Indianapolis in the American Civil War During the American Civil War , Indianapolis , the state capital of Indiana , was a major base of support for the Union . The governor of Indiana , Oliver Hazard Perry Morton , was a major supporter of President Abraham Lincoln and he quickly made Indianapolis a rallying point for Union Army forces as they prepared to enter Confederate lands . The city was a major railroad hub and transportation center and therefore had military importance ; it was also the site of a major prisoner - of - war camp , Camp Morton , and was at once threatened with by attack from Confederate forces , although the nearest any Confederate came to the city was Seymour , Indiana , away . However , there was one incident sarcastically referred to as the Battle of Pogue ' s Run . 1861 . Throughout the winter of 1860 - 1861 , there was talk throughout the region of the possibility of war with the South . Before the war , four militia groups met in Indianapolis . On January 7 , 1861 , one of the local militia groups , the Zouave Guards , volunteered to fight if Governor Morton so wished , but their services were not immediately needed . All four of the militias later became part of the 11th Indiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment . One militia officer , First Lieutenant Frederick Knefler , eventually rose to the rank of brevet brigadier general , becoming the highest - ranking Jewish military officer of the Union . Another militia leader , Francis A . Shoup , decided to go south and became a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army . On February 12 , Abraham Lincoln visited Indianapolis , one of his stops on a train journey to his presidential inauguration . Lincoln was first president - elect to visit Indianapolis . On April 12 , news arrived in Indianapolis via telegraph that Fort Sumter in Charleston , South Carolina , had surrendered to local forces who wanted Union troops off their land . Lincoln responded by calling for volunteers to join the armed forces to restore order . Governor Morton quickly made Indianapolis a mustering point for those who wanted to enlist , and more than 12 , 000 recruits assembled in Indianapolis in a span of two weeks . By April 22 , the 9th Indiana Infantry Regiment was organized , the first of 104 Hoosier regiments to be trained in Indianapolis , 61 . 5 % of all regiments formed in Indiana . Six were ready for President Lincoln ' s initial call for troops . Indianapolis would send 4 , 000 of its own residents into the service . Camp Morton was quickly built on the grounds of the Indiana State Fair . In total , 24 installations for the war would be built in Indianapolis or its vicinity . The first resident of Indianapolis to die in the war was Private John C . Hollenbeck , who died around Romney , Virginia on June 27 , 1861 . There was little doubt that the majority of Indianapolis residents supported the Union . Pro - Union mobs would sometimes force individuals suspected of Confederate sympathies to go to the mayor ' s office and take an oath of loyalty . The most notable of these was the editor of the " Indianapolis Sentinel " , J . J . Bingham , who was forced to take the loyalty oath by a mob inspired by articles that decried Bingham in the " Indianapolis Journal " . 1862 . Battles in Kentucky and Tennessee caused the major difference in Indianapolis during the war . After the battles of Fort Henry and Fort Donelson , the Union began to collect a large number of Confederate prisoners of war . Governor Morton volunteered to hold some of the prisoners in Indianapolis , and more than 3 , 700 Confederate prisoners of war soon arrived at Camp Morton . As the Confederates were poorly fed , and were unused to Northern winters , citizens of Indianapolis rallied to provide humanitarian aid for the prisoners . A hospital to treat them was made from the Athenaeum at the corner of E . Michigan St . and Massachusetts Ave . Union soldiers continued to gather at Indianapolis , sometimes as many as 12 , 000 at a time . Popular spots for where the soldiers resided included Monument Circle and University Park . Some soldiers turned to street crime and caused major law enforcement troubles . Prohibition of alcohol sales had to be established in the city . City police never bothered to discovered who murdered an officer from Pennsylvania . Many deceased soldiers were held at Indianapolis ' s Union Station , awaiting transportation to their eventual burial spots . 1863 . The first military execution in the Western Theater of the American Civil War occurred on March 27 , 1863 . A 27 - year - old school teacher from Clay County , Indiana , Robert Gay , was killed by a 20 - man firing squad . This happened just south of Camp Morton at Burnside Barracks . After he was captured by the Southern army at Richmond , Kentucky , Gay declared allegiance to the Confederacy to escape further army service . He was convicted of treason and executed , but not before he apologized for what he had done . The next year , three bounty jumper s were executed at Burnside Barracks . In May , Democrats decided a fair election could not be held , so they withdrew their ticket . Between the nine wards only 14 votes were cast for Democratic candidates . On May 20 , 1863 , an incident later called the Battle of Pogue ' s Run occurred . A state Democratic convention was interrupted by Union soldiers sent by Governor Morton ( a Republican ) , and after the convention soldiers searched trains departing with various Democratic convention delegates , causing the Democrats to throw their personal weapons into Pogue ' s Run as the train passed by the creek . When John Hunt Morgan crossed the Ohio River into Indiana , the state went into a state of emergency . On July 7 , the citizens of Indianapolis were rejoicing over the Union victories at Vicksburg , Mississippi , and Gettysburg , Pennsylvania . But on July 8 , the city ' s mood turned to panic as many feared Morgan would attack Indianapolis to free the prisoners at Camp Morton . The panic was increased as Morgan ' s telegrapher , " Lightning " Ellsworth , posed as various Union telegraphers saying Morgan had far more men than he actually had — he had just over 2 , 000 — and sending false information saying Morgan would attack Indianapolis , among other locations . Five regiments were sent to Indianapolis to defend the Indiana State House , in total 65 , 000 men answered the call for all able bodies to defend the capital city . The panic in the city lasted until July 14 , when it was confirmed that Morgan had left Indiana and entered Ohio . In the chaos , the accidental explosion of a caisson killed a boy , three soldiers , and two horses . 1864 . The 28th Colored Infantry was formed on March 31 , 1864 , near what is now Fountain Square at Camp Fremont . It was the only black regiment formed in Indiana during the war and lost 212 men during the war . They were signed on for a term of three years , but the war was effectively over in 11 months ' time , cutting their term of service short . " The City Regiment , " officially known as the 132nd Regiment , was formed in May 1864 to be sent to guard railroads in Tennessee and Alabama , which were firmly in the control of Union forces . It was formed mostly of young boys and older men seeking adventure , making it the favorite regiment among Indianapolis citizens ; more citizens attended the departure of the City Regiment than that of any other regiment . Twelve members of this regiment died of disease before returning home after the predetermined stay of hundred days . 1865 and aftermath . News of the Robert E . Lee ' s surrender at Appomattox reached Indianapolis at 11 p . m . on April 9 , 1865 . " The Indianapolis Journal " called the subsequent celebrations within the city " demented . " Celebrations came to a halt when the news of the assassination of Lincoln arrived on April 15 ; Lincoln ' s funeral train passed through the city on April 30 . An estimated 100 , 000 people attended the bier while Lincoln lay in state at the Indiana Statehouse . Indianapolis soon saw much activity in the drawdown of military forces that occurred at the end of the war . June saw many formal receptions honoring soldiers who had returned home from the war . On June 12 , the last Confederate prisoner of war was parol ed at Camp Morton . The military wagon train was in length , and it passed though the city on July 25 . By autumn all soldiers had left Indianapolis . Statewide data concluded that Indianapolis lost 700 men during the war . Following the war , Indianapolis would cement itself as the premier city in Indiana , as the dominant pro - Northern sympathies of the state punished the antebellum largest city , New Albany , whose ties to the southern states were abhorred . The Soldiers ' and Sailors ' Monument in downtown Indianapolis was built to honor the Indiana veterans of the Civil War . The construction began in 1888 after two decades of discussion and was finally completed in 1901 .