Regiment Today

The recreated 148th New York Volunteers of today stand apart from other reenactment groups in the Civil War reenactment community. How you may ask? Well, to answer that, we need to explore the history of the Sons of Union Veterans or SUV.

History of the Sons of the Union Veterans (SUV)

During the later years of the Civil War, the United States Army created an "Invalid Corps." This comprised of Union Veterans who were recovering from wounds, but who could still perform limited duties. This organization eventually phased into the Special Veterans Reserve, or S.V.R. These initial S.V.R troops guarded the capitol city against a possible Rebel invasion. They were also responsible for "closing off" the city of Washington D.C. following the assassination of President Lincoln and the searching for the conspirators, including John Wilkes Booth.

Following the Civil War, these brave, battle hardened veterans returned home forming state militias and reserve units. Unable to allow the nation to fall vulnerable to a second bloody catastrophe, these men formed the famous Grand Army of the Republic or G.A.R. Not wanting to let their existence die with the inevitable passing on of the Civil War Vets, they created the "Corps of Cadets"..the Sons of Veterans of the United States of America. On November 12, 1881, Congress incorporated the Sons of Veterans as military units, thus officially becoming state militias to serve as the National Guard does today. Thus Sons of Veterans fought along side regular army and reserve units in the Spanish American War, were part of the American Expeditionary Forces which were commanded by General Pershing in World War I and many SVR units and individuals merged with the National Guard or enlisted independently to serve in World War II.

In 1964, Sergeant Richard Cuyler and 5 other members of the D.G. Caywood Camp #146, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War petitioned for membership into the Sons of Union Veterans Reserve. The petition was successful and from those humble beginnings the recreated 148th began. This is what sets the 148th New York Volunteer Infantry Reenactment Group apart from other reenactment groups of today. Our unit was directly descended from the men and boys who marched off to war over 140 years ago. For 45 years, the unit has been well respected in the Civil War community. It has had its ups and downs in terms of numbers, but the unit has maintained a continuous history through all those years. It is the oldest Civil War reenactment organization in New York State today. This can be credited to its ties, through the SUV, directly to the Union Soldiers themselves. The hundreds of parades and reenactments, scores of living history programs, and numerous presentations the unit has hosted or participated in, has established the 148th as a quality, family oriented unit to the public and to the other units and historical organizations across the state. There is no doubt that the 148th will be a leader in Civil War reenacting for many more years to come.