I met Steve Dacus in November 2020, when he invited me out to Casper, Wyoming. He and his family, along with his parents, own property on a mountain overlooking Casper, and I will admit to being instantly jealous. The views are stunning.
Steve is a man of amazing energy, who not only runs his own business, but he is a dedicated father, as well as a student of the cavalry and has been a cavalry re-enactor for many years. In his spare time, he produces instructional videos for his You Tube Channel, 11th OVC, which you can find here. The name, 11th OVC, or 11th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry, refers to the companies raised during the Civil War for service in the far west, most famously at Platte Bridge and the area known today as Casper.
Most everything you might wish to know regarding the life of a trooper in the Civil War or on the Plains may be found on his site, including an amazing video of crossing a flooded river with a horse, how to roll and secure a blanket to a saddle, weapon reviews and discussions and demonstrations of formations and drill. He has links to manuals and other useful sources, as well as several demonstrations of his latest venture Research Arsenal.
More than 30 years ago, several mentors tried to convince me of the importance of the National Archives. Yet, I found the facility in downtown Washington, DC to be intimidating and the process time consuming, and I stepped away after several early ventures. As I acknowledge in Small but Important Riots, several friends, including the then dean of Civil War Records, Mike Musick, helped to break the code, so to speak. I soon saw the value of working with the records held there, but the task remains time-consuming for many reasons, and is not for everyone, especially when one considers the travel, time, and cost involved.
With the advent of the Internet, I am often asked when all the records will be digitized and available online. The sheer volume of material suggests the entire collection may never be digitized and available online. But several efforts, led by companies like Ancestry and Fold3 are working hard to add more material all the time, and the staff at the Archives also adds material via their Catalog site.
Steve has now stepped in to help and a link to his site Research Arsenal should be tabbed on every serious researcher’s web page. Yes, it is a subscription site, but remember Steve lives in Wyoming and the documents are in Washington, D.C., where he scans them. Or, in the case of microfilmed documents, he purchases the rolls from the Archives. Steve and several friends then upload the documents to the site. Steve and his friends covered most of the costs involved, if not the entirety of the costs, for several years as they brought their idea to the point where they can now offer it to the public. Your subscription fees will allow them to continue to add more material.
Wondering what you receive for your money? Steve has produced several videos to answer your questions, including an introductory video here, and several practical videos here and here. I believe one of those practical videos is shot on his property and you will see why I am jealous.
As Steve explains, his site includes photographs from the Library of Congress and other repositories, all of which are searchable by keywords, but I will let him explain in more detail. And he has included thousands of letters, likewise all keyword searchable.
I established my blog with the intent of providing unpublished documents and accounts from the Archives in every story, as a means of demonstrating the importance of the Archives and encouraging others to venture into its hallowed halls. But I also realize that traveling to the capital is not practical or possible for everyone.
Thus, the importance and value of Research Arsenal. Please visit the links provided and consider subscribing to Research Arsenal. When weighing the subscription cost, please consider where you live in relation to Washington, D.C., the cost of your travel and the cost of your time, and then compare the service Steve provides versus the subscription cost. The value of Steve’s service should be readily apparent, especially as you will be helping to bring more content online.
Finally, I promise to return to my ‘regular programing’ in my next post.
Small But Important Riots 
The 11th Ohio Cavalry is one of my favorites. I’ve always been intrigued by these volunteer cavalry units that served on the plains during the Civil War. I am currently making my way through a group of articles on the 11th Ohio Cavalry in the National Tribune. I will definitely check out Steve’s site.
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