| Born in England, Frederick Whittaker (1839-1889) grew up in Brooklyn and in November 1861 he enlisted in the 6th New York Cavalry. Union cavalry spent 12-15 hours in the saddle daily, covering an average of 30 miles. They scouted enemy positions and harassed supply lines. In combat, they usually fought dismounted. The 6th N.Y. was heavily involved in the Battle of Brandy Station in northern Virginia, June 9, 1863, the largest cavalry engagement of the war, and the preliminary fight in the crucial Gettysburg campaign. On July 1 the 6th fought in the opening skirmish at Gettysburg, as outnumbered Union forces held off the Confederates off long enough for the bulk of the Union army to arrive. Whittaker was in the thick of the fighting in the Virginia campaigns of May-June 1864, and was shot through the right lung at the Battle of Cold Harbor. He recovered, returned to action with the 6th Cavalry, and was captured and paroled in early 1865. Whittaker was eventually brevetted a captain. After the war, he moved to Mt. Vernon, and in December 1876 published the two volume, A Complete Life of George A. Custer, the first, and still most controversial biography of the American cavalry officer killed at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. |
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