Clair-Mel City in Tampa in Hillsborough County, Florida — The American South (South Atlantic)

Cow Cavalry Monument

Hillsborough County Veterans Memorial Park

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, March 7, 2022

1. Cow Cavalry Monument

Inscription. The Florida 1st Special Cavalry Battalion was formed in 1863. Local cattleman, John I. Lesley, was commissioned by the Confederate government to organize a local company for his unit. There were nine such companies in Florida, now commonly referred to as the Cow Cavalry. The men recruited were often too old or too young for regular military service, and their assignment was to guard and drive large herds of Florida cattle headed to the north railheads in Georgia and South Carolina in order to feed the Confederate Army.

When Vicksburg, Mississippi fell to the Union forces in 1863, shipments of Florida cattle to the Confederate army ended, The herds needed protection from the Union forces and local rustlers alike. Since there were no railroads in Florida at that time, the cattle had to be driven 300 to 400 miles north. An estimated 700,000 head of cattle had become critical to the Southern cause, just as the service of the Cow Cavalry had. The battalion surrendered on May 10, 1865.

Image was designed and carved by Michael D. Bethune and is used with permission of the Plant City Chapter 1931, United Daughters of The Confederacy

Erected by Hillsborough County.

Topics. This monument and memorial is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. A significant historical year for this entry is 1863.

Location. 27° 58.622′ N, 82° 21.795′ W. Monument is in Tampa, Florida, in Hillsborough County. It is in Clair-Mel City. It can be reached from U.S. 301 0.2 miles south of East Martin Luther King Jr Boulevard, on the right when traveling south. Marker located within Hillsborough County Veterans Memorial Park. Touch for map. Monument is at or near this postal address: 3602 US-301, Tampa FL 33619, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this memorial monument is on Florida’s Tampa Bay.

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is also in the American South

and on the Gulf Coast.

Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region,

North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once New Spain,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Scottish Chief Anchor (a few steps from this marker); The Battle of Tampa Monument (a few steps from this marker); The Battle of Fort Brooke (a few steps from this marker); Battle of Remagen Bridge (a few steps from this marker); First Seminole War (within shouting distance of this marker); Mexican War, 1846-1848 (within shouting distance of this marker); Two Peoples, Two Cultures (within shouting distance of this marker); Veterans of an Earlier Era (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Tampa.

Also see . . . Florida’s “Cow Cavalry”. (Submitted on May 8, 2022, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida.)

Photographed by Brandon D Cross, March 7, 2022

2. Cow Cavalry Monument

Credits. This page was last revised on July 28, 2024. It was originally submitted on May 8, 2022, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. This page has been viewed 867 times since then and 119 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on May 8, 2022, by Brandon D Cross of Flagler Beach, Florida. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.