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Union Cavalry Corps-Armies of the West Civil War Facts
In the Western Armies there was not any corps organization composed of cavalry until December, 1864, although there were divisions of mounted troops in each military department. Hence the list of cavalry battles given here embraces those which occurred in all the operations west of the Alleghanies. It includes only the more important engagements of the cavalry; it would be impossible to give all of them.
The constant activity of scouting parties; the aggressive vigilance of the mounted troops at the outposts; the daring raids through hostile territory; and the continuous forays incidental to border warfare, resulted in countless fights which cannot be enumerated here. These minor affairs were characterized by courageous, desperate fighting, and though the casualty lists were small, the loss of life in the aggregate was a serious feature of the war. Many fell in contests which are unmentioned in history, fighting in nameless battles, and filling unmarked graves.
In December, 1864, while on Thomas's campaign in Tennessee against Maj. Gen. John B. Hood, the mounted troops were formed into an Army Corps of 7 divisions, and Maj. Gen. J. H. Wilson was assigned to its command. At the battle of Nashville, 4 of these divisions-- Gens. McCook's, Hatch's, Johnson's and Knipe's--were present.
After the defeat and dismemberment of Hood's Army, Wilson entered Alabama with his corps of troopers in March, 1865, and there fought the closing battles of the war. His 4 divisions were there commanded by Gens. McCook, Hatch, Long and Upton. Although the last infantry engagement of the war occurred April 9, 1865, Wilson's Corps fought at Columbus, Ga., on the 16th of April, 1865, in a spirited engagement with Brig. Gen. Nathan B. Forrest's command. The most of Wilson's men fought dismounted, and the affair--during which a daring and successful assault was made on the enemy's works--was one of the brilliant achievements of the war. About this time, also, Gen. Stoneman, with a body of cavalry under Gens. Gillem and Burbridge, made a raid through East Tennessee into Virginia.
During Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman's Atlanta Campaign(March to the Sea), the cavalry attached to his army was divided into 4 columns, commanded by Gens. Stoneman, Kilpatrick, Garrard and McCook (E. M.). Kilpatrick's Division afterwards accompanied that part of Sherman's Army which marched through Georgia to the Sea, and thence through the Carolinas.
In 1863, the cavalry attached to the Army of the Cumberland operated as a separate command, instead of being parceled out to brigades as previously.
At Stone's River it was massed under the command of Gen. David S. Stanley, its casualties in that battle amounting to 38 killed, 103 wounded, and 215 missing or captured; total, 356. It also lost 37 horses killed and 40 wounded. At Chickamauga, the cavalry forces were commanded by Gen. Robert B. Mitchell, and comprised 2 divisions under Gens. E. M. McCook and George Crook. The casualties in the Cavalry Corps at that battle aggregated 32 killed, 136 wounded, and 300 captured or missing; total, 468.
In the Department of the Gulf, the cavalry attached to Banks's Red River Expedition, April, 1864, was commanded by Gen. Alberty L. Lee, and comprised 5 brigades. Lee was succeeded by Gen. Richard Arnold. During Grant's Mississippi campaigns, Gens. W. S. Smith and Cyrus Bussey were entrusted with important cavalry commands.
Major Battles:
RAIDS
Stoneman's Raid
Streight's Raid
Grierson's Raid
CAMPAIGNS
Atlanta "March to the Sea"
Carolinas
ALABAMA
Maysville
Talladega
Plantersville
Selma
Tuscaloosa
Montgomery
ARKANSAS
Pea Ridge
Stone's River
McMinnville
Lone Jack
Prairie Grove
Arkadelphia
Camden
Prairie D'ann
Jenkins' Ferry
TENNESSEE
Middleton
Pulaski
Franklin
Triune
Shelbyville
Jackson
Sparta
Nashville
Salisbury
Bean's Station
Morristown
Mossy Creek.
Dandridge
Fair Gardens
Chickamauga
Carter's Station
Murfreesboro Road
Farmington
Blue Springs
Blountsville
Sweetwater
Moscow
Cleveland
Rutherford's Creek
Pulaski
MISSISSIPPI
Canton
Grenada
Byhalia
Wyatt's Ford
.Ripley
Brice's Cross Roads
Tupelo
Hurricane Creek
Egypt Station
GEORGIA
Graysville
Columbus
Macon
Irwinsville (Capture Of Jefferson Davis)
Red Clay
Resaca
Varnell's Station
Tilton
Rome
Dallas
Kingston
Kenesaw
Decatur
Ackworth
Mcaffee's Cross Roads
Griswoldville
Waynesboro
Ogeechee River
Powder Springs
Noonday Creek
Lovejoy's Station
Newnan
Hillsborg
Fairburn
Red Oak
Jonesborg
Cypress River
LOUISIANA
Natchitoches
Wilson's Farm
Sabine Cross Roads
Cane River
MISSOURI
Booneville
Little Blue
Independence
Big Blue
Osage River
KENTUCKY
Mount Sterling
VIRGINIA
Saltville
SOUTH CAROLINA
Salkahatchie River
NORTH CAROLINA
Rockingham
Solemn Grove
Averasboro
Bentonville
