 Placed in charge of the newly formed unit was Charles Sawyer Russell, a captain of the 11th U.S. Infantry Regiment who was (on 1 May 1864) appointed Lieutenant Colonel and battalion commander of the six organized companies.On April 25, the six companies of the 28th left Indianapolis for Washington, D.C., where they were attached to the capital's defenses.The 28th sustained heavy casualties in the Battle of the Crater at the Siege of Petersburg, Virginia, on July 30, 1864, when nearly half of its soldiers were killed or wounded.