Washington Grays (Philadelphia)
| Washington Grays | |
|---|---|
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| Active | 1822 to 1869 |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance |
Battle of Chancellorsville Battle of Gettysburg Union |
| Branch | Infantry |
The Washington Grays of Philadelphia (also known as Volunteer Corps of Light Infantry, Light Artillery Corps, Washington Grays, Artillery Corps, Washington Grays) was a volunteer regiment which functioned during peace and war. The Regiment was formed in 1822 and was eventually integrated into the Pennsylvania National Guard in 1879. John Oppell Foering wrote, “Without question [the Washington Grays] have been the parent and pattern of the militia of the City and State, as well as the foundation upon which was erected the magnificent National Guard of Pennsylvania if not of the entire country.”
Some members of the Second Company of Washington Guards who were veterans of the War of 1812, on April 19, 1822, resolved to form a Volunteer Corps of Light Infantry, the color of the uniform to be gray and of domestic manufacture. In whatever civic function, where there was the least degree of military flavor the Grays was always expected to perform its distinctive part, and for over fifty years it stood unrivalled in this respect.
The Corps made its first parade July 1, 1822, with four officers and forty-two men, under command of Captain John Swift.
On June 27, 1827, the title was changed to "Light Artillery Corps, Washington Grays." Based on a silverplate "Soldier's Gratitude" presentation trophy dated February 1832 and crafted by T. Fletcher of Philadelphia, L.G.Childs Esq. was their "Late Commander". Fifteen years later, on June 3, 1843, the title was again changed to that of "Artillery Corps, Washington Grays."
The Washington Grays served in the Philadelphia Nativist Riots of January 1844, and in the Kensington and Southwark riots in May and July of the same year. In 1846 the Corps tendered its services, through the Governor of Pennsylvania, to the President of the United States, as United States infantry during the Mexican–American War. The tender was not accepted, but five members of the Corps served as officers in the Regular and Volunteer Army.
The Corps acted as a guard of honor for the remains of ex-President John Quincy Adams, while lying in state in Independence Hall, March 7, 1848. The last and most important event in which the Corps participated, just before the breakout of hostilities in 1861, was the firing of the salute at the raising of the first thirty-four-star United States flag over Independence Hall, by President-elect Abraham Lincoln, on the morning of February 22, 1861.
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Wikipedia