The regiment was organized at Camp Curtin in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, in the summer of 1861, with John R. Brooke, of Pottstown, Montgomery County, was commissioned colonel on August 21. Brooke had previously served as a captain in the three-month 4th Pennsylvania Infantry, and he immediately commenced recruiting his own regiment. By late September, the first companies had been organized and the first company was mustered into the service of the United States on September 28 at Camp Curtin.53d Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers
