Civil War Union Army Officer. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant on August 26, 1862, and was mustered into Company F, 23rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry on September 13, 1862. He served through the December 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg, then was advanced to 1st Lieutenant and transferred to Company D on January 8, 1863 (Company D's original 1st Lieutenant, David R. Newbold, had died of typhoid fever on December 22, 1862). A little over a month later Company B's Captain Francis Higgins resigned, and Elwood Kirkbride was promoted to Captain to replace him (February 14, 1863). He led his unit through the May 1863 Chancellorsville Campaign, and participated in the regiment's futile assault on Confederate positions at Salem Church. On June 27, 1863 his enlistment expired, and he was honorably mustered out. He rose to prominence in his native Burlington County, New Jersey, and was a keynote speaker at the dedication of the 23rd New Jersey Monument on the Salem Church Battlefield.
Civil War Union Army Officer. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant on August 26, 1862, and was mustered into Company F, 23rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry on September 13, 1862. He served through the December 1862 Battle of Fredericksburg, then was advanced to 1st Lieutenant and transferred to Company D on January 8, 1863 (Company D's original 1st Lieutenant, David R. Newbold, had died of typhoid fever on December 22, 1862). A little over a month later Company B's Captain Francis Higgins resigned, and Elwood Kirkbride was promoted to Captain to replace him (February 14, 1863). He led his unit through the May 1863 Chancellorsville Campaign, and participated in the regiment's futile assault on Confederate positions at Salem Church. On June 27, 1863 his enlistment expired, and he was honorably mustered out. He rose to prominence in his native Burlington County, New Jersey, and was a keynote speaker at the dedication of the 23rd New Jersey Monument on the Salem Church Battlefield.
