Lexington Rifles

"Our Laws, The Commands of Our Captain"

1866 - Present

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."Not for fame or reward, Not for place or for rank,
Not lured by ambition, Or goaded by necessity,
But in simple obedience to duty as they understood it,
These men suffered all, sacrificed all, dared all – and died."
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 -- Inscription on the monument to the dead of the Confederate States Army
Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington Virginia

Former Members of Morgan's Cavalry
Lexington, Kentucky  --   1866

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Gravestones of John Hunt Morgan and Basil Wilson Duke
Lexington Cemetery, Lexington, Kentucky  --   2001

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evolution of the lexington battalion

May 18, 1881 - Present

The Former Lexington and Kentucky River Battalions of the Kentucky State Guard were reorganized on 18 May 1881 as the 3d Battalion, with headquarters in Lexington.  It was expanded, reorganized, and designated in 1883 as the 2d Regiment of Infantry.  It was mustered into Federal service 14-25 May 1898 at Lexington as the 2d Kentucky Volunteer Infantry, and was mustered out of Federal service five months later, on 31 October 1898.   it was again reorganized on 24 April 1899 in the Kentucky State Guard as the 1st Regiment of Infantry, with headquarters in Lexington.

The Kentucky State Guard was re-designated on 19 March 1912 as the Kentucky National Guard.   The unit was mustered into Federal service on 25 June 1916 at Fort Thomas, KY; and mustered out of Federal service 15 February 1917.  It was again mustered into Federal service on 21 April 1917 at Camp Stanley, KY; and drafted into Federal service on August 5, 1917.

It consolidated on 1 October 1917 with the 3d Regiment of Infantry (less 3d Battalion), which was originally organized on 8 May 1882 in the Kentucky State Guard in Western Kentucky as the 4th Battalion, with Headquarters in Bowling Green.  The consolidated unit concurrently reorganized and was re-designated as the 149th Infantry and assigned to the 38th Division.  It was demobilized in January 1919 at Camp Zachary Taylor, Kentucky.

Former 2d and 3d Regiments of Infantry reorganized in 1920-1921 in the Kentucky National Guard as the 1st Infantry and 53d and 54th Machine Gun Squadrons (hereafter separate lineages). 

The 1st Infantry was re-designated on 1 July 1921 as the 149th Infantry and assigned to the 38th Infantry Division.  Its headquarters was Federally recognized on 1 July 1922 at Frankfort, and relocated on 13 December 1927 to Louisville. It was inducted into Federal service on 17 January 1941 and was inactivated on 9 November 1945 at Camp Anza, CA.

The unit was relieved on 13 May 1946 from assignment to the 38th Infantry Division.  It reorganized and was Federally recognized on 25 September 1946 with Headquarters in St Matthews.  The regiment was broken up on 1 September 1955 and its elements converted and re-designated as follows:

        ·        Hdqtrs and the 1st Battalion (less Company A) as the 241st Tank Battalion.  

        ·         2d Battalion as the 242d Tank Battalion.  

        ·         3d Battalion as the 240th and 243d Tank Battalions.

The 240th, 241st, and 243d Tank Battalions consolidated on 1 October 1959 with the 201st Engineer Battalion.  The resulting consolidated unit was reorganized and re-designated as the 123d Armor, a parent regiment under the Combat Arms Regimental System, to consist of the 1st, 2d, and 3d Medium Tank Battalions.

The unit was reorganized on 6 April 1964 to consist of the 1st, 2d, and 3d Battalions; on 1 March 1968 to consist of the 1st and 2d Battalions; on 1 November 1980 to consist of the 1st and 2d Battalions, elements of the 149th Armored Brigade (Separate); on 1 November 1985 to consist of the 1st and 2d Battalions, elements of the 35th Infantry Division (Mechanized); and on 21 October 1988 to consist of the 1st and 2d and 3d Battalions.

It was withdrawn from the Combat Arms Regimental System on 1 June 1989 and reorganized under the United States Army Regimental System, with Headquarters at Paducah. 

As of late 2000, during time of war, the 2d Battalion, 123d Armored Regiment's mission was to employ 58 M-1 Abrams Main Battle Tanks effectively.  During peacetime, the battalion trains on their tanks and performs nonmilitary missions, such as civil disturbance/crowd control and disaster relief.  

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reactivation of the lexington rifles

April 1, 2000 - Present

In January 2000, the concept of reactivating the Lexington Rifles was inaugurated.  Three months later, Morgan's Company was once again mustered into Confederate service when the oath of enlistment was administered to its first members by a member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans.  The men who took the oath that day were dedicated to reenacting the War for Southern Independence by creating an organization that was founded on fairly administered democratic principles.

Following their enlistment, the men authorized the institution of by-laws for self-governance and were each paid a bounty of $250 C. S. currency.   Since that time, the unit has grown to include a Ladies' Auxiliary.  The Lexington Rifles have marched in parades and attended battle reenactments in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Missouri, Virginia, and Wisconsin.   They have also visited many landmarks associated with the history of the original unit.   

Especially noteworthy for the Lexington Rifles was the honor on July 30, 2001 for some of its members to recite the solemn oath of Confederate service on the steps of the ruined Green River Baptist Church in Woodsonville, Kentucky.  The steps and foundation stones at the site, which is where the original induction ceremony took place on October 21, 1861, are all that remain of the church building after it was desecrated and burned to the ground by Lincoln's hirelings in 1862.  

Officiating at the enlistment ceremony was Mr. Tres Seymour, Executive Director of the Hart County Historical Society and the Battle for the Bridge Historic Preserve in Munfordville, Kentucky, whom we gratefully recognize for his support. 

With the organization’s high standards of authenticity and its unexcelled proficiency in drill and operations, many consider the unit to be the preeminent representative of Confederate dismounted cavalry in the Midwest.  As with the original unit, the reactivated Lexington Rifles have exhibited the esprit d’ corps that has attracted many recruits to hear John Hunt Morgan’s call to arms.

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2006 Muster List

The above Service Star Banner is displayed in honored recognition of those Lexington Rifles
who are presently serving with the U.S. Armed Forces during the War on Terror.

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.21st Century Raids of the Lexington Rifles