Happy New Year

From my family to all of my readers and theirs, we send best wishes for a healthy, happy and prosperous 2008. 2007 was a really good year, and we look forward to many improvements this year.

6th US Cavalry Annual Return for 1861

It seemed appropriate on the last day of the year to post information from one of the annual returns for one of the regiments. Since I've decided to follow the 6th Cavalry through 1862 with a series of posts next year, I decided to use their 1861 returns.

A more detailed introduction to the regiment will follow in a few days, but it had been authorized by presidential proclamation in May of 1861. Recruiting started in earnest in mid-June, and the end of year found the regiment encamped in Washington, D.C.

The regiment had three homes during the year: Camp Scott, just outside of Pittsburgh, PA; Bladensburg, MD; and Camp East of the Capitol, in Washington, D.C.
Ten of the regiment's authorized twelve companies were formed, lacking only companies C and L.

By the end of 1861, 34 officers had been assigned to the regiment, 23 appointed from the Army and 11 from civilian life. One lieutenant had died, and seven were promoted during the year.

A total of 1,011 enlisted men had joined the regiment. 993 joined from general depots, and 14 transferred from other units. Many of these transfers later became officers. A total of 19 enlisted men were discharged by year's end. Two were minors who lied initially lied about their age and were subsequently discharged by order. Eight were discharged for disability, and nine were discharged for transfer. Four of these transfers were to other units, and four were discharges for officer appointments. Of the officers, three remained in the regiment: Andrew Stoll (Sergeant, Co. F), Daniel Madden (F&S, Commisary Sergeant), and Samuel M. Whitside (F&S, Regimental Sergeant Major). The fourth, Byron Kirby, was appointed to the 6th U.S. Infantry Regiment.

19 troopers deserted during the year. The first, Nicholas Semple of Company F, deserted in August, but rejoined the regiment the following month. Two of the other eighteen were apprehended and reassigned to other companies. The nineteen deserters were Semple, John Purcell, Charles Northrup, James O'Connell, William Hults, John McClelland, John Boyd, Edward Heakin, Washington Laughlin, William Ferguson, John Schmuckler, Jacob Bock, Thomas Steen, James Warnesut, Lawrence Shay, Thomas Powers, Norman O. Hastings, Patrick Purcell and Charles Jackson. I'm unsure if the two Purcells were related. They were in the same company, but deserted three months apart.

Six troopers from the 6th Cavalry died in 1861, none of them combat-related and all of them at Washington, D.C. J.W. Manson of Company K was the regiment's first casualty, dying in the hospital in Washington on November 6. George Scheide of Company F died in hospital the following day, and Samuel Brocker of Company D on November 10th. James Gargen of Company F died of fever on December 3rd, and Joseph H. Bakeley of Company D also died of fever two days later. Hamilton Hardy of Company B was the regiment's last casualty of 1861, dying of smallpox on December 13th.

Interestingly, horses were not included on regimental annual returns in 1861.

Yea, more references

Thanks to a visit from Santa Higginson, several Amazon elves and various family members, more Civil War reference books arrived over the holidays. Among them were the histories of the 8th New York Cavalry and the "College Cavaliers", so other than a few National Tribune articles that Eric has kindly put me on the trail of, I think I have all of the tools to finish up the Harpers Ferry project.

Among other new arrivals are Volume III of The Union Cavalry in the Civil War (hadn't realized until recently I was missing that one), Beatie's Army of the Potomac series thus far, and a History of the 16th PA Cavalry for 1863. That last one will hopefully add to my knowledge of the St Patrick's Day Battle of Kelly's Ford in 1863.

So much reading, so little time....

Fiddler's Green: Francis C. Armstrong

Frank Armstrong is one of the unusual few soldiers who had the distinction of leading both Union and Confederate troops into battle during the war.

Francis Crawford Armstrong was born on November 22, 1835, at the Choctaw Agency near Scullyville, Indian Territory. His father, Frank W. Armstrong, was an Army officer serving at the agency until his death during Frank’s childhood. His mother remarried soon after, to General Persifor Smith, a Mexican War veteran. He was educated at Holy Cross Academy in Worcester, Massachusetts, enrolling in his studies on January 19, 1845.

Frank accompanied his stepfather on a military tour of Texas in 1854. During an encounter with hostile Indians in New Mexico Territory near El Paso, Frank so distinguished himself that he was awarded a direct commission into the Army upon his graduation from Holy Cross the following year.

Frank Armstrong was appointed a second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Dragoons from Texas on June 7, 1855. He was initially assigned to Fort Riley, Kansas, where he served until June, 1857. He later served at Fort Leavenworth and on the Utah expedition until August 1858. Armstrong was promoted to first lieutenant, 2nd Dragoons on March 9, 1859. After a brief leave of absence, he was assigned to Fort Kearny as the aide-de-camp to General Harney until May 1861. Armstrong was promoted to captain, 2nd Dragoons, a month later on June 6th.

Captain Armstrong commanded Company K, 2nd U.S. Dragoons during the first Battle of Bull Run, and was attached to Colonel Hunter’s division. Disillusioned following the battle, he resigned on August 13, 1861 and enlisted in the Confederate Army.

Armstrong served initially as an assistant adjutant general on the staff of General Ben McCulloch until he was killed at the Battle of Pea Ridge. Promoted shortly thereafter to Major, he then served briefly on the staff of General James McIntosh. Armstrong was elected Colonel of the 3rd Louisiana Infantry, but served very briefly with them before he was given command of General Sterling Price’s cavalry.

He effectively covered Confederate retreats following defeats at Iuka and Corinth at the end of 1862, and was promoted to brigadier general in the Confederate Army on January 30, 1863.

He served through the majority of 1863 under General Nathan B. Forrest, effectively leading his brigade. He commanded a dismounted cavalry division under Forrest with distinction at the battle of Chickamauga. “The charges made by Armstrong’s brigades while fighting on foot would be creditable to the best drilled infantry,” said Forrest in his report on the battle.

In February 1864, Armstrong requested a transfer to the command of Stephen D. Lee, and was assigned command of a brigade of Mississippi cavalry. This brigade consisted of the 1st, 2nd, 28th and Ballentyne’s Mississippi cavalry regiments, and served under Armstong’s command until the end of the war.

Armstrong’s brigade was very active during the Atlanta campaign, then afterwards during Hood’s Tennessee campaign. He led much of Forrest’s rear guard during the army’s long retreat from its disastrous defeat at Nashville.

His last battle of the war was at Selma, Alabama on April 2, 1865. His hopelessly outnumbered command was overwhelmed by Union cavalry under General James H. Wilson. Armstrong escaped after the battle and later surrendered in Macon, Georgia.

After the war, Armstrong worked with the Overland Mail Service in Texas. He was later a U.S. Indian Inspector from 1885 to 1889, and served as an Assistant Commissioner of Indian Affairs from 1893 to 1895.

Frank Armstrong died at his daughter’s summer home in Bar Harbor, Maine after a long illness on September 8, 1909. He is buried in Rock Creek Cemetery, Washington, D.C.


Sources:

Evans, Clement, ed. Confederate Military History, Volume VIII, (Atlanta: Confederate Publishing Company, 1899)

Evans, David. Sherman’s Horsemen. (Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1999)

Foreman, Carolyn Thomas. “The Armstrongs of Indian Territory” in Chronicles of Oklahoma, Volume 31 (http://digital.library.okstate.edu/Chronicles/v031/v031p056.pdf)

Heitman, Francis B. Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army (Washington: Government Printing Office, 1903), page 292.

Rodenbough, Theophilus F. From Everglade to Canyon with the Second United States Cavalry (New York: D. Van Nostrand, 1875)

Warner, Ezra. Generals in Gray. (Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959), pages 12-13.

Initial Cavalry Training

Well, he's admittedly not quite ready for saber, pistol or carbine yet, but Connor sure seems to like the horse....

Merry Christmas!

I'd like to wish all of my readers a very Merry Christmas from my family to yours. Hopefully you'll enjoy the day with family as I plan to. Best wishes to all of you for a happy 2008 as well.

What Do You Want To See More Of?

As I review my entries for the year, assess the State of the Blog, and make plans for where it's going in 2008, I thought I'd solicit the opinions of my readers on what you would like to see more of here in the future.

All opinions are equally valid, so request away. Ironically enough, one of the things I discovered while reviewing entries is that posts soliciting questions have a pretty poor return rate. However, several bloggers are already taking their "holiday break", so maybe there's a chance.

The Fiddler's Green series seem to be the most popular entries so far, and Brian Downey was even kind enough to make mention of them in his year end entry over on Behind Antietam on the Web. I have some roads to war and lost companies posts to finish up as well as a few other projects (Harry, I'm getting there with the cavalry at 1st Bull Run project, honest), and I've noticed that other than biographical entries I've left the 6th US Cavalry alone so far. But again, I'm looking for what YOU would like to see.

Recommendations for how to improve the site wouldn't hurt my feelings either....