Army of the Border

The Army of the Border was a Union army during the American Civil War. It was created from units in the Department of Kansas to oppose Sterling Price's Raid in 1864. Samuel R. Curtis was in command of the army throughout its duration.

Major General James G. Blunt, who commanded the District of South Kansas, was placed in command of the army's 1st Division, which was broken up into three brigade of volunteer cavalry regiments and a fourth of Kansas state militia units. Major General George Dietzler commanded the rest of the Kansas state militia units and organized them into the 2nd Division of the army.

Blunt's division fought at the battles of Lexington and Little Blue River before falling back and joining Curtis and the rest of the army at Westport. At the Battle of Westport, Curtis's two divisions were joined by Alfred Pleasonton's cavalry division from the Department of the Missouri, bringing the Union army to about 22,000, including Pleasonton's cavalry. After the battle, the militia units returned to their respective counties while Blunt's volunteers continued the pursuit along with Pleasonton's division. Blunt's division fought Price in the last major battle of the campaign at Newtonia.

Commander

• Major General Samuel R. Curtis (October 14 – November 8, 1864)

Major battles and campaigns

• Price's Missouri Expedition
  • Second Battle of Lexington (only Blunt's 1st Division was involved)
  • Battle of Little Blue River (only Blunt's 1st Division was involved)
  • Battle of Byram's Ford (only Blunt's 1st Division was involved)
  • Battle of Westport (Blunt's division and elements of Dietzler's state militia involved)
  • Battle of Mine Creek (only Pleasonton's 2nd Division was involved)
  • Second Battle of Newtonia (only Blunt's 1st Division was involved)

Abbreviations used

Military rank

• MG = Major General
• BG = Brigadier General
• Col = Colonel
• Ltc = Lieutenant Colonel
• Maj = Major
• Cpt = Captain
• Lt = 1st Lieutenant
• 2Lt = 2nd Lieutenant

Army of the Border

MG Samuel Ryan Curtis

Escort:

• 2nd Kansas Cavalry (battalion): Maj Henry Hopkins
• Company G, 11th Kansas Cavalry: Cpt C. L. Gove
• Company H, 15th Kansas Cavalry
• Mountain howitzer battery: Lt Edward Gill

Division	Brigade	Regiments and Others
First Provisional Cavalry Division MG James G. Blunt Escort: Company E, 14th Kansas Cavalry: 2Lt William B. Clark	1st Brigade Col Charles R. Jennison	15th Kansas Cavalry: Ltc George H. Hoyt 3rd Wisconsin Cavalry (5 companies): Lt James B. Pond Foster's Battalion, Provisional Enrolled Missouri Militia: Cpt George S. Grover Mountain howitzer battery (5 12-pdr): 2Lt Henry L. Barker
	2nd Brigade Col Thomas Moonlight	11th Kansas Militia Infantry: Col A. J. Mitchell Companies L & M, 5th Kansas Cavalry 11th Kansas Cavalry (9 companies): Ltc Preston B. Plumb Companies A & D, 16th Kansas Cavalry Mountain howitzer battery (4 12-pdr) [manned by Company E, 11th Kansas Cavalry]
	3rd Brigade [Kansas State Militia Division] Col Charles W. Blair BG William H. M. Fishbeck	6th Kansas Militia Infantry: Col James Montgomery Eves' Battalion Kansas Militia Cavalry: Ltc George Eves 2nd Kansas Light Artillery, Right Section: Lt Daniel C. Knowles 9th Wisconsin Battery: Cpt James H. Dodge
	4th Brigade    Col James Hobart Ford	2nd Colorado Cavalry: Maj J. H. Pritchard 16th Kansas Cavalry (detachment) McLain's Independent Colorado Battery (6 guns): Cpt W. D. McLain

Division	Brigade	Regiments and Others
Second Division      MG Alfred Pleasonton Escort: Company A, 11th Kansas Cavalry: Cpt Henry E. Palmer	1st Brigade    Col John Finis Philips	1st Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Ltc Bazel F. Lazear 4th Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Maj George W. Kelly 7th Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Ltc Thomas Theodore Crittenden
	2nd Brigade BG John McNeil	17th Illinois Cavalry: Col John Lourie Beveridge 7th Kansas Cavalry: Maj Francis M. Malone 2nd Missouri Cavalry: Cpt George M. Houston 13th Missouri Cavalry: Col Edwin C. Catherwood 3rd Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Ltc Henry M. Matthews 5th Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Ltc Joseph A. Eppstein 9th Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Ltc Daniel M. Draper Battery B, 2nd Missouri Light Artillery Mountain howitzer battery (4 12-pdr)
	3rd Brigade BG John Benjamin Sanborn	2nd Arkansas Cavalry: Col John Elisha Phelps 6th Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Maj William Plumb 8th Missouri State Militia Cavalry: Col Joseph J. Gravely 6th Provisional Enrolled Missouri Militia: Col John F. McMahan 7th Provisional Enrolled Missouri Militia: Maj W. B. Mitchell Battery H, 2nd Missouri Light Artillery: Cpt William C. F. Montgomery Battery L, 2nd Missouri Light Artillery: Cpt Charles H. Thurber
	4th Brigade    Ltc Frederick William Benteen	7th Indiana Cavalry: Maj S. W. Simonson 3rd Iowa Cavalry: Maj Benjamin S. Jones 4th Iowa Cavalry: Maj Abial R. Pierce 4th Missouri Cavalry (detachment): Cpt Charles D. Knispel [command combined with the 7th Indiana Cavalry] 10th Missouri Cavalry: Maj William H. Lusk

Notes

The list shown is the entire Army of the Border. Brigades from this army fought in battles during Price's Raid.

See also

• Westport Union order of battle
• Mine Creek Union order of battle

References

• Eicher, John H., & Eicher, David J., Civil War High Commands, Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.