# Can anyone help identify a picture of a Mounted Cavalryman? I'm lost .... **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 14, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766 "2015-01-14T00:18:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CuriosityKillsMe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/d9b06d/32.png) [@CuriosityKillsMe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CuriosityKillsMe)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/1 "2015-01-14T00:18:49Z")
I give up!! I am doing family research, and for days have been trying to pin down what war my great-grandfather was in, from the only picture I have of him. He is on horseback, and his horse and uniform give several clues but I can’t be sure. I saw a thread on this board about Cavalrymen, so I was hoping someone might be able to help me identify any clues, etc., or at least direct me to a place that could help? I can post a picture if anyone is good with this kind of thing … Thanks in advance!! ---
**Author:** ![Bear\_Nenno](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bear_nenno/32/3358_2.png) [@Bear\_Nenno](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bear_Nenno)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/2 "2015-01-14T00:21:56Z")
Yes, post the picture. ---
**Author:** ![Ornery\_Bob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/da6949/32.png) [@Ornery\_Bob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ornery_Bob)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/3 "2015-01-14T00:52:15Z")
Just a thought… If you know when your grandfather was born, then you should be able to work out an approximate date (given that your great-grandfather was most likely of military age around that time). If you can tell if he’s young or old in the picture, you could guess at the date even better. Once you know the approximate date, you can consult the [Timeline of United States Military Operations.](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_United_States_military_operations) ---
**Author:** ![Meurglys](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/258eb7/32.png) [@Meurglys](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Meurglys)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/4 "2015-01-14T13:22:01Z")
This site doesn’t allow photos to be posted, so you’ll have to put it on Flickr or Picasa or similar and post a link to it here… ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/5 "2015-01-14T17:49:51Z")
The OP may have succumbed per his/her username by now, but just to keep it alive: guess who these obscure mounted troops were, without looking into the links: [One](http://www.uscg.mil/history/gifs/BP_1.jpg) [Two](http://chinamarine.org/Portals/0/mounted/goodchance.jpg) [Three](http://onpasture.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/moose4.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 6:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/6 "2015-01-14T18:57:59Z")
Or you can scan through some Google images to see if any picture looks similar: [https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=mounted+calvary+horse](https://www.google.com/search?tbm=isch&q=mounted+calvary+horse) ---
**Author:** ![John\_Bredin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/96bed5/32.png) [@John\_Bredin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Bredin)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/7 "2015-01-14T19:09:34Z")
Two is wearing a U.S. Marines cap badge – and bears more than a slight resemblance to Joseph Gordon-Levitt. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2015, 10:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/8 "2015-01-14T22:21:38Z")
3 is riding a moose. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [January 15, 2015, 3:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/9 "2015-01-15T03:38:48Z")
> [@CuriosityKillsMe](#): > > I can post a picture if anyone is good with this kind of thing … Any time you post the photo, someone will surely be by to help. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Milton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6bbea6/32.png) [@Mr.Milton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Milton)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/10 "2015-01-20T16:02:19Z")
I believe Picture One is USCG beach patrol training. No, not training future David Hasselhoffs, training guys to patrol long stretches of beaches to look out for submarine-borne saboteurs. Being on horseback let them cover a lot more beachfront than being on foot. IIRC, one of the Operation Pastorius saboteurs was discovered by a USCG beach patrol. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/11 "2015-01-20T16:48:02Z")
> [@outlierrn](#): > > 3 is riding a moose. Oh, he’s Canadian, eh? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/12 "2015-01-20T16:51:36Z")
I’d date the Marine to around 1920. The Coast Guard horsemen to 1940. The Canadian (he **has to be** Canadian!) to around 1900. Is that really how the Mounties started out?!? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Slithy\_Tove](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slithy_tove/32/18248_2.png) [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 5:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/13 "2015-01-20T17:42:48Z")
That’s a Soviet war moose, which was given preliminary trials for use in the Winter War. The vestige of this program is a dairy producing [therapeudic moose milk.](http://www.excommunicate.net/taming-of-the-moose/#axzz3PNtMPVl2) ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [January 20, 2015, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-anyone-help-identify-a-picture-of-a-mounted-cavalryman-im-lost/709766/14 "2015-01-20T18:02:52Z")
> [@Slithy\_Tove](#): > > That’s a Soviet war moose, which was given preliminary trials for use in the Winter War. The vestige of this program is a dairy producing [therapeudic moose milk.](http://www.excommunicate.net/taming-of-the-moose/#axzz3PNtMPVl2) Holy crap! :eek: