26th Virginia Cavalry was formed in December, 1864, by consolidating the 46th and 47th Battalions Virginia Cavalry. The unit served in W.L. Jackson’s Brigade and was active in various conflicts in the Shenandoah Valley. It disbanded during the spring of 1865.

Lieutenant Colonel Joseph K. Kesler and Major Henry D. Ruffner were in command.

[Source: National Park Service, Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System]

West Virginia counties contributing soldiers: Calhoun,Doddridge, Jackson, Lewis, Monroe, Pleasants, Pocahontas, Roane, Ritchie, Taylor, Tyler, Upshur, Webster, Wetzel, Wirt

26th Virginia Cavalry – National Park Service

26th Virginia Cavalry, Virginia Regimental History Series, by Richard L. Armstrong, H.E. Howard Publishing.

26th Virginia Cavalry, Compendium of the Confederate Armies: Virginia, by Stewart Sifakis, pg. 136, entry #229.

26th Virginia Cavalry, A Guide to Virginia’s Military Organizations, 1861-1865, by Lee A. Wallace, Jr., pg. 65.