The 2nd U.S. Cavalry – Cradle of Generals formed at Jefferson Barracks
By Gary Stevens

In 1855, the 1st and 2nd U.S. Cavalry Regiments were added to the force structure of the U.S. Army.  The 2nd was one of the most outstanding units in the history of the U.S. Army.  In addition to its service on the Texas frontier and the Mexican border, it produced an incredible number of generals. 

The 2nd was organized and trained at Jefferson Barracks and charged with the mission of protecting the western frontier of the United States, specifically Texas. This was done in response to Indian (primarily Comanche) raids on Texan settlements. 

Officers in the 2nd were handpicked by Jefferson Davis, then the secretary of war for the U.S.  For that reason, the regiment was nicknamed “Jeff Davis’s Own” or “Jeff Davis’s Pets.”  Most of the officers were graduates of West Point and Southerners.

Sixteen of the 34 officers in the 2nd became generals in the Civil War.  Eleven of the 16 served in the Confederate Army and five remained with the Union.  The Confederate Army had eight soldiers attain the rank of full general, and half came from the 2nd.  The four full Confederate generals were: Robert E. Lee, Albert Sydney Johnston, Edmund Kirby Smith, and John B. Hood.

Other future Confederate generals in the 2nd included Nathan G. “Shanks” Evans, Earl Van Dorn, William J. Hardee, and Fitzhugh Lee.  Future Union generals in the 2nd  included Richard W. Johnson, George Stoneman, and George H. Thomas.

From the beginning, the 2nd was designed to be a crack unit, and was supplied with the best horses, arms, and equipment possible.  For appearance and to promote espirit des corps, each company had horses of a matching color. 

The 2nd left Jefferson Barracks on October 27, 1855 for the journey to the Lone Star State.  After traveling through Missouri, Arkansas, and the Indian Territory (Oklahoma), the 2nd arrived in Texas on Dec. 15, 1855.

Companies of the 2nd were stationed at forts and camps across the Texas frontier.  Much of the regiment’s time was spent on long, often fruitless scouting missions chasing Indians across the dry and dusty Texas plains.

In the six years of its existence, the 2nd fought in some 40 engagements against Indians and Mexican bandits in Texas and Oklahoma. The two most significant actions were the battles at Devil’s River, July 20, 1857, in Texas (John B. Hood in command) and at Wichita Village, October 1, 1858, in present-day Oklahoma (Earl Van Dorn in command). 

The 2nd remained in Texas until the Civil War.  During the winter of 1861, the 2nd traveled back north and was assigned to Carlisle Barracks, Pa., under the command of George H. Thomas.  In the fall of 1861, the U.S. Army reorganized its cavalry units and the 2nd became the 5th U.S. Cavalry. 

Some of the officers of the 2nd would go on to face each other in combat during the Civil War.  For example, Hood’s and Thomas’ armies fought at the Battle of Nashville, Dec. 15-16, 1864. 

The 2nd U.S. Cavalry was truly remarkable for the large number of Civil War generals it produced.  And it all started here at Jefferson Barracks.

Robert E. Lee in Texas (Sons of the South)

Sources:

Arnold, James R. Jeff Davis’s Own: Cavalry, Comanches, and the Battle for the Texas Frontier. New Jersey: Castle Books, 2000.

Kollbaum, Marc E. Gateway to the West: The History of Jefferson Barracks from 1826-1894 Volume I. St. Louis: Friends of Jefferson Barracks, 2001.

Simpson, Harold B. Cry Comanche: The 2nd U.S. Cavalry in Texas, 1855-1861. Hillsboro, Texas: Hill Junior College Press, 1979.

Winter, William C. The Civil War in St. Louis: A Guided Tour. St. Louis: Missouri Historical Society Press, 1994.