This very impressive and original, post-Civil War, United Confederate Veteran Colonel's uniform grouping, is complete with the officer's Confederate gray coat, gray trousers, white linen shirt, linen vest and black bwo tie. Munson Monroe Buford, a native son of Union County, South Carolina, wore this superbly custom tailored suit later an officer on the staff of CS General J. B. Carr's North Carolina Division of the U.C.V. In addition, a spectacular UCV multi-colored over-the-shoulder silk band with ornate cockade and streamers attached is one of the best-identified specimens of Confederate post-war uniform cloth to surface in the collecting market.

Buford's UCV dress coat / jacket is constructed with four panel of fine, high quality, Confederate gray wool satinet material with cut lapels and a three-button, single breasted opening. Each of the three, traditional UCV coat size brass buttons are original to the jacket and are un-backmarked with their faces slightly pushed in. Each of the jacket's collar tabs is adorned with three, beautiful, 1" long, 5-point woven bullion stars resting on a gray cloth disc. Each sleeve arm measures 24½" long from shoulder to the 6" wide cuff and has a 7½" wide elbow, typical of the time. Cuffs are non-functional and exhibit two, face depressed, 3-piece brass, UCV cuff-size buttons center stamped with a Confederate battle flag with button border edges that read "U.C.V. / 1861 - 1865". Pinned to the left exterior breast is a two-piece suspension badge denoting the 25th Annual Reunion of the U.C.V held at Richmond, VA I 1916. A finely detailed, brass medallion features a small bust of R .E. Lee over the southern battle flag. Flag is painted red and blue. Outer sleeves at the cuffs are adorned with three ornate rows of gold braid or piping in almost perfect condition, sometimes called gabions that denote the rank of a Confederate officer. Interior of the coat has two slash pockets and is lined with a washed, brown cotton material. Sleeves are lined with a striped, cotton bed ticking material cloth.

Trousers are pristine and original with only the small bone button missing from the right back pocket. White linen vest, in super condition, has three slash pockets and retains five of the six buttons holes. All are replacements. The clean, white, slipover style shirt is of heavy linen and is long enough to be used as a nightshirt. Black cotton bow tie is typical of the period and in excellent condition. All cloth uniform material is minty with not rips, tears, mothing or staining visible. The identification is found lightly handwritten in ink on the inside of the trousers left side pocket and reads, "PoPe BUFORD". His right side trouser pocket reads "M M B - 2", while "MMB" and "PoPe Buford" is also found handwritten in ink on the inside collar area of the linen vest. Worn across the shoulder exterior of the jacket and tied below the left arm is Buford's two, fine, 4¼" wide, red and white silk band decorated with gold printed letters. Red silk band printed with "N. C. DIV. U.C.V." while the white band reads "GEN. CARR'S STAFF". All letters are printed in gold paint. Silk bands are looped and then secured by a large, 6" diameter, layered silk cockade in red and white. Center has a 1½" diameter celluloid disc with an image of General Carr on its face. Attached to the cockade are six red and white 5" long pennants tipped with fine gold bullion tassels, all in super fine condition.

During the Late Unpleasantness, sixteen year-old M. M. Buford enlisted for the war as a private in Company "K", 5th South Carolina Cavalry on July 12, 1863 at Kenansville, North Carolina. The 5th SC was organized by consolidating the 14th and 17th South Carolina Cavalry battalions in January 1863 and served in the Dept of SC, GA and FL until March 1864 when the unit moved to Virginia. It was assigned to General Butler's cavalry brigade and fought at the Wilderness, Cold Harbor, south of the James River and in the fighting at Gravel Run, VA and near the Vaughan Road in Dinwiddie County in late 1864. Active later in the Carolinas Campaign with Logan's brigade, the 5th SC Cavalry surrendered with the Army of Tennessee. During the war trooper Buford rode with General Hampton's cavalry command and later had the honor of accompanying CS Col. J. Rawlins Lowndes, Hampton's Chief of Staff, when he delivered the last dispatches making the arrangements for the surrender of CS General Joseph E. Johnston to Union.

After the war and during the reign of the 'Red Shirts', Buford commanded one of its companies and enjoyed the distinction of being the only member of the Ku Klux Klan who was ever brought to trial from Newberry County, SC in a United States Court. He was elected sheriff of Newberry County in 1896 and held the post for 16 years. Buford was instrumental in helping secure military pensions for Confederate veterans and those slaves that went to war with their masters. He was a Mason, a Knight of Pythias, a Red Man, and a member of other organizations. Munson Monroe Buford died in Newberry, SC on August 7, 1930 at the age of 85.

All available military records from the National Archives accompany Buford's uniform grouping, including copy photo images of young Buford wearing his Civil War cavalry uniform. Other copy photos show him post-war in his UCV uniform atop his horse. In addition there is a copy photo of Buford from the SC newspaper that carried his obituary in 1930 and a modern copy photo of a descendant. Uniform group also comes with all available records from the National Archives in Washington, DC.