ERIC JAMES
Can anyone tell me why the 40th New York was named the Mozart Regiment? My guess is that it had something to do with their regimental march?
According to Pfanz, the 40th was called the Mozart Regiment because it was sponsored by the Mozart Hall Committee, an element of the NYC Democrat Party.
Pat
Recent discussion has reminded us that the 40th NY was nicknamed the "Mozart" regiment because it was raised by the Mozart Hall faction of the NYC Democratic Party.
Interestingly enough, a friend of mine who lives in the Shenandoah Valley, and does some local history for his own amusement, points out that Gen. Mahone (of AP Hill's Corps. at Gettysburg) went into Va. politics after the war and headed a faction called "the Mozarts" because they, like their NYC counterparts, met in a building called "Mozart Hall".
Norm Levitt
The connection of this Yonkers' outfit to NY City's Mozart Hall is correct. In addition, it had four Massachusetts companies and two from Pennsylvania. A great regimental history by Sgt Fred Floyd was printed in 1909. When standing at the 40th's Gburg monument (soldier hunkered down behind an outcropping in the Valley of Death) you can see a Third Corps diamond and other info scratched into a low rock nearby, that was allegedly left by vets to mark their position.
Ben Maryniak