Casualties and Other Numbers

January 13-15, 1865

Fort Fisher Garrison

Forces Engaged

COMMAND	EFFECTIVES
Garrison	Approx. 1,550
Reinforcements January 15:
Elements of the 11th, 21st, and 25th SC Infantry	350
Total:	Approx. 1,900

Casualties

Killed and Wounded (approx.)	500
Captured (approx.)	1,400
Total:	Approx. 1,900

Guns in Position When Captured

No.	WEAPON	CONDITION	CARRIAGE
Land Face
1	10-inch columbiad	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
2	6 3/8-inch rifle (old 32)	Unserviceable	Serviceable
3	8-inch smoothbore - 1841	Serviceable	Unserviceable
4	8-inch smoothbore - 1841	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
5	8-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
6	4 1/2-inch Parrott rifle	Serviceable	Serviceable
7	6 3/8-inch smoothbore (32)	Unserviceable	Serviceable
8	5 7/8-inch smoothbore (24)	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
9	6 3/8-inch smoothbore (32)	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
10	5 1/2-inch Coehorn mortar	Serviceable	Serviceable
11	6 3/8-inch smoothbore (32)	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
12	5 1/2-inch Coehorn mortar	Serviceable	Serviceable
13	6 1/2-inch smoothbore (32)	Serviceable	Serviceable
14	9-inch smoothbore (32)	Serviceable	Unserviceable
15	6 3/8-inch smoothbore (32)	Serviceable	Serviceable
16	6 3/8-inch smoothbore (32)	Serviceable	Unserviceable
17	6 3/8-inch smoothbore (32)	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
18	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Unserviceable
19	7-inch Brooke rifle	Serviceable	Serviceable
20	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Unserviceable
21	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
22	10-inch columbiad	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
23	8-inch mortar	Serviceable	Serviceable
24	8-inch smoothbore	Serviceable	Serviceable
Sea Face
25	8-inch Blakely rifle	Serviceable	Serviceable
26	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Unserviceable
27	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Unserviceable
28	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Unserviceable
29	-----	-----	-----
30	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
31	8-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
32	8-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
33	8-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Unserviceable
34	8-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
35	7-inch Brooke rifle	Unserviceable	Unserviceable
36	8-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
37	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Serviceable
38	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Serviceable
39	150-pdr. Armstrong rifle	Serviceable	Serviceable
40	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
41	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
42	7-inch Brooke rifle	Serviceable	Serviceable
43	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Serviceable
44	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
45	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Serviceable
46	10-inch columbiad	Serviceable	Unserviceable
47	6 3/8-inch rifle (32)	Serviceable	Serviceable

Hoke's Division

Forces Engaged

COMMAND	EFFECTIVES
Hoke's Division	Approx. 6,400

Casualties: None reported for Hoke's demonstration on the Union northern line on January 15, but the division probably lost a few men on the skirmish line (Kirkland's and Clingman's Brigades).

United States Army

Forces Present

COMMAND	EFFECTIVES
From official returns for January 10, 1865*
	Officers	Men	Aggregate
General Headquarters	12	12	24
Ames's division (2nd, XXIV)	192	3,787	4,243
Paine's division (3rd, XXV)	160	3,149	3,683
Abbott's brigade (2, 1, XXIV)	65	1,385	1,494
16th New York Battery	3	42	45
3rd U.S. Artillery (E)	4	55	61
Detachment Signal Corps	4	27	31
Ambulance Corps	-----	-----	51
Total:	440	8,457	9,632

*Officers and men reported as present for duty. Aggregate reported as Aggregate present.

Casualties¹

UNIT	KILLED	WOUNDED	MISSING	TOTAL
Second Division, XXIV Army Corps: Ames
XXIV A.C. HQ	-----	1	-----	1
Division Staff	-----	4	-----	4
(1) Curtis	39	184	5	228
(2) Pennypacker	51	227	2	280
(3) Bell	16	97	2	115
First Division, XXIV Army Corps
(2) Abbott	4	23	4	31
Third Division, XXV Army Corps
(3) 27th USCT	1	4	-----	5
Total:	111	540	13	6642

¹From official returns.

²In addition, 1 officer and 4 men, 112th NY; and 1 man, 142nd NY were wounded on January 24; for a total of 670.

Unofficial army returns place the total at 955 battle victims (184 killed, 749 wounded, and 22 missing), with at least another 104 casualties from the magazine explosion on January 16 (25 killed, 66 wounded, and 13 missing).

United States Navy

Forces Engaged

Number of Warships	58
Naval Shore Contingent (Sailors and Marines)	2,261

Casualties

COMMAND	TOTALS
From official returns
Sailors	Officers	Men	Aggregate
Killed	6	75	81
Wounded	24	198	222
Missing	-----	29	29
Marines
Killed	-----	7	7
Wounded	2	47	49
Missing	-----	5	5
Total	32	361	393

Rounds Expended

NUMBER OF PROJECTILES	WEIGHT
19,682	1,652,638 pounds

Combined with numbers from the December 1864 bombardment, the projectiles expended equal 39,953 — with a weight of 2,927,937 pounds. The projectile numbers are officially suffixed with this statement: "It is estimated that the above statement includes between 90 and 95 percent of the projectiles actually expended."

Total Federal Casualties: 2nd Fort Fisher

The combined army and navy losses range somewhere between 1,167 and 1,452 killed, wounded, and missing — based upon published figures available, as listed above.

Combined Union and Confederate Casualties

for the December 1864 and January 1865 Engagements

December 1864

COMMAND	KILLED	WOUNDED	C/M	TOTAL
Federal Army	1	11	1	13
Federal Navy	20	63	-----	83
Fort Fisher	3	58	-----	61
Hoke's Division	5	16	307	328

January 1865

COMMAND	KILLED	WOUNDED	C/M	TOTAL
Federal Army	209	815	35	1,059*
Federal Navy	88	271	34	393
Subtotal:	326	1,234	377	1,937
Fort Fisher	500	1,400	1,900
Aggregate:	2,060	1,777	3,837

*Unofficial army figure of 955, plus 104 from the magazine explosion. (Based upon the "official" tally of 670, this figure would equal 774). The navy, however, also reported a loss of eight men in the magazine explosion. It is unclear whether these men are included in the total for this tragedy. (It is thought that about 200 men, both Union and Confederate, were lost in the explosion. It is further unclear whether the Confederate losses in the explosion are included in the often-cited approximate figure of 500 killed and wounded for the garrison).

Approximate Total Federal Casualties for Both Engagements	1,548
Based upon the "official" army tally of 670, this figure would equal 1,263
Approximate Total Confederate Casualties for Both Engagements	2,289
Combined Union and Confederate Casualties for Both Engagements	3,837
Based upon the "official" Federal army tally of 670, this figure would equal 3,552

The exact number of casualties in the battles for Fort Fisher will never be known. Confederate records are sketchy, and wide discrepancies exist between the various Federal numbers published. In addition, the figure for the magazine mishap is incomplete.

Sources

United States War Department. The War of the Rebellion, A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1880-1901.

United States Navy Department. Official Records of the Union and Confederate Navies in the War of the Rebellion. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1900-1901.

Johnson, Robert U. and Clarence C. Buel, eds. Battles and Leaders of the Civil War. 4 vols. New York: The Century Company, 1884-1889.

As compiled and tabulated in: The Wilmington Campaign and the Battles for Fort Fisher. by Mark A. Moore — (Da Capo Press, 1999).