2nd Battalion, South Carolina Sharpshooters

United States   U.S. Military    South Carolina    South Carolina Military    South Carolina in the Civil War    South Carolina Civil War Confederate Units 1st through 4th      2nd Battalion, South Carolina Sharpshooters

Brief History
The 2nd Battalion, South Carolina Sharpshooters (also called Smith's Battalion Sharpshooters) began requesting men as early as March1 862 from various other organized military units. Companies A-C was organized by June 1862. They mustered into service on September 1, 1862. Their field Officer was Major Benjamin Burgh Smith, Junior. The 2nd Battalion was disbanded on 28 December 1862. The enlisted men were ordered to be returned to their former commands and the commissioned officers to report to the Commandant of Conscripts of South Carolina. .

Most of the men in this battalion were from Beaufort and Colleton Counties. Joseph H. Crute, Jr.'s book, "Units of the Confederate States Army", contains no history for this unit.

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.


 * A Company
 * B Company
 * C Company
 * D Company

Source Material

 * Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System can be searched by soldier's name or by regiment; includes regimental rosters and additional history of the regiment. This site uses Joseph H. Crute's book, Units of the Confederate States Army, as their main source for the regiment history. Family History Library book 973 M2crua,, WorldCat.
 * Footnote.com (A subscription website, but is available for use at the Family History Library and some Family History Centers). It has digital Civil War soldier service records and brief regiment histories (located at the bottom of some of the muster rolls).
 * Hewett, Janet B., ed. Supplement to the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies. Wilmington, North Carolina: Broadfoot Pub. Co., c1994-2001. . Lists officers, companies, some nicknames for the companies and dates involving the company and places where they were stationed. There are 3 Companies (A-C) listed.
 * Rivers, William J.. Rivers' account of the raising of troops in South Carolina for state and Confederate service, 1861-1865. Bethesda, Maryland : University Publications of America, c1990. FHL fiche 6082599 (1 fiche).