The "Wide-Awakes" were a political organization formed in 1860 begining in New York. There was a chapter in St. Louis. Some chapters in some states did arm themselves and the group had a distinct para-military feel about it. The "Wide-Awakes" main reason for being was to elect Lincoln. Many of the St. Louis wide-awakes joined Frank Blair's Union Club when the wide-awakes were disbanded in January 1861. The Union Club very quickly morphed into the Union Guard and was part of the volunteers "federalized" to defend the arsenal by Blair and Lyon.

Initially armed surreptiously by Blair and Oliver and Giles Filley, the Union Guard became the backbone of the St. Louis Home Guard. Members of the Wide-Awakes were without doubt part of the volunteers Lyon led at the Camp Jackson Affair. Also not unexpectedly the German Turner Hall was a common meeting place for all these organizations.

There is ample reference material on the scheming of Blair and Lyon to get Lyon appointed commander of the arsenal over Gen Harney in the OR. There is no evidence of cavalry being involved in the Camp Jackson affair.

http://www.journalofamericanhistory.org/projects/lincoln/contents/grinspan.html#footnote-4489-1

http://home.earthlink.net/~turnerbrigade/filley.htm

http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/S?ammem/rbpebib:@OR(@field(AUTHOR+@od1(Albany+Republican+wide-awake+club+))+@field(OTHER+@od1(Albany+Republican+wide-awake+club+)))

John R