The Andersonville Irish

In the region of 250,000 Irish American men fought for the Union during the American Civil War. Some 180,000 of them had been born in Ireland; 70,000 more to Irish parents in Britain, Canada and the United States. Tens of thousands of them died. Many are interred in National Cemeteries up and down the United States, but there is one in particular where hundreds of them lie. It is in Andersonville, Georgia. The National Cemetery there almost certainly contains more Irish casualties from the American Civil War than any other location in the United States. The primary aim of this crowd-sourced project is to gather information on the identities and origins of the Irish Americans interred at Andersonville National Cemetery. By so doing, it hopes to bring the story of these men and their families to the fore, and gain further insight into the impact of the Civil War on Ireland and Irish America.

Camp Sumter—commonly known as Andersonville—was the largest military prison of the American Civil War and was that conflict’s deadliest location. The first prisoners did not arrive there until February 1864, but 45,000 men passed through its gates before it finally closed in May 1865. It operated at its greatest—and deadliest—capacity between February 1864 and the Federal occupation of Atlanta the following September. Originally encompassing 16.5 acres of land enclosed by a 15-foot stockade, in June it was enlarged to 26.5 acres. In that month, 26,000 prisoners were being held in a stockade designed to hold just 10,000. By August 1864 there were 33,000 men in the camp, which had few facilities and little shelter. Of those who crossed the “deadline” into Andersonville, almost 13,000 never came out. Hundreds were Irish Americans.  

Project Aims

The project intends to compile an extensive database of Irish American men interred at Andersonville. In addition it aims to publish on some of their stories, both through the website and in print form. It is also hoped that in the future an appropriate memorial to the Irish Americans interred at Andersonville can be established, and to that end we are beginning discussions with friends including Dr. Nicholas Allen of the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts at the University of Georgia, the National Park Service staff at Andersonville National Historic Site, and the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs. While the research element of the project is being run through Irish in the American Civil War, it is being supported by Nicholas and the Willson Center for Humanities and Arts, to whom I am extremely grateful. Thanks are also due to the National Park Service staff at Andersonville National Historic Site and the Irish Department of Foreign Affairs for their encouragement, advice and engagement to date.

This page consists of three elements. The Ireland Map displays known locations in Ireland associated with men interred at Andersonville National Cemetery. Where a precise location is known it has been marked, while for men where only a county of origin has been established, they are assigned to the relevant county town. Where possible, an image of the man’s gravestone at Andersonville National Cemetery has been included (the majority of which were taken by Kevin Frye of the Descendants of Andersonville Prison group and posted to Find A Grave). The Database below it contains the full current list of men of known Irish American origin at Andersonville National Cemetery, listed alphabetically. This initial list, the starting point for the project, currently contains just under 170 names. The final element of the page are blog posts that explore the stories of Irish Americans at Andersonville, and these will be added to as the project progresses.

How You Can Help

We are keen to hear from anyone who can add to the database and map, or who can offer suggested amendments (information that is suspected but not confirmed is followed by a “?” on the map and database). It is hoped that through public engagement the database of Irish American men will grow significantly in the months to come. If you have any information regarding Irish Americans interred at Andersonville, the dedicated project email for submissions is andersonvilleirish[at]gmail.com. In order for an individual to be fully confirmed as Irish American, we will need a basis for inclusion that is supported by documentary evidence, or extremely compelling circumstantial evidence. This might include information from a regimental history, census return, compiled military service record or pension file. It is intended that a regular update of the database and map will occur as the project proceeds. I hope you enjoy this resource, and please share it far and wide to see can we gain a greater understanding of just how many Irish Americans are interred at this important and poignant site.

The Ireland Map

You can examine the map below to see details of where some of the Irish Americans interred at Andersonville National Cemetery came from. Simply click on the map to begin exploring. If you have further information on where in Ireland a man who died at Andersonville may have been from, please contact us at andersonvilleirish[at]gmail.com.

*The map runs using WebGL. Google Chrome sometimes requires that you enable WebGL in your Google Chrome settings (instructions here). Alternatively explore the map using a different browser such as Firefox or Safari.

The Database

The database contains the current list of men with known (or strongly suspected) Irish American connections. Only men either born in Ireland or born abroad to Irish parents are included. The database is fully searchable and you can order the information in any way you please. 40 entries at a time are displayed, to move on the page click “Next” at the bottom of the table. If you have details of men who should be added to this list, please email us at andersonvilleirish[at]gmail.com.

The Blog Posts

This portion of the project page looks at some of the posts that have focused on the Irish at Andersonville over the years, and will also gather together the new posts that are created as a result of the project. If you have suggestions for an area of the Irish American experience at Andersonville that you think would make an interesting addition, please contact us at andersonvilleirish[at]gmail.com.