2nd US Cavalry Co. A / 9th Virginia Cavalry Co. D

2nd US Cavalry History Addendum

Created by former team member David Michel)

Here's where I've listed a number of miscellaneous statements, articles, essays, and arcane trivia regarding the history of the Second Dragoons (2nd US Cavalry) and primarily covering the American Civil War period.  This sort of stuff doesn't fit into the neat chronological order of the  pages you've  been looking at.  See below.
 

A web page of the 2nd US Cavalry, Co. A/9th VA Cavalry Co. D Reenactors.

2nd US History

(Last update 4/01/04)

Where have all the Officers gone?

A look at rank ratio and "present for duty" numbers in the 2nd US Cavalry (Dragoons) during the War of the Rebellion. Based on Company A Bi-Monthly Muster Rolls and Regimental Monthly Returns this chart shows that:

  1. Officers were few and far between. Most were on detached duty most of the time.
  2. NCO to Private ratio was higher, at about 1 Sergeant and 1 Corporal to every 8 or 9 Privates.
  3. Companies A, B, and D sent their Privates to other companies ("A" men went to "E") in July 1862. These companies sent half their Officers & NCO's off on recruiting duty for a few months. Only the other companies showed up at Antietam.
  4. Comp'y A had a bugler almost all the time, and 2 buglers about half the time.
  5. The company had a Farrier / Blacksmith (included in Privates here) almost all the time.
  6. This regiment sent high numbers off on detached duty at various times. This often included orderly duty for Cavalry commanders, duty at Washington DC, Carlisle, PA, various Recruiting cities, or Duty at Camp Buford (Giesboro Pt.).

  7. The numbers of sick become very significant after heavy campaigning during 1863 and 1864.

  8. Note that Comp'y A arrived in Washington on November 29, 1861, 21 days after leaving Ft. Kearny NE. The Company's last actions were raids through Loudoun County November 28 through December 3, and around Gordonsville December 29, 1864.

    Company A, Present for Duty                Regiment Present, Detached, & Sick
 

Date

 Comp'y A

C.O.

Offcr. #

Enlist. #

Sgt. #

Cpl. #

Bglr. #

Pvt. #

Regmt. Offcr.

Offcr. Detach

Regmt. Enlistd

Enlistd Detach

Regmt.Sick

Plan>

Capt.

6

102

8

8

2

84

          

2/61

Capt.

2

62

4

4

2

52

          

3/61

                        

4/61

  

0

62

4

4

2

52

13

14

536

84

1

5/61

  

1

63

        

13

11

569

47

1

6/61

Lt.

1

66

4

4

2

56

8

16

547

43

5

7/61

  

1

53

        

7

14

487

77

7

8/61

Lt.

1

54

4

3

1

46

5

14

471

69

11

9/61

  

1

45

        

8

14

508

31

8

10/61

Capt.

1

36

3

3

1

29

7

12

495

36

10

11/61

  

0

45

        

5

19

515

12

10

12/61

  

0

49

4

3

2

40

10

11

515

13

9

1/62

  

0

48

        

13

12

500

16

11

2/62

  

0

49

4

4

2

39

12

14

487

14

12

3/62

  

0

49

        

12

14

445

38

26

4/62

  

0

48

4

4

2

38

12

16

437

30

31

5/62

  

2

42

        

15

9

400

37

38

6/62

Lt.

2

37

4

3

2

28

12

15

377

43

33

7/62

  

1

5

        

11

16

349

69

25

8/62

Lt.

1

5

2

2

1

0

9

16

268

96

50

9/62

  

1

5

        

12

21

284

73

40

10/62

Lt.

1

5

2

2

1

0

11

26

388

72

26

11/62

  

1

5

        

13

27

617

56

26

12/62

Capt.

2

83

3

1

2

77

17

17

643

162

49

1/63

  

?

?

        

?

?

?

78

54

2/63

Capt.

2

82

5

8

0

69

21

17

798

78

45

3/63

  

0

28

        

11

25

484

347

53

4/63

  

1

52

5

7

0

40

19

19

452

346

57

5/63

Capt.

2

33

7

6

2

18

18

25

411

374

47

6/63

  

0

61

        

5

18

579

135

78

7/63

  

0

56

        

8

17

398

215

127

8/63

  

0

56

7

7

1

41

8

18

499

85

115

9/63

  

1

54

        

8

20

521

136

74

10/63

Capt.

2

45

6

6

1

32

10

19

413

224

98

11/63

  

2

40

        

15

19

420

231

83

12/63

  

2

43

?

?

?

?

12

18

444

201

67

1/64

  

2

43

        

14

16

435

200

60

2/64

Capt.

2

43

6

7

2

28

14

14

419

203

49

3/64

  

1

33

        

12

18

268

243

43

4/64

Lt.

1

41

3

5

2

31

13

16

412

138

46

5/64

  

1

36

        

14

16

367

153

56

6/64

  

0

20

2

5

1

12

10

12

276

185

114

7/64

  

0

37

        

9

14

321

59

137

8/64

  

0

28

2

1

1

24

5

15

233

76

145

9/64

  

0

24

        

3

13

176

96

153

10/64

  

0

24

?

?

?

?

2

14

185

79

141

11/64

  

0

33

        

2

17

237

40

120

12/64

  

0

31

4

4

1

22

4

19

210

25

77

1/65

  

1

24

        

5

21

179

63

66

2/65

  

0

37

4

5

1

27

5

22

275

35

50

3/65

                      

51

4/65

Lt.

2

42

6

7

2

27

    

357

23

31

5/65

  

2

42

        

6

21

347

16

53

6/65

Lt.

0

41

8

3

2

28

6

20

364

53

28

Average

  

0.9

40.9

4.3

4.3

1.4

34.2

10.1

16.9

414.7

105.1

53.9

 

Born in Ireland - Appointed from the Army

Sometimes you have to work to find this stuff, and sometimes it jumps off the page. In this case it hit me after I'd read the same material several times. This comes straight out of the officers military records in From Everglade to Canon with the Second Dragoons.  These men had been serving as enlisted personnel and received promotion as Commissioned Officers.

 

JAMES CAHILL

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army [assigned to Comp'y A as 1st Lt. April '65]

Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., Aug. 10, 1863. Served: in the Army of the Potomac, and slightly wounded at the (First Lieut. 2d Cav., June 11, 1864) battle of Todd's Tavern, Va., May 9, 1864; at Ft. Ellsworth, Kas.; Capt. 2d Cav., Nov. 1, 1867. Died at Ft. Russell, Feb 5, 1868.

 

JAMES EGAN

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army

Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., Aug. 10, 1863; Bvt. First Lieut., May 31, 1864, "for gallant and meritorious services at the battle of Cold Harbor, Va., " where he was wounded severely (First Lieut. 2d Cav., Oct. 19, 1864); absent sick at Washington D.C. to Dec., 1865; at Ft. Lyon C.T. and in the field to Sept., 1866; on recruiting service to Oct., 1868 (Capt. 2d Cav., Feb. 5, 1868); Fort Sanders W.T. to Nov., 1868; Ft. D.A. Russell, to May, 1869; Ft. Laramie and the field to Dec., 1869; Omaha Barracks to Nov., 1871; North Platte Barracks to Nov., 1872; Laramie to Apr., 1874; Baker's Sioux Expedition to 1874; Omaha Barracks to ___.

 

ROBERT LENNOX

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army

Enlisted in the 2d U.S. Drag., Oct. 1854; engaged in the Sioux Indian Expedition, 1855; Kansas riots, 1856-57; and the Utah Expedition and in Utah to 1861; with regiment in the Army of the Potomac, and engaged in the Peninsula Campaign and battles of Second Bull Run, South Mountain, and Antietam (Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., July 17, 1862; First Lieut. 2d Cav., April 27, 1863); severely wounded at the battle of Beverly Ford VA.; on the staff of Generals Buford and Pleasanton to Oct., 1863; Regimental Adjutant, Oct., 1863; engaged in the cavalry campaigns under Generals Stoneman and Sheridan; lost left arm at the battle of Smithfield Va.; mustering and disbursing duty, Michigan; with regiment at Ft. Leavenworth Kas., 1865. Dismissed, Jan. 18, 1866

 

MICHAEL LAWLESS

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army [assigned to Comp'y A as 1st Lt. Feb '64]

Sergeant 2d Drag. for many years. Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., July 17, 1862. Served: in campaigns of the Army of the Potomac; in Stoneman Raid, May 1863; battle of Beverly Ford (First Lieut. 2d Cav., June 9, 1863), June 9, 1863; Upperville, Aldie, Gettysburg, Williamsport, Falling Waters, Boonsborough, Manassas Gap, 1863; at Camp Buford, Washington, to Oct. 1863; in Sheridan's Raids on Richmond, May--June, 1864, where he was distinguished for his personal intrepidity in action and other good qualities as a soldier. Killed, in action near Trevillian Station, Va., June 11, 1864 [while commanding Compy'A].

 

PAUL QUIRK

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army

Enlisted in the 2d U.S. Drag. Apr., 1852; Corporal, 1853; Sergeant, 1854. Served: in Texas, Kansas, Utah, and Nebraska, to 1861; Washington D.C., Dec., 1861 (Sec Lieut. 2d Cav., July 17, 1862). Served: with regiment, Army of Potomac, to 1863 (Bvt. First Lieut. 2d Cav., Sept., 17, 1862; Bvt Capt., June 9, 1863 "for gallantry and meritorious conduct at the battle of Beverly Ford, Va." where he was severely wounded; First Lieut., 2d Cav., Feb 13, 1864); mustering and disbursing, New York City, 1865--67 (Retired Jan. 5, 1865; Bvt Major, Mar., 13, 1865, "for gallant and meritorious conduct during the war"; Capt. U.S.A., July 28, 1866); G.C.M., Richmond, Va., 1867--69.

 

CHARLES McMASTER

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army

Sergeant 4th U.S. Cav.; Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., Aug. 10, 1863. Joined Camp Buford, Sept., 1863; Acting Adjutant to Nov., 1863; Mitchell's Station, Va., to May, 1864; with regiment (Army of the Potomac), participating in Sheridan's raids to Richmond, including battles of Todd's Tavern, Yellow Tavern, Meadow Bridge, Hawe's Shop, Cold Harbor, Trevillian Station, Deep Bottom, to Aug., 1864; also in Shenandoah Campaign and actions of Smithfield, Berryville, and Newton, Battle of Winchester, and affair with guerillas at Front Royal, where he was mortally wounded while charging at the head of his men, Sept. 23, 1864. First Lieut., Sept. 19, 1864. Died at Winchester, Va. Oct. 25, 1864.

 

PATRICK HORRIGAN

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army

Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., Oct. 31, 1863; Bvt First Lieut., June 11, 1864, "for gallant conduct at the battle of Trevillian Station" (First Lieut. 2d Cav., Jan. 5, 1865) where he was wounded. Transferred to 13th Inf., Feb. 13, 1867.

 

DANIEL FLYNN

Born in Ireland -- Appointed from the Army

Sec. Lieut. 2d Cav., July 17, 1862. In the Maryland campaign (Army of the Potomac, --(Bvt. First Lieut., June 9, 1863, "for gallant and meritorious conduct at the battle of Beverly Ford," where he was wounded). Retired Sept 30, 1863. Died June --, 1875.