6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment

File:Colonel Richard H. Rush of 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment in uniform and Pascal hat with cavalry insignia holding sword - Broadbent and Co., 814 Chestnut St., Philadelphia.png in regimental uniform and Pascal hat with cavalry insignia holding sword]]

In May 1861, after President Abraham Lincoln called for volunteer troops, Rush was granted permission by Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Gregg Curtin to muster a cavalry regiment originally named the Philadelphia Light Cavalry{{sfn|Gracey|1868|page=19}} and the 70th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers.{{sfn|Dyer|1908|p=1560}} The regiment consisted of many recruits from Rush's Germantown neighborhood in Philadelphia and the officers were Rush's personal friends.{{Cite book|first=Eugene G.|last=Stackhouse|title=Germantown in the Civil War|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f6gjCgAAQBAJ&dq=%22Richard+Henry+Rush%22+-wikipedia&pg=PT66|date=3 Dec 2010|publisher=Arcadia Publishing|access-date=7 March 2022|isbn=978-1614231011}} Rush was promoted to colonel on July 27, 1861. In August 1861, members of First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry were organized into companies C and E.{{cite web |title=History |url=https://firsttroop.com/history/ |website=firsttroop.com |publisher=First Troop Philadelphia City Cavalry |access-date=12 March 2024}} Company G was formed from a unit raised out of Reading, Pennsylvania, by George E. Clymer.{{sfn|Gracey|1868|page=20}} The regiment had a total enrollment of 1,800 officers and enlisted men. The regiment was incorporated into the Army of the Potomac on October 5, 1861,{{cite book |last1=Hunt |first1=Roger D. |title=Colonels in Blue - U.S. Colored Troops, U.S. Armed Forces, Staff Officers and Special Units |date=2022 |publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc. |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |isbn=978-1-4766-8619-6 |pages=177–178 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cHp4EAAAQBAJ |access-date=9 March 2024}} as the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment.{{Cite web|title=Antietam: Col Richard Henry Rush|url=https://antietam.aotw.org/officers.php?officer_id=327|website=Antietam on the Web|access-date=7 March 2022}}

The regiment was armed initially with Colt army pistols and light cavalry sabers.{{cite web |title=Succinct account of Rush's Lancers, Sixth Pennsylvania Cavalry |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-national-tribune-succinct-account-of/950750/ |website=www.newspapers.com |publisher=The National Tribune |access-date=15 March 2024}} At the suggestion of Major General George B. McClellan,{{sfnp|Gracey|1868|p=26}} the regiment was issued lances modeled after ones used by Napoleon Bonaparte's troops in France{{cite web |title=Rush's Lancers by Mort Kunstler |url=https://vladimirarts.com/products/rushs-lancers-by-mort-kunstler |website=vladimirarts.com |publisher=Vladimir Arts USA Inc. |access-date=13 March 2024}} but never previously used by American troops. The lances were {{convert|9|ft|abbr=on}} long with an {{convert|11|in|abbr=on}} long, three-sided blade. The regiment was known as "Rush's Lancers".{{sfn|Dyer|1908|p=1560}} After several weeks of training in Philadelphia, the regiment was transferred to Washington, D.C.{{sfn|Gracey|1868|pp=37-38}}

File:6th Pennsylvania Cavalry.jpg

The regiment entered Virginia on March 10, 1862, and was attached to the Second Brigade, Cavalry Reserve led by William H. Emory.{{cite book |last1=Taylor |first1=Frank H. |title=Philadelphia in the Civil War 1861-1865 |date=1913 |publisher=City of Philadelphia |location=Philadelphia |pages=162–164 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ge4LAAAAYAAJ |access-date=8 March 2024}} The regiment served during the Peninsula Campaign and Maryland Campaign.{{sfn|Dyer|1908|p=1560}} At the Battle of Hanover Court House they captured a company of infantry from North Carolina{{sfn|Johnson|Buel|1887|p=322}} and served as scouts and couriers. However, the unit was routed and driven from the field at the Battle of Gaines' Mill.{{cite book |last1=Jones |first1=Terry L. |title=Historical Dictionary of the Civil War Volume 1, A-L |date=2011 |publisher=The Scarecrow Press, Inc. |location=Lanham, Maryland |isbn=978-0-8108-7811-2 |page=1243 |edition=2nd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VXEMyi7gS5IC |access-date=8 March 2024}}

The regiment also fought at the Battle of White Oak Swamp, the Battle of South Mountain,{{cite book |last1=Koptak |first1=John David |title=The Battle of South Mountain |date=2011 |publisher=The History Press |location=Charleston, South Carolina |isbn=978-1-61423-145-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=knZ0CQAAQBAJ |access-date=8 March 2024}} and the Battle of Antietam.{{cite book |last1=Hunt |first1=Roger D. |title=Colonels in Blue - U.S. Colored Troops, U.S. Armed Forces, Staff Officers and Special Units |date=2022 |publisher=McFarland & Company, Inc. |location=Jefferson, North Carolina |isbn=978-1-4766-8619-6 |pages=177–178 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cHp4EAAAQBAJ |access-date=9 March 2024}}{{Cite web|title=Army of the Potomac - Cavalry Division - Antietam National Battlefield (U.S. National Park Service)|url=https://home.nps.gov/anti/learn/historyculture/org-chrt-us-cav.htm|website=National Park Service|access-date=7 March 2022}} Rush left the regiment for sick leave on April 25, 1863, due to a relapse of malaria contracted during the Mexican-American War.{{cite book |last1=Wittenberg |first1=Eric J. |title=The Union Cavalry Comes of Age - Hartwood Church to Brandy Station, 1863 |date=2002 |publisher=The History Press |location=Charleston, South Carolina |isbn=978-1-43966-007-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=L8aNDQAAQBAJ |access-date=8 March 2024}} Temporary command of the regiment was given to Robert Murray Morris. Despite being on sick leave, Rush was officially listed as colonel for the regiment until September 29, 1863, when command was given to Charles L. Leiper.{{cite book |last1=Taylor |first1=Frank H. |title=Philadelphia in the Civil War 1861-1865 |date=1913 |publisher=City of Philadelphia |location=Philadelphia |pages=162–164 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Ge4LAAAAYAAJ |access-date=8 March 2024}}

During the Battle of Fredericksburg, it served as the provost guard for the Center Grand Division, guarding the bridges to the grand division's rear. The regiment also participated in Stoneman's Raid.

In May 1863, the regiment retired their lances and were rearmed with Sharps carbines. The lances were ridiculed as "turkey drivers" and were ineffective in close combat.{{cite web |title=An experimental Union cavalry drives lance into doubter hearts |url=https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2007/sep/8/an-experimental-union-cavalry-drives-lance-into-do/ |website=www.washingtontimes.com |publisher=The Washington Times |access-date=15 March 2024}} The regiment was assigned to the Reserve Brigade of the 1st Cavalry Division under brigadier general John Buford and fought in the Battle of Brandy Station in June 1863.{{cite web |title=Prelude to Gettysburg: The Battle of Brandy Station |url=https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/prelude-to-gettysburg.htm |website=www.nps.gov |publisher=National Park Service United States Department of the Interior |access-date=13 March 2024}} The regiment led the unsuccessful charge (followed closely by the 6th Cavalry Regiment) against the guns at St. James Church.{{cite book |last1=Wittenberg |first1=Eric J. |last2=Davis |first2=Daniel T. |title=Out Flew the Sabres - The Battle of Brandy Station June 9, 1863 |date=2016 |publisher=Savas Beatie LLC |location=El Dorado Hills, California |isbn=978-1-61121-256-3 |pages=33–34 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LkdDDAAAQBAJ |access-date=13 March 2024}} The regiment overran the confederate guns but were repulsed by the troops of brigadier general William E. Jones.{{cite web |title=Brandy Station June 9, 1863 |url=https://www.battlefields.org/learn/articles/brandy-station |website=www.battlefields.org |publisher=American Battlefield Trust |access-date=13 March 2024}} Several Confederates later described the 6th's charge as the most "brilliant and glorious" cavalry charge of the war. (In many Civil War battles, cavalrymen typically dismounted once they reached an engagement and fought essentially as infantry. But in this battle, the surprise and chaos led to a mostly mounted fight.){{cite book |last1=Eicher |first1=David J. |title=The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War |others=Foreword by James M. McPherson |date=2001 |publisher=Simon & Schuster |location=New York |isbn=0-7432-1846-9 |pages=415–416 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1p94XzYASDAC |access-date=13 March 2024}}{{sfnmp|1a1=Eicher|1y=2001|1p=492|2a1=Loosbrock|2y=2000|2p=272}}{{cite book |last1=Kennedy |first1=Frances H. |title=The Civil War Battlefield Guide |date=1998 |publisher=Houghton Mifflin Company |location=Boston |isbn=0-395-74012-6 |page=204 |edition=2nd |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qHObJArDHZMC |access-date=13 March 2024}} The hard fighting at the battle forced Confederate officers to state that "Brandy Station made the Federal Cavalry".

File:Company I, 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry, Falmouth, Va., June 1863 LCCN2013648496.jpg

The regiment arrived at the Battle of Gettysburg at night on July 2, 1863. They fought dismounted on July 3 and lost 12 men in the battle. The regiment also fought at the Battle of Mine Run.

In 1864, the regiment was transferred to the Army of the Shenandoah{{cite web |last1=Snell |first1=Mark A. |title=The 6th Pennsylvania Never Runs: Armed with Lances, This Cavalry Unit Charged Across the Eastern Theater |url=https://repository.lsu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1395&context=cwbr |website=repository.lsu.edu |publisher=Louisiana State University |access-date=15 March 2024}} and fought in the Overland Campaign and in the Battle of Trevilian Station under general Philip Sheridan.{{sfn|Johnson|Buel|1887|p=193}} In September, the regiment's original enlistments expired, and the unit was reorganized for an additional three years. Following the Appomattox Campaign, it was ordered to Washington, D.C., where it was consolidated with the 1st Pennsylvania Cavalry and 17th Pennsylvania Cavalry to form the 2nd Pennsylvania Provisional Cavalry. The combined regiment was sent to Louisville, Kentucky, where it was mustered out on August 7, 1865.{{sfn|Gracey|1868|page=354}}

The 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry had one Medal of Honor Recipient: Captain Frank Furness, commander of Company F.{{cite web |last1=Wittenberg |first1=Eric J. |title=Captain Frank Furness: Brilliant Architect and Medal of Honor Winner |url=http://www.rushslancers.com/furness.html |website=www.rushslancers.com |publisher=Eric J. Wittenberg |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070502024155/http://www.rushslancers.com/furness.html |access-date=13 March 2024|archive-date=2007-05-02 }} On June 12, 1864, during the Battle of Trevilian Station, Furness "Voluntarily carried a box of ammunition across an open space swept by the enemy's fire to the relief of an outpost whose ammunition had become almost exhausted, but which was thus enabled to hold its important position," according to the citation for the medal, awarded on October 20, 1899.{{cite web |title=Frank Furness |url=https://www.cmohs.org/recipients/frank-furness |website=www.cmohs.org |publisher=Congressional Medal of Honor Society |access-date=13 March 2024}}

• Killed and mortally wounded: 7 officers, 72 enlisted men
• Died of disease: 3 officers, 86 enlisted men{{sfn|Dyer|1908|page=1561}}
• Wounded (not mortally): 11 officers, 222 enlisted men
• Captured or missing: 6 officers, 204 enlisted men

• Colonel Richard H. Rush
• Lieutenant-Colonel John H. McArthur
• First Major C. Ross Smith
• Second Major Robert Morris
• Captain J. Hinckley Clark{{sfn|Gracey|1868|page=36}}

File:6th PA Cavalry MN369-B.jpg

File:Co-E-and-J-6th-PA-Cav-01.jpg

Two monuments to the 6th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment were placed at the Gettysburg battlefield. The main monument is a six-side granite monument with four lances and was erected in 1888 by the State of Pennsylvania. The second monument is dedicated to companies E & I of the regiment and represents their placement on the left flank of the Union Army at Emmittsburg Pike. A stone position marker shows the area of the left flank of the regiment on July 3 of the Battle of Gettysburg.{{cite web |last1=Hawks |first1=Steve A. |title=The Battle of Gettysburg - 6th Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry Regiment |url=https://gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/union-monuments/pennsylvania/pennsylvania-cavalry/6th-pennsylvania-cavalry/ |website=gettysburg.stonesentinels.com |publisher=Steve A. Hawks |access-date=15 March 2024}}

• List of Pennsylvania Civil War regiments

Citations

{{reflist|40em}}

Sources

• {{cite book |last=Dyer |first=Frederick Henry |author-link=Frederick H. Dyer |title=A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion |publisher=Dyer Pub. Co. |place=Des Moines, IA |date=1908 |asin=B01BUFJ76Q |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_OBkNAQAAMAAJ/page/1560/mode/1up?view=theater |format=PDF |access-date=August 8, 2015}}{{PD-notice}}
• {{cite book |last =Gracey |first =Samuel Levis |title =Annals of the Sixth Pennsylvania Cavalry |publisher =E. H. Butler & Co |edition =1st |date =1868 |location =Philadelphia, PA |language =en |url =https://archive.org/details/annalsofsixthpen00grac/page/n21/mode/2up |access-date = 2023-03-19 |lccn =02015691 |oclc =85888211 |format =PDF }}
• {{cite book |last1=Johnson |first1=Robert Underwood |last2=Buel |first2=Clarence Clough |title=The Struggle Intensifies |publisher=The Century Company |series=Battles and Leaders of the Civil War: Being for the Most Part Contributions by Union and Confederate officers: Based upon "The Century War Series" |volume=II |date=1887 |location=New York City |url=https://archive.org/details/cu31924031044393/page/n8/mode/2up |oclc=48764702 }}{{PD-notice}}
• {{cite book |last=Loosbrock |first=Richard D. |title=Battle of Brandy Station |series=Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: A Political, Social, and Military History |editor1-last=Heidler |editor1-first=David S. |editor2-last=Heidler |editor2-first=Jeanne T. |location=New York City |publisher=W. W. Norton & Company |date=2000 |isbn=0-393-04758-X }}

• [http://www.pa-roots.com/pacw/cavalry/6thcav/6thcavorg.html Pa-roots website]
• [http://www.rushslancers.com/ rushslancers.com]
• [https://digital.librarycompany.org/islandora/object/Islandora:7006/print?clip=rft_id%3Dhttp%253A%252F%252Fdigital.librarycompany.org%252Fislandora%252Fobject%252FIslandora%25253A7006%252Fdatastream%252FJP2%252Fview%253Ftoken%253D88db26df9a0f2e7820f5e60224 Recruitment poster in the Library Company of Philadelphia collections]

Category:Units and formations of the Union army from Pennsylvania

Category:1861 establishments in Pennsylvania

Category:Military units and formations established in 1861

Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1865