6th Infantry Regiment was ordered from Columbia, South Carolina, to Richmond, Virginia, on July 10, 1861. The men were from the counties of Fairfield, Chester, York, Darlington, Lancaster, and Lexinton. It was engaged at Dranesville under J.E.B. Stuart, then was brigaded under Generals R.H. Anderson, M. Jenkins, and Bratton. The 6th fought with the army from Williamsburg to Fredericksburg, served with Longstreet at Suffolk, and later moved with D.H. Hill to North Carolina. Again with Longstreet, it did not arrive in time to take part in the Battle of Chickamauga but was engaged at Knoxville. Returning to Virginia, it participated in the conflicts at The Wilderness, Spotsylvania, and Cold Harbor, endured the hardships of the Petersburg trenches, and saw action around Appomattox. The regiment reported 18 killed and 45 wounded at Dranesville and in April, 1862, contained 550 officers and men. It lost 27 at Williamsburg and fifty-two percent of the 521 at Seven Pines, then sustained 100 casualties at Gaines' Mill and Frayser's Farm, 115 at Second Manassas, 58 during the Maryland Campaign, and 16 at Wauhatchie. In 1864 the unit lost 9 killed and 85 wounded during Wilderness Campaign, and from June 13 to December 31, there were 26 killed, 176 wounded, and 16 missing. On Apirl 9, 1865, it surrendered 30 officers and 328 men. The field officers were Colonels John Bratton, John M. Steedman, and Charles S. Winder; Lieutenant Colonels Andrew J. Secrest and John M. White; and Majors James L. Coker, Edward C. McLure, and Thomas W. Woodward.
