Every Company Had One. Meet the Old Warhorse of Company D

WILLIAM HOGAN HIGGINS WAS A KNOW-IT-ALL, A BLOWHARD, AND DEEPLY TROUBLE BY THE VIOLENCE AROUND HIM

William Hogan Higgins, known as the Old Warhorse of Phippsburg, Maine, volunteered for Company D of the Third Maine Infantry Regiment when he was 44 years old, one year younger than the cut-off of 45 years old. His first official act was to lie about his age, claiming to be 38.

The bombastic Higgins wanted to be an officer and wasn’t going to let his younger and ambitious nephew, Woodbury Hall, become Company D’s lieutenant without a fight. He managed to turn most of the company’s rank and file against Woodburg, but he was passed over for promotion anyway.

Higgns wore out his welcome in the Third Maine and by 1863, he was placed on special assignment and sent to the crumbling, damp, and isolated Fort Mifflin in Philadelphia–one of the most notorious U.S. prison in the American Civil War.

Listen to the teaser for Episode 04, “The Old Warhorse” now and listen to the full episode launching on October 29.

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