Prior to autumn of 1864, companies operated individually as "Supporting Forces" for the Conscript Bureau. Major Joseph Barbiere was the Confederate enrolling officer for the 4th Congressional District of Alabama, so each company in this battalion already reported to him. Companies came from Dekalb, Cherokee, Calhoun, Blount, Talladega and Jefferson Counties. Barbiere’s Cavalry Battalion organized in October 1864 at General Clanton’s camp, seven miles south of Talladega, Ala.

This command often appears in wartime accounts as Davenport's Cavalry Battalion. A resident of northern Dekalb County, Montraville Davenport (May 4, 1821 - Nov. 17, 1890) lived near Rawlingsville AL. He served with Co. "A", McKenzie's 5th Tennessee Cavalry for a year and returned home to recruit an independent company in Dekalb County. The 1860 census lists him as owning eight slaves. According to the IRS record for 1866, he also worked as a physician.