The Sixth Regiment
*The Sixth Regiment, United States Volunteer Infantry, was formed on this date in 1898. Also known as the 'Sixth Immunes,' they were mustered into service that summer and served their term of service in the continental U.S. and Puerto Rico.
The Sixth was one of ten volunteer infantry regiments authorized by President McKinley during the Spanish American War. Of the ten regiments, the first through the sixth were units composed of white foot soldiers, and the seventh through the tenth regiments were composed of African American foot soldiers. The Immunes were, by their admission upon signing, stating that they believed that they were immune to yellow fever because they had had the disease previously or for some other reason.
The regiment was commanded by Colonel Lawrence Davis Tyson, an 1883 graduate of West Point Military Academy, veteran of the Apache Indian wars, and professor of military tactics at the University of Tennessee. The "Sixth Immunes" was mustered into service between July 15, 1898, at Camp Wilder in Knoxville, Tennessee. Most of the recruits came from Tennessee, Kentucky, and Ohio. At the time of mustering, the unit consisted of 46 officers and 904 enlisted men.
