HISTORICAL NOTES:
U.S. Colored Troops 4th Regiment Cavalry was organized as the 1st Corps de Afrique Cavalry September 12, 1863- July 19, 1864. The designation was changed April 4, 1864.
The regiment was initially assigned to the Defenses of New Orleans and stationed at various New Orleans-area bases including Camp Colfax (Carrollton), Camp Parapet (Jefferson), and Fort Butler (Donaldsonville).
In addition to menial labor and picket duty, detachments of the 4th were detailed to protect both the New Orleans & Opelousas Railroad (companies A and C at Company Canal, in present-day Westwego) in 1863 and the New Orleans & Jackson Railroad (companies A and K at Camp Parapet) in 1864. On August 6, 1864, a detachment of the 4th was involved in a skirmish at the fort at Plaquemine, Louisiana while on duty to protect the 11th Colored Heavy Artillery, whose soldiers were stationed there. While the 4th suffered no casualties, three soldiers of the 11th were taken prisoner and summarily executed by the Confederate Army. Two days later, the 4th was permanently transferred from Camp Parapet to Port Hudson to shore up the cavalry force there. The 4th participated in an expedition to Clinton, Louisiana on August 23–29, 1864 to flush out Confederate soldiers and jayhawkers there. The regiment saw combat action at Olive Branch on the Comite River, about ten miles south of Clinton, on August 25, resulting in one soldier wounded. Though this and the Plaquemine skirmish are the only recorded official combat engagements for the 4th, the regiment sporadically engaged small units while on picket duty at various locations.
On January 28, 1865, the 4th underwent a reorganization that saw companies I, K, L, and M absorbed into, respectively, companies H, D, B, and E, reducing the number of companies in the regiment from twelve to eight. The 4th went on an expedition from Port Hudson to Jackson, Louisiana on April 11–13, 1865 to escort an engineering team repairing telegraph lines. Using that repaired telegraph line, the 4th confirmed to the Confederate forces at Jackson that General Robert E. Lee had already surrendered the Army of Northern Virginia on April 9. The 4th would remain at Port Hudson until July 1865, when the regiment was placed in field service. Detachments of the regiment would serve at various points throughout Louisiana, including Baton Rouge (companies C and H), Monroe and Vidalia (companies D and E), until March 20, 1866.
The first commander assigned to the regiment was Colonel James Grant Wilson, who served simultaneously as the aide-de-camp to Major General Banks and never assumed operational control of the regiment. The first operational commander of the regiment was Lieutenant Colonel Julius H. Alexander, formerly of the 7th Kentucky Cavalry. Upon his medical discharge in November 1864, he was replaced by Major Nathaniel C. Mitchell, formerly of the 15th Illinois Cavalry. Mitchell was later promoted to lieutenant colonel and commanded the unit until its mustering out March 20, 1866.
OFFICERS:
Colonel James Grant Wilson
Lieutenant Colonel Julius H. Alexander
Major Nathaniel C. Mitchell
ASSIGNMENTS:
Attached to Defenses of New Orleans, La., Dept. of the Gulf, to August, 1864. District of Port Hudson, La., Dept. of the Gulf, to October, 1864. 1st Brigade, 2nd Division, United States Colored Troops, Dept. of the Gulf, to December, 1864. District of Port Hudson, La., Dept. of the Gulf, to July, 1865. Dept. of Mississippi to March, 1866.
SERVICE:
Duty in the Defenses of New Orleans, La., at New Orleans, Carrollton, Camp Parapet and Donaldsonville, District of LaFourche, until August, 1864. Ordered to Baton Rouge, La., August 8, and duty in the Defenses of that Post until July, 1865. Expedition to Clinton August 23-29, 1864. Action at Olive Branch, Comite River, August 25. Expedition from Port Hudson to Jackson April 11-13, 1865. Duty at various points in the Dept. of Mississippi until March, 1866. Mustered out March 20, 1866.
ROSTERS:
The Rosters of this unit contains the names of 1289 men. BIBLIOGRAPHY:
Dyer, Frederick H. A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion. Vol. 2. Cartersville, GA: Eastern Digital Resources, 2003.
Rigdon, John C. US Colored Troops Civil War Soldiers Index. Cartersville, GA: Eastern Digital Resources, 2011.
HISTORICAL NOTES: