2nd Massachusetts Cavalry Regiment
| 2nd Regiment, Massachusetts Volunteer Cavalry | |
|---|---|
 Company Guidon, Company A (California 100) | |
| Active | December 10, 1862 to July 20, 1865 |
| Country |  United States of America |
| Allegiance | Union |
| Branch | United States Army |
| Type | Cavalry |
| Engagements | Third Battle of Winchester Battle of Fisher's Hill Battle of Cedar Creek |
| Massachusetts U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiments 1861-1865 | ||||
|
The 2nd Massachusetts Volunteer Cavalry Regiment was a
History
Politicians at the start of the Civil War began raising volunteer troops in response to President
The so-called "California Hundred" was organized in
In February and March 1863, another 400 Californians were recruited and sent to Massachusetts to form Companies E, F, L, and M (the "California Battalion") of the 2nd Massachusetts Cavalry. They arrived in the Bay State on April 16, 1863, completing the full complement of the regiment. They moved to Washington, D.C., in May and Colonel Charles Russell Lowell was given command.
In August 1863, the regiment was combined in
The regiment lost during its service 8 officers and 82 enlisted men killed and mortally wounded, and 3 officers and 138 enlisted men by disease for a total of 231. Of the original California Hundred's 3 officers and 101 enlisted men, 40 were present the day the company disbanded. About 12 had died, others were discharged because of sickness or wounds or were transferred to other units, and 10 deserted, a greater desertion rate than from any other Massachusetts regiment.[2]
Two men of the regiment were awarded the
- Private Philip Baybutt at Luray, Virginia
- Captain Henry H. Crocker at the Battle of Cedar Creek
See also
- List of Massachusetts Civil War Units
- Massachusetts in the American Civil War
Notes
- ISBN 0253337860.
- ^ Colwell
References
- Bowen, James L. (1889) Massachusetts in the War 1861-65. Springfield, MA: Clark W Bryan & Co.
- Colwell, Wayne. "The California Hundred." Pacific Historian 1969 13(3): 63–75. ISSN 0030-8676.
- Dyer, Frederick H., A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion. Vol. 2. Dayton, Ohio: Morningside Press, 1979.
- 2nd Regiment of Cavalry, Massachusetts Volunteers
- The Second Mass and Its Fighting Californians
- Langellier, John Phillip and Colwell, Wayne. "Cavaliers from California" Gateway Heritage 1984-1985 5(3): 16–21. ISSN 0198-9375.
- McLean, James (2000). California Sabers: the 2nd Massachusetts Cavalry in the Civil War. Indiana University Press. ISBN 0253337860.
- Rogers, Larry, and Keith Rogers. Their Horses Climbed Trees: A Chronicle of the California 100 and Battalion in the Civil War from San Francisco to Appomattox. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Pub., 2001. Print.