The unit was recruited by Colonel William H. Young at Philadelphia during July and August 1861.

As companies were formed, they were immediately sent to Camp Park in Washington, DC, for outfitting and training.

The regiment was initially named the Kentucky Light Cavalry in an effort to influence citizens of that border state to remain in the Union.

[1] The regiment served in the Army of the Potomac through the rest of the Civil War, losing a total of 169 men.

[2] A monument recognizing the unit's role in stopping forces under Major General J. E. B. Stuart from assaulting the rear of the Union lines on Cemetery Ridge on July 3, 1863, stands east of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania at the East Cavalry Battlefield.