1ST KENTUCKY CAVALRY U.S.
COMMANDER:COL.FRANK WOLFORD
THE FIRST KY CAV WAS FAMOUS FOR IT LACK OF DRILL.WHAT THE FIRST LACKED IN DRILL IT MADE UP IN HORSEMENSHIP. THE FIRST SPENT MOST OF THE WAR CHASING GEN.JOHN HUNT MORGAN THEY DEFEATED JOHN HUNT MORGAN ON TWO SEPERATE ENGAGEMENTS AND WAS THE ONLY CAVALRY THAT GEN.MORGAN HAD RESPECT FOR WHICH WAS PROVEN WHEN HE WAS CAPTURED IN OHIO HE GAVE COL.WOLFORD HIS PERSONAL SILVER SPURS TO WEAR FOR THE REST OF THE WAR(until he was dishonorably discharged in 1864 for his strong public dislike of abraham lincoln.)THE FIRST WAS ASSIGNED TO 1ST DIVISION,ARMY OF THE OHIO.SOME ENGAGEMENTS THE FIRST FOUGHT IN WERE: WILDCAT MTN,MILL SPRINGS ,PERRYVILLE AND CUMBERLAND GAP(SCOUTING PARTIES).
Organized at Liberty, Burkeville and Monticello, Ky., October, 1861, and mustered in October 28, 1861. Attached to Thomas' Command, Camp Dick Robinson, Ky., to December, 1861. 1st Division, Army of the Ohio, to March, 1862. (5 Cos. attached to Garfield's 18th Brigade, Army Ohio. December, 1861, to March, 1862.) Unattached, Army Ohio, to September, 1862. 1st Brigade, Cavalry Division, Army Ohio, to November, 1862. Post Gallatin, Tenn., Dept. of the Cumberland, to April, 1863. District of Central Kentucky, Dept. Ohio, to June, 1863. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, 23rd Army Corps, Army Ohio, to August, 1863. Independent Cavalry Brigade, 23rd Army Corps, to November, 1863. 1st Brigade, 1st Division, Cavalry Corps, Army Ohio, to May, 1864. Independent Brigade, Cavalry Division, 23rd Army Corps, to August, 1864. 4th Brigade, 1st Division, District of Kentucky, Dept. of Ohio, to December, 1864. Camp Nelson, Military District of Kentucky, to September, 1865.
SERVICE--Near Rockcastle Hills October 18, 1861. Camp Wild Cat October 21. Fishing Creek December 8. (5 Cos. sent to Prestonburg, Ky., December 10 and Join Garfield. Garfield's operations against Humphrey Marshall December 23, 1861, to January 20, 1862. Middle Creek, near Prestonburg, January 10, 1862.) Near Logan's Cross Roads, Mill Springs, on Fishing Creek, January 19-20, 1862. Near Cumberland Gap February 14 (Detachment). Big Creek Gap and Jacksboro March 14 (Detachment). Reconnaissance to Cumberland Gap March 21-23 (1st Battalion). Moved to Nashville, Tenn., April. Purdy and Lebanon May 5. Duty at Shelbyville, Columbia, Mt. Pleasant, Lawrenceburg, Pulaski and Murfreesboro, Tenn., until August. March to Louisville, Ky., in pursuit of Bragg August 21-September 26. Capture of 3rd Georgia Cavalry at New Haven September 29. Pursuit of Bragg into Kentucky October 1-22. Near Perryville October 6-7. Battle of Perryville October 8. Danville October 11. Near Mountain Gap October 14 and 16. March to Nashville, Tenn., October 22-November 7. Ordered to Kentucky November. Operations against Morgan December, 1862, to January, 1863. Operations against Pegram March 22-April 1. Danville March 24. Dutton's Hill, near Somerset, March 30. Expedition to Monticello and operations in Southeast Kentucky April 25-May 12. Howe's Ford, Weaver's Store, April 28. Monticello May 1. Neal Springs May. Near Mill Springs May 29. Monticello and Rocky Gap June 9. Saunders' raid in East Tennessee June 14-24. Lenoir June 19. Knoxville June 19-20. Strawberry Plains and Rogers' Gap June 20. Powder Springs Gap June 21. Columbia and Creelsborough June 29. Pursuit of Morgan July 2-26. Marrowbone, Burkesville, July 2. Columbia July 3. Martin's Creek July 10. Buffington's Island. Ohio, July 19. Near Lisbon July 26. Operation against Scott in Eastern Kentucky. Lancaster and Paint Lick Bridge July 31. Lancaster August 1. Smith's Shoals, Cumberland River, August 1. Burnside's campaign in East Tennessee August 16-October 17. Calhoun and Charleston September 25. Near Philadelphia September 27 and October 15. Philadelphia October 20. Motley's Ford, Little Tennessee River, November 4. Knoxville Campaign November 4-December 23. Marysville November 14. Little River November 14-15. Stock Creek November 15. Near Knoxville November 16. Siege of Knoxville November 17-December 5. Pursuit of Longstreet December 5-23. About Bean Station December 9-13. Operations about Dandridge January 16-17, 1864. Bend of Chucky River, near Dandridge, January 16. Dandridge January 17. Flat and Muddy Creek January 26. Seviersville January 26. Near Fair Garden January 27. Moved to Mt. Sterling, Ky., February 17-26, and duty there reorganizing until April. March to Tunnel Hill, Ga., May 1-12. Atlanta Campaign May to September. Demonstrations on Dalton May 9-13. Operations on line of Pumpkin Vine Creek and battles about Dallas, New Hope Church and Allatoona Hills May 25-June 5. Operations about Marietta and against Kenesaw Mountain June 10-July 2. Lost Mountain June 10 and 15-17. Assault on Kenesaw June 27. Operations on line of Nickajack Creek July 2-5. Campbellton July 4. On line of the Chattahoochie River July 5-17. About Atlanta July 22-27. Stoneman's raid to Macon July 27-August 6. Macon and Clinton July 30. Sunshine Church July 30-31. Ordered to Mt. Sterling, Ky., September. Duty at Camp Nelson, Ky., and at other points in Kentucky until December. Mustered out December 31, 1864. Veterans and recruits consolidated to a Battalion of 3 Companies and on duty at various points in Kentucky, operating against guerrillas and quieting country, until September, 1865. Mustered out September 20, 1865.
Regiment lost during service 5 Officers and 56 Enlisted men killed and mortally wounded and 1 Officer and 282 Enlisted men by disease. Total 344.
FIRST KENTUCKY ARTILLERY BATTERY B
Organized at Camp Dick Robinson, Ky., as Company D, 3rd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, but mustered in as a Battery October 8, 1861. Attached to Thomas' Command, Camp Dick Robinson, Ky., to December, 1861. Artillery, 1st Division, Army Ohio, to March, 1862. Unattached Artillery, Army Ohio, March, 1862. 23rd Independent Brigade, Army Ohio, to September, 1862. Artillery, 8th Division, Army Ohio, to November, 1862. Artillery, 2nd Division, Center 14th Army Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to January, 1863. Artillery, 2nd Division, 14th Army Corps, to October, 1863. Unattached Army of the Cumberland, to December, 1863. Artillery Brigade, 12th Army Corps, Army Cumberland, to April, 1864. Unattached Artillery, Dept. Cumberland, to August, 1864. Defenses Nashville & Northwestern Railroad to October, 1864. Artillery Brigade, 4th Army Corps, to November, 1864.
SERVICE.--At Campbellsville, Ky., December, 1861. At Beech Grove, Ky., January, 1862. March to relief of Thomas at Mill Springs, Ky., January 19-21. Moved to Louisville, Ky., thence to Nashville, Tenn., February 10-March 2. Advance on Murfreesboro March 17-19. Duty at Murfreesboro, Columbia, Shelbyville and Elk River Bridge guarding line of Chattanooga Railroad until July. Negley's Expedition to Chattanooga June 1-15 (Section). Chattanooga June 7-8. Battle of Murfreesboro July 13. Hewitt and 4 guns captured. At Manchester August (1 Section), and at Nashville until December. Siege of Nashville September 12-November 7. Franklin Pike, near Nashville, December 14. Advance on Murfreesboro December 26-30. Battle of Stone's River December 30-31, 1862, and January 1-3, 1863. At Murfreesboro until June. Middle Tennessee (or Tullahoma) Campaign June 23-July 7. Hoover's Gap June 24-26. Occupation of Tullahoma July 1. Elk River Bridge July 3 and 14. Stationed at Elk River Bridge guarding line of Nashville Chattanooga Railroad until February, 1864. At Decherd Station until April and at Tullahoma, Tenn., until November. Ordered to Louisville, Ky., and mustered out November 16, 1864.
Battery lost during service 2 Enlisted men killed and 20 Enlisted men by disease. Total 22.
1ST KENTUCKY CAVALRY C.S.
Helm was commissioned a colonel on October 19, 1861, and served under Brig. Gen. Simon B. Buckner in Bowling Green, Kentucky. Helm's group was then ordered south. He was promoted to brigadier general on March 14, 1862, and was given command of the 1st Kentucky "Orphan" Brigade several months later. Helm maintained command of the Orphan Brigade through the Battle of Baton Rouge and with the brigade joined the Army of Tennessee, where he was with Maj. Gen. John C. Breckinridge throughout the Tullahoma and Chickamauga Campaigns in 1863, when he was mortally wounded at the Battle of Chickamauga on September 20, 1863. He died on the battlefield the following day, with his last word being "Victory." Following his death, Abraham Lincoln and Mary Todd Lincoln went into private mourning at the White House, her niece recalling: "She knew that a single tear shed for a dead enemy would bring torrents of scorn and bitter abuse on both her husband and herself." Emilie Todd Helm was granted safe passage to the White House in December 1863.
1st Cavalry Regiment was organized during the late summer of 1861 and its companies were mustered into Confederate service in October. It served in the Central Army of Kentucky and the Department of East Tennessee and fought in various engagements in Kentucky and Tennessee. Because of its difficult service in Kentucky during September and October, 1862, it was reduced to a battalion and assigned to the 3rd Kentucky Cavalry. The field officers were Colonel Benjamin H. Helm; Lieutenant Colonels J.W. Griffith, H.C. Leavell, and Thomas G. Woodward; and Majors John W. Caldwell and N.R. Chambliss.
