20th Regiment, Virginia Infantry (Confederate)

Brief History
20th Infantry Regiment was assembled in July, 1861, with men from Richmond and the counties of Lunenburg, Powhatan, Buckingham, Prince Edward, Halifax, and Brunswick. Two companies were captured in the fight at Rich Mountain and in September five companies were disbanded. An unsuccessful attempt was made to reorganize, and later the two companies were assigned to the 59th Virginia Regiment. Lieutenant Colonels James R. Crenshaw, John Pegram, and Nathaniel Tyler were in command.

Companies in this Regiment with the Counties of Origin
Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

Company A (The Virginia Guard) - many men from Richmond County

Company B (the Pryor Rifle Company) - many men from Lunenburg County

Company C (The Flat Rock Riflemen, or Loch Leven Rangers, Captain David R. Stokes Company) - many men from Lunenburg County

Company D (Powhatan Rifles) - many men from Powhatan County

Company E (Lee Guards) - many men from Buckingham County

Company F (Jeff Davis Guard)also known as the (Buckingham Institute Guard) - many men from Buckingham County. For muster roll, see A History of Buckingham County, by Eugene A. Maloney,

Company G (Hampden-Sydney Boys) - many men from Prince Edward County

Company H (Clover Rifles) - many men from Halifax County

Company I  (Brunswick Blues) - many men from Brunswick County

Company K (South of Dan Rebels) - many men from Halifax County

The information above is from 20th and 39th Virginia Infantry, by G. L. Sherwood and Jeffrey C. Weaver.

Other Sources

 * Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier or sailor. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in Virginia in the Civil War and United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865.


 * National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.


 * Virginia in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Virginia, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * Sifakis, Stewart. Compendium of the Confederate Armies: Virginia. New York, NY: Facts on File, 1992- 1995. (Family History Library book, Ten Volumes.) This gives organization information for each unit and its field officers, assignments, and battles. It also lists sources further reading. Volume 5 is for Virginia.


 * Wallace, Lee A. A Guide to Virginia Military Organizations, 1861-1865. Lynchburg, Virginia: H. E. Howard, 1986. (Family History Library book .) This gives brief historical sketches of each regiment and lists officers, company names, and commanders.