JOHN BUFORD
General Pleasanton had with him as second in command John Buford, who was born in Kentucky in 1825. He was graduated from the Military Academy at West Point in 1848, and became second lieutenant in the First Dragoons. He was in the Sioux expedition in 1855, in Kansas in 1856 and ’57, and in the Utah expedition in 1857 and ’58. In 1861 he was promoted to be a major and was designated inspector general of a corps in November, 1861. He was on General Polk’s staff in 1862. On the 27th day of July he was made brigadier-general and given command of a cavalry brigade composed of some of the very best of Federal cavalry, the 1st Michigan, the 5th New York, 1st Vermont and 1st West Virginia. He was wounded at the Second Manassas. In the Maryland campaign he was acting chief of cavalry of the Army of the Potomac. He was also at Antietam. Upon the organization of the cavalry of the Army of the Potomac, General Stoneman became the ranking officer, and Buford commanded the reserve cavalry. He was at Fredericksburg, December 3d, 1862, in Stoneman’s raid on Richmond in May, 1863, at Beverly Ford, June, 1863. He was at Gettysburg and his associates felt that he did wonderful service there. At Fleetwood Hill, he did some of the best fighting. He was not afraid of any sort of clash with his enemies. He died in November, 1863, and a statue at Gettysburg commemorates his work there.