Myles W. Keogh

[East Tennessee Roots]

He figured prominently in Stoneman's Raid through east Tennessee, into southwest Virginia, ending up in western North Carolina at the end of the war. This raid inspired the song, "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down."

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Myles W. Keogh

Residence was not listed;
Enlisted on 4/9/1862 as a Captain.

On 4/9/1862 he was commissioned into US Army Aide-De-Camp
He was Mustered Out on 9/1/1866
(Subsequent service in US Army)


Promotions:
* Captain 4/9/1862 (Captain & Additional Aide-de-Camp)
* Major 4/7/1864 (Major & Aide-de-Camp)
* Lt Colonel 3/13/1865 by Brevet
* Major 3/2/1867 by Brevet
* Lt Colonel 3/2/1867 by Brevet


Other Information:
born in Ireland
died 6/25/1876 in Little Big Horn River, MT
In the biography of John Buford by Edward G. Longacre
in the bibliography there is a note on Myles Keogh,
in the USMA Library is a manuscript by Myles Keogh
titled 'Etat de Service de Major General Jno. Buford
from his promotion to Brigadier General to his death.

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August 1863 – General John Buford (seated) and staff, Keogh (left)

 

[Shadow9216]

He had an amazing career- I think he fought for the Papal States as well as his US service. He's in that famous pic of Buford with his staff officers...they actually reference him in She Wore a Yellow Ribbon.

 

[rhettbutler1865]

As a kid, I thought Custer's was the only body left unscathed--when later, to my surprise, I learned it was Keogh who was the only one...

 

[TinCan]

Capt. Keogh is probably more famous as the commander of Company I, 7th Cavalry, who ran into a bunch of Indians along a river in Montana.

 

[tdftdf]

I was about to initiate a new thread, to discuss one of my personal favorites - Captain Myles Keough. I stumbled on this thread, so I'll augment here:

- during the early part of the civil war, secState Seward recruited experienced army officers from Europe, to help fight with the Union (something I did not know). This is how Keough came to the states.
- as mentioned earlier, Keough fought with General Burford's cavalry. He saw action on day one of Gettysburg, among many other battles.
- he remained with Buford throughout Buford's illness, and accompanied his body on the train to be buried.
- many spoke highly of him, to include Gen. McClellan.
- as mentioned above, he rode with Custer, and was killed at LBH. His body laid with members of his unit, to include his bugler, And gideon. Among his wounds was a shot to his knee, which aligned to a wound on his famous horse Comanche (the only living survivor of Custer's unit). All this signifies that Keough had his last stand 'scene' as well.
- a little bit of data about his horse that I did not realize - Comanche was not the only survivor. Other wounded horses also survived, but they were too bad off to be saved. Comanche was thereafter treated like royalty, till he passed away. As the story goes, after he died his remains were stuffed, I believe by the university of Kansas. The Army however, would not pay for the bill, so the university of Kansas is now the proud owner of Comanche.

 

[Dave Wilma]

Comanche (the only living survivor of Custer's unit)

Comanche was Keogh's personal property. The horse was not the only horse to survive the battle, but was the only horse to be found at the battlefield when the infantry arrived. Other surviving horses were taken in to tribal service.

 

[Dave Wilma]

Custer apparently thought enough of Keogh to send him around to the right (east) to attack the village further downstream. This company was attacked and some survivors made it to Last Stand Hill. The way the bodies were found led to the conclusion that they were in a skirmish line when overwhelmed. Later analysis shows this probably to be troops in flight and cut down sequentially.

 

[MajGenl.Meade]

Interesting stuff and a fascinating man. Keogh appears in the second (unfinished) Snooks book upon the occasion of his capture with Stoneman and a very brief stay in Camp Oglethorpe, near Macon GA before he was sent off to spend two+ months in Charleston before exchange. I remember seeing the Disney movie about Comanche in London sometime at the end of the 50s or early 60s.

 

[tdftdf]

More interesting trivia, derived from myleskeogh.org:

- his grand-niece, nurse Margaret Kehoe, was killed in the 1916 Easter Rising, in Dublin Ireland. She was on duty in the town hospital when, after the initial shooting, she made her way to the first floor to see if any wounded could be helped. She was shot by 2 british soldiers. She is often called the 'first martyr' of the rebellion.

- a somewhat funny comment about Myles's dashing looks came from Captain Allen, of the 7th OH: he was as handsome a young man as I have ever seen. His uniform was spotless, and fit him like the skin on a sausage.
- being a former Marine myself, I know that feeling (uniform fitting like the skin of a sausage). Took me a few years out of the service to shed that thought of clothes having to fit that way. I still recall when I first went for comfort - I'd tell friends that I still wear jeans with waist size of 30, but these 32s sure feel comfy! (my apologies for my digrestion here)...

 

[Buckeye Bill]

* Myles Keogh's Memorial at the Little Bighorn Battlefield (Vintage Photo).

* Myles Keogh's death site at the Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument (Modern Photo - 2015).