One of the Union army's best fighting cavalry generals!

Card Signature With Rank

(1833-1916) Gregg was born in Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, and was the first cousin of Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin, and the grandson of Pennsylvania Congressman Andrew Gregg. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in the class of 1855, and during his time at West Point, he was friends with two of his classmates who would become great Civil War cavalry generals, J.E.B. Stuart, class of 1854, and Philip H. Sheridan, class of 1853. His years before the Civil War were spent as a lieutenant in the U.S. Dragoons serving on the Indian frontier. At the beginning of the Civil War, while stationed in Washington, D.C., Gregg developed typhoid fever, and barely escaped death when his hospital caught on fire. In January 1862, he was appointed colonel of the 8th Pennsylvania Cavalry, and fought in the 1862 Virginia Peninsula campaign, where he distinguished himself during the Seven Days Battles. He next saw service in the Antietam, Maryland campaign, and was appointed to rank of brigadier general November 29, 1862. Serving in General George Stoneman's Cavalry Corps, Gregg took command of the 3rd Division in February 1863. At the Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia, Gregg's division, was dispatched on a raid around General Robert E. Lee's left flank to destroy facilities in Lee's rear. The raid lasted nine days and caused a lot of destruction behind the lines in the Army of Northern Virginia. Launching a surprise attack on General J.E.B. Stuart's forces at Brandy Station, Va., it resulted in the largest cavalry engagement of the war. The initial assault crossed over the Rappahannock River at Beverly Ford under command of General John Buford. While Buford attacked the Rebels, Gregg led the 2nd and 3rd Divisions across Kelly's Ford to attack the flank and rear of the Confederates on Fleetwood Hill, where Stuart's headquarters were located. The fighting there was fierce, with saber-wielding, and hand-to-hand combat. The Confederates managed to repulse Gregg, and the battle overall was essentially a draw, although it surprised and humiliated Stuart. The following month he was covering the extreme right of the Union lines at Gettysburg, where he fought a sharp cavalry battle against General J.E.B. Stuart's Rebel troopers, which secured for the Union army its last threatened artery. General Gregg was cited in some accounts as having gained one of the most conspicuous cavalry victories of the war. On July 3, 1863, three miles east of Gettysburg, in what is now called "East Cavalry Field," Stuart's forces collided with Gregg's division and General George A. Custer's brigade of the 3rd Division, with a lengthy mounted battle taking place, including hand-to-hand combat, with both sides claiming victory. General Gregg commanded the Cavalry Corps of the Army of the Potomac in early 1864, until the arrival of General Philip H. Sheridan, who was given commanded of the cavalry of the forces of General Ulysses S. Grant in the Overland Campaign. The most important use of Gregg's cavalry during this campaign was to screen Union movements southward, battle to battle, but a significant raid was staged that culminated in the Battle of Yellow Tavern, Va., where J.E.B. Stuart was mortally wounded, dealing the Confederacy a huge blow. Gregg's division was also heavily engaged at the Battle of Haw's Shop, where it fought General Wade Hampton's cavalry. Hampton had superior numbers, but Gregg's troopers had the advantage of Spencer repeating rifles. Finally, Custer's brigade attacked through difficult terrain, ousting Hampton's men from their position. The raid culminated in the Battle of Trevilian Station, Va. Sheridan's cavalry retreated toward Bermuda Hundred, with Gregg's division covering the retreat, fighting in the Battle of Saint Mary's Church where Gregg's division survived a strong attack directed by Wade Hampton. Gregg commanded the cavalry division that remained near Petersburg, Va., while Sheridan was engaged in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign against Jubal Early. In his role as cavalry commander, Gregg screened various Union movements, with his division engaged at the Battles of Deep Bottom, Ream's Station, and Peebles' Farm. Near the end of his service, Gregg was promoted to rank of brevet major general. After the war, Gregg was active in state and local affairs and raised funds to preserve Valley Forge as a national shrine. He visited Gettysburg Battlefield numerous times and gave speeches at various events. In 1891, he became active in politics, and was elected to a term as Auditor General of Pennsylvania. David McMurtrie Gregg died in Reading, Pennsylvania, on August 7, 1916, and was one of the oldest survivors of the war. He is memorialized with a bronze equestrian statue in Reading, and the city's American Legion Post is named "Gregg Post" in his honor. The Gregg Cavalry monument, on East Cavalry Field in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, honors both Union and Confederate forces who fought there.


Card Signature With Rank: 3 1/4 x 2 1/2, in ink, D.M.M. Gregg, Brig. & Bvt. Maj. Gen., U.S. Vols. Excellent and very desirable Union cavalry general's autograph!