The 17th Pennsylvania Volunteer Cavalry was formed in the Fall of 1862. The greater part of the regiment consisted of farmers, mechanics, and lumbermen, who had also demonstrated themselves to be good horsemen. Colonel Josiah Kellogg held command of the regiment for most of the war, during which the 17th was assigned to the Second Brigade of the First Cavalry Division. They served under their brigade commander, General Thomas Devin throughout the War, and served under such division commanders as Buford and Sheridan.
Some lists indicate that the unit participated in nearly one hundred separate actions.
At the conclusion of hostilities the Seventeenth was mustered out of service at Cloud's Mill, Virginia. Of the many gallant regiments from your State none has a brighter record, none has more freely shed its blood on every battlefield from Gettysburg to Appomattox. Your gallant deeds will be ever fresh in the memory of your comrades of the Iron Brigade and the First Division. The following links go to pages copied from various sources. The first is from a History of Pennsylvania Volunteers , Volume IV, by Samuel P. Bates, published 1870.