Confederate Cow Cavalry-- Part Two

I did some more research on the Confederate Cow Cavalry and found an article by Martha Sue Skinner called "A History of Florida Confederate Cavalry.

She said the cattle in western Florida were wild and had descended from those brought over by the Spanish explorers. In 1863, Florida became a main supply depot for beef destined for Confederate armies., but frequent Federal incursions in the Tampa Bay area threatened the enterprise and Florida authorities decided to form a special unit to fight the Federals and their Confederate deserter allies.

This unit became known as the First Battalion Florida Special cavalry and had 900 men.

Not only did they protect the cattle, but they were also involved in cattle drives as far north as Savannah and Charleston.

Now You Know the Rest of the Story. --RoadDog