General Hiram Berry, Rockland, ca. 1862
Item 12837 info
Maine Historical Society
Hiram G. Berry, a carpenter, navigator, banker, and politician in Rockland, was commander of the Rockland Guard, a militia unit before the Civil War. He was asked to recruit a regiment for the war – the 4th Maine Regiment.
Berry was colonel of the regiment from May 1861 to March 1862 when he was promoted to major general in the U.S. Volunteers General Staff Infantry Regiment.
He was killed at the Battle of Chancellorsville on May 3, 1863, while leading a bayonet charge.
He reportedly told his soldiers to "have hearts like oak and let the Stars and Stripes wave high."
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