1st Missouri Infantry Regiment (Confederate)

The 1st Missouri Infantry Regiment was a Confederate infantry regiment that served primarily in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. It was formed in May 1861, initially at Camp Bowen near St. Louis, Missouri, and later formally mustered into Confederate service in Jacksonport, Arkansas, as part of the Missouri State Guard under General M. Jeff Thompson.

Due to Missouri's official neutrality at the outset of the war, the regiment consisted of Missourians who were sympathetic to the Confederate cause and volunteered to fight for the Confederacy. The unit was formed from men who travelled south to join Confederate forces, many fleeing Missouri to avoid arrest or persecution for their secessionist beliefs.

The 1st Missouri Infantry fought in several major battles, including Wilson's Creek (August 1861), Pea Ridge (March 1862), Corinth (October 1862), Vicksburg (1863), and Atlanta Campaign (1864). Throughout its service, the regiment suffered significant casualties due to battle, disease, and desertion. The regiment was part of the Army of Tennessee.

Following the fall of Vicksburg in July 1863, the surviving members of the 1st Missouri Infantry were paroled. Many subsequently reorganized and rejoined the Confederate army. The remnants of the regiment continued to fight until the end of the war, participating in the defense of Atlanta and the subsequent retreat through Tennessee and into the Carolinas.

The 1st Missouri Infantry ceased to exist as an organized unit with the surrender of Confederate forces in the spring of 1865. Its service reflects the divided loyalties and intense conflict that characterized the Civil War in Missouri, a border state with strong ties to both the North and the South.