The 1st Florida Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

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 of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

from October 29, 1863 – November 17, 1865 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 ...

Organization and Recruitment

The regiment was formed by General

Nathaniel P. Banks Nathaniel Prentice (or Prentiss) Banks (January 30, 1816 – September 1, 1894) was an American politician from Massachusetts and a Union general during the Civil War. A millworker by background, Banks was prominent in local debating societies, ...

on October 29, 1863. Recruitment and organization of the unit began at

Fort Barrancas Fort Barrancas (1839) or Fort San Carlos de Barrancas (from 1787) is a United States military fort and National Historic Landmark in the former Warrington area of Pensacola, Florida, located physically within Naval Air Station Pensacola, which wa ...

and lasted from December, 1863 to August, 1864. It was attached to the 2nd and 3rd Brigades, District West Florida,

Army of the Gulf The Army of the Gulf was a Union Army that served in the general area of the Gulf states controlled by Union forces. It mainly saw action in Louisiana and Alabama. History The Department of the Gulf was created following the capture of New Orlea ...

until January 1865, and to the 2nd Brigade of John P. Lucas' Cavalry Division until May 1865. The unit was composed primarily of men from southern Alabama and north west Florida and 81% of the initial recruits came from only nine counties in the two aforementioned regions. By the end of the war, the unit had recruited more than 700 men. Recruitment of the unit started in December of 1863, when a recruiting station was established on the far east side of Santa Rosa Island. By February of 1864, the regiment number 207 men with thirty more on their way. However, recruitment was slowed because there was a lack of cash to pay the recruits' bounties.

Service

The regiment saw action in the surrounding area of Fort Barrancas. In 1864, such action included a July 21–25 expedition to Pollard, Alabama, a September 18 – October 4 expedition to

Marianna, Florida Marianna is a city in and the county seat of Jackson County, Florida, United States, and it is home to Chipola College. The population was 6,102 at the 2010 census. In 2018 the estimated population was 7,091. The official nickname of Marianna is ...

, an October 25–28 expedition up Blackwater Bay, a November 16–17 expedition to Pine Barren Creek, and a December 13–14 expedition to Pollard. In 1865, the unit went on a February 22–25 expedition to Milton, Florida before taking part in the March 18 – April 9 campaign against Mobile, Alabama and its defenses. This campaign included action at the Battle of Newton and the

Battle of Fort Blakely The Battle of Fort Blakeley took place from April 2 to April 9, 1865, in Baldwin County, Alabama, about north of Spanish Fort, Alabama, as part of the Mobile Campaign of the American Civil War. At the time, Blakeley, Alabama, had been the co ...

. After the occupation of Mobile on April 12, the regiment marched towards

Montgomery, Alabama Montgomery is the capital city of the U.S. state of Alabama and the county seat of Montgomery County. Named for the Irish soldier Richard Montgomery, it stands beside the Alabama River, on the coastal Plain of the Gulf of Mexico. In the 202 ...

. It served in Alabama until May when it was ordered back to Barrancas, from where the regiment continued to serve in Western and Middle Florida. The regiment was mustered out on November 17, 1865.

References

{{authority control Units and formations of the Union Army from Florida 1863 establishments in Florida Military units and formations established in 1863 Military units and formations disestablished in 1865 1865 disestablishments in Florida

Organization and Recruitment

Service

See also

References