Ohio Civil War » Civil War A-Z » 0-9 » 3rd Ohio Independent Cavalry Company

3rd Ohio Independent Cavalry Company

1861

In the American Civil War, Ohio provided the federal government with 260 regiments of men, including infantry, artillery, and cavalry units. Ohioans also served in several other regiments from other states, most notably from Kentucky, West Virginia, and Massachusetts, as well as in federal units.

In the American Civil War, Ohio provided the federal government with 260 regiments of men, including infantry, artillery, and cavalry units. Ohioans also served in several other regiments from other states, most notably from Kentucky, West Virginia, and Massachusetts, as well as in federal units. Almost 330,000 Ohio men, including 5,092 African Americans, served in the Union military during the conflict.

Regiments formed in Ohio served for varying lengths of time, averaging one hundred days to three years. Following President Abraham Lincoln's initial call for volunteers in April 1861, Ohio's units initially were to serve just three months. All of these units were also to consist of infantry soldiers. The Ohio government, however, also recruited cavalry units, which operated in conjunction with federal troops but remained independent commands.

One of these cavalry units was the 3rd Ohio Independent Cavalry Company. Consisting of men primarily from Hamilton County, Ohio, the company formed in April and May 1861. Cincinnati, Ohio resident Philip Pfau recruited the company and served as its captain. Upon forming, officials dispatched the 3rd to western Virginia (modern-day West Virginia), where the company guarded supply trains, engaged in reconnaissance, and participated in several skirmishes with Confederate forces. Upon the end of the company's three months of service, the 3rd disbanded, but many of the company's members enlisted in the various regiments of Ohio Volunteer Cavalry.