author
Rufus H. Peck
A young Virginian cavalryman turned his Civil War service into a vivid personal memoir that follows marches, skirmishes, camp life, and the long strain of conflict. His recollections offer a direct, soldier-level view of the Confederate cavalry experience.
1 Audiobook
Reminiscencies of a Confederate soldier of Co. C, 2nd Va. Cavalry
by Rufus H. Peck
About the author
Rufus H. Peck is known for Reminiscences of a Confederate Soldier of Co. C, 2nd Va. Cavalry, a memoir drawn from his service in Company C of the 2nd Virginia Cavalry during the American Civil War. Records surfaced online with the book identify him as Rufus H. Peck, and library cataloging for the memoir lists him as having been born around 1839.
A local history article about Peck describes him as being born in Fincastle, Virginia, and serving with the Botetourt Dragoons before entering Confederate service. That background helps explain the close attention in his memoir to cavalry movement, comradeship, and the everyday realities of life in the field.
Today, Peck is remembered less as a literary figure than as a firsthand witness. His memoir remains of interest to readers of Civil War history because it preserves one soldier’s personal account of campaigning in Virginia and beyond, with the detail and immediacy that only an eyewitness can provide.