Civil War, 1862 Into Spring 1863

The seven companies of the regiment encamped near Washington, D.C., were selected to form part of McClellan’s army which was to invade Virginia from the Yorktown Peninsula. In March, 1862, this army was transported south and the siege of Yorktown began. The Second Cavalry was fortunate in being unloaded soon after its arrival at Fort Monroe, as the harbor was crowded with over 250 ships, and many of the transports had waited for some time with men and animals still on board. On April 4 the regiment encamped at Hampton about four miles from Fort Monroe.

When McClellan’s army made its advance April 5, Company H, Second Cavalry, was selected as the escort for the General Headquarters. The company hurried along the road with the General for fifteen miles toward the front and went into camp. The next morning the remainder of the regiment joined, along with four companies of the First Cavalry, which made up the mounted force at General Headquarters. The Second at this time formed a part of the cavalry reserve, about five regiments, under its old commander Brigadier General St. G. Cooke. During the campaign this force performed picket and reconnaissance duty. After the withdrawal of the Confederates up the Peninsula, they were engaged further on reconnaissance duty and had skirmishes almost daily on the advance to Chickahominy. The regiment was prevented from participating in some of the engagements during this period, as it usually acted as escort for the General.

Companies H and K, under Captain George A. Gordon, were engaged with the enemy at New Bridge, Virginia, on May 24, 1862. The squadron was sent on reconnaissance as a support to the Fourth Michigan Volunteers. At this place the nature of the marshy ground and the deep Chickahominy River prevented the squadron from taking a very active part in the engagement. The enemy artillery, which was posted on the opposite bank, fired two pieces at the squadron for nearly an hour, causing some casualties. The Fifth Louisiana regiment was driven away from the bridge where they had been acting as pickets.

In the passage of the Army of the Potomac over the Chickahominy, June 27, 1862, the cavalry, with the Fifth Army Corps, was placed under the orders of General Porter, who was charged with covering the movement. The line of battle formed a semi-circle parallel to the river and Cooke’s cavalry was placed on a plateau in the rear of the left of the line. As the day drew to a close the Confederates made a desperate assault to cut the left of the line off from the bridge. The infantry gave way and uncovered the artillery, which was left exposed. General Cooke then ordered the artillery to remain there and brought up the cavalry to support it. Under cover of a charge the artillery was safely withdrawn. After the fight at Gaines’ Mill, the Second Cavalry was the last to leave the north bank of the Chickahominy and took up the pontoon bridge under a heavy fire from the Confederates.

The Second was now on the dangerous service of opening the route for the Union army from the Chickahominy to the James River, which it accomplished on June 29. After some skirmishing by the advance guard of the regiment it reached Carter’s Landing and made contact with the gunboats that evening. During the remainder of the Seven Days battles at Savage Station and Malvern Hill the regiment was an active participant in the combats.

RECRUITING

During July, 1862, Companies A, B, and D were broken up, the privates transferred to other companies, and the officers, noncommissioned officers, and buglers were sent on recruiting duty. Company A went to New York City, Company B to Carlisle Barracks, Pennsylvania, and Company D to Morristown, Pennsylvania. The regiment had not received a detachment of recruits for four years, and was now reduced to nine officers and 240 enlisted men present for duty.

Other regiments were in a similar depleted condition. This was partly as a result of the lack of apparent knowledge of the possible use of cavalry in the war. General Stoneman was doing good work in organizing and training the cavalry during the year. Unfortunately the commanders of corps, divisions, and brigades asked for a large number of cavalrymen at their headquarters to act as orderlies. This duty in addition to that as escorts and pickets absorbed much of the cavalry. While Pope and other commanders were using up their mounted corps on fruitless missions, Stuart was winning fame for the Southern horseman by judicious use of them, especially on reconnaissance and raids.

SOUTH HILL, ANTIETAM - COMPANIES E, F, H, K

In McClellan’s retrograde movement from Harrison’s Landing on the James River, Companies E, F, H, K, and a squadron of the Fourth Cavalry acted as his escort and had the post of honor at the rear of the whole army. They crossed the Chickahominy near its mouth August 17, 1862, and took up the pontoon bridge. After witnessing the whole army embark for the north, the regiment sailed from Fort Monroe, Virginia, August 25 for Alexandria, Virginia, and went into camp at Centerville near that place.

After the arrival of McClellan’s army near Washington following his withdrawal from the peninsula, the Army of the Potomac and the Army of Virginia were combined under his command. Lee invaded Maryland instead of attacking Washington, and the Union Army shielded that city, at the same time keeping in touch with the invader. The four companies of the Second Cavalry were a part of the Army of the Potomac which followed Lee into Maryland. Leaving the camp at Centerville, Virginia, September 1, 1862, it marched north as a provost guard at General Headquarters.

Pleasanton’s cavalry division, though not in good condition for the campaign of Antietam, took the field and in early September reconnoitered the fords of the Potomac. The right wing of the Federal army having reached Frederick, Maryland, September 13, 1862, the cavalry cleared the passage through the Catoctin Mountains. In the fighting to drive the Confederates from their position at South Mountain on the 14th, the Second took some part. Pleasanton deployed a part of his cavalry dismounted but did not have an important role in the battle of that day. Lee withdrew to the south, followed by the Union army via Boonesborough. At this place the Federal cavalry caught up with the enemy rear guard and drove it two miles beyond town. On September 17, at the battle of Antietam, the cavalry moved to Antietam bridge within a short distance of Lee’s center. Here it came under a heavy cross fire of artillery which caused many casualties. Skirmishers were thrown forward and with the help of the Federal guns, the Confederate barriers were driven away. After the battle, the cavalry moved down to the fords of the Potomac and remained there in observation.

FREDERICKSBURG - COMPANIES E, F, H, K

General Burnside succeeded General McClellan November 7, 1862, in command of the Army of the Potomac, and divided his army into three grand parts, right, center, and left. The cavalry was divided into three divisions under Pleasanton, who was formerly an officer in the Second, Bayard, and Averell, and each one of these was attached respectively to the grand divisions of the main army.

The Second Cavalry was again the provost guard at General Headquarters during this campaign. Burnside moved his army south November 15 and reached Falmouth, Virginia, November 20, near Fredericksburg on the Rappahannock River. The cavalry did not take much part in the fighting at Fredericksburg from December 11 to 15, although the four companies of the Second were involved. When Sumner’s grand division crossed the river December 12, Pleasanton’s cavalry division was deployed so as to cover the approaches to the upper bridges. When Franklin crossed below the city, he was preceded by Bayard’s cavalry division, which acted as a reconnaissance force. Most of the time cavalry was used on picket duty forming a protective screen around the army.

Sergeant Hagan, with seven men of the Second Cavalry, was ordered to remain in Fredericksburg on December 13, 1862, to protect the withdrawal of some of the forces until he was relieved. He stayed there until he saw the enemy entering the town, when he started withdrawing after finding out he was the only Union force left. Then, seeing that his men were over the Rappahannock, he plunged in and swam across himself. For his exploit he was decorated with the Congressional Medal of Honor.

THE STONEMAN RAID

In January, 1863, General Hooker relieved General Burnside from the command of the Army of the Potomac, and the organization of grand divisions was changed to army corps, with General Stoneman in command of all the cavalry. The mounted arm was organized into a corps, with the divisions being commanded by Generals Pleasanton, Averell, and Gregg, with a reserve brigade commanded by General Buford. During the winter the cavalry was employed in watching the fords of the Rappahannock and reconnoitering the enemy positions, with much skirmishing constantly going on.

General Hooker started the Chancellorsville campaign by crossing the Rappahannock River April 27, 1863. During this same period he sent General Stoneman with most of the cavalry on a raid toward Richmond to break up the Confederate line of communication.

“Headquarters Cavalry Corps
Army of the Potomac
April 11, 1863

First. The effective force of this corps will be in readiness to move at daylight on Monday, April 13.

Second. Each trooper will carry on his horse not less than three days’ rations for himself and horse, and as much more as shall be judged practicable for him to take on short marches; and he will carry as much ammunition for the arms he bears as he can conveniently on his person, the amount not to be less in any case than forty rounds of carbine and twenty rounds of pistol cartridge.

Third. The pack-trains will be loaded with five days’ rations for the men. The supply-trains will be loaded with rations of grain and subsistence in such proportion that men and animals will be supplied to the same date.

Fourth. Some convenient point will be selected in each division and Buford’s brigade, at which camp and garrison equipage, quartermaster’s and subsistence stores, with private property, will be left in charge of an officer and the dismounted men, who will constitute the depot-guards for this property. All superfluous articles of clothing, camp and garrison equipage, and in fact of every kind, will be left with the regimental baggage at these depots.

Fifth. The sick of each division will be assembled at the division hospitals. Rush’s lancers will send their sick to the hospital of Gregg’s division, etc.

Sixth. The headquarters of the corps will be designated at night, during the campaign, either in bivouac or on the march, by a red lantern.

By command of Major-General STONEMAN.
J. H. Taylor, Asst. Adjutant-General”

The cavalry corps crossed the Rappahannock at Kelly’s Ford April 29, 1863. They carried three days’ rations and forage with the trooper, while three days supply was taken on pack mules, but no wheel transportation was carried. After Averell’s division was recalled by Hooker and other detachments left behind, the command consisted of an aggregate of 4,329 men. General Buford’s brigade, which included the Second Cavalry, moved to the left soon after crossing Kelly’s Ford. Later in the day the force was again assembled and bivouacked in a plowed field in pouring rain which lasted all night.

On April 30 the command marched in three parallel lines, while the country was patrolled for the enemy. When General Buford’s column crossed the Rapidan at Minot’s Ford, it put to flight a considerable body of the enemy. The whole force encamped on the south side of the river at Raccoon Ford. On May 1 they moved out at 2:00 a.m. in the rain, but were delayed for lack of proper guides. Another group of enemy cavalry was put to flight at Orange Springs, where some prisoners and provisions were captured. After an all-night march they reached Louisa Court House on the morning of May 2, which is located on the Virginia Central Railroad. Here parties were sent out for miles up and down the track to destroy it and burn the bridges and culverts. They spent most of the day at this place gathering supplies, as they were now living off the country. After some skirmishing with small groups of the enemy, the command moved out at 5:00 p.m. and reached Thompson’s Four Corners a little before midnight.

General Stoneman called his leaders together and issued orders to divide the command into small groups for the purpose of destroying property of military value. These units spread out in all directions and began a systematic destruction of railroads, telegraph wires, bridges, store houses, and machine shops. One detachment under Colonel Kilpatrick, while destroying property near Richmond, pursued a Rebel force inside the fortifications of that place. On May 3 General Buford’s command was located at Shannon Hill and sent out parties to destroy the canal and bridge near Cedar Point. This destruction was kept up on the return trip day and night. The command was moving and fighting so much of the time there was little chance to rest. When they finally reached Kelly’s Ford May 8, men were straggling and wandering off from their units at an alarming rate. The amount of damage done behind the enemy lines was enormous, but the cavalry was lost to Hooker during the important period of the battle of Chancellorsville.