2nd Regiment, Mississippi Cavalry

United States     U.S. Military      Mississippi      Mississippi Military      Mississippi in the Civil War      2nd Regiment, Mississippi Cavalry

Brief History
2nd Cavalry Regiment [also called 4th and 42nd Regiment] was organized during the spring of 1863. It was formerly the 47th Mississippi Infantry Regiment, which never completed its organization. Its members were from the counties of Adams, Choctaw, Newton, Lee, Lauderdale, Pontotoc, Kemper, and Hinds. Some of the men were captured in the fight at Selma, and only a remnant surrendered with the Department of Alabama, Mississippi, and East Louisiana. The field officers were Colonels Edward Dillon and J.L. McCarty, Lieutenant Colonel James Gordon, and Majors J.L. Harris and John J. Perry.


 * The 2nd Mississippi Cavalry Internet site has a longer history taken from Dunbar Rowland's Military History of Mississippi, 1803-1898.
 * A timeline of military assigments is found following a history on The American Civil War Internet site.

Regiment Companies with the County of Origin
Men often enlisted in a company recruited in the counties where they lived though not always. After many battles, companies might be combined because so many men were killed or wounded. However if you are unsure which company your ancestor was in, try the company recruited in his county first.

Company A - Choctaw Rangers (raised in Choctaw County) Company B - Newton Rangers (raised in Newton County) Company C - Lauderdale Cavalry (raised in Lauderdale County) Company D - Senatobia Opposers (raised in Panola County) Company E - Mooresville Blues (raised in Itawamba County); also Barefoot’s Company (county of origin not specified) Company F - East Mississippi Dragoons, aka East Mississippi Guards (raised in Clarke County) Company G - Pontotoc Rangers (raised in Pontotoc County); also Peery’s Company (county of origin not specified) Company H - Kemper Dragoons (raised in Kemper County) Company I - Lula White Rebels (raised in Monroe County) Company K - Mississippi Body Guards (raised in Scott County)

Other Sources

 * Beginning United States Civil War Research gives steps for finding information about a Civil War soldier. It covers the major records that should be used. Additional records are described in ‘Mississippi in the Civil War’ and ‘United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865’ (see below).


 * National Park Service, The Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System, is searchable by soldier's name and state. It contains basic facts about soldiers on both sides of the Civil War, a list of regiments, descriptions of significant battles, sources of the information, and suggestions for where to find additional information.


 * Mississippi in the Civil War describes many Confederate and Union sources, specifically for Mississippi, and how to find them.. These include compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * United States Civil War, 1861 to 1865 describes and explains United States and Confederate States records, rather than state records, and how to find them. These include veterans’ censuses, compiled service records, pension records, rosters, cemetery records, Internet databases, published books, etc.


 * Rowland, Dunbar. Military History of Mississippi, 1803-1898: taken from the Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi, 1908. Spartanburg, South Carolina: Reprint Company.


 * Howell, H. Grady. For Dixie Land, I’ll Take My Stand!: A Muster Listing of All Known Mississippi Confederate Soldiers, Sailors, and Marines. Chickasaw Bayou Press, 1998.