Gaines Mill week

In commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the battle of Gaines Mill on June 27, 1862, I'll be featuring posts on the regular cavalry's participation in the battle this week. I won't focus on the decision-making of Brig. Gen. Philip St. George Cooke, as that's been covered before and likely will be again this week elsewhere. I'll focus on the stories of the two regular regiments involved, the 1st and 5th U.S. Cavalry regiments. I've examined their official reports and monthly returns for information on the battle. Unfortunately, I'm away from home on a work trip for the next month, so I'm not able to provide Chaplain Gracey's account of the charge of the 5th U.S. Cavalry. He was present on the field with the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry.