 August 12, 1861, the regiment transferred to Chain Bridge, where it went into camp with the 3rd Vermont Infantry, 6th Maine Infantry and 33rd New York Infantry.In September, the 4th, 5th and 6th Vermont regiments joined with the 2nd and 3rd to form the famous "Old Vermont Brigade," under the command of newly promoted Brigadier General William Farrar Smith, previously commander of the 3rd Vermont Infantry.Smith was soon assigned command of the division of which the Vermont Brigade was a part, and William T. H. Brooks, a native of Ohio, but the son of a Vermonter, assumed command.