CONFEDERATE CAVALRY INSPECTION REPORTS
ADJUTANT & INSPECTOR GENERAL’S OFFICE

     On February 26, 1864, AIGO Order 46 ½ authorized subordinate offices in the Adjutant & Inspector’s General’s Office to undertake special duties. One of the offices created at that time was the Office of Inspection. Prior to this, official War Department inspections of cavalry appear to have been ordered only on a random basis as necessity demanded. On April 4, 1864, Col. Robert H. Chilton was assigned the task of organizing and implementing a system of inspection duties and reports in the armies and staff departments. However, it was not until the late summer of 1864 that uniform forms were prepared and regular inspections of the cavalry appear to have been implemented. Unfortunately, the chaos of the military situation at that late point in the war and the mobile nature of cavalry caused some commands to be inspected on several occasions and others not at all. This was particularly true in the west were only a handful of official inspections were made at all and apparently none after August 1864.
     The following cavalry inspection reports were made of the cavalry during 1864, the final full year of the war. They are listed as they are found, either by individual regiments or at division level as with most Army of Northern Virginia cavalry commands or, under the name of the unit’s commanding officers, as was the case with the cavalry commands in the west.
     The information found here can be incredibly enlightening. Most include important data such as the aggregate number of men officially on duty in the command, the number of men present at the inspection, the type and calibre of their arms and the amount of ammunition on hand. It also includes the number of "deficiencies" in the command for accoutrements, horse equipment, various articles of clothing, camp and garrison equipment.
     Unfortunately, the cost of purchasing, compiling and editing these reports was a difficult, extremely expensive and time consuming task. Therefore, to obtain a copy the author must humbly ask for a fee to partially defray the cost of this research effort. Each of the following reports listed below can be purchased by sending a check or money order:

$20 Each individual western cavalry command
$20 Each individual Army of Northern Virginia Regiment or command.
$40 for each Army of Northern Virginia "Brigade" grouping (all Regt’s).
(Except Imboden’s, McCausland’s, Jackson’s Brigades which are $20 each.)

*Photo copies of the original reports are $20 each. Caution: They are difficult to read.

Mail To: Ken R. Knopp
P.O. Box 1322
Hattiesburg, Miss. 39403

     NOTE: All available Inspection Reports for each unit are included. Each report has been edited and restructured for easy reading and reference including relative comparison percentages. However, all important numerical data has been transposed and categorized exactly as they were found on the original report written during the war.
     Please be aware that these reports represent only a snapshot of a particular cavalry command on a given date and therefore not meant to represent all cavalry, that particular unit or any other, during any other period of the war.

******* Be sure to note which cavalry commands you request!!

ARMY OF NORTHERN VIRGINIA CAVALRY:

Command Date of Report:
 :  
W.H.F. Lee’s (whole) Division (Date not indicated) (somewhat incomplete)
M.C. Butler’s (whole) Division (Date not indicated) (incomplete except for troop #’s)
 :  
W.H.F. Lee’s Division: (individual reports)        
Barringer’s Brigade:        
1st N.C. Cavalry Aug. 1864? Sept. 25, 1864 Dec. 30, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
2nd N.C. Cavalry Aug. 1864? Sept. 25, 1864 Dec. 30, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
3rd N.C. Cavalry Aug. 1864? Sept. 25, 1864 Dec. 30, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
5th N.C. Cavalry Aug. 1864? Sept. 25, 1864 Dec. 30, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
Barringer’s (whole) Brigade Dec. 1864      
         
Chambliss Brigade:        
9th Virginia Cavalry Sept. 27, 1864 Jan. 28, 1865    
10th Virginia Cavalry Sept. 27, 1864 Jan. 28, 1865    
13th Virginia Cavalry Sept. 27, 1864 Jan. 28, 1865    
Chambliss’ (whole) Brigade Dec. 1864      
         
Dearing’s Brigade:        
8th Georgia   Sept. 30, 1864 Dec. 31, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
4th N.C.   Sept. 30, 1864 Dec. 31, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
7th C.S.   Sept. 30, 1864 Dec. 31, 1864  
16th N.C. Aug. 1864? Sept. 30, 1864 Dec. 31, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
Petersburg Lt Art. (Graham’s) Aug. 1864?   Dec. 31, 1864 Jan. 30, 1865
         
Butler’s Division: (individual reports)        
Butler’s Brigade:        
4th S.C. Dec. 31, 1864      
5th S.C. Dec. 31, 1864      
6th S.C. Dec. 31, 1864      
         
Young’s Brigade:        
10th Georgia Dec. 31, 1864      
Cobb’s Legion Dec. 31, 1864      
Jeff Davis Legion Dec. 31, 1864      
Phillip’s Legion Dec. 31, 1864      
         
Lomax (whole) Division: Dec. 15, 1864      
Imboden’s 18th, 28th, 25th, 62nd Virginia Regt’s (Order as "Imboden’s Brigade")
McCausland’s 14th, 16th, 17th, 21st, 22nd Virginia Regt’s (Order as "McCausland’s Brigade")
Jackson’s 19th, 20th, 26th Virginia Regt’s, 1st Md., 27th Batt. (Order as "Jackon’s Brigade")
   

Miscellaneous A.N.V. Cavalry Commands:
Gary’s Brigade: (individual reports)        
Hampton’s Legion Aug. 26, 1864      
7th S.C. Aug. 26, 1864      
24th Georgia Aug. 26, 1864      
7th Georgia Aug. 26, 1864      
Surry Lt. Art. Aug. 26, 1864      
Gary’s (whole) Brigade: Aug. 31, 1864 Dec. 1, 1864    
         
43rd Battalion (Mosby’s) Cavalry Inspection Report Nov. 20, 1864
Incomplete! (Letter of Inspection, not statistical)  :
   
7th Military District (Station: James Island) August 25, 1864
Gen. W.B. Taliferro  
East Lines:  
  1st S.C. Art., Co’s E & K
  2nd S.C. Art., Co’s A, B, E, K
  1st S.C. Cavalry
  47th Georgia Cavalry
West Lines:  
  2nd S.C. Art., Co’s F, G, H, I
  Lucas Batt. Artillery
  5th Georgia Regt.
  Co. B, S.C. Siege
Batt. Lt. Art.:  
  Chatam’s Georgia Art.
  Guard Battery
   
Giltner’s Cavalry Brigade, Dept. of Western Virginia/East Tennessee Jan. 1865
   
Rossers Cavalry Brigade
  7th, 11th, 12th Virginia Regt. and 35th Virginia (White’s) Battalion
  (Incomplete Inspection Report except as to # of men in command)

WESTERN CAVALRY COMMANDS: (individual reports)

Command Date of Report:
   
Forrest’s Cavalry: Jan. 1864 May 26, 1864    
Wheeler’s Cavalry: July 31, 1864 Jan-Feb 1865 March 1865  
Ferguson’s Cavalry Brigade (Wheeler’s Corps)        
2nd Alabama Jan. 5, 1865      
56th Alabama Jan. 5, 1865      
Perins Regt. Jan. 5, 1865      
Inge’s Regt. Jan. 5, 1865      
Miller’s Regt. Jan. 5, 1865      
Scouts Jan. 5, 1865      
         
Jackson’s Cavalry Division: Monthly Report of Ammunition & Armament only
Armstrong’s Brigade Aug. 28, 1864 Sept. 18, 1864 Oct. 3, 1864  
Ross’s Brigade Aug. 28, 1864 Sept. 18, 1864 Oct. 3, 1864  
         
Army of the West: Year End Ordnance Report
S.D.Lee’s Cavalry Dec. 1863      
Cosby’s Brigade Dec. 1863      
Ross’s Brigade Dec. 1863      
Wirt Adam’s Brigade Dec. 1863      
Ferguson’s Brigade Dec. 1863      
Chalmer’s Brigade Dec. 1863      
Steel’s Battalion Dec. 1863      
Richardson’s Cavalry Dec. 1863      
Greer’s Cavalry Dec. 1863      
Forrest’s Cavalry Dec. 1863      

*Army of West Infantry Available: Forney’s Cockrell’s, Loring’s, French’s, etc. Dec. 1863