Extracted from The Official Military History of Kansas Regiments During the War for the Suppression of the Great Rebellion by W. S. Burke. MILITARY HISTORY OF THE SECOND KANSAS CAVALRY, 1864

      On the 8th of January, 1864, First Lieutenant John Johnston was promoted to Captain of company A, vice Crawford; Second Lieutenant Samuel K. Cross, to First Lieutenant, vice Johnston.
      On the 11th William P. Phillips, from private company F, was promoted to First Lieutenant company B; Second Lieutenant Henry S. Jenks, to First Lieutenant company C, vice Barker; Sergeant Alfred B. Hopkins, to Second Lieutenant, vice Jenks, and Second Lieutenant Gideon M. Waugh, G company, was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel Second Arkansas Infantry.
      During the month of January the regiment was actively engaged in scouting, frequently going as far south as Dallas, and south east to Caddo Gap; and on the 20th Captain Barker was sent out with sixty (60) men, passed through Caddo Gap, thence west to Barker's Springs, eighty miles from Waldron, where the enemy was strongly posted in log homes; charged them at daylight, beat down the doors of the cabins, captured thirty (30) prisoners, killed and wounded fifteen (15), and nearly as many more escaped. Lieutenant C. J. Williams was shot through the right shoulder; on or more of Captain Barker's men was killed, and several wounded. To make such an attack so far from reinforcements, in the enemy's country, required not merely courage, but rashness; but as was usually the case, the Second Kansas Cavalry came out ahead, and the prisoners were brought to camp.
      On the 20th of January one Fred W. Schwarte, wearing the shoulder straps of Lieutenant Colonel, hailing from an Indian regiment, who had, by some means, obtained an assignment to duty as Acting Inspector for the district, visited the Third Brigade at Waldron, and inspected the Second Kansas Cavalry. The weather had become sufficiently warm to thaw the snow and take the frost out of the ground, and this Inspector ordered Major Fisk to maneuver his regiment in a plowed field. The horses floundered about--some fell down, and their riders were compelled to dismount and lead them out. Schwarte reported that the regiment was not well drilled; that neither men nor officers knew how to discharge their duties properly; that the men were neither clean nor soldierly in their appearance; and in fact gave the regiment the most unfavorable report possible. Yet, no regiment west of the Mississippi did more work, performed harder service, or made a better appearance on parade, when so situated that it could put on its holiday attire, than the Second Kansas Cavalry, and to have such a disgraceful record made concerning it, was like gall and wormwood to the brave soldiers who had always been placed at the post of honor, "in the front." Notwithstanding, the Second Kansas Cavalry continued to perform its duty, and in three days after occurred the extraordinary results of Captain Barker's scout, chronicled above. Schwarte afterwards left the service, to save himself a dishonorable dismissal.
      On the 8th of February, 1864, Sergeant Charles A. Archer, A company, was promoted to Second Lieutenant, vice Cross, and on the 20th the regiment moved north to Jenny Lind, twelve miles south of Fort Smith. First Lieutenant Horace L. Moore was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel Fourth Arkansas Cavalry, and Captain Hugh Cameron was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel Second Arkansas Cavalry, and on the 25th Major Adams paid the regiment, to include the 31st of December, 1863. The regiment was inspected and mustered for pay on the 28th by Major Fisk.
      On the 1st of March Joseph Hutchinson, private of company G, was promoted to First Lieutenant, company L, to fill an original vacancy, and John O. Miller, of Polk county, Arkansas, was mustered Second Lieutenant same company, to fill an original vacancy. The organization of company L was completed on the 2nd of March, by the promotion of First Lieutenant Pat Cosgrove to be Captain. This squadron was recruited in Arkansas during the winter of 1863-4, by Cosgrove, Hutchinson, and Miller, and on the same day First Lieutenant James C. French was promoted to Captain, company F, vice Cameron, promoted.
      The Second was ordered to prepare for a campaign, and was assigned to the cavalry brigade commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Bassett, and the following officers were assigned to duty at Brigade Headquarters: Lieutenant John A. Lee, A.A.A.G.; Captain Charles Dimon, A.A.Q.M.; Lieutenant Alfred B. Hopkins, A.D.C.; and Lieutenant Henry S. Jenks was assigned to duty as A.C.S. at Division Headquarters, Brigadier General Thayer, commanding. The regiment marched on the 22nd to Boonville, on the 27th to Rock Creek, on the 28th to Springfield, on the 29th to Danville, on the 30th to Fourche Le Fave, and on the 31st to South Fourche. While at Booneville, squadrons E and D, under command of Captain Gardner, were sent to Roseville, Arkansas, and ordered to report from that place to Colonel W. R. Judson, commanding Fort Smith and the District of the Frontier.
      On the 2nd of April the regiment marched to Middle Fork of Saline, on the 3rd to the South Fork of Saline, on the 4th to Magnet Cove, on the 5th to Midway, on the 6th to Arkadelphia, on the 7th to Antoine Creek, on the 8th to Oskalona, on the 9th to Elkin's Ferry, and on the 10th to Sulphur Springs, where the army under General Steele was joined by the Frontier Division, Seventh Army Corps.
      The enemy being reported in force six miles south, the army was marched in that direction, this regiment on the 11th being on the right of the brigade which formed a reserve for the left flank of the army. That night the men slept on their arms, and the next day the regiment was formed in echelon on the left of the brigade, which was on the flank of the left wind of the army. As the Seventh Corps moved across Prairie de Anne it presented on of the grandest sights ever seen in Arkansas. The entire line in the form of a curve, the wings being advance and on higher ground than the center, with all the reserves, could be seen at the same time; and everything was as regular, orderly and quiet as a holiday parade. The enemy, under command of General Marmaduke, in front, were entrenched, but retired on our approach, evidently trying to draw General Steele after them towards Washington, in a westerly direction. General Steele had been ordered, with the Seventh Corps, from Little Rock to Camden, with a view of joining General Banks, who was moving up Red river, in the general attack upon Shreveport, where it was anticipated the enemy would make a stand behind almost impregnable fortifications. General Price was in the neighborhood of Shreveport with sixteen thousand (16,000) men, ready to march north or south, as occasion should require. Kirby Smith was in front of Banks, contesting the ground, and Marmaduke was sent with eight thousand (8,000) cavalry to delay General Steele on the 12th. As soon as it became known that Banks was defeated, and that consequently Kirby Smith would not need the assistance of Price's army, the later moved northeast to attack General Steele. Camden had been strongly fortified by the rebels. Marmaduke, with his cavalry, was not strong enough to hold it. General Steele moved forty miles to the west of it, as though he intended to go to Washington. The rebels were misled. Marmaduke placed himself between Steel's army and Washington, expecting to draw General Steele on until Price could get between the later and Camden; but General Steele marched direct for Camden, forty miles distant, leaving Marmaduke in the rear. Price was sixty miles from Camden, but had much the best road to march on, and the race for that place was an earnest one. The two roads were nearly parallel, and so near together, that the last night before reaching Camden the headquarters of the two armies were but four miles apart, but General Steele had one special advantage: his division of cavalry was in his front, and he hurried it forward, while Price's cavalry division was in his rear.
      When Steele turned the head of his column towards Camden, the cavalry brigade was placed in the rear, and on the afternoon of the 13th, while the Frontier Division was delayed for the trains to pass through a swamp, three miles east of Prairie de Anne, an attack was made by Marmaduke. Brigadier General Thayer, commanding the Frontier Division, formed, and drove the attacking force back. Lieutenant Colonel Bassett placed the Second Kansas Cavalry under command of Major Fisk, on the right of the division, and the Sixth and Fourteenth Regiments of Kansas Cavalry, under command of Lieutenant Colonel Campbell, on the left. The division advanced into the prairie with four squadrons on the Second thrown out on the front, and for nearly a mile to the right, as skirmishers, and the enemy, supposing the skirmishing line to be merely covering the front of the main line, again fell back, and under the cover of the night the Frontier Division withdrew, and before morning passed the swamp safely. Special credit is due to Major Fisk, for the admirable deception he practiced on the enemy. It had its effect, and gave the rear of General Steele's army an opportunity of getting out of Marmaduke's reach. Had the rebel cavalry division pressed General Thayer, as it should, he must have been defeated, and the entire train of the Seventh Corps captured, or General Steel would have been compelled to send reinforcements to the rear. The column would have been delayed, and General Price would have succeeded in reaching Camden in advance of the Union forces.
      An officer of Marmaduke's staff, his Inspector General, who was captured a few days afterwards by Sergeant Albert P. Mason and another soldier of company K, while passing an interval between two brigades in the rebel cavalry division, while marching in column, stated that Marmaduke's attack was made on Steele's rear with an intention of capturing the train, under the belief that it was covered only by one brigade as rear guard, and that every preparation was made for a charge, but when they discovered the line of skirmishers extending more than two miles, the order for the charge was recalled, and Marmaduke remarked that "it was the d--dest rear guard that he ever saw," that he did not propose to charge Steele's entire army with his division alone; and when the rebel staff officer was informed of the true state of the affair, he evinced considerable surprise.
      The army reached Camden on the 16th, without anything worthy of mention afterwards occurring to the Second, and took possession of the fortifications.
      On the next day a forage train of two hundred (200) wagons was sent out under command of Colonel Williams, Seventy-Ninth U.S.C.I., and Lieutenant Mitchell was detailed with fifty (50) men as a part of the escort. When the train was returning Colonel Williams was attacked at Poison Springs, his escort completely routed, the train captured, and a large portion of his men killed, wounded, and captured. Among those captured was Henry Selig, a private of company F, who was wounded while en route for Tylor, Texas, a rebel prison, was shot down by his guards, and his body left by the roadside unburied, where his bones now lie bleaching as a monument to mark the spot where the tramp of a chivalrous Southern soldiery once was heard.
      On the 17th Colonel W. F. Cloud returned to the command of the Second Kansas Cavalry, and was, by virtue of his rank, assigned to the command of the cavalry brigade of the Frontier Division, Seventh Army Corps.
      On the 20th a detachment of the Second was sent out to reconnoiter the enemy, and being attacked, was compelled to retire. In the skirmish which ensued, Captain J. M. Mentzer was severely wounded in the right leg, and was not able for duty until July following.
      General Steele evacuated Camden on the 27th of April, and moved towards Little Rock via Princeton and Jenkins' Ferry, on the Saline river. At the latter place all the cavalry of the army was sent forward under Brigadier General E. A. Carr, with directions to proceed to Little Rock with the least possible delay, and reached that place May 1st, where it was mustered for pay by Major Fisk.
      The enemy under command of General Kirby Smith moved into Camden the same night General Steele left that place, and followed him and attacked his rear on the 29th at Jenkins' Ferry, on the Saline river, where on the 30th, a sever engagement took place, with an estimated Union loss of---and rebel loss of---. The fight occurred in a swamp where it was almost impossible to use artillery. During the afternoon and night of the 29th and until noon of the 30th it rained incessantly. The Saline river was not fordable; a pontoon bridge was thrown across it, but before the trains were over the river rose, and it became a serious question whether the pontoon would be able to stand the increasing force of the current.
      The rebel force was superior in numbers, and had the best ground to fight on, yet General Rice, who commanded the rear of the army, succeeded in driving them back, and at night they withdrew six miles. The Seventh Corps then passed the river, destroyed the pontoon, and bivouacked on the first high ground, three miles from the river.
      General Steele's army had but two days rations when he left Camden, and he was compelled to march to his supplies at Little Rock.
      On the 5th of May, the Second started for Fort Smith and reached that place on the 14th. While on their way, near Dardanelle, Captain Barker with a scouting party encountered a squad of guerrillas, gave chase, pursuing them several miles, when they, being reinforced, rallied and drove the Captain.
      When the Second reached Fort Smith Captain Gardner, with squadrons E and D, rejoined it, having been on duty at Roseville since the 1st of April, where, on the 4th of that month, he was attacked by a very superior force of the enemy, and after a hard contest in which he lost several of his men and a number of horses, he succeeded in driving them off and maintaining his position. Considerable cotton had been collected and baled at Roseville, and the bales aided the Captain materially as a means of defense, under cover of which his sharpshooters were enabled with their long-ranged pieces, to not only hold the enemy in check, but to keep the rebels at such a distance that their fire had comparatively slight effect.
      Captain Gardner's men were armed with Sharp's carbines, and well supplied with ammunition. They were therefore strong though few in numbers. No written report of the action can be found among the records of the regiment.
      On the 1st of May First Lieutenant George W. Stabler was mustered into D company, vice Moore, promoted.
      On the 23rd Second Lieutenant Philander W. Straw was mustered into G company, vice Waugh, promoted; and on the 30th Captain John A. Lee was mustered into D company, vice Moore, discharged.
      The Frontier Division returned to Fort Smith on the 16th of May; Brigadier General Thayer resumed command of the District of the Frontier, and Lieutenant Colonel Bassett was detailed and assigned to duty at District Headquarters as Chief of Staff.
      About the 1st of June the Second, under command of Colonel Cloud, was sent to Clarksville; Major Fisk was detailed on a General Court Martial; Captain Dimon was placed on duty as Depot Quartermaster in charge of C.C. & G.E.; First Lieutenant C. J. Williams was assigned to the Cavalry Brigade as A.C.S., and First Lieutenant Ballard was detailed for Acting Quartermaster of the regiment.
      On the 4th of June Second Lieutenant John B. Dexter, company D, was appointed Assistant Quartermaster of Volunteers; and on the 11th of June First Lieutenant Cyrus L. Gerton, Quartermaster, received a like appointment in the volunteer force; Lieutenant Hopkins was ordered to take charge of a detachment at District Headquarters for scouting purposes; and on the 30th the regiment was mustered for pay by Colonel Cloud.
      On the 30th of July the regiment returned to Fort Smith, where it remained several months engaged on escort duty, and was paid by Major Wilson to include the 30th of June.
      On the 1st of August First Lieutenant George W. Mason was mustered in, vice French, promoted; and on the 31st the regiment was again mustered for pay.
      During the month Lieutenant B. B. Mitchell was sent with an escort to Fort Scott, and Major Hopkins was sent in command of an escort to a supply train to the same place; Captain Cosgrove with his company was sent to Fort Gibson; and later in the month Captains Matthews and Barker were also sent to the same place.
      Early in September Captain Barker was ordered with his company and a detachment of G and L companies to guard a hay party near Fort Gibson, and on the 16th of the same month he was surrounded by a large force of rebel cavalry under command of General Gano, and succeeded in cutting his way out with but twelve (12) men, all the rest being either killed or captured. Lieutenants Straw and Miller were captured. The former was held a prisoner until May 27, 1865. The later made his escape a few weeks later, and joined his company. This action displayed Barker's characteristics: he would fight any odds, and never gave up. No account of it can be found on record. Probably none was ever written.
      The same rebel force moved north to Cabin Creek, where on the 19th of the same month, a supply train, under command of Major Hopkins, was met and captured. The escort was routed after a gallant resistance, and returned to Fort Scott. (For an account of the affair, see Report No. 11.)
      In the month of September Colonel Cloud went, by permission, to Kansas, and immediately went to the front, and was assigned to duty as Aid to Major General Curtis in the campaign against the rebel General Price, and rendered good service, not only to the Government, but also to the State.
      Major Fisk resumed command of the regiment, and on the 27th Assistant Surgeon Valentine V. Adamson, of Jackson county, was mustered in, vice Robinson, deceased. On the 19th of October First Lieutenant Luther H. Wood, Regimental Commissary, resigned, on account of disability, and Lieutenant H. S. Jenks was ordered on duty as Post Commissary, a position held by Lieutenant Wood from the time the army entered Fort Smith, in September, 1863. In the resignation of Lieutenant Wood the regiment lost one of its best administrative officers. In the capacity of Quartermaster and Commissary he had given excellent satisfaction, and displayed evidence of superior ability.
      On the 30th the regiment was mustered for pay by Major Fisk. Major Hopkins and Captain Cosgrove returned, and the several squadrons on detached service were ordered to report to the headquarters of the regiment.
      On the 7th of November First Lieutenant Morris Enright, Adjutant, was dishonorably discharged for drunkenness.
      On the 8th of December First Lieutenant Clarence J. Williams was mustered in as Quartermaster, vice Gorton, promoted, and on the 25th companies C, D, E, F, G, and I, were placed en route for Fort Leavenworth to be mustered out, their term of three years' service having expired, or being about to expire; and on the 31st of December Chaplain Charles Reynolds was mustered out at Fort Scott, by reason of expiration of term of service.
      On the 27th of December the Second was sent to Clarksville, and squadron H was ordered to Van Buren under the command of Captain Gunther, and on the 31st of December the regiment was mustered for pay by Major Fisk.

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