The state of Maine organized seven companies of militia infantry for coast guard duties in the Union Army during the American Civil War. They primarily served to garrison coastal fortifications in Maine, with two companies sent to the Defenses of Washington, DC. Very little is known about the organization or command structure of these companies, beyond their commanding officers at the usual rank of captain. Over 800 men served in the seven companies. A New York Times article in 1864 stated that Vice President Hannibal Hamlin served at Fort McClary as a private in the Maine State Guard; some subsequent citations erroneously confuse this with the Maine Coast Guard.