Book excerpt: The 1st Florida Union Cavalry was formed in 1863 from men primarily from south Alabama and northwest Florida. These men were both deserters from the Confederate Army and men who had avoided conscription or turned eighteen during the war. The regiment was stationed at Fort Barrancas in Pensacola, Florida and served along the upper Gulf Coast with other Union regiments and participated in the Battle of Marianna, FL, the Mobile Campaign and the occupation of Montgomery, AL. The book explores the history of the area before and during the early years of the war and the history of the regiment including information on any engagements the 1st Florida Union Cavalry participated in (locations - then and now, regimental opponents, victors and summaries of the engagements). In addition, it includes data on the individual men who served in the regiment (detailed military data-Union and Confederate, 1860 census, birth and death, burial, and pension information). Together the information provides a glimpse of this area of the deep South during the Civil War.