GEORGE ARMSTRONG -- 83rd and 97th INFANTRYDISCHARGED BEFORE HIS 3 YEAR TERM WAS UP - Corporal Cyrus W. James,Company G, 9th New York Cavalry is thought to be the first casualty ofthe Battle of Gettysburg. Eventually 3,155 Union and 4,708 Confederatesoldiers would die in battle at the Battle of Gettysburg. During thethree-day battle, the 83rd Infantry sustained 83 casualties on thefield -- 6 killed in action, 2 mortally wounded, 16 wounded and 58 menwho were captured or went missing.George Armstrong, who was a tailor born in Ireland, was recruited andenlisted in Plattsburgh as a substitute four days after the battle. Hewas one of 80 men who joined the 83rd in Plattsburgh in July of 1863-- 16 of that number never returned.George and his group joined the regiment in Virginia while they wereregrouping from the battle and weren't in the field until November afterhe was promoted corporal. During the Mine Run Campaign at the end of themonth, they had 29 men captured. The regiment spent the winter at BrandyStation about 30 miles northwest of their next engagement. George wasreturned to ranks in February 1864 but managed to be promoted again tocorporal by April 1st.The 83rd's first battle of 1864 was The Wilderness they had 115casualties -- 22 of the Plattsburg group were wounded in action severallater died of the wounds, two were killed and one was captured of wentmissing. The day after the Battle of The Wilderness ended, there were inaction again for five days in the Spotsylvania Court House area andreceived 128 more casualties. Three more battles ensued and in June1864, the regiment ended its 3-year tenure just after the Battle of ColdHarbor. The men who still had to finish the terms for which they hadoriginally signed up were transferred to the 97th Infantry which hadalso lost a considerable number of men at the Wilderness andSpotsylvania Court House.For the rest of his term of service, Georgestayed with the Army of the Potomac. He was discharged August 30, 1864by General Order 36, after the regiment suffered 111 more casualties atthe Welden Railroad. He was with his new regiment for less than threemonths.
