Who was the best Federal "cavalry" commander In the west?

The West? The Trans-Mississippi?

I'll start with my own turf, the Trans-Mississippi.

For the Union, Powell Clayton was the best cavalry commander in blue west of the Mississippi. Commanding a small cavalry brigade (primarily 500 or so men in the 1st Indiana and 5th Kansas Cavalry and horse artillery), he regularly led raiding and screening expeditions where he was frequently successful in taking prisoners and gathering intelligence. He helped detect Holmes's impeding attack on Helena in 1863 and during the July 4 battle he repulsed Confederate dismounted cavalry on the Union right, including the distinguished rebel commanders Marmaduke and Shelby. During the Little Rock Campaign, he was selected to replace Colonel Merrill as the chief pursuit of Price's retreating army after Merrill proved unsuited for cavalry work, and most impressively his small brigade beat off a Confederate force under Marmaduke five times it's size at the Battle of Pine Bluff despite being outnumbered and despite the Confederate offensive almost being a surprise. Clayton's command was never assigned to a division, instead usually reporting to Maj. Gen. Frederick Steele, the Union commander in Arkansas for special assignments. Clayton routed several Confederate forces in smaller skirmishes in 1864, including routing Dockery's half-mounted brigade, capturing hundreds of Confederate prisoners. During the Camden Expedition, Clayton defended Pine Bluff again and his assignment in Arkansas prevented a role in the repulse of Price in 1864. But in terms of ability, of scouting and raiding and tactics, I think no other peer in the Trans-Mississippi quite matches Clayton for the Federal Army.

A few runner ups would be Cyrus Bussey, Eugene A. Carr, J.M. Glover, and Thomas Moonlight.

The Confederates have several good contenders. The obvious answer is Joseph Shelby, for his prominence as a raider and his role screening Price's retreat through Missouri (and held tactical control of Price's rearguard at Westport when that retreat became a rout). His talents resemble Forrest in many ways, including the capture of a Federal tinclad, though he lacked Forrest's personality or personal combat record. His brigade was the best of the organized Arkansas-Missouri Confederate mounted troops. His main weakness seemed to be in more orthodox cavalry roles, including intelligence gathering. However, this isn't so cut and dry. Tom Green and John Wharton are also good contenders for the Confederate's best Trans-Mississippi Cavalry commander, with Green's success with Taylor, and Wharton's role in pursuing Banks's retreat. Both Green and Wharton excelled in traditional cavalry roles. Shelby likewise never directed a major successful action independently, unlike his peers James F. Fagan and John Marmaduke.

So I would say a close-neck race with Shelby, Green, and Wharton, with Fagan a distant second. Marmduke's poor performances at Cane Hill and Pine Bluff, along with his murder of rival Lucius Walker and the subsequent damage that did to the Confederate command structure in the Little Rock campaign strike him from the running in my mind.
 
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As for the Western theater, for the Union I would say Wilson for his raid in 1864 and 1865 and Grierson similarly with a shout-out to mounted infantry commanders like Wilder. The Union armies in the west suffered an organized cavalry shortage. The Army of the Ohio, Army of the Cumberland and the Army of the Tennessee did not have a organized cavalry corps until late 1864 when Sherman's entire department organized a cavalry corps under Wilson. Sherman nor Grant were entirely efficient in use of cavalry, with Rosecrans arguably having the best use of cavalry in his Tullahoma campaign.

For the Confederates, I'd say Forrest by default. Like Shelby, I would necessarily consider him a first class cavalrymen, but more a raider/dragoon style commander. Van Dorn's career in the saddle was far too short to judge, Morgan is overrated, Wharton was transferred, and Wheeler shouldn't be really considered for the best of anything. The remaining Confederates, Red Jackson, Joseph Kelly, William T. Martin, etc., didn't really rise to a high enough rank or have an impact that could measured like the former commanders did.
 
As for the Western theater, for the Union I would say Wilson for his raid in 1864 and 1865 and Grierson similarly with a shout-out to mounted infantry commanders like Wilder. The Union armies in the west suffered an organized cavalry shortage. The Army of the Ohio, Army of the Cumberland and the Army of the Tennessee did not have a organized cavalry corps until late 1864 when Sherman's entire department organized a cavalry corps under Wilson. Sherman nor Grant were entirely efficient in use of cavalry, with Rosecrans arguably having the best use of cavalry in his Tullahoma campaign.

For the Confederates, I'd say Forrest by default. Like Shelby, I would necessarily consider him a first class cavalrymen, but more a raider/dragoon style commander. Van Dorn's career in the saddle was far too short to judge, Morgan is overrated, Wharton was transferred, and Wheeler shouldn't be really considered for the best of anything. The remaining Confederates, Red Jackson, Joseph Kelly, William T. Martin, etc., didn't really rise to a high enough rank or have an impact that could measured like the former commanders did.

I agree with both of your statements. I'm one of the small devoted fans of Wheeler but I wouldn't consider him the "best" of anything either. He simply did his duty to the best of his ability wherever he was needed. He had too much formal military schooling to operate in the same degree as Forrest but as the war continued he showed he was slowly adapting to the way cavalry were being used in the west.
 
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