1st Regiment South Carolina Rifles
(Orr's Rifles)
Descendants Association
Participants in the Breakthrough Battle at Petersburg on April 2, 1865
Fought on or near the present day grounds of Pamplin Historical Park
1st Regiment Rifles, known as Orr's Rifles, was organized at Sandy Springs, South Carolina in July, 1861. Its members were recruited in the counties of Abbeville, Pickens, Anderson, and Marion.
The unit was first stationed on Sullivan's Island and called by the other troops "The Pound Cake Regiment" because of its light duty. Then in April, 1862, it moved to Virginia with 1,000 men. Assigned to General Gregg's and McGowan's Brigade, it fought with the army from the Seven Days' Battles to Cold Harbor. Later the regiment endured the hardships of the Petersburg trenches and the Appomattox operations.
Of the 537 engaged at Gaines' Mill, fifty-nine percent were killed, wounded or missing. The unit reported 116 casualties at Second Manassas and 170 at Fredericksburg, then lost forty-nine percent of the 233 at Chancellorsville and three percent of the 366 at Gettysburg. There were 12 killed and 81 wounded at The Wilderness, 15 killed, 36 wounded, and 44 missing at Spotsylvania, 3 killed and 34 wounded at Deep Bottom, and 9 killed and 37 wounded at Poplar Springs Church. It surrendered 9 officers and 148 men.
It's commanding officers were James L. Orr; J.F. Marshall; D.A. Ledbetter; J.W. Livingston; J.M. Perrin; F.E. Harrison; William M. Haddin; G.M. Miller; and J.T. Robertson.
Soldier's Notes
1st Regiment South Carolina Rifles
Descendants Roll Call
If you are a descendant or family member of a soldier of Orr's Rifles who served honorably at any time during the war and would like to be listed on the Descendants Roll Call, please send an e-mail by clicking the mail icon below. Type "Orr's Rifles" on the subject line and provide details in the message.
Not For Fame Or Reward
Not For Place Or For Rank
Not Lured By Ambition
Or Goaded By Necessity
But In Simple
Obedience To Duty
As They Understood It
These Men Suffered All - Sacrificed All
Dared all - And Died
Inscription written by Dr. Randolph Harrison McKim and carved
on the north side of the Confederate Memorial (sculpted by Moses Ezekiel)
at Arlington National Cemetery
The Remembrance Wall
At The National Museum Of The Civil War Soldier
Another Great Way To Honor The Memory Of Your American Soldier
Important Links
South Carolina Sons of Confederate Veterans |
The Final Battles of the Petersburg Campaign by A. Wilson Greene
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Pamplin Historical Park & National Museum of the Civil War Soldier
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Ordering Service & Pension Records National Archives |
Telling Their Story ... A Young Man Embraces His Confederate Heritage |
Two Brothers: One North, One South by David H. Jones
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