Confederate Blue in the American West: The Galvanized Yankees, Part V
The summer of 1865 saw the arrival on the Great Plains of the final two regiments of Galvanized Yankees - the 5th and 6th U.S. Volunteers. As far as Major General Grenville M. Dodge was concerned, they had arrived not a moment too soon.
The commander of the Union's Department of the Missouri had had his hands full of late trying to keep enough troops in the field. The Civil War had begun drawing to a rapid conclusion that spring, and this fact was causing a fair amount of grumbling among men who felt their job was done.
Troops already present on the frontier were eager to return home, and units newly arrived from the just-concluded fighting back east were often bitter about this new assignment at a time when they had expected to be sent home themselves.
An exasperated Dodge complained to the Union's General-in-Chief, U.S. Grant, that "Congressmen and other influential men" were bringing pressure to bear on the War Department in order to obtain early releases for several outfits serving on the frontier.
One group that Dodge knew would result in no such problem was the Galvanized Yankees, whom the general had already come to value. The 2nd and the 3rd U.S. were both currently serving in the general's department, and had acquitted themselves quite well.
Both regiments were also due to muster out later that year. Dodge was anxious that replacements be on hand as soon as possible, and it was largely through his efforts that the 5th and 6th U.S. arrived on the plains a few months prior to their predecessors' departure.
Galvanized Confederates
Before long the 5th U.S. had replaced the 2nd along the Santa Fe Trail, while the 6th was sent farther north to take over for the 3rd U.S. on the central stretch of the Oregon Trail.
The two regiments contained men recruited from three different prison camps; Camp Douglas near Chicago, Illinois, the prison camp at Alton, Illinois, and Camp Chase, located near Columbus, Ohio.
Companies C & D of the 5th also contained a set of men considered unique even among the already unique Galvanized Yankees - former Galvanized Confederates.
These were men who had enlisted to fight for the Union, had been captured and imprisoned by the South and, as an enticement for getting out of prison, had agreed to switch sides and fight for the Confederacy. They had then been "re-captured" by the North...and imprisoned yet again.
Now, for the second time, they were given the chance to leave prison, switch sides (or perhaps "re-switch" sides), and serve in their original Yankee Blue.
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