Category Archives: resignations

Escaping General Grant

20 Monday Jan 2014

Posted by in 1861, 1862, 1863, 2nd U.S. Cavalry, 5th U.S. Cavalry, battle of Brandy Station, Fort Leavenworth, officers, resignations

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One might assume from the title that this post is about a Confederate unit.  It is actually the story of one cavalry company’s experience during the first half of the war, and the extraordinary measures needed to obtain its release from service as General Ulysses S. Grant’s escort to rejoin its regiment.

As Confederate forces opened fire on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, the two westernmost companies of the 2nd U.S. Dragoons were located at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.  Company K was almost immediately dispatched to Washington, D.C., arriving in time for the battle of Bull Run.  Company C followed the lead company by only days, but it would be over two years before it was reunited with the rest of the regiment. Elements of the regiment stationed nearly 1,000 miles farther west would reach the nation’s capital a year and a half before Company C.

The company was commanded by Captain James Morrison Hawes, with First Lieutenant Francis Crawford Armstrong and Second Lieutenant Solomon Williams assigned as his subalterns.  Forty five enlisted men were present for duty, among them a young sergeant from Massachusetts named Myles Moylan.

Captain Hawes had a distinguished career prior to the Civil War.  Born in Lexington and appointed to West Point from Kentucky, he graduated 29th in the class of 1845.  He received two brevet promotions for gallantry in battle during the Mexican War.  He later served as an instructor at the military academy for infantry tactics, cavalry tactics and mathematics.  He served for three years at the French cavalry school at Samur before his promotion to captain of Company C.  He was the only officer present for duty with the company in April, and resigned on May 9, 1861.

First Lieutenant  Armstrong was awarded a direct commission after graduating from Holy Cross Academy in Worcester, Massachusetts in 1855. 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.  He 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.  (more information about Armstrong can be found here.)  In April he was on detached service as an aide to General William S. Harney, a position he had held for nearly two years.

Second Lieutenant Solomon Williams was born in and appointed to West Point from North Carolina.  He graduated 11th in the class of 1858. He commanded the 2nd North Carolina Cavalry as a colonel for nearly a year prior to his death at the battle of Brandy Station.   General Stuart described him “as fearless as he was efficient.” He was forming his command for a charge against the advance of his old regular regiment when he was shot in the head and killed.  He was absent on furlough in April, and resigned on May 3, 1861.

Lieutenant Armstrong was temporarily (later promoted and permanently) assigned to command Company K, leaving no officers present for duty with the company.  The company’s first sergeant was Myles A. Moylan.  Enlisted as a private in Boston in 1857, he had rapidly risen through the company’s ranks.  Sergeant Moylan was promoted to first sergeant of the company on May 17, 1861.  This last promotion proved very important to the company.  During the next two years, it was commanded by eight officers of different regiments, including four infantry officers and two artillery officers.  It would have been the steady hand of the first sergeant that kept the company functioning. (More information about Moylan can be found here. )

The company remained at Fort Leavenworth until June 11th, when it departed with several other companies from the Leavenworth garrison for operations in Missouri.  Second Lieutenant Charles Farrand of Company B, 1st U.S. Infantry was temporarily placed in command of the company.  Farrand graduated 36th in the class of 1857 from West Point.  After a year at Newport Barracks, Kentucky, he had spent the previous four years on the frontier in Texas and the Indian Territory.  He arrived at Leavenworth only two weeks before, part of the column evacuated from Fort Cobb.

They spent the remainder of June and most of July on the march in Missouri, finally arriving at Camp Stanley on July 28th.  After a week’s stay there, they marched to Springfield, arriving on August 6th.  They marched forth as part of Gen. Lyons’ army and fought at the battle of Wilson’s Creek, Missouri, on August 10th.  Following the army’s defeat, the company marched by way of Springfield and St. Louis to Paducah, Kentucky.

In Paducah, they were assigned to the command of Brigadier General Charles F. Smith.  They spent the next several months engaged in scouting and escort duty.  They remained under General Smith’s command when Gen. Grant’s forces began to maneuver on Forts Henry and Donelson on February 5, 1862.  According to regimental returns, they “had a skirmish with the enemy in the vicinity of Fort Donelson on the 10th inst., and had another skirmish with them in the same place on the 12th; was engaged in the taking of Fort Donelson from the 15th until the surrender, on the 16th of February.”  Afterward, the company moved south with the rest the army to Nashville, arriving February 28.

On March 1st, Company C marched south with Grant’s army to Pittsburgh Landing, Tennessee.  During the battle of Shiloh, they fought with Company I, 4th U.S. Cavalry, under the command of James H. Powell, 18th U.S. Infantry. These companies were engaged all day April 6, 1862, in front of their camp, as skirmishers on the right of the Union army.

The company participated in the pursuit of the Confederate army after Shiloh, then were transferred from escorting one general to another.

“Savannah, Tenn., April 20th, 1862

Brig General Geo C. Cullum,

Chief of Staff & Engrs Dept of the Miss.

Pittsburgh Landing, Tenn.

General,

I understand that Genl Halleck has taken as his Body Guard Co’s C of the 2d & I of 4th Regular Cavalry; up to the present time under my command. There are six of these men now with me as my orderlies, shall I send them to report to their companies?

I beg to request that one of these men, Private Sullivan of Co. C, 2d Cav, may be allowed a furlough of thirty-five (35) days to accompany me to New York.

If the request is granted, may the proper papers of furlough & description roll be sent to me?

Very respectfully & truly yours,

C.F. Smith

Maj. Genl.”


The company served as Gen. Halleck’s escort during the advance on Corinth, Mississippi, once again under Captain Farrand’s command.

Unfortunately, when Halleck was ordered east to assume the position of General in Chief, the company did not accompany him.  In September, the company was assigned to the consolidated cavalry command under Colonel John K. Mizner.  Mizner had also been a lieutenant in the regiment at the beginning of the war.

On September 25th, the company marched to Pocahontas Farm, Tennessee, part of a cavalry probe ordered by General Ord to the Hatchie River.  They had a brisk skirmish with Confederate cavalry there, losing five men and eighteen horses taken prisoner.  Captain Farrand was also briefly taken prisoner, but escaped before reaching a Confederate prison.  Leaving Corinth on November 5th, the company made its way to Memphis by January 15th, serving there as General Grant’s escort.

In November, First Sergeant Moylan submitted a request for an appointment as a second lieutenant in the regular cavalry. Although the regimental returns show no officers present with the company, his request is endorsed by Second Lieutenant Charles Lewis “Comdg Co. ‘C’, 2nd Cavly.”  The request was endorsed by Generals C.F. Smith, McArthur and McPherson.

The regiment, meanwhile, was very short-handed in the Army of the Potomac.  It had deactivated three companies in the summer of 1862 in order to consolidate its limited manpower, sending the officers and noncommissioned officers north to recruit fresh companies.  Additional companies authorized the previous fall were still at Carlisle Barracks and had not yet reported for duty.

With another spring campaign on the horizon, Major Charles J. Whiting, the regimental commander, appealed to the Adjutant General to have Company C returned to the regiment.

“Washington D.C., Feby 23d 1863

Gen. L. Thomas

I have the honor to request that Company “C” 2d U.S. Cavalry, now serving with the Dept. of the Cumberland may be ordered to join the reg. It is useless for me to give any reasons.  It is evident that, with the force we have in the field that it is for the interest of the service to have the Reg together.

Very Respectfully

Your Obt Servant

Chas. J. Whiting

Major 2d Cav

Comdg Reg”

The endorsement for the letter on February 26th is unsigned, but presumably from General Thomas: “Gen. Grant requested to order the Co. to the A. of Potomac if he can dispense with their services.”

There was apparently such a shortage of cavalry in the Army of the Cumberland that not a single company could be spared for escort duty for its commanding general.  Nearly a month and a half later, on the eve of Stoneman’s Raid, Major Whiting tried again.  This time he routed his request through the chain of command.

“Headquarters 2d U.S. Cavalry, Camp near Falmouth, Va., April 4th 1863

Brig. General L. Thomas

Adjutant General, U.S.A.

General,

I have the honor to request that Company “C” of the 2d Regiment U.S. Cavalry be ordered to join the regiment if it be not inconsistent with the interests of the service. The monthly return of the company for February shows that it is stationed at Memphis, Tenn.  It has no commissioned officer of the regiment on duty with it, and only forty five enlisted men and twenty three serviceable horses.

I am very respectfully

Your obt servant

Chas. J. Whiting

Major 2d U.S. Cav

Commg Regiment”

 

The endorsements on this letter read like a Who’s Who of the Army of the Potomac:

“Hd Qrs Cav Reserve, April 3d 1863

Respectfully referred to Corps Hd Qrs asking that steps be taken for the return of the company.

Jno Buford, BG Vols, Cmdg”

“Headquarters Cavalry Corps, April 9/ 1863

Approved & resptly forwarded.

George Stoneman, Maj Genl, Comg”

“Headquarters, Army of the Potomac, April 11/ 1863

Respectfully forwarded with the request that this company may be ordered to join the regiment.

Joseph Hooker, Maj Gen, Commg”

And finally:

“Respectfully submitted to the General in Chief. On February 26 General Grant was directed to send this company to its regiment in the Army of the Potomac as soon as its services could be dispensed with, as measures were being taken to have all detached companies to join their regiments.  March 3rd, an order was issued by authority of the General in Chief, ordering the different detached companies to join their regiments without delay.  In the enumeration this company was not mentioned in view of the letter to General Grant above referred to.

As nothing has been heard from General Grant on the subject, and as it is of great importance the company should be with its regiment, it is respectfully recommended that it be at once relieved and ordered to join its regiment in the Army of the Potomac.

E.D. Townsend

Asst Adjt General”

 

General Halleck’s response was very succinct.

 

“Approved. The horses will not be transferred.  April 15th 1863.

H.W. Halleck

Genl in Chief”

 

Once the decision was made, things moved rapidly for the orphaned company.  By the end of the month, they were already in Washington, D.C., though without mounts.  The company was commanded during the movement by Second Lieutenant Myles Moylan, whose appointment to the 5th U.S. Cavalry was approved the previous month.  Only 25 men remained present for duty in the company, the majority of the losses from expiration of their terms of service.  In May, still without horses, the company was moved to the regiment’s camp of the previous winter near Falmouth, where it spent the remainder of the month.  In June, during the march from Beverly Ford to Aldie, the company rejoined the regiment.  It had 22 enlisted men present for duty, with 24 serviceable horses.

General Grant’s preference for a regular cavalry escort did not fade with time.  Shortly after his move to the east as General in Chief, four companies of the 5th U.S. Cavalry were assigned as his escort, and served in this capacity through the end of the war.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Cullum, George W. Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the U.S. Military Academy, Volume 2. Boston: Houghton, Mifflin and Company, 1891.

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

Lambert, Joseph I. One Hundred Years With the Second Cavalry. San Antonio: Newton Publishing Company, 1999.

NARA, RG 94, Letters Received by the Office of the Adjutant General, 1861-1870.

NARA, RG 94, Register of Enlistments.

NARA, RG 94, U.S. Returns from Military Posts, 1806-1916

NARA, RG 94, U.S. Returns from Regular Regiments, 2nd U.S. Cavalry

NARA, RG 391.3.2 Records of 1st-6th Cavalry Regiments

Rodenbough, Theophilus F. From Everglade to Canyon with the Second United States Cavalry. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 2000.

Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Gray. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959.

The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies.

 

Carlisle Barracks and the Mounted Recruiting Service, part 3

15 Tuesday Oct 2013

Posted by in 1864, 1st U.S. Cavalry, 2nd U.S. Cavalry, 3rd U.S. Cavalry, 4th U.S. Cavalry, 5th U.S. Cavalry, 6th U.S. Cavalry, cavalry, cavalry depots, officers, recruiting, resignations

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As 1864 opened, the only four operating recruiting stations were Cincinnati, Cleveland, Harrisburg and New York.  Lieutenant Anson Doolittle of the 4th U.S. Cavalry added a fifth in Madison, Wisconsin on January 8th.

In April, the growing controversy surrounding repairs to the post reached a head.  There were a number of issues concerning the contracts and materials needed to repair the post after July’s attack, and then-Captain Hastings wrote on several occasions for guidance and clarification from the Quartermaster General concerning the repairs.  Naturally enough, those who did not receive contracts or orders for material were disgruntled.  As post commander, Hastings was of course at the center of the storm.  Unfortunately for him, he had unwisely pursued repairs without the specific approval of the Quartermaster General, and found himself in a great deal of trouble as a result.

Hastings, who had been promoted to major in the 5th U.S. Cavalry in September, was relieved of command on April 21, 1864.  Charges were subsequently preferred, which led to a conviction by a General Court Martial.  The sentence was initially very severe, but was later commuted to six months suspension of pay and benefits, causing a Congressional investigation.  In December, Major Hastings was permitted to retire “for incapacity resulting from injuries received, or from exposure in the line of duty, in conformity with an Act of Congress, of August, 1861.”  Lieutenant Hancock T. McLean of the 6th U.S. Cavalry, assigned to the post the month before, briefly assumed command of the post.  Thomas Tousey, in his book Military History of Carlisle Barracks and Carlisle, provides a thorough discussion of the issues surrounding Hastings’ dismissal.

On May 19, 1864, Major William B. Royall of the 5th U.S. Cavalry assumed command of the post.  Like the two officers who had preceded him, Royall was another very experienced cavalryman.  He initially entered service as a volunteer officer at the beginning of the Mexican War, and had been assigned to the 5th (then 2nd) U.S. Cavalry when it was formed in 1855.  He was severely wounded during fighting at Old Church, Virginia on June 13, 1862.  He received six saber wounds in hand to hand combat, including “two sabre-contusions on the right side of the head; a cut two inches long on the forehead; a long cut on the left cheek which bled profusely; a cut on the right wrist, dividing a tendon; and an incised fracture, four inches long, of the left parietal bone.”  He received a well-deserved brevet promotion for his conduct in the battle, but recovering from his many wounds took many months.  He came to Carlisle after serving two months at the Cavalry Bureau in Washington.

As spring turned to summer, activity increased around the depot.  The Madison recruiting station closed, and a new one opened in Rochester, New York.  Since the regiments were involved in active campaigning, officers from Carlisle were ordered to conduct parties of recruits to their new regiments.  If annotated on maps or in reports, these detachments were labeled with the regiment of the officer leading them.  A detachment of recruits bound for the 1st U.S. Cavalry led by an officer of the 3rd, for example, would be noted as a detachment of the 3rd U.S. Cavalry.

Lieutenant Hancock McLean of the 6th U.S. Cavalry conducted a detachment of recruits to the 5th Cavalry in late May.  Lieutenant Frank Stanwood of the 3rd Cavalry led a detachment of recruits to the 5th & 6th U.S. Cavalry in late June.  During Confederate Lieutenant General Jubal A. Early’s advance on Washington the following month, Lt. Stanwood was ordered by the commander of the Department of the Susquehanna to scout south toward the Potomac.  This seemingly errant band of regulars of the “3rd U.S. Cavalry,” which never served in the eastern theater during the war, has caused confusion among researchers, including this author.

The remainder of the summer and fall passed unremarkably.  Captain Thompson of the 4th U.S. Cavalry opened a recruiting station in St Louis in August.  Lieutenant Stanwood conducted another party of 155 recruits to the 5th U.S. Cavalry in October.  An additional 135 recruits were transferred in November, and 142 more in December.  Captain Thompson closed the recruiting station in St Louis in November, while stations reopened in Pittsburgh and Philadelphia as the year’s campaigning drew to a close.

During the early months of 1865, the depot continued to forward recruits to the field: 129 in January, 134 in February, 123 in March and 94 in April.  It is doubtful this last group reached its destination before the cessation of hostilities.  At the end of the war, recruiting stations were still operating in Cincinnati, Cleveland, New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Rochester.

The careers of several officers other the commanders were significantly affected by recruiting duty.  Copley Amory of the 4th U.S. Cavalry was appointed a second lieutenant from Massachusetts on August 5, 1861.  He returned to Carlisle from May to December 1862, when he was returned to his regiment.  He was again assigned to the depot in June 1863, this time forwarded to the recruiting station in Boston.  After six more months of recruiting duty, he resigned in December 1863.

Irish-born John McDonald enlisted as a private in Company K, 1st U.S. Dragoons in 1857, and was promoted to first sergeant prior to his appointment as a lieutenant in the same regiment.  He was assigned to the depot in October 1862, remaining until ordered to rejoin his regiment on February 6, 1863.  On June 15, 1863, he was ordered back to the depot, and remained on recruiting service the rest of the war.

Next is the oft-mentioned Frank Stanwood of the 3rd U.S. Cavalry.  He joined at Carlisle as a new second lieutenant on September 27, 1861.  He remained until transferred to his regiment as a first lieutenant on August 21, 1862.  He served as the regimental quartermaster from his arrival until January 15, 1863.  In April, he was ordered back to the mounted recruiting service, where he remained until February 1865.  In all, Stanwood served only twelve months with his regiment during the war.  Ironically, he received a brevet promotion to captain on March 13, 1865 “for coolness, energy and skill in battle.”  He also received brevets to major and lieutenant colonel the same day for what was probably a more accurate description of “faithful and meritorious service during the war.”

Finally, Robert S. Smith was appointed a second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Dragoons on May 4, 1861.  He remained on recruiting service through promotions to first lieutenant and captain.  Smith did not actually join his regiment until September 5, 1864, over three years after his appointment!  Two weeks later he saw his first combat while leading his company at the battle of Opequon, or 3rd Winchester on September 19th.  Interestingly, his testimony of valor observed on the field in his first fight was later significant in the award of the Medal of Honor to First Sergeant Conrad Schmidt of Company K.

The concluding post of this series will discuss the recruiting stations and list the sources used to compile the article.

Resignations by Regiment

03 Tuesday Apr 2007

Posted by in resignations

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I finally managed to winnow through all of the resignations and compare them by regiment. Some of the results were interesting.

Of the 171 officers assigned to the three mounted arms at the beginning of 1861 (1 brigadier general and 34 officers assigned to each regiment), a total of 74 resigned, or 43%. Three of the five regiments lost 50% or more of their officers, and these were the last two regiments to reach the major theaters of fighting.

Despite claims in 1855 (and later) that they were formed to accommodate southern officers, the two cavalry regiments were not the hardest hit by resignations. The most resignations came from the 2nd Dragoons/2nd Cavalry with 19. Interestingly enough, the least number of resignations came from the other dragoon regiment with 9. As I derived these numbers only from 1861, I have to wonder how many 1st Dragoon/1st Cavalry officers wanted a free ride home from the west coast before tendering their resignations. The regiment didn’t completely close on Washington DC until the end of January 1862.

The results by regiment:
1st Dragoons/1st Cavalry: 9 of 34
2nd Dragoons/2nd Cavalry: 19 of 34
Regiment of Mounted Rifles/3rd Cavalry: 10 of 34
1st Cavalry/4th Cavalry: 17 of 34
2nd Cavalry/5th Cavalry: 18 of 34

Officers of the 1st US Cavalry in 1861, Part II

25 Sunday Feb 2007

Posted by in 1st Cavalry, officers, resignations

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The exodus began near the top of the regiment’s hierarchy in January, as LtCol William J. Hardee resigned his commission on the 31st. This Georgia born officer later became a lieutenant general in the Confederate Army. The effects of his resignation then cascaded through the regiment in a series of promotions. William H. Emory, the senior Major, was promoted to take his place. Captain Delos R. Sackett was promoted to the junior Major position, and 1stLt Robert Ransom, Jr was promoted to Captain and the command of Company F. 2ndLt John A. Thompson was promoted to the vacant position of 1st Lt in Company H.

With each resignation, another slew of promotions followed. 1stLt Philip Stockton resigned on February 27th, his position in Company B assumed by 2ndLt Edward Ingraham of Company I. On March 1st, Captain William D. Saussure of South Carolina resigned. Frank Wheaton was promoted to captain in Company B, and Eli Long to 1stLt of Company E.

Colonel Edwin V. Sumner was appointed a Brigadier General in the Regular Army on March 16 upon the dismissal of BrigGen David Twiggs. LtCol Robert E. Lee was promoted and transferred from the 2nd Cavalry to take command of the regiment, while Major John Sedgwick in turn assumed his position as LtCol of the 2nd Cavalry. Captain Thomas J. Wood of Company C was promoted to major, 1stLt David S. Stanley to captain and George D. Bayard to 1stLt the same day.

This must have been very confusing for the noncommissioned officers and enlisted men of the regiment, as none of those promoted remained in the same company. Only 15 of the 34 officers remained in their same rank and duty position over this three month period.

To add to the confusion, six new second lieutenants were appointed to the regiment from civilian life in February and March. Thomas B. Alexander, of Washington Territory, was assigned to Company F on February 21. The four new lieutenants were assigned to their companies on March 27. George G. Huntt, of the District of Columbia, was assigned to Company I; Napoleon B. McLoughlin, of New York, to Company H; and Thomas H. McCormick and Clarence Mouck, both of Pennsylvania, to Company C and G respectively. John A. Wilcox, also of the District of Columbia, was assigned to Company D on March 28.

On March 18th LtCol Emory was ordered to concentrate the regiment at Fort Washita and establish his headquarters there. Listed below are the 34 officers assigned to the regiment at the end of March, 1861. Outside of personnel moves, life remained relatively quiet for the regiment during this period.

Colonel Robert E. Lee*
Lt Col William H. Emory *
Maj Thomas J. Wood
Maj Delos R. Sackett
Adjutant (1Lt) Albert V. Colburn

Company A
Capt William N.R. Beall*
1st Lt Eugene W. Crittenden
2nd Lt Charles S. Bowman
Company B
Capt Frank Wheaton
1st Lt Edward Ingraham*
2nd Lt Oliver H. Fish*
Company C
Capt David S. Stanley
1st Lt Lunsford L. Lomax*
2nd Lt Thomas H. McCormick
Company D
Capt James McIntosh*
1st Lt George D. Bayard
2nd Lt John A. Wilcox
Company E
Capt Samuel D. Sturgis
1st Lt Eli Long
2nd Lt Andrew Jackson Jr
Company F
Capt Robert Ransom Jr*
1st Lt Elmer Otis
2nd Lt Thomas B. Alexander
Company G
Capt William S. Walker*
1st Lt James E.B. Stuart*
2nd Lt Clarence Mouck
Company H
Capt (Henry B. Davidson?)
1st Lt John A. Thompson
2nd Lt Napoleon B. McLoughlin
Company I
Capt (unknown)
1st Lt James B. McIntyre
2nd Lt George G. Huntt
Company K
Capt George H. Steuart*
1st Lt Richard H. Riddick*
2nd Lt Joseph H. Taylor

Manning the Regulars, Part II

20 Tuesday Feb 2007

Posted by in manning, resignations

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Officer manning within the Regular regiments started the war below full strength and never recovered. At the beginning of 1861 the Regular Army had only 16,367 of its authorized strength of 18,093 officers and men, and there had been no increase in strength since 1855 (Sawicki, Cavalry Regiments of the U.S. Army, pg 46). These numbers quickly dwindled as southern born (and some northern born) officers resigned their commissions and left the army.

As mentioned previously, four of the five commanders of the mounted regiments resigned. Many are aware that the one who did not, Philip St. George Cooke of the 2nd Dragoons, was a Virginian. The other officer ranks fared little better. Of the officers assigned to the 2nd Dragoons on January 1, 1861, 1 of 2 majors resigned, 6 of 12 captains resigned and 2 more retired. Seven of the twelve first lieutenants resigned or deserted. One of these, Francis N.C. Armstrong, resigned after leading his Company K for the Union during the first battle of Bull Run (Rodenbough, From Everglade to Canyon, pg 462). Those who remained were promoted and distributed among all five regiments.

Unlike the seemingly limitless number of volunteer regiments organized during the war, there were a finite number of Regular regiments, and officer billets within them. Total numbers included six colonels, six lieutenant colonels, eighteen majors, and 72 captains. Officers were commissioned and assigned against a specific billet in a specific regiment. These were the only billets authorized by Congress, and there were not any spares. Assignments outside the regiments for such things as instructors at the Cavalry School at Carlisle Barracks or aides de camp to general officers were taken out of hide from the regiments. If you were the regimental commander and one of your captains was teaching at West Point, for example, you did without a captain and a first lieutenant commanded one of your companies. Once assigned to a regiment as a second lieutenant, one remained a second lieutenant until a billet was vacated by one of the first lieutenants, via promotion, resignation, or death. It was possible, however, to be promoted to another regiment.

Even promotions worked against the strength of the Regulars, due to the promotion system of the Regular Army. During the course of the war, it was not uncommon for regular officers to take leaves of absence to lead volunteer units. These officers did not resign, and continued to count against the assigned strength of the regiment. Alfred Pleasonton, for example, occupied a major’s billet in the 2nd for the entire Civil War, even while commanding the Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac. At the end of the war, Wesley Merritt was likewise still assigned to the regiment, one of five major generals of volunteers on the rolls (Rodenbough, 371).

Senior officers within the regiments were rarely present with them. Thomas J. Wood, who succeeded Cooke in command of the 2nd when he was promoted to Brigadier General in November 1861, was commanding a brigade and then a division in the Tennessee and Mississippi campaigns. He remained in the western theater throughout the war, and never served with the regiment that he nominally commanded (Rodenbough, pg 438). This is one of the reasons that captains are usually noted as leading Regular regiments in reports in the Official Records and elsewhere. Indeed, this problem did not go away after the war. Regimental returns from November 1, 1866 show seven generals of volunteers assigned to the 2nd Cavalry, with a captain actually present commanding the unit and lieutenants commanding seven of the twelve companies (Rodenbough, pg 371).

New officers did join the regiments as the war progressed. Eleven new lieutenants joined the 2nd in 1861, four of them newly commissioned West Point graduates. Never, however, were they at a full complement of officers. The only possible exception to this might be the 6th US Cavalry, since it formed in the summer of 1861. Given the very active service of this regiment throughout the war, however, it is doubtful that they stayed at strength for long.