In the spring of 1861 after Fort Sumter had been fired upon, a number of young men living in Fort Dodge and vicinity determined to make preparation for the war that was then seen to be inevitable. They assembled weekly for the purpose of receiving military instruction. After the Battle of Bull Run they decide to organize a military company and enter the service. Dr. L. L. Pease who was in Washington about time, learned from Senator Harlan that Colonel Josiah Harvey, a relative of the Senator, was raising a regiment of cavalry in Philadelphia and would be pleased to have a company from Iowa for his regiment. Upon his return to Fort Dodge the doctor conferred with the members of his home company. Desirous of meeting the enemy as soon as possible, the members of the Fort Dodge Company decided to join Colonel Harvey’s regiment of Pennsylvanians which became the Eleventh Pennsylvania Cavalry. The following officers were chosen by the members of the company who received their commissions from Governor Kirkwood of Iowa: Captain Frank A. Stratton; First Lieutenant George S. Ringland; Second Lieutenant George W. Bassett. This company reached Washington on the 6th of October, 1861, and was given the place of honor as “Company A, Eleventh Pennsylvania Cavalry.” It was the only organization of Iowa soldiers that served during its whole term of enlistment in the eastern armies. The regiment to which this Iowa company was attached was employed in Virginia during the greater part of the war. Captain Stratton became a major and Lieutenant Ringland was promoted to captain of the company. Upon the expiration of its term of service the company was given a cordial reception by the citizens of Fort Dodge.
During the war of the American Revolution the government of Great Britain won a record of infamy that has