Biographical.
Brigadier-General John Adams
Brigadier-General John Adams, a gallant soldier was born at Nashville, July 1, 1825. His father afterward located at Pulaski, and it was from that place that young Adams entered West Point as a cadet, where he was graduated in June, 1846. On his graduation he was commissioned second lieutenant of the First Dragoons, then serving under Gen. Philip Kearny. At Santa Cruz de Rosales, Mexico, March 16, 1848, he was brevetted first lieutenant for gallantry, and on October 9, 1851, he was commissioned first lieutenant. In 1853 he acted as aide to the governor of Minnesota with the rank of lieutenant-colonel of State forces, this position, however, not affecting his rank in the regular service. He was promoted in his regiment to the rank of captain, November, 1856. May 27, 1861, on the secession of his State, he resigned his commission in the United States army and tendered his services to the Southern Confederacy. He was first made captain of cavalry and placed in command of the post at Memphis, whence he was ordered to western Kentucky and thence to Jackson, Miss. In 1862 he was commissioned colonel, and on December 29th was promoted to brigadier-general. On the death of Brig.-Gen. Lloyd Tilghman, May 16, 1863, Adams was placed by General Johnston in command of that officer's brigade, comprising the Sixth, Fourteenth, Fifteenth, Twentieth, Twenty-third and Forty-third Mississippi regiments of infantry. He was in Gen. J. E. Johnston's campaign for the relief of Vicksburg, in the fighting around Jackson, Miss., and afterward served under Polk in that State and marched with that general from Meridian, Miss., to Demopolis, Ala., thence to Rome, Ga., and forward [286] to Resaca, where he joined the army of Tennessee. He served with distinction in the various battles of the campaign from Dalton to Atlanta, he and his gallant brigade winning fresh laurels in the fierce battles around the ‘Gate City.’ After the fall of Atlanta, when Hood set out from Palmetto for his march into north Georgia in the gallant effort to force Sherman to return northward, Adams' brigade was much of the time in advance, doing splendid service, and at Dalton capturing many prisoners. It was the fate of General Adams, as it was of his friend and classmate at West Point, Gen. Geo. E. Pickett, to reach the height of his fame leading his men in a brilliant and desperate, but unsuccessful, charge. But he did not come off so well as Pickett; for in the terrific assault at Franklin, Adams lost his life. Though wounded severely in his right arm near the shoulder early in the fight and urged to leave the field, he said: ‘No; I am going to see my men through.’ He fell on the enemy's works, pierced with nine bullets His brigade lost on that day over 450 in killed and wounded, among them many field and line officers. Lieut.-Col. Edward Adams Baker, of the Sixty-fifth Indiana infantry, who witnessed the death of General Adams at Franklin, obtained the address of Mrs. Adams many years after the war and wrote to her from Webb City, Mo. This letter appeared in the Confederate Veteran of June, 1897, an excellent magazine of information on Confederate affairs, and is here quoted: ‘General Adams rode up to our works and, cheering his men, made an attempt to leap his horse over them. The horse fell upon the top of the embankment and the general was caught under him, pierced with bullets. As soon as the charge was repulsed, our men sprang over the works and lifted the horse, while others dragged the general from under him. He was perfectly conscious and knew his fate. He asked for water, as all dying men do in battle as the life-blood drips from the body. One of my men gave him a canteen of [287] water, while another brought an armful of cotton from an old gin near by and made him a pillow. The general gallantly thanked them, and in answer to our expressions of sorrow at his sad fate, he said, “It is the fate of a soldier to die for his country,” and expired.’ The wife of General Adams was Miss Georgia McDougal, daughter of a distinguished surgeon of the United States army. She was in every way worthy to be the wife of so gallant a man. Though left a widow with four sons and two daughters, she reared them, under all the severe trials of that sad period, to be useful men and women.Brigadier-General Samuel R. Anderson
Brigadier-General Samuel R. Anderson, of Nashville, when Tennessee began to make ready for war, was made major-general in the army of the State, May 9, 1861, and upon the transfer of the troops to the Confederate government he accepted the position of brigadier-general in the provisional army of the Confederate States, being commissioned July 9, 1861. He commanded a splendid brigade, consisting of the First, Seventh and Fourteenth Tennessee infantry and one company of Tennessee cavalry. This brigade was assigned to the division of General Loring in West Virginia during the summer and fall of 1861. One of his colonels, George Maney of the First Tennessee, after serving with distinction in Virginia was transferred to the western field of operations, and as brigadier-general did valiant work in the army of Tennessee, from Shiloh to the close of the Atlanta campaign. Another colonel, Robert Hatton of the Seventh Tennessee, also became a brigadier-general, succeeding Anderson in brigade command, and was killed at the battle of Seven Pines. General Anderson commanded his brigade during the movements in western Virginia from August to November, 1861; and from December, 1861, to March, 1862, under the renowned Stonewall Jackson. In August, 1861, Gen. Robert E. Lee was sent to command in West Virginia. He went to work with great vigor to [288] get his army ready for an offensive campaign. But heavy rains set in, which in that mountainous region soon randered roads impassable. All sorts of camp diseases, such as measles, typhoid and intermittent, fever, broke out and prostrated at least one-third of the soldiers. Camp and picket duty bore heavily on those who were well. But the Federal army was enduring the same hardships and had no advantage over the Confederates in that respect. So Lee ordered Loring's troops from Huntersville and Henry R. Jackson's brigade from Greenbrier river to assail the Federal garrison on Cheat mountain. The battle, however, did not come off, on account of the failure of Colonel Rust to open the fight at the time intended. The fall passed away in the routine duties of guard and picket service, marching and countermarching. In the winter, Anderson was called upon to join the forces of Stonewall Jackson near Winchester, and he participated in the campaign to Hancock, Bath and Romney. Subsequently he commanded the brigade on the Peninsula under General Magruder, until in March he withdrew from active service and soon afterward resigned his commission, but continued to labor in other capacities for the success of the cause. His brigade gained fame under the leadership of General Archer. On November 4, 1864, he was recommissioned brigadier-general.Brigadier-General Frank C. Armstrong
Brigadier-General Frank C. Armstrong, in 1854, accompanied his stepfather, Gen. Persifer Smith, upon an expedition of United States troops into New Mexico. He was then a handsome youth of twenty years, six feet tall, straight as an arrow, and the ideal of a daring young cavalryman. As the party were nearing Eagle Spring a detachment was made under John G. Walker to punish some Indian marauders, and Armstrong was so distinguished in the fight which resulted that he was reported to the war department, and got a lieutenancy of cavalry without the ordinary four years of preparation at West Point. Withdrawing [289] from the United States service in 1861, he accompanied Col. James McIntosh in the march of his force from Arkansas into the Indian country, and participated in the battle of Chustenahlah, in the Cherokee nation, December 26, 1861, in which the power of the Union chief Hopoeithleyohola was broken, serving as a volunteer aide on the staff of Colonel McIntosh. He next, with the rank of lieutenant, became assistant adjutant-general on the staff of Gen. Ben McCulloch, his friend, Col. D. H. Maury, being adjutant-general on the staff of General Van Dorn, commanding. In the famous battle of Elkhorn Tavern, he was with McCulloch until the latter was killed, and afterward, with Lomax and Bradfute and other fellow staff officers, went to the assistance of General Van Dorn, who warmly commended their services in his official report. On March 17th, Van Dorn, in a communication to the war department, strongly urged the promotion of these experienced officers, declaring that if he could have substituted some of them for some of his highest commanders, he could have put the enemy to utter rout. After serving a time as adjutant-general of Steen's Missouri brigade, Armstrong was elected colonel of the Third Louisiana infantry. Van Dorn renewed his recommendation that he be promoted to brigadier-general, and after the army had crossed to the east of the Mississippi, Gen. Sterling Price, having the same appreciation of the ability of the gallant young officer, appointed Armstrong to the command of all the cavalry of the army of the West, giving him, with the consent of General Bragg, the rank of acting brigadier-general. His energy and ability were soon manifest in the organization and increased efficiency of his command. On July 17th, Bragg, about to move to Chattanooga from Tupelo, ordered General Armstrong to advance toward Decatur, Ala., to cover the transfer of the army. With portions of the squadrons and companies of Webb, Barteau, McCulloch, Hill, Sanders, Roddey and Newsom he [290] attacked the enemy at Courtland, Ala., July 25th, and won a brilliant victory, taking 133 prisoners and gaining possession of the fertile Tennessee valley from Decatur to Tuscumbia. His continued successes brought him the warm congratulations of General Bragg. In August, 1862, he was sent with about 2,000 cavalry to make a demonstration in west Tennessee in co-operation with Bragg, and preparatory to Price's advance. He crossed the Hatchie river, passed between Jackson and Bolivar, destroyed bridges and trestles on the Memphis & Charleston railroad, drove the Federals into Bolivar, August 30th, and on his return defeated their infantry, cavalry and artillery at Britton's lane, near Denmark, capturing 213 prisoners and two pieces of artillery. Said General Price: ‘The highest praise should be awarded to General Armstrong for the prudence, discretion and good sense with which he conducted this expedition.’ His cavalry force, the regiments of Wirt Adams and Slemons, did gallant service during the fighting of Price's army at Iuka in September, and on October 3d, 4th and 5th at Corinth and the crossing of the Hatchie, covering the retreat as well as providing a bridge for the transportation of the army. General Maury writes that to Armstrong more than any other officer, Price's army owed its safe retreat from Iuka, and at Corinth, Armstrong found a safe retreat for Van Dorn's broken command. He was promoted to brigadier-general January 30, 1863. Under Van Dorn he was one of the brigade commanders in western Tennessee in March, 1863, and had a conspicuous part in the victory at Thompson's Station on March 25th. His brigade, under his command, captured the Federal garrison at Brentwood after a spirited fight. On April 10th he was in battle at Franklin, and on June 4th again attacked the Federal garrison there. In the organization of the cavalry corps of the army of Tennessee, following the Kentucky campaign, he commanded a brigade of Forrest's division, consisting of the Third Arkansas, Second Kentucky, First Tennessee, [291] McDonald's battalion and Brady's escort company. Upon the organization of a corps under Forrest, he was put in command of a cavalry division including his brigade and Dibrell's. He rendered important service after the evacuation of Chattanooga, attached to Polk's corps, and on September 20th participated in the battle of Chickamauga in command of his division fighting dismounted. ‘The charges made by Armstrong's brigade while fighting on foot,’ said General Forrest, ‘would be creditable to the best drilled infantry.’ In command of a division including the brigades of W. Y. C. Humes and C. H. Tyler, he was in the East Tennessee campaign with Longstreet during the winter of 1863-64, in frequent battle, and was commended for gallantry by Gens. Joseph Wheeler and W. T. Martin. Early in February, 1864, he obtained leave of absence from this field with authority to ask for transfer to the command of Gen. S. D. Lee. On March 5th he was ordered to report to Lieutenant-General Polk at Demopolis, Ala., and was soon under the orders of Lee, who named him as deserving of promotion to major-general and becoming his own successor in division command. On April 4th he was assigned to the Mississippi brigade of W. H. Jackson's division, consisting of the cavalry regiments of Pinson, Dillon, Starke and Ballentine, which was his command, with some temporary additions, until the close of the war. He accompanied Polk's army to Georgia and served with credit in the campaign from Resaca to Atlanta and Jonesboro (part of the time in command of Jackson's division), Hood's north Georgia campaign, the advance into Tennessee, the campaign against Murfreesboro, and was one of the leaders of the heroic rear guard under Forrest after the disaster at Nashville. During the early months of 1865 he continued in command of his brigade, and was ordered to Selma, Ala., March 23d, where he and his men participated in the gallant defense against the overwhelming forces of Gen. James H. Wilson, on April 2, 1865. At [292] the last he was in command of the Mississippi division of cavalry, with headquarters at Macon.Major-General William Brimage Bate
Major-General William Brimage Bate was born near Castalian Springs, Tenn., in the year 1830. Early in his youth he manifested a bold and adventurous spirit that characterized his career as a Confederate soldier. Leaving school to become a clerk on a steamboat plying between Nashville and New Orleans, he subsequently enlisted for the Mexican war and served as a private in a Louisiana and a Tennessee regiment. On his return to Tennessee he was elected to the legislature by his admiring friends in his native county, and after this he began the study of law in the famous school at Lebanon. He was graduated professionally in 1852, and then made his home at Gallatin, the scene of his earlier efforts in the profession which has been honored by his intellectual ability and manly worth. In 1854 he was elected attorney-general of the Nashville district for a term of six years. That calm, masterful and judicious leadership for which his life has been distinguished was already manifested in the political field, and having declined congressional honors, his name was put upon the Breckinridge electoral ticket. In May, 1861, Tennessee began the official negotiations which promptly resulted in her league with the other Southern States for defense against the war being waged upon them, and Bate entered the military forces as a private. He was speedily promoted captain and then colonel of the Second Tennessee regiment, and during the early months of the conflict served at Columbus, Ky., and elsewhere, in the command of General Polk. His first great battle was at Shiloh, where he shared the work of Cleburne's brigade of Hardee's corps. Bravely leading his regiment in the second charge, through a murderous cross-fire, he fell severely wounded, a minie ball breaking his leg and disabling him for field service for several months. This participation in battle, though brief, was marked with [293] such gallantry that he was mentioned with praise in the reports of Cleburne and Hardee, and on October 3, 1862, he was promoted brigadier-general. About this time, though still unable to return to the field, he was on garrison duty at Huntsville, Ala., and was given temporary command of the district of Tennessee. In February, 1863, he was again in the field, assigned to command of Rains' brigade in Polk's army, and in June, commanding the Ninth Alabama, Thirty-seventh Georgia, Fifteenth and Thirty-seventh and Twentieth Tennessee and Caswell's battalion, in the division of A. P. Stewart, he took part in the Tullahoma campaign with much credit, fighting the battle of Hoover's Gap on the 24th, driving the enemy back, and holding at bay the Federal advance. In this action he was in command of the Confederate forces, Stewart not arriving on the field until nightfall. According to Rosecrans' report, Bate delayed his army at this point thirty-six hours, preventing the Federals from getting possession of Bragg's communications and forcing him to disastrous battle. General Bate and his men took a prominent part in the fighting at Chickamauga. They fired the first gun in this historic struggle on ‘the river of death,’ driving the Federal guard from Thedford's ford, in preparation for the Confederate advance. Crossing the stream next morning, they went into action only a third armed, but drove the enemy back toward the position subsequently held with such heroism by Virginian George H. Thomas, the ‘Rock of Chickamauga.’ As a result of this first day's fight, the brigade was fully armed with Enfield rifles. About 11 o'clock Sunday morning, Stewart threw his division again upon the enemy, the brigade of Brown, ‘followed by the gallant Clayton and indomitable Bate,’ pressing on beyond the Chattanooga road and driving the enemy within his line of intrenchments. ‘During this charge, which was truly heroic,’ Stewart reported, ‘General Bate and several of his staff had their horses killed—the second lost by General Bate that [294] morning.’ In the evening he again led his brigade in an action near Kelly's house, in an action of the division, routing the enemy and capturing many prisoners; and finally the Eufaula artillery, attached to his brigade, fired the last gun of the battle. At Missionary Ridge, commanding Breckinridge's division, he was first on duty in the trenches at the base of the ridge, and later held a position on the crest near the headquarters of General Bragg. Fighting in a position where the whole magnificent panorama of the overwhelming army advancing upon them was visible, his troops bravely held their ground until both their left and right were turned, and then with the personal aid of General Bragg, a second line was formed, which checked the headlong advance of the victorious Federals. General Bragg reported General Bate among those distinguished for coolness, gallantry and successful conduct through the engagements and in the rear guard on the retreat. He continued in division command, after this battle, of his own brigade, Lewis' Kentuckians and Finley's Floridians, and was commissioned major-general February 23, 1864. Throughout the Georgia campaign he commanded a division of Hardee's corps, so often and so bravely in action; at Resaca handsomely repulsed the enemy from his front; at Dallas vigorously assailed Logan's intrenched Fifteenth Federal corps with his single division; on July 22d led the flank movement under Hardee which brought on the famous ‘battle of Atlanta.’ In the ill-fated campaign under General Hood, which brought General Bate and his men back to their native State, but with circumstances of suffering and disaster, he led his division, now including Jackson's brigade, from Florence, Ala., November 21st; marched with Cheatham's corps to Spring Hill, where he was in readiness for orders to attack; fought heroically at Franklin, in the desperate assault many of his men gaining the interior works and remaining there until the Federal retreat; and after [295] attacking Murfreesboro in co-operation with Forrest, marched his men, a fourth of them barefooted, over the icy roads to Nashville, where upon arrival he encountered stragglers already in rapid retreat, indicating the disaster that was impending. Even under such circumstances his troops bravely took position, intrenched as best they could in such weather, and made a gallant fight against the Federal assault. After the supporting troops were driven back, he rode along his advanced line, urging the men to hold fast, though under fire from three directions. His Tennesseeans at the ‘angle’ were almost annihilated; two Georgia regiments fought until surrounded; all three brigade commanders were captured. The military service of General Bate was closed in the spring of 1865, with the capitulation of the army of Tennessee. During the four years he had been three times severely wounded, and had demonstrated in a remarkably brilliant way the ability of the American volunteer to rise to important command and win renown there as well as in the ranks. He resumed his legal practice, making Nashville his home. As he has eloquently said of the Confederate soldier in general, ‘He returned home from the fields of disaster, vanquished but not destroyed; sorrowful, but not without hope; . . . the irrepressible pride and indomitable pluck of Southern manhood were still with him,’ and General Bate speedily gained a lucrative practice and honorable fame in his profession, and a prominent place in political councils. In 1868 he was a delegate to the Democratic national convention; for twelve years he served on the State executive committee of his party; was presidential elector-at-large in 1876; and in 1882 and 1884 was elected governor of Tennessee. At the expiration of this service, which is remembered as capable and dignified, he was elected United States senator. To this position, in which he was one of the most able representatives of the South, he was re-elected in 1893. At the dedication of the Chickamauga and Chattanooga National [296] Park he was selected by the secretary of war to speak for the Confederates, and his words on that occasion are monumental in their strength and calmness, presenting in unassailable force the rectitude of the Confederate cause; while he pointed out that the ‘record of the heroic past, which, though written in the blood of civil war, yet was essentially American in all the glorious attributes of American citizenship,’ is to be cherished by a united people.Brigadier-General Tyree H. Bell
Brigadier-General Tyree H. Bell, one of the many gallant officers given by the Volunteer State to the Southern Confederacy, entered the service as captain in the Twelfth Tennessee infantry, June 4, 1861, and was elected lieutenant-colonel. His military duties during 1861 were with the army under Maj.-Gen. Leonidas Polk at Columbus, Ky. He commanded the regiment at the battle of Belmont, November 7, 1861, the colonel being that day in command of a brigade. At Shiloh he was again in command of his regiment, Col. R. M. Russell having charge of the First brigade, First division, army of Mississippi. Colonel Russell in his report of the operations of his brigade at Shiloh says: ‘Lieutenant-Colonel Bell and Maj. R. P. Caldwell were distinguished by their courage and energy. The former had two horses shot under him.’ In July, 862, Bell was promoted to colonel of the Twelfth Tennessee and led it in the Kentucky campaign, participating in the battle of Richmond, Ky. Colonel Bell after this had a cavalry command operating in Tennessee and Kentucky. He was raiding in rear of the Union army during the Murfreesboro campaign, and at the time of the battle of Chickamauga, and afterward, was busy upon the flank and rear of the Federal troops. On the 25th of January, 1864, Major-General Forrest, who had assumed command of all the cavalry operating in north Mississippi, west Tennessee and Kentucky, placed Colonel Bell in command of a brigade in his division, consisting of the regiments [297] of Russell, Greer, Newsom, Barteau and Wilson. General Forrest in his account of the battle of Fort Pillow says: ‘I cannot compliment too highly the conduct of Colonels Bell and McCulloch and the officers and men of their brigades which composed the forces of Brigadier-General Chalmers. They fought with courage and intrepidity, and without bayonets assaulted and carried one of the strongest fortifications in the country.’ In his report of the brilliant victory at Tishomingo creek, Forrest declares that General Buford ‘had abundant reason to be proud of his brigade commanders, Colonels Lyon and Bell, who displayed great gallantry during the day.’ Forrest again speaks in a complimentary manner of Bell at the battle of Harrisburg, in the Tupelo campaign, a battle in which, though repulsed, Forrest gained the substantial fruits of victory by breaking up the strongest of all the Federal expeditions into north Mississippi during 1864. Still later, Forrest made an expedition along the Tennessee river in October and November, 1864, in which he destroyed 4 gunboats, 14 transports, 20 barges, and over $6,700,000 of Federal property, besides capturing 26 pieces of artillery; and in this brilliant expedition Colonel Bell again won the praise of Forrest. He was soon afterward commissioned brigadier-general, and he continued to act with Forrest's command until the close of the war.Major-General John Calvin Brown
Major-General John Calvin Brown was born in Giles county, January 6, 1827. When nineteen years of age he was graduated at Jackson college, Tenn., and two years later was admitted to the bar at Pulaski. From that time (1848) until May, 1861, he practiced law successfully. He then entered the Third infantry regiment of the provisional army of Tennessee as captain, and on the 16th of May was commissioned colonel of that regiment, which, with the other soldiers of Tennessee, became a part of the provisional army of the Confederate States upon the [298] accession of Tennessee to the Southern Confederacy. At the battle of Fort Donelson (February 14-16, 1862) we find Colonel Brown commanding the Third brigade of General Buckner's division, and acting a conspicuous part in the charge which opened the way for the retreat of the Confederate army to Nashville. The fact that the opportunity was not improved detracts nothing from the gallant achievement of the men who made that brilliant charge. When, on the 16th, the fort was surrendered, Colonel Brown became a prisoner of war and remained in the enemy's hands for six months. Shortly after his exchange he was commissioned as brigadier-general (August 30, 1862). He participated in the Kentucky campaign, and was wounded at the battle of Perryville, October 8, 1862; with his usual gallantry fought at Chickamauga, where he was again wounded, and recovered in time to act an heroic part at Missionary Ridge. In all the movements of the Dalton-Atlanta campaign he was distinguished, and on the 4th of August, 1864, he was commissioned major-general. In Hood's gallant but disastrous effort to retrieve the waning fortunes of the Confederacy by his Tennessee campaign, General Brown was again among the foremost, commanding Cheatham's division. In the fierce charge at Franklin, in which so many of the choicest spirits of the army of Tennessee laid down their lives, he was severely wounded. At the close of the war he resumed the practice of law at Pulaski, Tenn. He was a member of the constitutional convention which met at Nashville in 1870, and was elected president of that body. The next year he was elected governor of the State, being the first Democrat chosen to that position after the war. He was the second member of his family to be thus honored, his brother, Neil S. Brown, having been governor from 1847 to 1849. One of the leading issues of Governor Brown's administration was the State debt, which at the beginning of his term amounted to $43,000,000 bonded, besides a large [299] floating debt. At the close of his administration in 1875 (he having served two terms), the bonded debt had been reduced to $20,000,000, the large floating debt had been paid, and the credit of the State had been fully reestab-lished. After retiring from the executive office he engaged in various railroad enterprises, exhibiting marked ability in every position which he held. In 1864 he married Miss Bettie Childress, one of the most beautiful and cultured women of the South. Their elegant home was in Nashville. The death of General Brown occurred at Red Boiling Springs, Tenn., August 17, 1889.Brigadier-General Alexander W. Campbell
Brigadier-General Alexander W. Campbell entered the Confederate army in 1861 as colonel of the Thirty-third Tennessee infantry, and served in the army of General Polk at Columbus, Ky., during the campaign of that year. There was one battle in his district, at Belmont, Mo., in which General Grant attacked the Confederates and was at first successful; but upon the arrival of Confederate reinforcements and the renewal of the battle, was defeated and with difficulty made his escape. In this battle Colonel Campbell and his regiment were not engaged, being in observation on the Kentucky side of the river. When the armies were being concentrated for the attack upon Grant at Shiloh, Colonel Campbell's regiment was part of the army that marched from central Kentucky, to Corinth, Miss. Colonel Campbell led his regiment at the battle of Shiloh, and at one time during the fight the Fifth Tennessee, Col. C. D. Venable, was also under his orders. Gen. Leonidas Polk, in his report of this battle, mentions as one of several other instances of ‘brilliant courage,’ the conduct of these two regiments. The report says: “Shortly after they were first brought forward as a supporting force, they found themselves ordered to support two regiments of the line before them, which were lying down, engaging the enemy irregularly. On advancing, they drew the enemy's fire over the heads of [300] the regiments in their front. It was of so fierce a character that they must either advance or fall back. Campbell called to the regiments before him to charge. This they declined to do. He then gave orders to his own regiment to charge, and led them in gallant style over the heads of the regiments lying in advance of him, sweeping the enemy before him and putting them completely to rout.” In this battle Colonel Campbell received a wound which incapacitated him for active service for several months. Just before the battle of Murfreesboro he was appointed adjutant and inspector-general on the staff of Gen. Leonidas Polk. This position he held during 1862 and 1863. On the 15th of March, 1864, he was commissioned brigadier-general, and in this rank he commanded a cavalry force during the remainder of the war.Brigadier-General William H. Carroll
Brigadier-General William H. Carroll was born in the year 1820. When Tennessee decided to cast her fortunes with the Confederate States, he was appointed a brigadier-general in the provisional army of the State of Tennessee. He assisted in the organization of the splendid bodies of troops which Tennessee turned over to the authorities at Richmond. On the 21st of October, 1861, he was commissioned a brigadier-general in the army of the Confederate States. His brigade was assigned to the army under Albert Sidney Johnston, and was for a time on duty at Memphis. General Johnston, becoming apprehensive about affairs in east Tennessee, ordered Carroll to that section of the State. The Unionists had risen in scattered bands and threatened to give much trouble, but on the approach of armed men under Carroll these bands dispersed. On December 11, 186, he issued the following proclamation: ‘The exigencies of the times requiring, as is believed, the adoption of the sternest measures of military policy, the commanding general feels called upon to suspend for a time the functions of the civil tribunals. Now, therefore, be it known that I, William H. Carroll, [301] brigadier-general in the Confederate army and commander of the post at Knoxville, do hereby proclaim martial law to exist in the city of Knoxville and the surrounding country to the distance of one mile from the corporate limits of said city.’ General Carroll showed great vigor in arresting all parties that were openly disaffected to the Confederate States. As soon as he felt assured that he could safely do so, he revoked the proclamation of martial law and restored the civil authority. His brigade was part of the force with which General Crittenden made an attack on General Thomas not far from Mill Spring, Ky., January, 1862, and in the report of the affair by Crittenden, General Carroll was commended for ‘his dispositions and conduct during the engagement,’ his ‘military skill and personal valor.’ Carroll's brigade brought up the rear on the retreat and retired from the field in order. On February 1, 1863, General Carroll resigned his commission in the Confederate army.Brigadier-General John C. Carter
Brigadier-General John C. Carter entered the Confederate service in 1861 as a captain in the Thirty-eighth Tennessee infantry. He was still a captain at the battle of Shiloh, where he won the praise of Col. R. F. Looney, commander of his regiment, who declared that ‘Captain Carter deserved the highest praise for his great coolness and high courage displayed throughout the entire engagement. At one time he took the flag, and urging his men forward, rendered me great assistance in advancing the entire regiment.’ His promotion was rapid through the grades of major and lieutenant-colonel to that of colonel of the regiment. He had reached this latter position when, at the battle of Perryville, he commanded his regiment in one of the hottest fights of the war. Here he won fresh plaudits for his gallant bearing in the presence of the enemy. His brigade was led in this battle by Col. John H. Savage, and the division by Brig.-Gen. Daniel S: Donelson, of the right wing under Major-General Cheatham. At the [302] battle of Murfreesboro, Donelson's brigade still formed a part of Cheatham's division, which took an active part in the grand charge which drove the Federal right a distance of between three and four miles, capturing many prisoners, cannon, small-arms, wagons and other spoils of victory. In this brilliant attack Colonel Carter again led his regiment with his accustomed skill and courage. At Chickamauga, Colonel Carter commanded his regiment in Wright's brigade. At the time of the battle of Missionary Ridge he was with his regiment at Charleston, Tenn. He succeeded Gen. Marcus J. Wright in command of his Tennessee brigade, and after leading it for some time as colonel in the Atlanta campaign, he was promoted to brigadier-general with temporary rank, July 7, 1864. At Jonesboro, September 1st, he was in temporary command of Cheatham's division. He led his brigade in Brown's division at Franklin, November 30, 1864, up to the enemy's works, but fell mortally wounded in the charge, and gave up his life for the cause so dear to his heart.General Benjamin Franklin Cheatham.
There was no name in the army of Tennessee more familiar to the soldiers than that of Benjamin Franklin Cheatham, and no officer of the Confederate army possessed to a higher degree than he the affectionate regard of his men. He was born in the city of Nashville, October 20, 1820. He was captain of volunteers in the Mexican war, and was distinguished in its severest battles. On the outbreak of the war between the States he espoused heartily the cause of the South and was appointed major-general in the provisional army of Tennessee, May 9, 1861. On July 9th of the same year he was made a brigadier-general in the provisional army of the Confederate States. From the very first, General Cheatham gained the reputation of being a brilliant fighter. He understood well the art of managing men. He was careful in looking after their comfort, and when [303] it was proper to do so, carefully guarded their safety. But when duty required it, he was ready to face any peril and set before his soldiers an example of valor which they followed with alacrity and zeal. It is praise enough for his command to say that it was the equal of that led by the renowned Pat Cleburne. He was in many fierce battles and always bore a conspicuous part. In the battle of Belmont he led three regiments of Pillow's force, and it was his movement to the enemy's rear that won the day. He was commissioned major-general March 10, 1862, and we find him on the field of Shiloh commanding the second division of the first corps under Leonidas Polk. At Perryville, Ky., it was Cheatham's division that opened the fight, and throughout that hotly-contested battle pressed steadily forward. Again at Murfreesboro Cheatham's was one of the four divisions which drove the Federals back a distance of between three and four miles, doubling them back upon their center until their line was at right angles to its original position. At Chickamauga we find Cheatham's division attached to the right wing under Leonidas Polk, sustaining the reputation gained on so many former occasions. At the battle of Missionary Ridge, when the Confederate left center had been broken, Hardee threw a part of Cheatham's division directly across the path of the advancing Federals and held the ground until darkness closed the fight. In all the movements of the army of Tennessee in 1864, Cheatham and his men had their full share of peril and of honor. At the battle of Kenesaw Mountain (June 27th), Cheatham's and Cleburne's divisions probably inflicted upon the Federals a heavier loss than they suffered on any other part of the field. In the battles around Atlanta, Cheatham had command of a corps, and in the battle of July 22d, his men captured five cannon and five stand of colors. In Hood's final campaign he led his corps into the thickest of every fight. At the close of the war, Cheatham returned to the pursuits of peace, blessed with [304] the society of his neighbors, whose esteem and friendship he always enjoyed, surrounded by a lovely family and cheered by his noble wife. General Cheatham's personal appearance was thus described a few years after the war by the historian, E. A. Pollard: ‘General Cheatham is squarely and firmly built, and is noted for his extraordinary physical strength. He is slightly round-shouldered, and his weight is about two hundred pounds. His height is about five feet eight inches; his eyes are light blue, clear and expressive; his hair, light brown; his complexion, fair; and his moustache—he wears no other beard—very heavy. His forehead is broad and his face expressive of that imperturbable good humor which characterizes him not more in social life than on the battlefield.’ General Grant, who was a personal friend of his, offered him an appointment in the civil service, but he declined. He served four years as superintendent of the State prison. In 1885 he became postmaster at Nashville, a position he retained until his death, September 4, 1886. The love and esteem in which he was held were evidenced by the vast attendance upon his funeral, which was declared at the time to be the most imposing ever held in Nashville.Brigadier-General Henry B. Davidson
Brigadier-General Henry B. Davidson, a true son of the Volunteer State, received his appointment at the United States military academy as a reward for gallant services as a sergeant of Tennessee volunteers at the battle of Monterey, Mexico, September 21 to 23, 1846. He was graduated at West Point in 1853, and promoted to brevet second lieutenant of dragoons. He served at the cavalry school for practice, in garrison duty at Jefferson barracks, Mo.; on scouting duty at Fort Union and Albuquerque; was engaged with Apache Indians in a skirmish on Penasco river, New Mexico, January 18, 1855, and again with hostile Indians in Oregon, March 27, 1856; in the combat of the Four Lakes on September [305] 1st; on the Spokane plains, September 5th, and on Spokane river, September 8, 1858. He was quartermaster of First dragoons from December 5, 1858, to May 13, 1861. Being on leave of absence when the Confederate war began, he resigned his commission as captain in the United States army and entered the service of the Confederate States, actuated by a sense of duty to his native State, whose command he felt bound to obey. Reporting to the Richmond government, he was assigned in 1862 to the command of the post at Staunton, Va., with the rank of colonel. In August, 1863, he was commissioned brigadier-general, and early in 1864 he was at Rome, Ga., in command of a cavalry brigade belonging to Wheeler's corps. On the 17th of May, as the enemy was approaching Rome, Ector's brigade of French's division, supported by the cavalry of Ross, Morgan and Davidson, had quite a spirited affair, in which Davidson attacked the enemy on the right, driving in their skirmishers. General Davidson did not long remain in Georgia, but was sent back to Virginia and assigned to the command of a brigade of cavalry attached to the division of General Lomax, operating in the valley under General Early. This brigade consisted of the First Maryland and the Nineteenth, Twentieth, Forty-sixth and Forty-seventh Virginia battalions of cavalry. After the war, General Davidson moved to the city of New Orleans, of which he was deputy sheriff, 1866 and 1867. From 1878 to 1886 he was inspector of United States public works at San Pedro, Cal. In 1887 he was appointed deputy secretary of state of California.Brigadier-General George Gibbs Dibrell
Brigadier-General George Gibbs Dibrell was born in White county, Tenn., April 12, 1822. After receiving a common school education, which was supplemented by one year at the East Tennessee university, he engaged for a while in farming and then in mercantile pursuits. In 1861 he was elected to the Tennessee convention as a [306] Union delegate. But when his native State at last decided on secession, like most of those who held similar views, he obeyed the voice of the majority and was among the first to enlist under the banner of the new Confederacy. He entered the service as a private, but was elected lieutenant-colonel of his regiment, receiving his commission as such, August 10, 1861. In September of the same year he was commissioned colonel of partisan rangers. In the reports of the movements of Forrest's command, we find Colonel Dibrell's name favorably mentioned on many occasions. In one of many brilliant affairs in which Dibrell's regiment participated, Col. R. G. Ingersoll is mentioned as one of the captives. In March, 1863, General Bragg requested Forrest to send a force to defend the manufacturing establishments at Tuscumbia and Florence, Ala., against Federal raiders. Colonel Dibrell's command was detached for this purpose, and on March 25th, near Florence, he defeated two Union gunboats and a body of raiders. During the summer campaign of 1863, when Rosecrans was trying to maneuver Bragg out of Tennessee, Forrest sent Dibrell to reinforce Wheeler. Near Sparta, Tenn., they had a fierce fight with the enemy, which, after varied fortune, was finally decided in favor of the Confederates, who chased their opponents for several miles and then returned to camp. They found to their delight that the ladies of Sparta had cooked and sent to the camp a fine breakfast for the entire command. On the 26th of July, 1864, Colonel Dibrell received well-merited promotion and was commissioned brigadier-general of cavalry. He continued to sustain his high reputation in the campaigns of Forrest and afterward of Wheeler. Toward the close of the war he served in North Carolina. After the fall of Richmond and the surrender of Lee's army he had charge for a while of the Confederate archives. After the long agony of war had ended he returned to his native State. In 1870 he served in the Tennessee constitutional convention. [307] He was twice elected to Congress, and served from 1875 to 1879. At Sparta, Tenn., in September, 1883, General Dibrell's old cavalry command organized a brotherhood, officered with members of his old regiment, the Eighth Tennessee. At their second meeting, held at Gainesboro in 1884, the following commands were added to the organization: The Eighth, Sixteenth, Seventeenth, Twenty-fifth, Twenty-eighth and Thirty-fifth Tennessee infantry and Colms' battalion, Hamilton's, Bledsoe's and Bennett's battalions of cavalry. General Dibrell commanded this ‘reunion brigade’ up to his death in 1886, and never failed to attend its meetings.Major-General Daniel S. Donelson
Major-General Daniel S. Donelson was born in Tennessee in 1802. He entered the United States military academy in 1821, and four years later was graduated and promoted to second lieutenant of the Third artillery. He resigned January 22, 1826. From 1827 to 1829 he was brigade major of the Tennessee militia, and brigadier-general from 1829 to 1834. From 1841 to 1843 he was a member of the house of representatives of the State of Tennessee, and again from 1855 to 1861, being speaker of the house. He was a planter in Sumter county, 1826 to 1834, and in Florida Territory, 1834 to 1836, then returning to Tennessee and continuing planting until 1861. When Tennessee resolved to secede from the Union he offered his services, and in May, 1861, was made a brigadier-general of the State forces. On July 9th he was commissioned in the same rank in the army of the Confederate States. He commanded a brigade in West Virginia under General Loring in 1861, and at the beginning of 1862 was sent to Charleston, S. C. He was ordered to the western army under Bragg, at Tupelo, and there had command of the First brigade of the Second division of the First army corps. At the battle of Murfreesboro he commanded the First brigade of Cheatham's division and was in the celebrated charge which broke to pieces [308] the whole right wing of the Federal army. On January 17, 1863, he was assigned to command of the department of East Tennessee, and was succeeded in brigade command by Gen. M. J. Wright. In the important region of which he was given charge as the successor of Gen. E. Kirby Smith, he had under his orders the brigades of General Gracie, Colonel Palmer, Gen. A. E. Jackson, Gen. John Pegram, Gen. Humphrey Marshall, and scattered organizations. General Donelson was promoted to major-general while in command of this department, but soon afterward he died at Knoxville, April 17, 1863. In general orders, April 24th, General Bragg said: ‘The general commanding announces to the army the death of Brig.-Gen. D. S. Donelson. He died in the department of East Tennessee, which he had commanded. The regret with which his death is announced will be felt by the army and his country. He was an educated soldier, of great purity of character, singleness of purpose, and goodness of heart. Conspicuous for gallantry on the field, after the excitement had passed he was foremost in providing for the wants of his command, and devoted to the sick and wounded. His comrades in this army, and those who served under his orders, will long remember his deeds and virtues.’Brigadier-General John W. Frazer
Brigadier-General John W. Frazer was a native of Tennessee, and was appointed to the United States military academy from Mississippi. At his graduation in 1849 he was promoted to brevet second lieutenant. He served in garrison at Fort Columbus, N. Y.; on frontier duty at San Miguel, Cal., and at Bernicia and Camp Far West in the same State; in garrison at Fort Monroe, Va., and on recruiting service until 1857; and then as captain, Ninth infantry, at Fort Simcoe and Fort Colville, Washington. He resigned his commission March 15, 1861, and entered the Confederate service with the rank in the regular army of captain of infantry. When the Eighth [309] Alabama was organized, Captain Frazer was appointed by the war department, lieutenant-colonel. After serving with this regiment a while, he resigned to take the position of colonel of the Twenty-eighth Alabama. This regiment reached Corinth, Miss., after the battle of Shiloh; was first under fire in a skirmish at Corinth; was with Bragg in the Kentucky campaign, and under the command of Colonel Frazer was slightly engaged at Munfordville, Ky. Subsequently he resigned, and on May 19, 1863, was commissioned brigadier-general and sent into east Tennessee, where his command consisted of the Fifty-fifth Georgia, Sixty-second and Sixty-fourth North Carolina, and Rains' battery. He had charge of Cumberland Gap in September, when the Union army under Burnside approached that post. General Frazer, finding that Knoxville had been occupied by the Union forces and that General Buckner had been obliged to retreat toward Chattanooga, knowing that the force of the enemy was greatly superior, surrendered to General Burnside on September 9, 1863. He was at first somewhat censured, but when all the facts were made known was exonerated. After the war he became a merchant and planter in Memphis.Brigadier-General George W. Gordon
Brigadier-General George W. Gordon, one of the youngest of the Confederate general officers, was born in Giles county, Tenn. He was graduated at the Western military institute at Nashville in 1859. At the outbreak of the civil war he entered the service of his native State as drill-master for the Eleventh Tennessee infantry, which with other troops was soon after turned over to the Confederate authorities. He was successively made captain, then lieutenant-colonel, and finally colonel of this regiment (December, 1862). While serving in east Tennessee in the summer of 1862 he was captured at Tazewell, but being soon exchanged he participated in the Kentucky campaign. Just after [310] receiving his commission as colonel he led his men in the fierce battle of Murfreesboro. In this engagement he was again captured, but was back with his command at the battles of Chickamauga and Missionary Ridge, winning fresh laurels on these famous fields. In Cheatham's division during the arduous Dalton-Atlanta campaign, he and his men sustained their reputation for valor and efficiency, and on August 5, 1864, he was commissioned brigadier-general, succeeding A. J. Vaughan. He commanded his brigade at Jonesboro, and in the fearful battle at Franklin on the afternoon of November 30, 1864, in which fell the flower of the army of Tennessee, Gordon led his brigade in an impetuous charge upon the Federal works, he and his men being the first to reach the parapet and pierce the enemy's lines. But such masses of Federals were poured upon them at this point that they were forced back over the parapet, Gordon and some of his men having held on so stoutly as to be captured by the enemy within their lines. He remained a prisoner of war until August, 1865, and was then released on parole. Returning home, General Gordon took up the practice of law. In 1883 he was appointed one of the railroad commissioners of Tennessee. In 1885 he was appointed to a position in the interior department of the United States government, and served four years among the western Indians. In 1892 he became superintendent of the public schools of the city of Memphis.Brigadier-General Robert Hatton
The civil war developed the fact that many men who have never known any but peaceful pursuits are fitted, when occasion demands, to become leaders of men, and to show upon the battlefield those talents which belong to the trained soldier. Some of the most prominent and successful soldiers developed by the war were civilians who, until the outbreak of that tremendous struggle, never had dreamed of their own talent for military affairs. One of [311] these citizen-soldiers was Robert Hatton of Tennessee, who was born in Sumter county in 1827. He received his education at Harvard, then studied law, and was admitted to the bar in 1849. A gentleman of high culture and social standing, his success in his profession was steady and rapid. He was elected a member of the Tennessee house of representatives in 1856, and two years later was elected to the Congress of the United States. When the long sectional quarrel flamed out at last into civil war, he ranged himself with his native State on the side of the South. He joined the Confederate army and was made colonel of the Seventh Tennessee. In July, 1861, his regiment was ordered with other commands to Staunton, Va., where we find him on the 28th of that month. It was just after the great victory of the First Manassas, when the whole South was wild with joy over its wonderful triumph, and the ambition of every Southern soldier was to join the victorious army led by Joe Johnston and Beauregard and move at once upon Washington. But affairs had not gone well in West Virginia, and an effort was to be made to recover what had been lost in that region. Hatton's regiment was assigned to S. R. Anderson's brigade and placed under Loring's command in West Virginia. There they participated in the Cheat Mountain campaign, prolific in marches and hardships, making a splendid training school for new soldiers. Though the scheme for bringing on a great and decisive battle at Cheat mountain miscarried, there was just enough of danger connected with operations in that quarter to give the men a taste of soldier life. When toward the last of December, Loring's command, marching back across the mountains and through the Shenandoah valley, joined Stonewall Jackson at Winchester, they had additional lessons in the duties of a soldier. The winter campaign of Jackson to Bath, Han. cock and Romney, in January, involved as much genuine hardship as any of the whole war, and but for the interference [312] of the war department, Jackson always claimed, would have been productive of permanent good to the Confederacy. The Seventh regiment was next ordered to the army under Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. On May 21, 1862, Colonel Hatton was commissioned brigadier-general. Ten days later, on the field of Seven Pines, in command of the First, Seventh and Fourteenth Tennessee, afterward Archer's brigade, he met a soldier's death while leading his brigade into the spirited fight by the forces under Gen. G. W. Smith, in which Gen. J. J. Pettigrew was wounded and captured, and Wade Hampton seriously wounded. General Smith said in his report: ‘The personal bearing and conduct of the lamented General Hatton upon the field were gallant, noble and true to his high social and official character. He fell while bravely and skillfully leading his brigade in the extreme front of the battle.’Brigadier-General Benjamin J. Hill
Brigadier-General Benjamin J. Hill was commissioned colonel of the Thirty-fifth Tennessee upon its organization in September, 1861. During the first four months this regiment had very little hard service, but with the spring of 1862 came the stern realities of war with all its horrors. The regiment, now known as the Fifth Tennessee, was in Gen. Pat Cleburne's brigade at the battle of Shiloh, and when Cleburne was in the presence of the enemy there was sure to be sharp work. In this battle, Hill commanded for a time the left of Cleburne's brigade and several other regiments, and was highly commended for his gallantry. During the Kentucky campaign of 1862 Cleburne commanded a division, and at the battle of Richmond, Ky., Colonel Hill commanded Cleburne's brigade to the complete satisfaction of that officer, which is praise enough. This was the first brigade to strike the enemy at Richmond, and from the first volley until the close of that victorious day its progress was onward. At Murfreesboro, Colonel Hill, again in command of his regiment, [313] Lucius Polk commanding the brigade, was with Cleburne's division in the very hottest part of the battle. At Chickamauga the gallant colonel won from Lieut.-Gen. D. H. Hill the following tribute: ‘The extraordinary merit of Colonel Hill of the Thirty-fifth Tennessee came under my personal observation. This noble officer has been distinguished on many a hard-fought field, and has been content with a subordinate position, provided he can serve his country.’ At Missionary Ridge, Cleburne's division not only held its ground, but charged the enemy and captured prisoners and colors. In this battle, Colonel Hill commanded the Thirty-fifth and Forty-eighth Tennessee regiments. During part of 1863 and 1864 he was general provost-marshal of the army of Tennessee. In the Atlanta campaign he was part of the time provost-marshal, and then again at the head of the Thirty-fifth Tennessee, which shared in the hard marching, watching and fighting of the Atlanta campaign, and toward the last was assigned to Granbury's brigade. During the Tennessee campaign of General Hood, Colonel Hill commanded a cavalry force and co-operated with Forrest in the siege of Murfreesboro. In the latter part of the year he was promoted to brigadier-general, his commission being dated November 30, 1864. At Decatur, Ala., on April 23, 1865, he was in battle with a portion of Wilson's command. General Hill died at McMinnville, Tenn., on January 5, 1880.Major-General W. Y. C. Humes
It is interesting to note how many men during the protracted struggle which began in April, 1861, and ended in April, 1865, rose from the lower grades to be general officers. It is difficult for those who have never passed through such scenes to realize the indifference to danger which many men exhibited. Nearly the whole population of the South capable of bearing arms were from first to last brought into the field, and men learned to look upon danger [314] and death as matters that could not be helped. Just as men strive to win their way in business by diligent application to duty, so men strove to win their way to promotion by proving themselves efficient and bold in battle. Maj.-Gen. W. Y. C. Humes of Tennessee entered the Confederate army as a lieutenant of artillery, and in June, 1861, was commissioned captain of that branch of the service in the army of the Confederate States. General McCown, in one of his reports from New Madrid Bend, bears this testimony to his worth: ‘Captain Humes, commanding artillery on the island, deserves commendation for his energy and proper bearing.’ He was with the force that was captured at Island No.10. After being exchanged, he entered the cavalry service and rose rapidly until we find him a brigadier-general, November 16, 1863, commanding a brigade of cavalry in Wheeler's corps. During the Atlanta campaign he commanded a division of cavalry, one of the best. Throughout the whole campaign from Dalton to Atlanta the cavalry were kept busy, sometimes guarding the flank of the army, at times making raids to the rear of the enemy, and at other times meeting Federal raiders and defeating them. No army ever had a more splendid body of cavalry than that of the army of Tennessee in 1864. When Hood marched into Tennessee, Wheeler's splendid cavalry corps accompanied him until he crossed the Tennessee. Then Forrest with his corps of cavalry took Wheeler's place, and the latter returned into Georgia with his troops to harass and impede the march of Sherman as much as possible. Twice these brave horsemen saved Augusta from the fate of Atlanta and Columbia; once by repelling the Federal cavalry near Waynesboro, and afterward by a decisive defeat of Kilpatrick at Aiken, S. C. Humes with his division formed a part of Wheeler's force during this period also. He was again with the army of Tennessee in the Carolinas, and participated in the last battle fought by that army at Bentonville. In March, [315] 1865, he was commissioned major-general. He had commanded a division for more than a year. After the return of peace, General Humes settled in Huntsville, Ala., where he died September 12, 1883.Brigadier-General Alfred E. Jackson
Brigadier-General Alfred E. Jackson, in 1861, was quartermaster of Zollicoffer's brigade, and very active in collecting supplies for the soldiers and whatever things needed for their full equipment, in which duty he was very efficient. During 1862 he served in the department of East Tennessee under Gen. E. Kirby Smith, and proved himself so capable that he was commissioned brigadier-general, and on February 9, 1863, was assigned to the military department of East Tennessee, then commanded by General Donelson. In this region he had command of a brigade under Donelson and Maury, and was kept on the alert against raiding parties of the enemy. On the 7th of September, 1863, when all the available Confederate forces had been ordered to Bragg at Chattanooga, and after Burnside with his army corps had occupied Knoxville, about 500 Federal infantry advanced as far as Telford's depot in Washington county. A small force of Confederates under Gen. Alfred E. Jackson was in the upper corner of northeast Tennessee.. Col. Henry L. Giltner, of the Fourth Kentucky cavalry, with a small body of troops occupied the department of southwestern Virginia. When Jackson and Giltner heard of this advance of the detachment from Burnside's army, they united their forces and under Jackson's command marched. to attack the Federals. They encountered the Union troops with about equal numbers on the 8th of September at Telford's depot. After a short but sharp engagement, in which they lost 60 killed and wounded, while 100 succeeded in making their escape, the remaining 350 Federals finding retreat cut off, surrendered. On the theater of Jackson's operations there was a good deal of this sort of detachment work in which there was plenty of marching [316] and fighting, but very little chance for renown, because the great battles so obscured the small affairs that in many parts of the country they were never even heard of. In October, under Gen. John S. Williams, he took a gallant part in the victory at Greeneville, east Tennessee. His command was included in Ransom's division during Longstreet's operations in east Tennessee. On November 23, 1864, being unfit for active service in the field, he was ordered to report temporarily to General Breckinridge. After the war had ended, General Jackson, like the thousands of other citizen-soldiers, returned quietly to the pursuits of peace. On October 30, 1889, he died at Jonesboro, Tenn.Brigadier-General William H. Jackson
Brigadier-General William H. Jackson, one of the most prominent living soldiers of Tennessee, was born at Paris, Tenn., October 7, 1835. At twenty-one years he was graduated at the United States military academy (1856), and assigned as brevet second lieutenant to the mounted riflemen. In December of the same year he was commissioned second lieutenant while serving at the cavalry school for practice at Carlisle, Pa. He was on frontier duty at Fort Bliss, Tex., 1857, and in December of that year was engaged in a skirmish against the Kiowa Indians near Fort Craig, N. M. In 1859 he was engaged in scouting in the Navajo country, and took part in the Comanche and Kiowa expedition of 1860. On May 16, 1861, in obedience to the command of his State, he resigned his commission in the United States army and entered the service of the Confederate States as captain of artillery. In the battle of Belmont, November 7, 1861, he acted as aide on the staff of General Pillow, and was seriously wounded while executing that officer's orders. His name is flatteringly mentioned in the reports of Generals Polk and Pillow and of Col. S. F. Marks, who, at the request of Colonel Barrow, tendered the thanks of the Eleventh Louisiana regiment to Capt. Wm. H. Jackson for valuable and gallant service rendered them. This [317] gallant young officer was in the field again early in 1862 as colonel of the First Tennessee cavalry, winning compliments from his superior officers in every affair in which he was engaged. His name is mentioned in all the reports, and by his merit as chief of cavalry in Pemberton's department he richly earned the commission of brigadier-general, which was bestowed upon him December 29, 1862. He had acted as chief of cavalry for Van Dorn and Price in the campaign which culminated in the battle of Corinth. On the retreat from that disastrous field he had well protected the rear of the Confederate army. He increased his already high reputation throughout the Vicksburg campaign, and after its disastrous close he was indefatigable in his labors and rendered invaluable assistance to Gen. Joseph E. Johnston. In the Meridian campaign of February, 1864, Jackson commanded the cavalry of Polk's army, hanging upon the flanks of the enemy and compelling his foragers to keep close to the main line. During the Atlanta campaign, Jackson commanded the cavalry corps of the army of the Mississippi, which participated in all the arduous labors and many brilliant successes of the cavalry arm of the Confederate service. When, after the brilliant cavalry victory at Newnan, Wheeler moved into the rear of Sherman's army, Jackson's cavalry shared in the movements that defeated Kilpatrick's raid against the Macon road. He led his division of cavalry through the Nashville and Murfreesboro campaign, and then retiring to Mississippi, was there, in February, 1865, assigned to command of all Tennessee cavalry in Forrest's department, with other brigades, to form Jackson's division, one of the two provided for in Forrest's reorganization. His last military service was the cutting off of Croxton's brigade from the main body of Wilson's expedition, April, 1865. Since the close of the war General Jackson has engaged in stock raising, and is proprietor of the celebrated Belle Meade stock farm near Nashville, Tenn.[318]
Major-General Bushrod R. Johnson
Major-General Bushrod R. Johnson, a distinguished Confederate officer and citizen of Tennessee, was born in Ohio in 1817. He was a cadet at the United States military academy from 1836 to 1840, when he was appointed second lieutenant in the Third infantry. He served in the Florida war, and was on frontier duty at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., when he was promoted to first lieutenant, February, 1844. He participated in the Mexican war, and was engaged in the battles of Palo Alto, Resaca de la Palma and Monterey, and the siege of Vera Cruz. After the fall of that city he remained there on commissary duty until October. In that month he resigned and returned to the United States. He was professor in the Western military institute of Kentucky from 1848 to 1851, when he became its superintendent. Four years later he became superintendent of the military college of the university of Nashville, Tenn., which place he held at the outbreak of the Confederate war. He was also at that time colonel of Tennessee militia. During his stay in Kentucky he had been lieutenant-colonel of militia. He was appointed colonel of engineers in the provisional army of Tennessee, June 28, 1861, and when the Tennessee troops were turned over to the Confederate States, he was assigned to the army acting in Tennessee and Kentucky under the command of Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston. He commanded with great ability a brigade at Fort Donelson, having been commissioned brigadier-general January 24, 1862. Though captured on the fall of that important post, he was exchanged in time to bear a conspicuous part in the battle of Shiloh, where he was severely wounded April 6, 1862. On his recovery he went into the Kentucky campaign, and at the battle of Perryville, his and Cleburne's brigades, charging together, captured three batteries and many prisoners. General Johnson also led his brigade in Hardee's brilliant and successful charge in the battle of Murfreesboro. At Chickamauga, in the second day's battle, he was the first to detect and [319] enter the gap in the Federal lines. Of this, Gen. D. H. Hill says: ‘With the coolness and judgment for which he was always distinguished, he took in the situation at a glance, and began a flank movement to the right. Longstreet adopted the plan of his lieutenant and made his other troops conform to Johnson's movement,’ thus sweeping away one wing of the Federal army and with it the commanding general himself. General Johnson also served under Longstreet in the unfortunate campaign into east Tennessee, commanding Buckner's division, brigades of Gracie, Johnson and Reynolds; shared in the disastrous assault on Fort Sanders (Knoxville), and fought the battle of Bean's Station. When the campaign of 1864 opened in Virginia, General Johnson, with his division, was near Petersburg, where he assisted in the defense against Butler's attack upon the Richmond & Petersburg railroad. His services were also eminent in the battle of Drewry's Bluff, where Beauregard ‘bottled up’ Butler. A few days after this battle Johnson was commissioned major-general (May 21, 1864). At the battle of the Crater, before Petersburg, he commanded the troops who repulsed the Federal assault. He continued to serve with distinguished ability until the end came and the banners of the Confederacy were furled forever. At the evacuation of Richmond he commanded the division of Anderson's corps, comprising the brigades of Wallace, Moody, Ransom and Wise, South Carolina, Alabama, North Carolina and Virginia troops; was engaged in severe fighting preceding and during the retreat, and after the battle of Sailor's Creek was ordered by General Lee to collect all the scattered forces of Anderson's and Ewell's commands. In 1866 he resumed his favorite occupation, that of a teacher, and served as professor of engineering, mechanics and natural philosophy in the Western military institute at Georgetown, Ky., until 1880. On December 7th of that year he died at Brighton, Ill., at the age of sixty-three years.[320]
