10th Illinois Volunteer Cavalry

Headquarters

Regiment Commander - Colonel Theodore Henry, photo by Tom George Davison Theodore L. Henry - Low Point, Illinois

Portrays - Commanding officer Col. Dudley Wickersham.
Ted retired from the State of Illinois as a nuclear scientist. He and his wife Dawn live on 2 wooded acres growing several gardens. Together Ted and Dawn have 5 children, and 8 grandchildren. Ted has said, "now that my time is my own, I want to do some additional research on the history of the Civil War, and our regiment in particular, visiting the locations listed on our battle flag."

Lt Colonel Gregory M. Kane - Springfield, IL

Greg has made his love of history a family affair. His wife, Sandra, portrays an elegant lady of the time period. Their son, Alexander Remington Kane is First Lieutenant in Company A, and their son Jonathan "Duke" Kane, is a Corporal in Company A. Greg is a retired dentist who has been interested in black powder firearms since third grade Cub Scouts where a family friend demonstrated a hand made Kentucky rifle. The smell of black powder had him hooked at age 9. Greg built his first CVA pistol kit in sixth grade and he has been shooting black powder for over 35 years. He joined SASS 10 years ago where he began shooting cowboy cartridge guns in competition. Greg's great-great uncle Thomas McCraren was in the 42nd Illinois Infantry Regiment, Company C, 2nd Division, 3rd Brigade, 4th Army Corps. For his devotion to duty in the 10th Cavalry, Greg has received the Army of the Tennessee Medal.

Regiment Chaplain - Captain Randall Cheatham Randall Cheatham - Brighton, Illinois

Portrays - Chaplain, Captain Francis Springer
Randy is the spiritual counselor for the Regiment. His portrayal of Springer meshes well with Randy's real life. He is a licensed minister who enjoys Bible study, teaching Sunday school, studying the Civil War, and playing the banjo. He is a retired medical lab technician and is married to Patty.

Chief Bugler - Lt Dawn Henry Lieutenant Dawn Henry - Low Point, Illinois

Portrays - Regiment Chief Bugler Lt Frederick H. Miller
Dawn plays bugle for the regiment and manages the 10th Cavalry Band where she plays French Horn and E flat Alto horn. When she is not wearing a uniform, she portrays Margaret, the wife of Colonel Dudley Wickersham, aka Ted Henry, her real life husband. Dawn is a retired State Farm Auto Claims Adjuster. She enjoys gardening, cooking, and especially baking. She reads extensively about the Civil War as well as other eras in American History. Together, Dawn and Ted have 5 children and 8 grandchildren.

Corporal Randy Weaver - Canton, IL

Portrays Philander Downing who was from Fulton County, Illinois. Downing mustered into the 10th Cavalry in Company H. After the war, he continued his life as a farmer in Orion Township, married Amanda Cole, and had 3 children. In researching his first-person identity, Randy found out Trooper Downing is buried in Greenwood Cemetery, only 5 blocks from where Randy lives in Canton. Randy enjoys acting and singing, theater presentations, and the study of military history, especially the Civil War. He loves Civil War reenacting, telling stories and is interested in NASCAR. He is married to Tammy and is employed at Cook Polymer Technology in Canton where he is a production inspector.

2nd Lieutenant Ron Weidner, Urbana, Illinois

Second Lieutenant Ron Weidner portrays a Civil War photographer attached to the 10th Cavalry. He is married to Kay, and is a retired electrician. He enjoys wood carving and modern photography when not wearing wool and re-living history.

Quartermaster Sergeant Mike Worthey, Lincoln, Illinois

Mike Worthey portrays the company quartermaster sergeant. He is in charge of procuring whatever supplies are provided by the event. In real life, he is retired from a career in the Army. He loves to read, especially about military history. He previously reenacted with the 7th Kansas Cavalry.

Regiment Surgeon - Major Ted Zelinski

In Memoriam - Ted Zelinski - Springfield, Illinois
Portrayed Surgeon, Major Augustus A. Shutt

Major Zelinski joined the regiment in September 2007. He had a long career in reenacting - over 25 years. With the 10th Cavalry, Ted explored many Civil War persona.
He began as our surgeon, reenacting techniques of battlefield surgery that made even grown men faint. In addition to being the Regiment's Surgeon, Ted portrayed enlisted Trooper Brown as a dismounted soldier during reenactments. He was the regiment's field drummer as well. Ted added Flag Signal Corps to his list and was able to demonstrate this on the battlefield - if the field was large enough! He was also a telegraph operator, and added the Pioneers to his talents, carrying an ax to cut down trees to build roads and bridges for the troops. Ted also recruited others for his medical staff of stewards and nurses.
Ted was an accomplished folk dancer and was especially interested in Polish Folk dance. He was a professional percussionist and played in many local bands and ensembles, including the 10th Illinois Volunteer Cavalry Regiment^®Band. He was responsible for setting and keeping the cadence for the 2015 Lincoln Funeral Reenactment Procession which was a 3 mile march from downtown Springfield to Oak Ridge Cemetery. The Procession included military participants, as well as civilians, and a hearse drawn by 8 horses.
Ted passed away on August 8, 2020. He had two daughters, Julie and Jaime, and 6 grandchildren. Ted was our go-to man for everything Civil War. It seemed he knew everything, or at least knew where to find the answers to anything we needed. He will be sorely missed by everyone who knew him. Ride Well, Ride Long, Ride Proud, Major.

In Memoriam -- Sergeant-Major Alan Kilgore - Chestnut, IL

Alan joined the Regiment in October of 2008. It all started when he found a black powder pistol in his wife's aunt's barn. It took several months to talk his wife Carol into letting him join. Even as a child there are pictures of him wearing a kepi on family vacations. It just happened to be Gray back then. Alan decided to follow the tradition set by his Great Grandfather, Martin Van Buren Joyce (8th Kentucky Union) and joined a Union Cavalry Regiment. Alan had a passion for history, especially when it came to the Civil War. He was a graduate of East Peoria High School. His other interests included his sons, Daniel and Rex, their wives, and the five grandchildren, Brit, Ericka, Jace, Camden and Liam. Alan passed away on Thursday, July 16, 2015. Ride Well, Ride Long, Ride Proud, Sergeant Major!