123rd
Infantry Regiment
The 123rd Illinois Infantry Regiment was part of the
"Wilder Lightning Brigade" during the Civil War. The Regiment was organized
at Mattoon, Ill, by Colonel James Monroe (then Major of the Seventh Illinois
Infantry). Companies A, C, D, H, I and K being from Coles county; B from
Cumberland, E from Clark, F and G from Clark and Crawford. It was initially
assigned to the Army of the Ohio: September 1862 - November 1862, and then
to the Army of the Cumberland: November 1862 - June 1865. The Regiment was
mounted May 1863 - November 1864, and recruits transferred to the 61st
Regiment during June of 1865.
During World War II the 123rd Infantry Regiment served in
the Pacific Theater. After training in the California desert, the 123rd
Infantry regiment of the 33rd Infantry Division made an interim stop in
Hawaii. The elements of the 33rd Division first saw combat in New Guinea in
late 1944.
Elements of the 33rd valiantly fought and secured Morotai before the landing
on Luzon in February, 1945. When the 139 days of combat were over for the
33rd on Luzon, 339 of its men had been killed, 1274 wounded in action, 319
injured, and three listed as Missing in Action.
The 123rd Infantry Regiment consisted of 3 battalions
composed of the following companies:
- 1st Battalion
Company A, B, C and D (Weapons Company)
- 2nd Battalion
Company E, F, G and H (Weapons Company)
- 3rd Battalion
Company I, K, L and M (Weapons Company)
Casualty List
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Documents ||
123rd History
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