GOVERNOR'S GREYS

Governor's Greys officers' insignia.

GOVERNOR'S GREYS. On April 7, 1859, a group of Dubuque citizens took the first steps to organize a new military company. Known as the Governor's Greys, this company moved into an armory in the Sanford Block and began semi-weekly drills. The first public appearance of the Greys, then composed of thirty-three men, was made on July 4, 1859. Of the 183 muskets apportioned to the State of Iowa for 1860, one-half were pledged to the Greys who did not see their firearms until February 1860. Financing for the unit came from many sources including Julius K. GRAVES.

Invitation

The first Governor's Greys ball, an elaborate social occasion, was held on April 10 at the DUBUQUE CITY HALL. The striking uniform of the Greys, patterned after the National Guards of New York City, featured grey single-breasted cloth coats with three rows of buttons. Officers' coats had additional gold embroidery and lace. Trousers were grey with a black stripe. The uniform was completed with black felt caps fitted with heavy patent leather visors and the initials "G. G." The rank of the wearer determined the type of tassels, straps and scabbards.

The Greys was the first military company in the United States pledged to the service of the nation at the start of the CIVIL WAR. Realizing the high feeling caused by Abraham Lincoln's election as president of the United States, Iowa Governor Samuel J. Kirkwood promised the services of the Greys to President James Buchanan on January 24, 1861, before the inauguration of the new president. Totaling ninety-four men, the company was called to duty on May 14, 1861, when they responded to a call for seventy-five thousand troops for three month's service. The unit carried a silk flag given by twenty society ladies of the city.

Calling card for a member of the Guard.

The Greys' first battle took place at Wilson's Creek, Missouri, where seven were killed and thirty-six wounded. In 1887 the Greys traveled to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for the Constitutional Centennial celebration and then moved on to Washington, D.C., to receive their special flag from General Herron who had used it as his headquarter's flag during the entire Civil War. While in the capital, the company was received at the White House by President Grover Cleveland. This was the first time a president of the United States had ever so honored a military company.

On July 29, 1885, the Greys were made a company of the National Guard and assigned to the fourth regiment as Company A. President William McKinley called the Greys into service again during the Spanish-American War. In 1899 they returned to Dubuque and were not called again until 1916 for service on the Mexican border. Seven months after returning to Dubuque on August 15, 1917, the Greys left for WORLD WAR I. The company was used as replacements when they reached southern France. Before peace was achieved nine men had been killed and another had died in an English hospital.

WORLD WAR II led to the Greys being called into duty again on February 10, 1941. Some of the men joined the new Ranger Battalion. Others were assigned to British installations. Greys also saw duty in the Italian campaign in front line fighting at Anzio, Bologna, and Parma. For its service in the war, the company received the French Croix de Guerre and a distinguished unit citation.

In peacetime the Greys have seen duty at home. Guardsmen were called into service in 1950 when ICE storms devastated Clinton. In 1956 Greys were involved in operating "Hay Lift," an effort to help drought-stricken farmers in southwestern Iowa. The Governor's Greys celebrated their centennial on April 7, 1959.