14th Pennsylvania Cavalry Regiment

Captain Thomas R. Kerr won the Medal of Honor for capturing a regimental flag at Moorefield where he was an advance scout, while Schoonmaker received the same award for action at the Third Battle of Winchester.

[3] On May 7, 1863, a detachment of unmounted men was left in Harper's Ferry under the command of Major Foley, while the remaining portion of the regiment rode the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad (a.k.a.

[17] Two squadrons of the 14th Pennsylvania Cavalry, under the command of Major Gibson, were sent to Harris' assistance, and arrived about four miles (6.4 km) north of Beverly around 3:00 am on July 3.

[18] On July 13, Colonel Schoonmaker led most of the regiment as it was involved with capturing one of Lee's supply wagon trains and several hundred prisoners.

[20] On August 15, while in Petersburg in West Virginia's Hardy County, Averell received orders to retrieve law books from Lewisburg and attack a list of targets at points in between.

[30] Significant fighting began on the morning of August 26 west of White Sulphur Springs when Averell's advance guard was intercepted by Confederate troops.

[31] A soldier from another regiment wrote that during the battle the 14th Pennsylvania "made one of the most daring charges of the war, not only facing a murderous storm of leaden hail from the front but also, to their surprise, received an enfilading fire along their flank from a large body of infantry concealed in a cornfield...."[32] The charge was led by Colonel Schoonmaker and Captain John Bird from Company G. Bird was wounded, captured, and eventually taken to Libby Prison.

Pursued by Confederate troops, Averell's force struggled north using blockades, deceptions, night marches, and back roads—reaching safety on August 31.

[39] With the support of the force using the northwestern route, and later Averell with the remainder of the brigade, Schoonmaker helped drive the Confederates back to Droop Mountain.

Two Union columns, led by Averell and Lieutenant Colonel Blakeley, took obscure roads south of Covington to a bridge across the Jackson River.

[53] A place about two miles (3.2 km) upriver was successfully used to ford the river, and Foley's assumed-captured force caught up with Averell in the Allegheny Mountains.

[67][68] Averell's force escaped at night over the mountains using a difficult route, and eventually destroyed 26 bridges and portions of railroad track between Christiansburg and the New River.

[69] During the Crook-Averell Raid, a detachment of dismounted men from the regiment was left behind under the command of Captain Ashbel F. Duncan and Lieutenant Colonel Blakeley.

[80] The retreat was made westward, and Averell's entire division fought for two hours near Liberty until its ammunition was exhausted and it was relieved by Crook's infantry.

[83] In early July, the regiment left Charleston, West Virginia, and took a three-day train ride with their horses from Parkersburg to the rail station at Martinsburg.

[87] During the advance, he sent a detachment of 200 men from the 14th Pennsylvania Cavalry to the west side of Winchester, and the main body of the regiment was sent east to attack Berryville.

Rodes' men on foot could not outrace Averell's cavalry, but they did cause a panic—especially Schoonmaker's brigade that had absorbed the brunt of the initial attack.

[94] During late July and early August, Colonel Schoonmaker was running a camp for dismounted cavalry in Pleasant Valley, Maryland.

A detachment of 212 men from the camp, led by Lieutenant Colonel Blakeley, assisted Brigadier General Wesley Merritt's division in August.

[104] Averell rested his horses and troops until August 3, when he received an order from General David Hunter to pursue McCausland and attack "wherever found".

At that time he sent a battalion of men from the 22nd Pennsylvania Cavalry away from the main road to block McCausland's route east back to the Shenandoah Valley.

Summarizing the battle, Confederate General Early wrote that his army "deserved the victory, and would have had it, but for the enemy's immense superiority in cavalry, which alone gave it to him".

[122] Close to the edge of Winchester, Averell ordered Schoonmaker's brigade to capture Star Fort, which stood on a hill on the northwest side of town.

[123] A new line of about 300 men from the 14th Pennsylvania Cavalry was formed and led by Captain Duncan, who attempted to capture the fort's guns while another portion of the regiment moved around the flank of the enemy.

[136] The division arrived at Weyer's Cave in the afternoon of September 26, and Schoonmaker's brigade crossed the South River and attacked enemy cavalry.

"[138] Near the close of the skirmish at Weyer's Cave, Major General George Armstrong Custer arrived to succeed Powell as commander of the division.

During the morning fighting, the "officer in command of the brigade" (Colonel Moore) refused to dismount his men to support the division of Brigadier General Thomas Devin.

[150] Separately, Major John M. Daily was dismissed for absence without leave effective November 11, but reinstated seven months later as a lieutenant colonel.

On December 19, the regiment participated in a failed expedition to Gordonsville that was expected to capture the town and enable portions of the Virginia Central Railroad to be destroyed.

[165][Note 12] The final expedition of the winter began on February 19, 1865, and ended with Major Gibson and his men ambushed by Mosby between Ashby's Gap and the Shenandoah River.

young American civil war officer with mustache
Col. Schoonmaker
young-looking clean cut American Civil War officer sitting
Major Gibson
map showing western Virginia with Union and Confederate positions and two railroads
Union Army plan
map showing troop movements near Hillsboro West Virginia
Oley took a northwest route while Schoonmaker took a southwest route to try to cut off Confederate cavalry
map showing Union troop movements through mountainous region of western Virginia and West Virginia
Most of the 14th Pennsylvania narrowly eluded capture in Averell's return from the Salem Raid
Old picture of a young-looking American Civil War officer wearing hat with mustache and low beard
Col. Tibbits
map with arrows showing route of Union army from Staunton to Lynchburg, then west
Hunter's Raid on Lynchburg
picture of an American Civil War general with mustache and receding hair line
Br. Gen. Averell
buildings destroyed by fire with people standing around
Chambersburg ruins after burning on July 30, 1864
map showing Union approach to Moorefield (from north and east)
Averell's approach to Confederate camps led by Kerr's scouts and Gibson's Brigade that included the 14th Pennsylvania Cavalry
map showing troop movement at Winchester from north to the Star Fort
Schoonmaker's Brigade was part of the Union attack from the north.
map showing Harrisonburg, Mt Crawford, and Staunton, Weyer's Cave, and region of "The Burning"
The 14th Pennsylvania was near Harrisonburg and Staunton in late September
picture of a serious-looking American Civil War general with mustache and odd hat
MG Sheridan
map showing New Market, Rude's Hill, Massanuiton Mountains, Nineveh, and Ashby's Gap
The 14th PA Cavalry patrolled Virginia during November and December 1864
map showing Gordonsville at intersection of Virginia Central, Orange & Alexandria, and Virginia Central railroads
The Union railroad raid at Gordonsville was unsuccessful.