Overview

With the secession of South Carolina, Governor Francis W. Pickens authorized the enlistment of four companies of cavalry. These four troops became part of the First Battalion of South Carolina Cavalry and the nucleus of the First South Carolina Cavalry Regiment. These companies served in the coastal areas around Charleston, South Carolina (1861-1862).The First South Carolina Battalion of Cavalry was authorized by the Confederate Secretary of War on 31 October, 1861. Lieutenant Colonel John Logan Black, who had attended West Point, was appointed commander. On 25 June 1862, the First South Carolina Cavalry was raised to a regiment and Black was appointed as its Colonel. The First was ordered to Virginia in 1862 and became part of General J. E. B. Stuart's Cavalry. The regiment participated in Stuart's raids behind enemy lines in November-December 1862. The South Carolinians played a prominent role in the battles of Brandy Station and Gettysburg, and then manned the defensive lines along the Rappahannock protecting Lee's Army, and were engaged in several battles and skirmishes. Colonel Black, his regiment reduced by lack of horses, was ordered back to South Carolina in the Spring of 1864. Refitted, they spent most of the rest the war defending the coast near Charleston, until ordered to General Joseph E. Johnston's Army in North Carolina in 1865. The First fought several battles and skirmishes near Goldsboro and Kinston, North Carolina, before fighting in its last major battle at Bentonsville, North Carolina. Black and his command stayed with Johnston's Army until it was surrendered, when he led his South Carolinians back to their home state, where they disbanded without surrendering. A complete roster of over 1,600 men is included. Full data from each soldier's records, plus dates of birth and death, occupations, and cemetery where buried are included. Numerous vintage photographs are provided. A long bibliography adds to the value of this work.

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