The horses…had been taxed to the utmost of their strength – Part 1

In looking for a title for this series of posts, I selected words penned by Col. John Beardsley in mid-September 1862. Beardsley, commanding the cavalry brigade attached to Maj. Gen. Franz Sigel’s First Corps, Army of Virginia, prefaced his campaign report by stating, on August 10, “my cavalry was sent out to patrol the different…

“Reconnaissances by our cavalry… without cessation” Part 2

On July 22, General Rufus King sent Lieut. Col. Judson Kilpatrick, with a mixed force of cavalry and infantry, including a detachment of the 14th Brooklyn, to investigate reports of a Southern force posted near Carmel Church, south of Fredericksburg. After skirmishing with the enemy for several hours on the 23rd, Kilpatrick destroyed the campsite…

“Reconnaissances by our cavalry…without cessation” Part 1

I do not usually offer an introduction to the stories I post on this site, but in this case, I feel an explanation is necessary. I seldom know when I start where each story will end. Rarely does the final version resemble in any sense what I set out to put on paper. Due to…

Examination Boards

Officers in the Regular Army, especially veterans of the Mexican War, had “a regular’s contempt for ‘fancy volunteers.’”  Men like George McClellan denigrated untrained and undisciplined volunteer officers as the dregs of society, kicked out of “county courthouses, & low village bar rooms.”  Unyielding in his disdain, McClellan sought to double the number of officers…

A Holiday Letter from Lamb’s Creek Church

Built in 1770, Lamb’s Creek Episcopal Church, served as a headquarters for several regiments during the winter of 1862-63, including the 1st Maine, 2nd and 10th New York, the 1st New Jersey and 1st Pennsylvania. Lamb’s Creek Church, King George County The 2nd New York relieved the 1st Pennsylvania on December 28, 1862.  The following…

Picket Duty on the Rappahannock River

Writing after the war, Bvt. Col. Benjamin Crowninshield, 1st Massachusetts Cavalry, explained the vital importance of outpost, vidette or picket duty.  “On the skill and fidelity of cavalry depends the safety of the army.”  Cavalry, Crowninshield continued, “is constantly employed…in the hardest and most inglorious service in the world, outpost and vidette duty, – where…