Brackett's Minnesota Cavalry Battalion was a Minnesota USV

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry ...

battalion A battalion is a military unit, typically consisting of 300 to 1,200 soldiers commanded by a lieutenant colonel, and subdivided into a number of companies (usually each commanded by a major or a captain). In some countries, battalions are ...

that served in the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

Service

Companies A, B, and C organized at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, as 1st, 2nd and 3rd Companies, Minnesota Light Cavalry, September to November, 1861. Ordered to Benton Barracks, Missouri, November, 1861, and attached to Curtis Horse, an Independent Regiment of Cavalry, which was later designated 5th Iowa Cavalry. Assigned as Companies G, I, and K. Duty at Benton Barracks, Missouri, until February, 1862. Moved to Fort Henry, Tennessee, February 8–11. Served unassigned, Department of the Tennessee, to November, 1862. District of Columbus, Kentucky, 13th Army Corps, Department of the Tennessee, to December, 1862. District of Columbus, Kentucky, 16th Army Corps, Department of the Tennessee, to June, 1863. 1st Brigade, Turchin's 2nd Cavalry Division, Army of the Cumberland, to October, 1863. 3rd Brigade, 2nd Division, Cavalry Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to December, 1863. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, Cavalry Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to January 7, 1864. Detached from 5th Iowa Cavalry February 25, 1864, Designated Brackett's Battalion, Minnesota Cavalry. Duty at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, to May 2, 1864. Attached to Pollock's 1st Brigade, District of Iowa, Department of the Northwest. Sully's Northwestern Indian Expedition June 4 to November 10, 1864.

Battle of Killdeer Mountain The Battle of Killdeer Mountain (also known as the Battle of Tahkahokuty Mountain) took place during Brig. Gen. Alfred Sully's expedition against the Sioux in Dakota Territory July 28–29, 1864. The location of the battleground is in modern Du ...

July 28. Action in

Battle of the Badlands The Battle of the Badlands was fought in Dakota Territory, in what is now western North Dakota, between the United States army led by General Alfred Sully and the Lakota, Yanktonai, and the Dakota Indian tribes. The battle was fought August 7� ...

, August 8–9. Fort Ridgley, Minnesota, until Spring, 1865. Sully's operations against Indians May to October, 1865. Patrol duty from Sioux City to Fort Randall, October, 1865, to May, 1866. Mustered out June 1, 1866.

Detailed Service

Companies A, B, and C were organized at Fort Snelling, Minnesota, as the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Companies, Minnesota Light Cavalry from September to November, 1861. They were ordered to Benton Barracks, Missouri, in November, 1861, and attached to Curtis Horse, an Independent Regiment of Cavalry, which was later designated 5th Iowa Volunteer Cavalry Regiment. The Minnesota Battalion was assigned as Companies G, I, and K. After duty at Benton Barracks, Missouri, until February, 1862., the battalion moved to Fort Henry, Tennessee, from February 8–11, 1862. Engaged in patrol duty during battle of Fort Donelson, Tennessee. Expedition to destroy railroad bridge over Tennessee River February 14–16. 1862. Duty at Fort Henry and Fort Heiman, Tennessee, until February 5, 1863, and at Fort Donelson, Tennessee, until June 5, 1863. Moved from Fort Henry to Savannah, Tennessee, March 25-April 1, 1862. Moved toward Nashville, Tennessee, repairing roads and erecting telegraph lines April 3–6. Advance on and siege of Corinth, Mississippi, April 29-May 30. Acting as escorts to Telegraph Corps, Lockridge Mills, May 5. Occupation of Corinth May 30, and pursuit to Booneville May 31-June 12. Duty at Humboldt until August, 1862. Scouting and protecting railroad. Action at Fort Donelson, Tennessee, August 25. Cumberland Iron Works August 26. Expedition to Clarksville September 5–9. New Providence September 6. Clarksville September 7. Scout toward Eddyville October 29-November 10. Expedition from Fort Heiman December 18–28. Fort Donelson February 3, 1863, Duty at Fort Donelson until June. Moved to Murfreesboro and Nashville, Tennessee, June 5–11. Scout on Middleton and Eagleville Pike June 10. Expedition to Lebanon June 15–17. Lebanon June 16. Middle Tennessee or Tullahoma Campaign June 23-July 7. Guy's Gap, Fosterville, June 25. Guy's Gap. Fosterville and Shelbyville, June 27. Occupation of Middle Tennessee until September. Moved to McMinnville September 6–8, and operating against guerrillas until October. Operations against Wheeler and Roddy September 30-October 17. Garrison Creek near Fosterville and Wartrace October 6. Sugar Creek October 9. Tennessee River October 10. At Maysville until January, 1864. Expedition from Maysville to Whitesburg and Decatur November 14–17, 1863, to destroy boats on the Tennessee River. Outpost duty on line of Tennessee River from south of Huntsville to Bellefonte, Alabama, November and December, 1863. The Minnesota volunteers reenlisted and achieved veteran status on January 1, 1864. Battalion returned to Minnesota on January 7, and was officially detached from 5th Iowa Cavalry Regiment on February 25, 1864, being designated Brackett's Battalion, Minnesota Cavalry at that time. The battalion remained in garrison at

Fort Snelling Fort Snelling is a former military fortification and National Historic Landmark in the U.S. state of Minnesota on the bluffs overlooking the confluence of the Minnesota and Mississippi Rivers. The military site was initially named Fort Saint Anth ...

until May 1864 when it was transferred to

Sioux City Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury and Plymouth counties in the northwestern part of the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 census, making it the fourth-largest city in Iowa. The bulk of the city is in Woodbury County, ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, moving there from May 2–25, 1864. It participated in Brigadier General

Alfred Sully Alfred Sully (May 22, 1820 – April 27, 1879), was a military officer during the American Civil War and during the Indian Wars on the frontier. He was also a noted painter. Biography Sully was the son of the portrait painter, Thomas Sully, of ...

's Northwestern Indian Expedition against "hostile" Sioux west of the Missouri River from June 4, 1864 to November 10, 1864. The battalion marched to Fort Sully from June 4–15, 1864, and pursued Indians to the Badlands from July 19–28. Then it participated in the Battle of Tah Kah A Kuty or

Killdeer Mountain Killdeer Mountains is a mountain range in Dunn County, North Dakota, in the United States. The range's name comes from the Native Americans, who used the area as a hunting ground for deer. The range was the scene of the Battle of Killdeer Mountain ...

, Dakota Territory on July 28, 1864. After that action it marched to Fort Rice from June 28 to July 7, 1864, then made the passage of the Badlands of Dakota Territory from August 3–18. During this time, the battalion fought in the engagement near the Little Missouri River at Two Hills, the

, Dakota Territory, from August 8–9, 1864. The Minnesota companies also helped in the rescue of Fisk's Emigrant train, from September 10–30, 1864. March on

Yellowstone River The Yellowstone River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately long, in the Western United States. Considered the principal tributary of upper Missouri, via its own tributaries it drains an area with headwaters across the mountains an ...

Montana Territory The Territory of Montana was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from May 26, 1864, until November 8, 1889, when it was admitted as the 41st state in the Union as the state of Montana. Original boundaries T ...

to Fort Union, Dakota Territory. The battalion spent the winter of 1864-1865 and the spring at

Fort Ridgely Fort Ridgely was a frontier United States Army outpost from 1851 to 1867, built 1853–1854 in Minnesota Territory. The Sioux called it Esa Tonka. It was located overlooking the Minnesota river southwest of Fairfax, Minnesota. Half of the ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and then served in Brigadier General Alfred Sully's operations against the

Sioux The Sioux or Oceti Sakowin (; Dakota language, Dakota: Help:IPA, /otʃʰeːtʰi ʃakoːwĩ/) are groups of Native Americans in the United States, Native American tribes and First Nations in Canada, First Nations peoples in North America. The ...

from May to October, 1865. The Minnesotans spent October, 1865 until May, 1866 on patrol duty from Sioux City, Iowa to Fort Randall, Dakota Territory, with headquarters at Sioux City, Iowa before being mustered out on June 1, 1866.

Commander

* Major Alfred B. Brackett

Casualties and total strength

During service, Brackett's Cavalry Battalion lost 1 officer and 4 enlisted men killed in action or died of wounds received in battle and 6 enlisted men by disease, for a total of 11 fatalitie

References

{{cite book , last = Jones , first = Robert Huhn , title = The Civil War in the Northwest , publisher =

University of Oklahoma Press The University of Oklahoma Press (OU Press) is the publishing arm of the University of Oklahoma. Founded in 1929 by the fifth president of the University of Oklahoma, William Bennett Bizzell, it was the first university press to be established i ...

, year = 1960

External links