3: Edward and William Vining, 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry

November 1861 - May 1862

The war came to a stop during the first winter, and nothing of any real importance happened until the spring of 1862. Ever since the Battle of Bull Run, McClellan had remained camped around Washington DC while rebuilding the Army of the Potomac. A few minor battles had taken place in and around Missouri, trying to keep that state in the Union. At the same time that Herbert Kilburn was moving into permanent winter camp in West Virginia, two other men from our families were just enlisting in Wisconsin.

The Vinings were originally from Massachusetts and then Maine, and had only moved to Wisconsin in 1849. They were farmers in northern Columbia County, and it is likely that they waited until November and the end of the harvest season to enlist. Edward Kent Vining was the oldest son of Edward Vining and Catherine Haines. He had been married for less than three years to Nancy Blatchley at the start of the war. Their son Willard was a year old when Edward enlisted, and Nancy was four months pregnant with their second child. William Harrison Vining was the second oldest son of Edward and Catherine, unmarried at the start of the war.

Edward K. Vining enrolled in the Army for a term of three years on November 2, 1861. His brother William enrolled two weeks later on November 18. Edward was 23 years old at the time, and William was 21. Both men were described as 5'9" tall, with black eyes, dark hair and dark complexions (these descriptions, given in the company muster-books, were used to help identify deserters). They enrolled at Kingston, Green Lake County, Wisconsin. They were not assigned to any unit immediately - the 3^rd Cavalry had not yet started forming - so we dont know if they were recruited specifically for this regiment, or just signed up for whatever place was available.

The 3^rd Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteer Cavalry, was organized at Janesville, Wisconsin on November 30, 1861. This regiment was one of four cavalry regiments raised by the State of Wisconsin. It consisted of 12 companies and numbered about 1100 men at the start of the war. During the course of the war, the 3^rd Cavalry lost 64 men killed in battle, and 153 others died from disease.

Colonel William A. Barstow was a former Wisconsin Governor (1853-1856) living in the Racine County area. On November 9 he was appointed a Colonel and was authorized to raise and command a cavalry regiment. The 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry was mustered in between November 30, 1861 and January 31, 1862. This is more than a month longer than it took to form the 23^rd Infantry Regiment in Ohio; Wisconsin did not have a very large population at that time, and transportation was not as well developed as in Ohio.

Edward Vining arrived at Janesville and was mustered into service on December 17. William Vining arrived on December 27, and that same day they were both assigned to Captain E.R. Stevens Company (later named Company C). Everyone had arrived by the end of January, and there was a mustering-in and inspection of the entire regiment on January 28, 1862. Training started on February 1 and lasted through March 15. The first mention of this regiment in the Official Records is February 4, 1862. In a periodic report on the status of troop-raising, the Wisconsin Adjutant General informed the U.S. Adjutant General that the 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry was currently forming under Colonel William Barstow at Camp Barstow, Janesville.

Besides the ordinary drilling and rifle practice, the men would have to learn to ride and fight as cavalry. In general, Union cavalry is not considered to have been very good during the Civil War, but that impression is based on its performance in the eastern areas of the conflict: there, they were controlled closely by the infantry, and were usually broken up and used in small groups for scouting. They never did much actual fighting. In the West, however, the cavalry was kept in larger units and used more as it was intended. The picture that we have from the movies of exciting cavalry charges with bugles and sabers, rarely ever happened in real life. The main advantage of the cavalry was its ability to cover large distances in short times; when they got where they were going, they would normally dismount and fight as infantry.

Their training was completed by March 15, and Edward was given a furlough to return home for one week before the regiment moved to their duty station. The “Returns” card on which this information is supposed to be listed was missing from Williams records in the National Archives, so we are lacking some of the details on Williams service that we have for Edward. In addition to furloughs, this Returns card would also provide information on when the person is absent on patrols or has been assigned to guard duty or other special duties. It may therefore seem that William is being ignored at times, but I just dont have the detailed information on him. We can assume that he probably had the same furloughs and the same kinds of extra duties that Edward had.

There is a note in the records that Edward had not returned from his furlough on March 22, the day he was due back. He must have returned within the next day or two, since he is not listed as absent when the regiment moved.

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With their training completed, the 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry prepared to move at the end of March. Elsewhere in the war, the armies were just beginning to move out of their winter camps. Ulysses S. Grant was starting to make a name for himself with the capture of Forts Henry and Donelson in northwest Tennessee - this was the first important Union victory, and Grant was promoted to Major-General. The First Confederate Congress convened in mid-February, and Jefferson Davis was formally inaugurated as their President. Early March saw the famous naval battle between the Monitor and the Merrimac, and the Battle of Pea Ridge in Arkansas.

Pea Ridge is important to us because in that battle Gen. Samuel R. Curtis, commanding the Army of Southwest Missouri, defeated the Confederates and broke up their army. That ended all organized Confederate action in the Missouri-Kansas area for a long time. The Confederates dispersed into small bands. Many joined guerilla units, but many others just deserted and roamed about southern Missouri, robbing and looting the countryside and killing civilians. Quantrells Guerillas were just becoming known at this time.

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The 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry left Janesville Wisconsin on March 26, 1862, traveling by train to St. Louis, Missouri. There was a bad train wreck along the way, in which twelve men were killed and some of the horses lost. They arrived in St. Louis on March 28, and the next day were assigned to garrison duty at Benton Barracks, Missouri. They remained there for about two months, as part of the Federal forces stationed in the area around St. Louis and eastern Missouri, and went through more advanced cavalry training.

Benton Barracks was northwest of St. Louis at that time; today the city extends over that area, and the barracks were west of what is now Fairgrounds Park. The barracks were just constructed in September 1861, and they occupied a 150-acre “Camp of Instruction” where newly arriving units like the 3^rd Wisconsin would receive some additional training before going to their final destination.

The regiment is mentioned in a letter written on March 30, 1862 by General Fremont. He had recently taken over command of the new Mountain Department in West Virginia, which included Herbert Kilburn in the 23^rd Ohio. Fremont’s instructions were to maintain the railroad lines, especially the Baltimore & Ohio, and also to try to occupy the open lands in Kentucky and east Tennessee. Fremont’s letter complains that he needs more reinforcements to do this, and he specifically asks for Col. William Barstow’s Regiment (the 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry) at Racine, along with some Michigan and Ohio troops. Fremont’s request may have been instigated by Barstow himself, trying to get his regiment to the East, but the War Department had marked it for Western duty. The regiment had already started for Missouri before Fremont’s letter was written.

Edward Vining left Benton Barracks on May 19, 1862, on an assignment to provide escort for the Indian Agent to the Sac and Fox Tribes. The records dont say exactly where they were heading. The home of the Fox and Sauk was north-central Wisconsin, so that’s one possibility. But some of the Great Lakes tribes were being relocated to the Indian Territory (Oklahoma) at that time. These smaller tribes were clustered in the northwest corner of the Indian Territory. A third possibility is the present-day Sac and Fox Reservation where Nebraska, Kansas and Missouri meet. This is only 40 miles north of where the rest of the regiment would soon be moving, so that seems to be the most likely destination. We also don’t have any records to indicate whether William went on this trip. However, Edward is still listed as absent on the May end-of-month muster while William is present, so William probably remained in St. Louis.

Right after Edward left on escort duty, the regiment was assigned to Frontier and Provost duties in Kansas. They left St. Louis on May 23 and arrived at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas on May 27. This was a distance of 250 miles in less than five days, so they may have taken trains at least part of the way.

The 3^rd Wisconsin formed part of the newly-created Department of Kansas under General James G. Blunt. James Blunt had been born in Maine, but at age 35 was a frontier doctor in Kansas. He was a very strong abolitionist, had worked with John Brown before the war, and when the war started he raised a Jayhawker regiment to pillage and terrorize slave owners in western Missouri. Once he got into the regular army he proved to be a competent leader and was successful in battle; however, his oppression of the people in his efforts to “teach them to be loyal” actually drove many loyal Missourians over to the Confederate side. Political pressure on Lincoln had resulted in the formation of the new Department of Kansas in November 1861, and Blunt was named to command it in May 1862. Besides teaching Missouri how to behave, Blunt was also concerned with the Indian Territory (Oklahoma) throughout the war. The 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry saw a lot of action under Blunt, and we will see their involvement in both of his goals.

General Blunts total forces originally consisted of ten cavalry regiments (the 2^nd, 4^th, and 6^th U.S. Cavalry; the 2^nd, 5^th, 6^th, 7^th and 9^th Kansas; the 2^nd Ohio; and the 3^rd Wisconsin), nine infantry regiments (three U.S. Army, two Kansas, the 1^st Kansas Indian, and the 9^th, 12^th and 13^th Wisconsin), and three artillery batteries (1^st Kansas, 2^nd Indiana and 8^th Wisconsin). Because this is the Department of Kansas and most of the cavalry is from Kansas, many history books will only talk about the “Kansas Cavalry” in these western campaigns and never mention anyone else.

The 3^rd Wisconsin was split up through most of the war, a common practice where large open areas had to be guarded against wandering small bands of guerillas. Companies A, E and K were stationed in Leavenworth City, D was at Atchinson, L at Aubrey, G at Shawnee; the remaining six companies, including Company C, were at Fort Leavenworth. William Vining was probably at Fort Leavenworth at this time, while Edward was still off on the escort mission with the Indian Agent.

Although the work of guarding and expanding Union-held territory was important to the overall war effort, many of the higher officers saw Frontier duty as being too far removed from the real war and didnt like being there. On May 26, 1862, Governor Salomon of Wisconsin wrote to the U.S. Adjutant General, complaining of the use being made of these Wisconsin troops. Apparently the Governor was upset that his regiments were not immediately used on glorious and action-filled campaigns. He may also have been irritated at being asked to raise more troops, when those that had been sent out were now being used in garrison duties, which he saw as idle waste:

“There are four good Wisconsin regiments idle in Kansas – the Ninth, Twelfth and Thirteenth Wisconsin Infantry and the Third Wisconsin Cavalry. The 12^th and 13^th may have been ordered to Corinth [Mississippi], but the 9^th at Ft Scott is idle there and is one of the best regiments in the Army. I would suggest to have these regiments called into active service at once.” The Governor’s letter, like General Fremont’s, was probably motivated by complaints from the commanders of those regiments – certainly at least from the commander of the 9^th Wisconsin: Friedrich Salomon, the Governor’s brother. In any case, all the complaints came to nothing. The 3^rd Wisconsin Cavalry spent the entire war on the Frontier, fighting in numerous small battles which are not mentioned in most histories.

Compiled by Bill Stupak, last update Aug 2010