Hans F Hanson
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| Name at Enlist | Hans F Hanson |
| Birth Name | Hans Johannessen Grinde |
| Other Names | Hans J. Hanson |
| Lived | 29 Jun 1837 – 13 Oct 1863 |
| Birth Place | Grnide, Leikanger, Sogn og Fjordane |
| Birth Country | Norway |
| Resident of Muster-In | Norway, Racine County, WI |
| Company at Enlistment | C |
| Rank at Enlistment | First Lieutenant |
| Muster Date | 2 Dec 1861 |
| Cause of Death | Wounds |
| Death Location | Atlanta, Fulton County, GA |
| Burial Location | National Cemetery at Marietta, GA; section A, grave 1070 |
| Mother | Mari Larsdatter Tjugum |
| Mother Lived | 3 Dec 1809- |
| Father | Johannes Hansen Grinde |
| Father Lived | 7 Jul 1803- |
| Immigration | 2 Jul 1845 |
| Spouse | Mary |
| 2nd Spouse | 1834- |
Hans F. Hanson was born Hans Johannessen (on Farm Grinde) Sogn og Fjordane fylke, Leikanger parish, Norway in 1837. He came to America in 1845 with his parents and sister on the Albion. When he was 18, his father died and he took over running his family’s farm. In the 1860 Census, Hans was living in Norway, Racine County, WI, with his wife, Mary, and son, Theodore (1860). He was still working as a farmer.
Hanson joined the WI 15th Infantry, Company C. The men of the company called themselves the “Norway Bear Hunters,” but they were also known as the Color Company because the regimental Color Guard was attached to their company.
The army listed Hanson as living in Norway, Racine County, WI, age 24, and married. He enrolled on December 3, 1861, at Waterford, WI. He was commissioned First Lieutenant (Løytnant) on November 22, 1861, effective from the 19th. He mustered on December 2, 1861, at Madison, WI. When Captain Fredrick Berg resigned, Hanson took command of Company C. He was promoted to Captain (Kaptein) at Clear Creek, MS, on June 23, 1863, effective from June 12. He took part in all the Regiment’s battles and skirmishes. In the Battle of Chickamauga, GA, on September 19, 1863, as the regiment advanced, the blade of his sword was broken by a bullet. During a short rest, he showed the hilt to Colonel Johnson and said, “This is getting to be hot work”. A short while later, in confusion, his company was fired upon by their own lines, and he was hit, shot in his head. He was taken prisoner and brought to a prison in Atlanta, GA, where he died of his wounds on October 13, 1863. He was buried in National Cemetery at Marietta, GA, section A, grave 1070.
Series 1200: Records of Civil War Regiments, 1861-1900, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, box 76-5; Regimental Muster and Descriptive Rolls, 1861-1865, Wisconsin Adjutant General’s Office, Wisconsin Historical Society, Madison, vol. 20, p. 42; Det Femtende Regiment, Wisconsin Frivillige [The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers], Ole A. Buslett, 1894, Decorah, IA, p. 402 (photo); Oberst Heg og hans gutter, Waldemar Ager, 1916, Fremad Pub. Co., Eau Claire, WI, p. 70 (photo), p. 165 (photo), p. 297; Foreigners in the Union Army and Navy, Ella Lonn, 1951, Publ. Louisiana State University Press, p. 260; Nordmændene i Amerika, Martin Ulvestad, 1907, History Book Co., Minneapolis, MN, p. 254; The Military History of Wisconsin in the War for the Union, Edwin B. Quiner, 1866, Clarke & Co., Chicago, pp. 621, 622; Blaine Hedberg, NAGC&NL; Gene Estensen; Civil War Pension Index, Roll #T288_198; 1860 Census, Roll: M653_1427, Page: 804, Image: 422, Family History Library Film: 805427; Norwegian Immigrants to the United States. A Biographical Directory, 1825-1850, Volume Two 1844-1846, Gerhard B. Naeseth, 1997, Anundsen Publishing Co., Decorah, IA, 1845, p. 122, nos. 396, 397, 398; Wisconsin Historical Society (photo information).