1st Regiment Iowa Volunteer Cavalry
Encyclopedia
The 1st Regiment Iowa Volunteer Cavalry was an cavalry
regiment
that served in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
.
and mustered in for three years of Federal service between July 30, and September 12, 1862. Unusually for a Union cavalry regiment, the members of the regiment provided their own horses and equipment. The first Iowa was the first three year cavalry
regiment
accepted for Federal service during the war.
The regiment was mustered out on February 15, 1866, while on Reconstruction duty in Austin, Texas
, and discharged for state service on March 16, 1866.
It suffered 2 officers and 56 enlisted men who were killed in action or who died of their wounds and 2 officers and 233 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 293 fatalities.
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
that served in the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Service
The first Iowa Cavalry was organized at Davenport, IowaDavenport, Iowa
Davenport is a city located along the Mississippi River in Scott County, Iowa, United States. Davenport is the county seat of and largest city in Scott County. Davenport was founded on May 14, 1836 by Antoine LeClaire and was named for his friend, George Davenport, a colonel during the Black Hawk...
and mustered in for three years of Federal service between July 30, and September 12, 1862. Unusually for a Union cavalry regiment, the members of the regiment provided their own horses and equipment. The first Iowa was the first three year cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
accepted for Federal service during the war.
The regiment was mustered out on February 15, 1866, while on Reconstruction duty in Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, and discharged for state service on March 16, 1866.
Total strength and casualties
A total of 2115 men served in the 1st Iowa at one time or another during its existence.It suffered 2 officers and 56 enlisted men who were killed in action or who died of their wounds and 2 officers and 233 enlisted men who died of disease, for a total of 293 fatalities.
Commanders
- ColonelColonelColonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
Fitz Henry WarrenFitz Henry WarrenFitz Henry Warren was a politician and a general during the American Civil War.-Early life and career:Warren was born in Brimfield, Massachusetts. In August 1844, he moved to Burlington in the Iowa Territory. He was an early political activist in the Whig Party... - Colonel James O. Gower
- Colonel Anderson
- Lieutenant ColonelLieutenant colonelLieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
Alexander G. McQueen