7th NY Heavy Artillery Veterans Corps Badge

[cylekostello]

7th NY Volunteer Artillery (AKA 7th NY Heavy Artillery) Veterans Badge

Nothing too fancy today, just a nice little badge! I had purchased this on eBay for 35$ with the intent of flipping it. I thought it was a vets badge for the 7th NY Infantry Veterans Assoc., an early war regiment that distinguished itself at Antietam and Fredericksburg.

But a helpful collector on ebay pointed out that it might actually be for the 7th NY Heavy Artillery, one of Fox’s 300 fighting regiments and the Union regiment with the fifth highest casualties overall (291 officers and men KIA or DOW). The collector found an officer’s album labelled “7th NYVA”. All the pictured officers served in the 7th NY Heavy Arty.* Upon doing further research I discovered numerous contemporary newspaper clippings where the 7th HA are referred to as the “7th New York Volunteer Artillery

The 7th was one of the Heavy Arty regiments that were converted to infantry for Grant’s spring campaign. They had spent most of the war garrisoning forts around Washington and went into the Overland Campaign green as grass. Despite their inexperience they would distinguish themselves at the Battle of Harris Farm, (a small engagement during the battle of Spotsylvania CH) where the “Heavies” would stand firm against the hardened vets of the Army of Northern Virginia. They would go fight hard and lose heavily in the remainder of the Overland Campaign and the Richmond Petersburg Campaign. According to Col. Fox the 7th NYHA had the 5th highest battle casualties of any Union regiment during the war.

As I love anything related to the heavies I decided to keep this one in my collection for the moment.

https://history.altamontenterprise.com/wikiBio/index.php?title=Barckley,_Michael_Henry_Portrait

[USCapturephotos]

I like reading about the heavies that were turned into Infantry late in the war. I’m also a sucker for all things 2nd Corps. Thanks for sharing your new find.

Paul

[cylekostello]

4 hours ago, USCapturephotos said:

I like reading about the heavies

Me too! I love a good underdog story and the Heavies were w/o a doubt underdogs when they were first thrown into the fight. 
Kyle