's Mill was Private Amos Johnson, who was recorded as "Wounded in action" with a "flesh wound of shoulder."

Private Johnson was subsequently recorded by the 15th as being "Absent in Hosp." [Hospital] until November, 1864.  Army hospital records note that on June 6, 1864, he was admitted to Totten General Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.  There he was diagnosed as having a "Slight flesh wound upper third of arm" caused by a "Bullet."  The hospital records also note that he was a 32 year old unmarried native of Norway, and that his nearest relative was "John Johnson" of "Mount Morris, Wis."  On September 20, 1864, the hospital recorded that Private Amos was "Returned to Duty."  Private Johnson is believed to have returned to the 15th sometime in early November, 1864.  Army records about his whereabouts and activities between mid-September and early November do not seem to have survived.  However, on November 1, 1864, Private Amos Johnson was promoted to the rank of Corporal. 

During Johnson's time away, the 15th had fought at Kenesaw Mountain, before Atlanta, and at Jonesboro and Lovejoy Station, Georgia.  After a rest following the capture of Atlanta in early September, 1864, the 15th was briefly assigned to Provost (police) duty in Chattanooga in early October.  This was followed by several months spent guarding a railroad bridge at Whitesides, Tennessee, near Chattanooga.  Many of the 15th's soldiers felt that this was the easiest duty of their entire war service. 

On February 8, 1865, Company I handed in its weapons.  At 4:00 a.m. on February 10th the company started by railroad train to Chattanooga.  At 9:00 a.m. that morning Corporal Amos Johnson and most of the rest of the surviving members of Company I were mustered out of Federal service upon the end of their 3 year terms of service.  At muster out the Army noted that Corporal Johnson had drawn $91.32 worth of clothing since his account had last been settled on October 31, 1862.  

The men who had been mustered out departed by railroad train to Nashville, Tennessee, where they arrived the next day at 11:00 a.m. and departed at 3:00 p.m. by train for Louisville, Kentucky.  They arrived there at 3:00 p.m., February 13, 1865, and were sent across the Ohio River to Jeffersonville, Indiana, where they were paid off and sent that afternoon by train to the City of Indianapolis, State of Indiana.  The next day they reached the City of Chicago, State of Illinois, and were finally back in Wisconsin on February 15, 1865, when the men were released to return to their homes.

Amos Johnson returned to Waushara County, but in 1866 he moved to the State of Minnesota, where he homesteaded in Red Rock Township, Douglas County.  There he was involved in building the West Moe Lutheran Church, which was organized in 1867.  That same year he married the sister of 3 brothers, Anders J. Urness, Ole J. Urness, and Peter Urness, who had served with him in the 15th.  Anders Urness witnessed the marriage and was himself married that same day.  In 1871 Amos was responsible for changing the name of Red Rock Township to Urness.  On October 4, 1871, Amos Johnson became a naturalized citizen of the United States of America.

Amos and his wife had 12 children at their home in Urness Township: Carrie, born March 14, 1869;  Rachael Ragnild, born June 7, 1870; Johannes, born October 16, 1871; Elena, born January 14, 1873 (died 1874); Elena, born March 17, 1875; Ole, born September 3, 1876; Johanna, born April 26, 1878; Inger, born December 22, 1879; Peter, born February 11, 1882 (died same year); unnamed baby who died at birth on August 15, 1883; Peder, born February 5, 1884; and Martin, born June 4, 1888.  

In 1890 Amos was involved in building the St. Petri Lutheran Church in Urness Township.  In 1909, after 42 years of marriage, Amos' wife died of diabetes.  He then went to live with his daughter, Mrs. Elling (Elena) Ellingson, in Grant County, Minnesota.  After 3 years of poor health, Amos passed away and was buried next to his wife at the church he had helped to build. 

Sources: Genealogical data from Amos Johnson's Great Grandson, Harland Hanson, and his wife Darlene Hanson; Civil War Compiled Military Service Records by Office of Adjutant General of the United States (Washington, DC); Det Femtende Regiment, Wisconsin Frivillage [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers] by Ole A. Buslett (Decorah, Iowa, 1895); Regimental Descriptive Rolls, Volume 20 Office of the Adjutant General State of Wisconsin (Madison, Wisconsin, 1885); and, Roster of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865, Volume I Office of the Adjutant General State of Wisconsin (Madison, Wisconsin, 1886).

This page Copyright by Scott Cantwell Meeker of Deep Vee Productions.
All Rights Reserved. Created March 17, 2001. Last updated May 30, 2003.

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