Life of a Civil War Horse














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Civil War Horse History and Facts
Union and Confederate Horses

Life and Death of the Civil War Horse
From Barn to Battlefield to Bullets to Burial

Introduction

The following educational lesson is a continuation of Civil War Horses, and is adapted from an article written by James R. Cotner that originally appeared in the March 1996 issue of America’s Civil War magazine. Additional credits are listed below.

During the American Civil War (1861 - 1865) it is estimated that between 1,000,000 and 3,000,000 equines died, including horses, mules, donkeys and even confiscated children’s ponies. It is also estimated that the horse casualties at the Battle of Gettysburg alone, July 1 and July 3, 1863, exceeded 3,000. Diaries and letters of soldiers often mentioned the stench of dead steeds rising up from the fields of battle, and although thousands of horses were killed on the battlefield, disease and exhaustion were the major causes of death.

Compared to all other forms of life, including humans, horses suffered the greatest losses in killed and in wounded. Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest had 30 horses shot from under him and personally killed 31 men in hand-to-hand combat. "I was a horse ahead at the end," he said.

Life of a Civil War Horse
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Union artillery unit posing with horses and cannons

(About) "Union artillery unit posing with horses and cannons." Photographed between 1861 and 1865, printed between 1880 and 1889. Digitally enhanced. Library of Congress.

Life of a Civil War Horse
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Civil War Horses and Light Artillery

(Right) Horses limbered to Union artillery. Battery M, 2nd U.S. Horse Artillery, Fair Oaks, VA., 1862. Photo by James F. Gibson. Library of Congress. The Horse Artillery Brigade of the Army of the Potomac was a brigade of various batteries of horse artillery during the Civil War. Made up almost entirely of individual, company-strength batteries from the Regular Army’s five artillery regiments, the Horse Artillery operated under the command of the Cavalry Corps. The Horse Artillery differed from other light artillery (also known as "mounted" artillery) in that each member of the unit traveled on his own horse, rather than the traditional light artillery practice of some riding horses, while others rode on the limbers and caissons, with still others traveling on foot. With each man on his own horse, the unit could travel faster and more efficiently. It was the brainchild of Brig. Gen. William Farquhar Barry, Chief of Artillery for the Army of the Potomac, in 1861. With such a large percentage of the U.S. Horse Artillery being artillery batteries from the regular U.S. Army, it developed a superb reputation for military efficiency, accuracy of fire, and command presence in the field and in battle.

Horses were valuable to the army and to the overall success of military victory, and by late 1864 a prized cavalry mount was valued in excess of $3,000. The solid-hoofed plant-eating domesticated mammal with its flowing mane and tail was used for riding, charging into battle, carrying wounded soldiers, and pulling loads such as cannons, wagons, and ambulances. The horse population in the nation had been greatly depleted as the war was drawing to a close. Horses died in great numbers from disease and exhaustion, and made for large targets on the battlefield. Soldiers preferred to shoot horses rather than the enemy, because by removing the horse, the cavalry couldn't advance, and artillery and much needed supplies couldn't be hauled. "Capture the horse if you can, but shoot the thing if you can't!" Common words of soldiers as they fought on the battlefields of the Civil War.

The majority of Civil War battles were fought in the South and it resulted in the confiscation of horses, mules, and donkeys from Southern farmers who relied on the equines for their livelihood. The once vast supply of horses in the United States was greatly diminished by late 1863, causing a single horse to be considered more valuable than a soldier. While men were still plentiful in the North, attrition had decimated its horse population. The Shenandoah Valley Campaigns of 1864 placed an additional strain on an already depleted supply of steads. Gen. Phil Sheridan, for example, required 150  mounts per day during his chapter in the campaign alone. The Union Army relied heavily on prized horses in the South to replace the 500 horses it needed daily to sustain its army in the field by late 1864.

Life and Death of the Civil War Horse

Civil War horses were worked hard and long, but it was necessary. A battery racing to engage a retreating enemy or to gain a position of advantage had no room for gentle treatment. The stakes were high, and the horses paid the price. The alternative might be defeat. A man on a long, hot march, pushed beyond what his body could bear, might drop out temporarily and catch up with his company later. Horses had no such choice. Harnessed to the limbers, they pulled until they fell or, as happened in most instances, until they harmed their bodies beyond healing, and then were shot.

The use of mules to carry mountain howitzers was a choice based on their fitness for the task, not due to any shortage of horses. The Manual for Mountain Artillery, adopted by the U.S. Army in 1851, stated that the mountain howitzer was ‘generally transported by mules.’ The superiority of mules in rough country outweighed their notorious contrariness under fire.

Plodding oxen obviously were not well suited for hauling field artillery, since rapid movement was often needed. Oxen were strong—their name is synonymous with strength and endurance—but they were too slow. Nevertheless, oxen were sometimes pressed into service during the Civil War.

Civil War horse was the prime target of soldiers
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During Battle, Horse was Gut Shot and it immediately collapsed

One of only a few Civil War horse & mule memorials
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Memorial dedicated to the killed and wounded Civil War horses and mules.

(Above) Titled “Dead Horse of Confederate Colonel; both killed at Battle of Antietam.” Perhaps it could be titled many ways, including "Gut Shot Horse at Antietam." This is the enhanced version of the two dominant photos of the "Dead Horse of Confederate Colonel" in circulation. While the other is absent the exaggerated brightness seen here, both are high resolution photos of the milky-white stead. It is also one of the most widely circulated photos of a dead Civil War horse. Here, the exaggerated exposure gives the impression that the mount sustained multiple wounds—but it didn't. Because of too much contrast, an initial examination of the equine shows what appears to be multiple wounds: center wound, known as a flank wound; hip wound, slightly forward and above point of right hip; back wound; three small caliber wounds to the midsection. Center mass however, factually shows a large caliber entry wound surrounded by dried blood. But did it also suffer from other wounds not visible in the photo? Highly unlikely, but with just a single photo showing only one side of the once proud equine, it is impossible to ascertain. If the horse suffered from other shots, do we know which one finally ended the stout mount's suffering? This horse was gut shot by an artillery round, most likely a canister ball, causing it to collapse and die where it had once stood. Others have also surmised that this beautiful creature was killed by the large caliber shot to its center, known as gut shot. Small arms fire would usually cause the large animal to run and then kill over, meaning to die on its side or with its legs up, but to collapse or drop, as seen in the photo, states that once it was shot it died instantaneously. This once strong steed literally collapsed in the place it once stood. After spending considerable time examining and retouching this photo, I am under the conviction that the handsome charger died from a solitary projectile to its midsection. From a distance soldiers believed that this horse was resting on its knees from exhaustion, but as they approached the mount they examined the large hole in its side, thus promoting a rather surreal scene. On September 19, 1862, just two days after the Battle of Antietam, Alexander Gardner, an employee of the photographer Mathew Brady, began documenting the battle’s grim aftermath. One of Gardner’s acclaimed photos, titled “Dead Horse of Confederate Colonel; both killed at Battle of Antietam,” depicted this milky-white steed lying on the field in an eerily peaceful repose. Another showed a line of bloated Confederate bodies along the Hagerstown Pike. Photo retouched slightly for enlargement while enhanced nominally with higher resolution. Courtesy National Archives. (Right) Memorial dedicated to Union and Confederate fallen horses and mules. One of only a handful of beautifully crafted memorials honoring the killed and wounded horses and mules of the conflict. There are some, not many, historical markers, interpretive markers, and a few large monuments dedicated to equines of the Civil War. Some of the larger national parks, Gettysburg, for example, have some splendid monuments and memorials dedicated to specific mascots and horses.

Mud or dust seemed to plague every movement of troops. Of the two, mud made it difficult to transport artillery. Dust created great discomfort, but little more. While an artilleryman might find it difficult to breathe and intolerably itchy in the suffocating dust, the guns and caissons could still be moved. Mud, on the other hand, often made movement impossible. Sinking below their axles in holes full of clinging muck, guns and caissons could be moved only with superhuman effort, the men pushing at the wheels and extra horses pulling on the traces. Sometimes guns were simply abandoned to the mud. Cavalry on the other hand, could traverse the terrain with ease, because troopers were not restricted to roads and paths.

Feeding, of course, was a critical part of the horses’ care. The daily ration prescribed for an artillery horse was 14 pounds of hay and 12 pounds of grain, usually oats, corn or barley. The amount of grain and hay needed by any particular battery depended on the number of horses that battery had at the time. It varied almost from day to day, but it was always enormous. The horses of the battery had to be fed each day, whether the battery moved or not. During the Civil War, an artillery battery might sit in the same place for weeks at a time, and yet consume thousands of pounds of hay and grain each day.

The prescribed rations were not always available. Sometimes, especially as the war went on and areas were picked clean by the opposing armies, severe shortages of grain and hay developed. At other times, there was available grain and hay but they could not be delivered to the batteries needing them. The artillery horses of the Union V Corps subsisted on a daily ration of five pounds of grain as Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant pushed south in May 1864. The meager rations were the result of a shortage of wagons, not a lack of grain. After the artillery wagons had delivered hay and grain to the batteries, infantry units seized them and used them as makeshift ambulances to carry the thousands of wounded back from the Wilderness and Spotsylvania.

Pasturage was sometimes available, but green grass and field plants were not efficient foods. Eighty pounds of pasturage was needed to match the nutritional value of 26 pounds of dry hay and grain, the prescribed daily ration. In addition, green pasturage increased the likelihood that a horse might founder. Nevertheless, pasturage was used, either as a supplement to the regular ration or as the primary source of nutrition for short periods, if hay and grain were not available.

Water for the horses was a problem that demanded an adequate solution every day. While in camp, a battery would discover the nearest creek or pond and routinely water the horses there. On the march, water had to be found at the end of each day. If the water was any distance, as it often was, the timing of the watering was critical. The guns were immobile if the horses were absent. Usually, only half the horses would be sent to water at any one time. This meant that in an emergency some movement might be achieved, but with only half the horses present, the battery was at a distinct disadvantage.

A battery moved at the same speed and covered the same distance as did the troops to which it was attached. This distance could be anywhere from a few miles to 20 or even 30 miles a day. When a battery moved independently, it was not limited by the movement of the troops and was thus free to cover as much ground as it could. All in all, there was not a great deal of difference in the distance traveled. Such gains as there were resulted from the absence of thousands of marching infantrymen, supply trains and other units cluttering up the roads. The battery was then able to travel without long delays due to the inevitable traffic jams caused by jostling troops.

In spite of the care given to horses during the Civil War, the animals still perished at an astounding rate. Many died of disease or were put to death because of exhaustion. Many more were killed alongside their battery mates in battle. When an artillery battery unlimbered and took its place in line, the horses were ordinarily moved to a place sheltered from direct enemy fire–behind a building or hill, in a copse of trees or in a ravine. Such precautions, however, did not always protect the animals from hostile fire. "When the third shell struck and killed my horse and bursting, blew him to pieces, knocked me down, of course, and tore off my right arm," wrote Private Ezra E. Stickley, Company A, 5th Virginia Infantry, while referring to his fighting at the Battle of Antietam.

Horse Killed during Civil War battle
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Dead horses at Trostle Farm during Battle of Gettysburg on July 2, 1863

Horses killed at Gettysburg
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Dead Civil War Horses at Gettysburg

(About) The 9th Massachusetts Battery suffered 80 dead horses during the fight at Trostle, July 2nd, 1863, at Gettysburg. The Battle of Gettysburg, like the majority of Civil War battles, raged over the private property of ordinary farmers and citizens. The buildings on these properties, if they were not destroyed, were often converted into field hospitals to treat wounded and dying soldiers. On the Trostle homestead, July 2, 1863, as waves of gray-clad men continued to press its front, the 9th Massachusetts, now engaged in a very deadly contest, was ordered to fire double-canister at the advancing Confederates. As canister cracked and peppered the field, the gray wave, not faltering, had pushed through the dense smoke and closed the already shortened field between the foe. Too late to limber and move the artillery, understood the Union men, who were now facing superior numbers without their equalizers of canister and shot. On the Confederate side, the sounds of cold steel rattling and clanking could be heard as some of the men had transitioned to fixed bayonets. "Shoot the horses!" shouted one soldier of the 21st Mississippi Infantry, and the animals fell in heaps still strapped to their harnesses. Passing enemy cannon muzzles the Rebels were met with determined artillerymen who fought back with hand spikes, rammers, pistols, and fists. "We fought with our guns until the rebs put their hands on (them)," wrote Private David Brett. "The bullets flew thick as hailstones... It is a mericle(sic) that we were not all killed." The survivors finally fled, leaving behind guns, limbers, and the wounded and dead intermingled with the dead and dying horses. The first battle experience of the 9th Massachusetts Battery had ended in a bloody disaster. The battery suffered 80 of its 88 horses in killed, and the fallen equines covered every portion of the Trostle yard.

On the third day at Gettysburg in July 1863, many of the Union artillery horses were placed on the eastern slope of Cemetery Ridge, behind and below the crest. In the great barrage that preceded Pickett’s Charge, the position inadvertently became a death trap. Brigadier General Henry J. Hunt, chief of artillery for the Federal forces, reported that fire from the Confederate guns was high. It passed over the crest and exploded or fell among the horses on the eastern slope. As Hunt reported, ‘This cost us a great many horses and the explosion of an unusually large number of caissons and limbers.’ The Union artillery lost 881 horses at Gettysburg. All of those animals were not killed on the eastern slope of Cemetery Ridge, but it may be assumed from Hunt’s remarks that many were.

Horses suffered not only from artillery fire but also from the fire of advancing infantry. The capture of a piece of artillery was a great exploit, bringing with it honor and recognition. Confederate regiments in the Western theater were allowed to place crossed cannons on their regimental battle flags after they had taken a Federal gun.

The primary tactic used in attacking a battery was to shoot down the horses attached to it. If the battery horses were killed or disabled, moving the guns back to safety was an impossible task. But horses could take much punishment. They were difficult to bring down, and once down were difficult to keep down, even with the impact of the large-caliber Minie bullets.

At Ream’s Station in August 1864, the 10th Massachusetts Battery fought from behind a low makeshift barricade, with its horses fully exposed only a few yards behind the guns. The battery was fighting with five guns, and in a short time the five teams of six horses came under fire. Within minutes only two of the 30 animals were still standing, and these all bore wounds. One horse was shot seven times before it went down. Other horses were hit, went down, and struggled back up, only to be hit again. The average number of wounds suffered by each horse was five. The Confederates were firing from a cornfield approximately 300 yards away.

Civil War Horses, Cavalry, and Artillery
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Capture of Ricketts' Artillery at First Battle of Manassas

Detective Allan Pinkerton during the Civil War
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Allan Pinkerton, alias Major E. J. Allen, riding his favorite horse in a Union camp at Antietam, MD.

(Left) Allan Pinkerton, alias Major E. J. Allen, while riding his favorite horse through a Union camp at Antietam, MD, in September 1862. Library of Congress. Scottish born Allan Pinkerton gained fame when he foiled a plot to  assassinate President Lincoln. In 1861 Pinkerton established the Service of the National Army and forestalled conspiracies that threatened to overthrow the Republic. While referring to himself he once said: "Now that it is all over I am tempted to reveal the secret. I have had many intimate friends in the army and in the government. They all know Major E. J. Allen, but many of them will never know that their friend, Major Allen and Allan Pinkerton, are one and the same person." In this photo, guised as Major Allen, chief of the Secret Service during the Civil War, he was passing through the camp at Antietam one September day in 1862. He was riding his favorite horse and carelessly smoking a cigar when one of Mr. Brady's men called to him to halt a moment while he took this picture. (Right) Capture of Ricketts' Battery, depicting action during the First Battle of Bull Run, the initial major engagement of the Civil War. The painting is oil on plywood, and is displayed in the Henry Hill Visitor Center at Manassas National Battlefield Park. National Park Service.

By far the greatest number of horses were lost to disease and exhaustion. Again referring to the 10th Massachusetts Battery, reports reveal a dismal trail of horses dying from disease or being put to death because of exhaustion. Between October 18, 1862, when its service began, and April 9, 1865, when Lee surrendered, the battery lost a total of 157 horses from causes other than combat. Of these, 112 died from disease. The most prevalent disease in the battery was glanders, which claimed 45 horses. Glanders, a highly contagious disease that affects the skin, nasal passages and respiratory tract of horses and mules, was also called farcy or nasal gleet in wartime reports.

Forty-five of the battery’s horses were lost to fatigue when they simply became worn out and unable to work, and so were put to death. The losses to exhaustion can be keyed to specific events. In June 1864, 13 battery horses were lost to exhaustion, reflecting the crushing pace of Grant’s advance after leaving the Wilderness. In the days after the fall of Richmond, 14 horses went down as a result of the hard pursuit of Lee’s retreating army. Even when the surrender came, the killing chase continued to take its toll, with an additional 22 horses being put to death due to exhaustion between April 10 and April 15.

Five days were needed for Knap’s Pennsylvania Battery to travel from Leesburg, Va., to Littletown, Pa., a distance of 80 miles. The battery marched with the XII Corps. The longest distance traveled in one day was 21 miles, while the shortest was 12. The same battery, when it was unattached and moving independently in September 1863, covered the 59 miles from Brandy Station to Alexandria in only 2 days, traveling 37 miles the first day and 22 the second.

Union Cavalry and the Life of a Civil War Horse
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Bible saved me more than once, stated Union cavalryman

(Right) Photograph of Civil War Cavalryman. Photo of Trooper Walter G. Jones, Pvt., 8th New York Cavalry, Co. C., U.S.A., half-length, facing front, and his New Testament with bullet holes and the two bullets which lodged in his Bible. Any soldier, regardless of the conflict, will say that if he dies he would rather be killed at the beginning of the war and not on its last day. Private Jones, having endured four years of bloody warfare, had exited dozens of battlefields only to leave behind many fallen comrades. The second and last bullet that struck the little Bible in front of Jones' heart occurred on the same day that Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered to Gen. U.S. Grant at Appomattox Court House, Virginia, which signaled the end of the four year Civil War. Jones, obviously moved and humbled by the very thought that he was only a fraction of an inch from death, opened his New Testament and placed it on a crude makeshift memorial, but only after he made the heartfelt entry. The private's short testimony accompanying his Bible speaks volumes, for he did not brag, boast, or even attempt to exaggerate his social status or military accomplishments, but he simply opened his New Testament and began his testimony by stating who he was not. Jones said that he was not famous or from any of the prominent and wealthy families of his community, but that he was just a private. He also understood what it meant by saying that the "little Testament" was located in his "blouse pocket," for that pocket is located in front and near to the vital organ necessary to pump the lifeline of blood through the body. By indicating that it was a "little Testament," meant even more to the New Yorker. Not one shot, but two bullets had hit a very small target, his Bible, and because it halted the metals betwixt the pages, he perhaps believed that it was none other than Jesus himself who had intervened and saved him. If you look closely at the opened bible you will see the "Gospel of Matthew," which is literally translated as "Gift from God."

Tragedy of Trostle

The path of the Battle of Gettysburg was like a violent storm that left a wake of destruction wherever it traveled. The farmers, upon whose land the majority of the battle took place, suffered severely. In some cases, nearly everything was lost. This photo of the Catherine Trostle farm was taken on July 6, four days after the fighting had raged around her farm. Some sense of what the battle cost her can be realized in the claims shown below that she filed for damages with both the state and federal government. There were dozens of other farmers whose circumstances mirrored those of Catherine Trostle. Few of them, including Mrs. Trostle, were ever compensated for their losses. Although Mrs. Trostle, under the act approved on April 9, 1868, filed the following petition with the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania on behalf of husband, her claim was denied.

To the Board of Commissioners appointed to assess the damages occasioned by the rebel invasions of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, under the act approved April 9, 1868. The petition of Catherine Trostle on behalf of Abram Trostle, respectfully sheweth that he was a resident of Cumberland township, Adams County, Pennsylvania, in the year 1863; that on or about the 1st to 4th of July, 1863, he sustained loss and damage to his property situate and being in Cumberland township, in said County of Adams, by the causes referred to in said Act of Assembly.

That her husband, Abraham Trostle, has become insane, and is now in the Lunatic Asylum, that their farm was near Round Top, and was fought over two days, and the crops and fences were totally destroyed. The fences were burned.

The cows and other stock and cattle, and fowls, were partly killed on the field, and some driven away, the farm being between the two armies, in part was fought over several times; that the family was driven from the house, which was taken possession of by the soldiers, and nursed for wounded men, and it was also struck by shells and balls, and much injured. There were 16 dead horses left close by the door and probably 100 on the farm. She believes the property was damaged and lost to the amount claimed. That her husband had 15 barrels of flour in Myers Mill which was taken by the rebels, and was worth $120.00.

When the conflict concluded in April 1865, the South too was destitute, and it lacked both slave labor and horse power to sustain its agriculture. Farms and lands, now overgrown with weeds and brush, were sold for pennies on the dollar to the bidder and speculator. Although U.S. Census records indicate that the Southern economy had stabilized by 1900, it was deprived again by the Great Depression of 1930s.

Union Wagon Train
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Union Supply Train guarded from possible cavalry raid. Brady, LOC.

(About) Union army wagon train halted and guarded from Confederate cavalry near Brandy Station, VA, in May 1863. Brady, Library of Congress. It was in May, 1863, that one of these wagon trains safely reached Brandy Station, Virginia. Its journey had been one of imminent danger as both armies were in dire need of provisions and the capture of a wagon train was as good fortune as victory in a skirmish. To protect this train from a desperate dash of the Confederate cavalry it was "parked" on the outskirts of a forest that protected it from envious eyes and guarded by the Union lines. One of Mr. Brady's cameras took this photograph during this critical moment. It shows but one division of one corps. As there were three divisions in each corps, and there were many corps in the army, some idea of the immense size of the trains may be gained by this view. The train succeeded in reaching its destination at a time of much need. The supply trains of the great armies numbered thousands of six-mule teams and during the march the wagon train would stretch for several miles. Filled with critical provisions such as food, clothing, medicine, and munitions, the supply train was a necessary lifeline of the army. While the railroad was also vital in the rapid movement of troops and provisions, the trains were limited by the scarce routes of the era. Although trains would often move much needed ammunition rapidly near the front, it was the mule and horse that often hauled it to the exhausted troops. The equines of the conflict, too, needed adequate provisions. Generals Grant and Lee were both fond of horses, having many splendid mounts betwixt them, and they understood that all equines required sufficient rations and good drinking water to fulfill each mission. Orders and directives were issued to the armies instructing the troops on how to provide and care for the horses and mules. Late in the war, and lacking horses and mules, generals on both sides were known to say that it was easier to replace a soldier than a horse. providing and caring for the equines. If cavalry was going to advance, and if wagons and artillery were going to be pulled, then the horses and mules better be healthy. Trains and railroads, supply wagons, blockade runners, and ships were all considered priority targets and prizes for the enemy, so the nation's ability to collectively employ its transportation capabilities was absolutely critical to the war effort. 

Analysis

At the start of the Civil War, the Northern states held approximately 3.4 million horses, while there were 1.7 million in the Confederate states. The border states of Missouri and Kentucky had an additional 800,000 horses. In addition, there were 100,000 mules in the North, 800,000 in the seceding states and 200,000 in Kentucky and Missouri. The disparity in the distribution of the mule population somewhat evened out the number of draft animals available for all purposes. The South furnished—involuntarily—many horses to the North. Most of the fighting was done on Southern soil, and the local horses were easily seized by Northern troops. While Confederates had opportunities to take Northern horses during Robert E. Lee's invasion of Pennsylvania and upon the occasional raids into Northern territory, the number taken was small compared to the thousands commandeered by Union troops, who occupied large areas of the South for several years.

Dead Horse on Civil War Battlefield
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Dead Horse and Union Light Artillery Battery at Battle of Antietam.

(About) Battle of Antietam, Maryland. Captain J.M. Knap's Penn. Independent Battery "E" Light Artillery engaged at Battle of Antietam, September 1862. From Left Negative. Retouched. Enhanced, Zoomed, Cropped. Alexander Gardner. Library of Congress.

During Reconstruction, many soldiers, burdened with battle scars and disabilities, returned to their farms only to find them overrun by trees and brush caused by neglect or abandonment. Other veterans arrived at the homestead only to receive the news that their former livelihoods of farms and fields had been sold by wives and family members  to purchase necessaries for the harsh winters that had confronted them. In the absence of husbands, fathers, and brothers who had marched to the drums of war, many wives and children had indeed tended the fields, usually with limited success, but it quickly vanished as the remaining horses and mules were requisitioned by a nearby army for the war effort. Left to starvation, while adjacent fields were overrun with brush, or sell everything in an effort to survive was often reality and not choice. If abandoned fields and appropriated equines weren't enough to entertain thoughts of despair, then the  local banker  or some creditor usually confiscated what remained to compensate for debt or monies owed. Those who had some tillable land remaining, were the exception and not the rule, but life can be hard sometimes, as the saying goes, but we made it through the war, so we can make it through anything, said one soldier who had served and fought for the duration of the Civil War.

See also
 

Credits: Adapted from James R. Cotner's original work from the March 1996 issue of the America’s Civil War magazine. While the reader is encouraged to visit and enjoy the vast collection of American Civil War magazines, it is a great resource for educators and students of all grades. Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies; Heitman, Francis B., Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, From its Organization, September 29, 1789 to March 2, 1903, Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1903; American Memory: Selected Civil War Photographs. Library of Congress, Prints & Photographs Division. Washington, D.C.; Register of Graduates and Former Cadets of the United States Military Academy. West Point, NY: West Point Alumni Foundation, Inc., 1970; National Archives; Gettysburg National Military Park; Library of Congress.































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