Adams, Daniel Weisiger-Brig. Gen.

Daniel Weisiger Adams was born in Frankfort, Kentucky on May 1, 1821. The son of a prominent politician, Adams studied law at the University of Virginia and, after graduating in 1842, went on to practice law in Natchez, Mississippi where his family had moved in 1825.

In 1843 he became involved in a rather nasty affair after an editor of a Vicksburg paper wrote a column highly critical of Adam's father. Deciding that satisfaction was necessary, Adams challenged the editor, one James Hagan, to a duel in which he shot and killed the man. While coming at a time when the practice was being increasingly frowned upon, Adams was acquitted by a jury of the murder charge brought against him.

He went on to serve as a state senator in the Mississippi legislature until 1852 when he decided a change of pace was desirable and moved to Louisiana and began to practice law in that state. After Louisiana's secession from the Union, he was appointed by the governor, Thomas O. Moore, to serve on the newly formed war board to prepare the state for hositlities. However, upon the formation of the states' fighting forces, Adams opted to join and on February 5, 1861 he was commissioned Lt. Colonel of the 1st Louisiana Regular Infantry.

He served in this capacity until October 30, 1861 at which time he assumed full command of the unit and was promoted to Colonel. After the unit's transfer to Corinth, Mississippi it served in the brigade of Adley H. Gladden (the unit's former commander) in the Battle of Shiloh. Following the mortal wounding of Gladden, Adams would be given command of the brigade. It was in this capacity that he led his brigade in an assault upon the renown 'Hornet's Nest'; an assault in which he would suffer his first wound and lose his right eye.

Promoted to brigadier general on May 23, 1862 he was soon thereafter to receive a new command of Louisiana troops in J. Patton Anderson's Division in the Army of Mississippi. On October 8, 1862 his brigade would take part in the Battle of Perryville for which Adams would receive a commendation for gallantry on the field of battle from Major General William J. Hardee.

Following a transfer to the division of John C. Breckinridge, Adams' brigade would once again see action on December 31, 1862 at the Battle of Stones River. During an assault against Federal troops entrenched in an area known as Round Forest, Adams would again be the recipient of a wound that would temporarily remove him from the field. After what must have seemed a sufficient time for healing, he would take a third wound and be captured on September 20, 1863 at the bloody Battle of Chickamauga where his unit formed the extreme right flank of the Army of Mississippi.

Following a prisoner exchange and some time to heal, Adams would receive command of a cavalry brigade in north Alabama. However, on May 23, 1864 he would be transferred to a noncombatant role as commander of the District of North Alabama - a role in which he was detailed the tedious duties of gathering supplies, locating deserters and putting down the occasional Union sympathizer. Although he longed to return to the field of battle, he turned down a divisional command under the leadership of General Nathan Bedford Forrest in January, 1865 because he expected orders to the Trans-Mississippi Department. However, these orders did not materialize and he soon found himself in command of the newly formed District of Alabama. It was in this posting that he was to serve with N. B. Forrest by leading state troops against Union General James H. Wilson when he launched a series of raids into Alabama in April and May of 1865. During this period, Adams' troops would take part in the Battle of Selma and in hostilities in Columbus. It was soon thereafter that his war would end, along with the other remnants of the Confederate States' armed forces.

He would receive his parole at Meridian, Mississippi on May 9, 1865 at which time he would return to New Orleans and the practice of law. Brigadier General Daniel W. Adams (CSA) passed from this life on June 13, 1872 at the age of 51. He was interned in Jackson, Missippi near the grave of his brother, William Wirt Adams, who had also gained the rank of General with the Confederacy.

"It was difficult for me to decide which the most to admire, his courage in the field or his unparalleled cheerfulness under suffering." - General D.H. Hill following the Battle of ChickamaugaFrom ???@??? Tue Jan 28

Adams, John-Brig. Gen.

John Adams was born in Nashville, Tennessee on July1, 1825 to Irish immigrant parents. Although much about his early life is unknown, his military career began when he entered West Point in 1841. Upon his graduation in 1846, he was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the 1st Dragoons. Under the command of Captain Philip Kearny, Adams served in war with Mexico and was a brevet 1st lieutenant for gallantry at the Battle of Santa Cruz de Rosalea.

Promoted to 1st Lieutenant in 1852, he transferred to service in Minnesota where he soon met and married Georgia McDougal, the daughter of an military physician. In 1853 Adams served as aide-de-camp to the governor of Minnesota and held the rank of lieutenant colonel in the state militia. However he was soon transferred again, this time to duty in New Mexico and Colorado, where he would receive a promotion to captain in 1856. He would spend the rest of the prewar years serving as a army recruiter and as commandant of Fort Crook, California with Company F, 1st Dragoons.

On May 27, 1861 and the onset of the secession crisis, Adams would resign his commission and travel east to join the Confederate forces. However, upon this discovery, General Winfield Scott attempted to intervene and asked Secretary of State William Seward to have Adams arrested and held as a political prisoner. Fortunately for the Confederacy, Adams became aware of this matter and quietly slipped into the South where he gained a commission in the Confederate army as a cavalry captain in command of the Memphis, Tennessee area.

His initial duties in Memphis consisted of the housing, transferral and exchange of Federal prisioners. However, for some unknown reason, Major General Leonidas Polk send a communication to A.S. Johnston asking that Adams be removed from his post "...in keeping with the best interests of the service." Curiously though, Polk recommended that Adams received a promotion to regimental commander and given battlefield duty. Thus, while the reasons are unclear, in April 1862 Adams was promoted to colonel and went to serve as brigade commander with a cavalry unit operating in Alabama and Tennessee.

For most of 1862 Adams' brigade was limited to skirmishes with Federal patrols. On June 4, 1862 Adams' brigade would be suprised by a force of Federals at Sweeden Cove. His picketts would be captured and his brigade routed with its supply wagons taken. It was reported by a Federal officer that the brigade had "...fled in the wildest disorder, strewing the ground for miles with guns, pistols and swords." Reportedly, Adams, "without sword, hat or horse," escaped and ran with the rest of his men to Chattanooga without stopping; a distance of about 43 miles. While Adams never wrote an offical report of the incident, his commander, Major General E. Kirby Smith acknowledged that Adams' brigade has lost about 100 men.

August 1862 found Adams in command of the Confederate arsenal at Columbus, Mississippi. However, due to the approach of enemy forces, the arsenal would be moved in January 1863 at which time Adams would receive a promotion to brigadier general and command of the Fourth Military District. This time at Jackson, Mississippi, Adams would again be in charge of prisoners and in one incident, assisted in the hunt for Federal raider, Benjamin Grierson.

In May, 1863 upon the death of Brigadier General Lloyd Tilghman, Adams would take over command of his Mississippi infantry brigade. Serving as mounted infantry, Adams' brigade would serve under Joseph E. Johnston throughout the Vicksburg Campaign. In the spring of 1864, his command would serve with William Loring's Divison in Polk's Corps and would again join Johnston's army for the Atlanta Campaign.

His last fight would take place under the command of John Bell Hood during his invasion of Tennessee. At the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864 he was severely wounded in the right arm but refused to leave the field. When asked to retire from the field, Adams had said, "No, I am going to see my men through." Even with the wound, Adams would lead his men in a desperate charge against the Federal line. Galloping up to the enemy breastwork, Adams attempted to jump his horse over the barricade. The horse stumbled upon the embankment and fell, landing atop the general. However, this did not kill General Adams but the nine bullet wounds he received in the attempt shortly would. His shattered brigade would be beaten back, with a loss of 450 men including their valiant leader. Thankfully, a number of Federal soldiers would drag him from underneath his dead horse, provide him with some water and a pillow made of cotton from a nearby gin. Conscious and lucid, Adams would t! hank the soldiers for their kindness and,in response to their sorrow for his wounding, exclaimed "It is the fate of a soldier to die for his country." Shortly thereafter Brigadier John Adams passed from this earth. His body was interned in Pulaski, Tennessee.

Adams, William Wirt-Brig. Gen.

William Wirt Adams was born in Frankfort, Kentucky on March 22, 1819. The older brother of Confederate Brigadier General, Daniel Weisiger Adams, William began his military career in 1939 by enlisting as a private in an infantry brigade, in which he would serve only a brief stint in Texas before the death of his father would necessitate his return to Mississippi. He would later go to Louisiana where he would raise sugar and marry Miss Sallie Huger Mayrant of Jackson, Mississppi. In 1850, Adams would once again return to farming in Mississippi, where he would also become a successful banker and, in 1858 and 1860, be elected to the state legislature.

Upon the secession of Mississippi, Adams became a commissioner to Louisiana with the task of securing that state's secession. Coincidentally, when Louisiana did secede, William's brother Daniel would secure a posting to its War Board by the Governor, Thomas O. Moore. In February 1861, Adams would be offered the position of postmaster general of the Confederate States by President Jefferson Davis; a position Adams would refuse because of the necessity of looking after his many business interests. However, during the spring and summer of 1861, Adams would organize a military unit that would initially be the 1st Mississippi Cavalry but would later receive the official designation of "Wirt Adam's Regiment of Cavalry" on December 24, 1861.

Becoming part of the Confederate armed forces in August 1861, the regiment would find itself in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It would see its first action covering the Confederate retreat from Kentucky to Corinth, Mississippi in February 1862. Along with his brother's regiment, the 1st Louisiana, the Wirt Adam's Regiment of Cavalry fought valiantly at the Battle of Shiloh and, upon the Union capture of that town, served as a forward guard for the Confederate forces in Corinth.

Spring and summer of 1862 found the brigade participating in several raids and skirmishes against Federal forces in Tennessee. In one such skirmish on September 1 at Britton's Lane, the Wirt Adam's Regiment of Cavalry would charge an entrenched Federal position that had thus far repulsed three other regiments. His regiment would rout the Federal forces and capture a battery of cannon on a nearby hill. Again on September 17, his regiment's valiant efforts would prove a blessing for the Confederacy when, near Burnsville following the Battle of Iuka, they would capture a train loaded with Federal reinforcements, preventing them from assisting in prosecuting the Federal advance toward Corinth. Yet on October 4, 1862 his regiment would probably accomplish their most critical role in the War for Southern Independence. Following the unsucessful Corinth campaign, Federal forces attempted to seize the Hatchie bridge and cut off Major General Earl Van Dorn's only line of retreat. However, Adam's regiment made a heroic charge upon the bridge, allowing Van Dorn's forces the extra time needed to cross into the safety of Confederate lines.

During early 1863, the regiment served along the Mississippi River in order to prevent Federal raids and as an early lookout post for any activity on the river toward Vicksburg. Assigned as overall cavalry commander for forces south of Jackson, Adams nearly captured Federal guerrilla, Colonel Benjamin Grierson during his raid in April and May. While the colonel escaped, forces under Adams, including the vaunted Wirt Adam's Cavalry, forced Grierson to abandon his plans to link up with Federal forces at Natchez and proceed to Baton Rouge.

Adams cavalry forces were soon needed again and were used to oppose the Federal landing at Grand Gulf in an attempt to seize Jackson, Mississippi. On May 12, at Fourteen Mile Creek, Adam's forces delayed the Federal advance for three crucial hours and provided critical intelligence to Lt. General John C. Pemberton in preparation for the Battle of Baker's Creek. Upon Pemberton's withdrawl to Vicksburg, Adams forces would constantly harass the enemy's rear elements at Bear Creek and Mechanicsburg. The end of summer found his forces opposing the advance of the massively destructive forces of Major General William T. Sherman against Jackson.

Finally, on September 28, 1863, Adams received an overdue commission to Brigadier General. Coincidentally on the same day, Federal Major General Ulysses S. Grant reported in a communication that Adam's forces "infest the country from Rodney [Mississippi] to Port Hudson [Louisiana]." Adams men did indeed seem to be everywhere; from skirmishing with Federal forces and disrupting shipping to destroying cotton and moving arms across the Mississippi to forces under the command of Lt. General Edmund Kirby Smith.

In February 1864, Adam's forces opposed Sherman's march against Meridian, where much of the credit for thwarting that move went to Adam's men. Major General Stephen O. Lee reported that Adam's showed "distinguished gallantry on the field and the able management" of his command. During a Federal excursion up the Yazoo River in April, Adam's forces captured the Federal gunboat, Petrel and remove its eight 24-pounders before burning the vessel. For the remainder of 1864, Adams men engaged in numerous skirmishes throughout Mississippi.

Late in 1864, Adam's brigade served under the command of Lt. General Nathan Bedford Forrest and would continue to do so for the rest of the war. His men defeated a Federal brigade at Eutaw on April 5, 1865, one of the last Confederate victories in the field. He surrendered his command near Ramsey Station, Alabama on May4, 1865 and received his parole on the 12th at Gainesville. Miraculously, despite his numerous encounter with the enemy and repeatedly placing himself in harm's way, Adams never received a wound - unlike his brother who would be wounded three times and lose an eye at the Battle of Shiloh.

Following the war, Adams retired to Vicksburg where he would undertake much to assist the city in its progress toward economic revitalization. In 1880 he was appointed as a state revenue agent and in 1883 would become postmaster for Jackson, Mississippi. In a strange and tragic twist of fate, Adams lost his life on May 1, 1888 in a duel with John Martin (who was also killed), a local editor who had criticized him in the paper (in 1843, William's brother, Daniel, had killed an newspaper editor who been critical of their father). William Wirt Adams was buried in Jackson, Mississippi.

Alexander, Edward Porter-Brig. Gen.

Edward Porter Alexander, Brig. Gen., CSA (1835-1910)

Edward Porter Alexander, commonly referred to as E.P. Alexander, was born in Washington, Georgia on May 26, 1835. Growing up in a wealthy planting family, Alexander was privately tutored and thus was well prepared academically upon entering West Point in 1853. Graduating third in the Class of 1857, he took a commission as a brevet 2nd lieutenant of engineers and became a part of the faculty at the Academy. He interrupted his teaching duties in the spring of 1858, accompanying an expedition to reinforce Albert Sydney (A.S.) Johnston in his move against the mormons in Utah. After returning to West Point, he received a promotion to 2nd lieutenant on October 10, 1858. In an early indication of his promise, he assisted Surgeon Albert J. Myer in developing what became known as the "wig-wag" system of motion telegraphy in 1859-60. Transferred to Fort Steilacoom, Washington in 1860, he spent several pleasant months before sectional tensions began to rip the nation apart.

As with many prominent Confederate leaders, Alexander was not a secessionist but put the will of his home state above that of the emerging federal leviathan. After learning of Georgia's secession in February 1861, he resigned his commission (although encouraged not to by his close friend, Lt. James B. McPherson) and traveled to Richmond, Virginia where he found a commission as a captain of engineers awaiting his arrival. The commission had been dated March 16, the day he had resigned.

Joining the army of P.G.T. Beauregard near Manassas Junction in late June, Alexander became the chief signal officer on the general's staff. Quickly showing his intelligence and foresight, Alexander built a series of observation towers to detect enemy troop movements - one from which he detected the attempted Federal flanking maneuver during the battle of First Manassas. Beauregard's after-action report praised Alexander's versatility and organizational skills and this was followed by his reassignment as the army's chief of ordnance. Up until the end of the Maryland Campaign in 1862, he would as chief of ordnance and as chief signal officer successively on the staffs of Beauregard, Joseph E. Johnston and Robert E. Lee. Bringing great efficiency to the daunting task of supplying arms and ammunition to the army during the Peninsula Campaign, Seven Days, Second Manassas and the Maryland raid, he was soon requested on several other projects including coordinating secret service work and participating in the testing of various new weapons. During this period he received two promotions: as a major of artillery on April 18, 1862 and as a colonel of artillery on July 17, 1862.

Coming to the attention of Robert E. Lee for his theoretical and practical skill as an artillerist, Alexander was personally selected by Lee to replace the great artillerist, Stephen D. Lee, as a battalion commander in James Longstreet's wing when the artillery officer was promoted and sent west in November 1862. When the army's artillery was reorganized into twelve battalions during the winter of 1863 (six under Longstreet and six under Jackson), Lee's own Chief of Artillery, William Nelson Pendleton recommended that Alexander be given one of these battalions and promoted to Colonel; a recommendation that was approved on March 3, 1863. ( this reorganization of artillery was the brainchild of Alexander in 1861.)

During the campaigns of 1862-63, Alexander would repay Lee's confidence with brilliance and tactical successes. At Fredricksburg, he intelligently deployed his artillery to assault the attacking Federals rather than duel it out with federal batteries on the opposite side of the Rappahannock. While General Lee personally disagreed with the disposition of artillery, he did not insist that Alexander move his cannon. This became a tactical success when Burnside launched his assaults against Longstreet's corps on December 13, Alexander's guns decimated the attacking federals. Unfortunately, Alexander allowed this decision to get the best of him when he was heard to remark in the presence of General Lee that "it was a mighty good thing those guns...were located on the brows of the hills when the Yankees charged them!" However, in light of the fine results, Lee let the remark pass (indeed if he had heard it at all) and neither seemed the worse for wear. This was most fortunate as Alexander again showed his discernment of terrain when his artillery deployment at Hazel Grove enabled him to direct its fire against Federal defenders at Fairview Cemetery, driving them into retreat and allowing Lee's wings to reunite.

Yet it was at Gettysburg that Alexander gave his finest performance. On July 2, his artillery ably supported Longstreet's offensive against the Federal left ahd on July 3 he orchestrated the massive artillery barrage that preceded the disastrous "Pickett's Charge". There was, although, a negative side to his ability in that he more or less functioned as tactical chief of 1st Corp's artillery despite the fact that Colonel John B. Walton officially held that post. However, due to Longstreet's insistence that Alexander direct his artillery, Walton could only watch helplessly while his subordinate carried out tasks logically reserved for corps chief of artillery. At times, this would create friction between the two men. This was soon recognized and Walton was detached from Longstreet's corps to serve on detached duty elsewhere.

Moving with Longstreet's corps to north Georgia in September 1863, Alexander took part in the siege of Chatanooga and the bitterly disappointing Knoxville Campaign. Returning to Virginia in the spring of 1864, he was recommended for promotion to brigadier general by Joseph E. Johnston and requested as chief of artillery in the Army of Tennessee. While he was indeed promoted on February 26, 1864 he was not given the post because General Lee refused to release him from duty with the 1st Corps; in fact elevating him to chief of artillery on March 19. (Jefferson Davis commented that Alexander was "one of the few whom General Lee would not give to anybody." )

During the Overland Campaign of 1864, the Siege of Petersburg and the retreat to Appomatox, Alexander continued to serve brilliantly. In addition to commanding all artillery between the James and Appomatox rivers, he helped designed significant portions of the defensive positions around Richmond. After drawing the Confederate Army's last line of battle at Appomatox, Alexander surrendered with the rest of Lee's army. Thus ended the military career of the South's premier artillerist and one of the most versatile and capable soldier's in American military history.

As in battle, Alexander's postwar life was varied and successful. Among the many things he would accomplish, he taught at the University of South Carolina, invested in cottonseed production and eventually entered the railroad business. His abilities to do most anything again shown clear when, in only ten years, he had compiled a record that prompted one contemporary to label him "the young Napoleon of the Railways." After retiring from the railroad in 1892, he was appointed by President Grover Cleveland as an arbitrator for a boundary dispute between Costa Rica and Nicaragua from 1897-1900. His final work consisted of a personal memoir, "Military Memoirs of a Confederate", published again in 1990 as "Fighting for the Confederacy". Edward Porter Alexander died on April 28, 1910 in Savannah, Georgia at the age of 74 and was buried at the City Cemetery in Augusta, Georgia.

Allen, Henry Watkins-Brig. Gen.
HENRY WATKINS ALLEN, BRIG. GEN., CSA (1820-1866)

Henry Watkins Allen was born near Farmville, Virginia on April 29, 1820. Following the death of his mother, his family moved to Ray County, Missouri where Allen later attended Marion College. After moving to Grand Gulf, Mississippi in 1837 he opened a school and began to study law under the tutelage of several local attorneys. He was licensed to practice law in May 1841 but the following year decided to join a volunteer company (as a captain) which then offered its services to President Sam Houston of the Republic of Texas. During the next six months, Allen's troops would participate in some minor skirmishes with Mexican soldiers near Patricio.

After returning to Mississippi, Allen was elected to the state legislature for one term in 1846, after which time he moved to Louisiana to operate a sugar plantation. During 1853, he travelled throughout the South writing a series of articles for the Baton Rouge Daily Comet under the psuedonym, Guy Mannering. After attending Harvard for a short spell in 1854, his political allegiances led him to the American (Know-Nothing) Party for whom he won a seat in the Louisiana state senate in 1855. However, a growing dissatisfaction with the politics of the American Party would drive him to the Democrats in 1859.

After spending six months in Europe for health reasons, Allen returned to Louisiana, where in December of 1860 he enlisted as a private in a volunteer company. Following the outbreak of war, he went on to assist in the recruitment of several companies of soldiers and was elected lieutenant colonel of the 4th Louisiana Infantry on May 25, 1861. Transferred to Mississippi's Gulf Coast, he commanded four companies stationed on Ship Island. After abandoning the island in September, the regiment arrived on the Louisiana coast at Brashear City. Ordered to join P.G.T. Beauregard's forces in western Tennessee arrived in February 1862, the regiment would arrive in time to fight in the Battle of Shiloh. Prior to that battle, Allen would receive a promotion to colonel on March 21 after the presiding officer resigned his position. Allen's regiment served in the brigade of Colonel Randall Lee Gibson (Daniel Ruggle's division, II Corps) at Shiloh; a battle in which Allen had a bullet pass through his mouth and tear out part of his cheek during the first day's fighting. Despite the wound, he continued to lead his men. He would be hospitalized following the battle until April 7 at which time Braxton Bragg ordered him to hold back the advancing enemy; this he did successfully until ordered to retire.

Following the Corinth Campaign, Allen's regiment reported to Vicksburg and assisted in fortifying the town. The 4th Louisiana accompanied John C. Breckinridge when his force pulled out of Vicksburg and attempted to recapture Baton Rouge. It was during this battle on August 5 that Allen had his horse shot out from under him by a round of cannister and received injuries to his legs that required him to surrender his command and use crutches for the rest of his life. However, after a brief period of recuperation - in which he served as a major general in the Louisiana state militia, Allen received a commission as a brigadier general on August 19, 1863. Though still not fully recovered, he was ordered to western Louisiana to reorganize paroled prisoners and bring several regiments up to full-strenth. Due to his efficiency in this task, the people of Louisiana elected him governor in late 1863. He accepted this and resigned his commission in the Confederate army on January 10, 1864 prior to his inauguration on January 25. He went on to perform a heroic effort in keeping his state supplied and forging some industrial capacity to assist in the war effort. No less a man than the great southern historian, Douglas Southall Freeman proclaimed Allen to be "the single great administrator produced by the Confederacy."

After the surrender of the Trans-Mississippi Department on June 2, 1865, Allen fled to exile in Mexico rather that risk arrest. There he published an English-language magazine, the Mexican Times. He resided in Mexico City until he died of a stomach disorder on April 22, 1866. His remains were transported back to the grounds of the old state capitol in Baton Rouge where he was buried. Although Allen was severely injured before his abilities as brigadier general were seen, his ability as an administrator clearly show that Henry Watkins Allen might have proven to be a fine Confederate field general.

Allen, William Wirt-Maj. Gen.

WILLIAM WIRT ALLEN, BRIG. GEN., CSA (1835-1894)

Born a Yankee on September 11, 1835 in New York City, William Wirt Allen was transformed into a true southerner when his family moved to Montgomery while he was still a child. He attended the university at the College of New Jersey (now Princeton) and graduate in 1854 with a degree in Law. Eschewing his learned profession, Allen went into farming where he acquired the aristocratic polish of a Southern gentleman.

Although Allen had no liking for the business of war, he felt obligated to his country and, in April 1861, entered the Confederate Army as a 1st lieutenant of the Montgomery Mounted Rifles, serving under Captain Henry D. Clayton, who would later become a major general. After the company transferred from Pensacola to Tennessee, Allen was elected major of the 1st Alabama Cavalry on March 18, 1862. In his first large unit action, he had a horse shot out from underneath him at Shiloh. Promoted to colonel in the summer of 1862, he led his regiment of cavalry in Braxton Bragg's invasion of Kentucky in which he distinguished himself in actions at Bear Wallow, Horse Cave and Green River.

During the Battle of Perryville, Allen sustained his first wound although its minor nature disabled him for only a few days. Following this action, Brigadier General Joseph (Fighting Joe) Wheeler provided the following analysis in his report; "The charge, one of the most brilliant of the campaign, was made in column; detachments of the 1st and 3rd Alabama Cavalry with the gallant Cols. W.W. Allen and James Hagen being in advance."

Allen soon joined Lt. General William J. Hardee's wing of Bragg's army and commanded the cavalry while Wheeler was serving as Bragg's chief of cavalry. On November 27, Allen led the brigade on a raid near Murfreesboro, Tennessee which earned praise from both Bragg and Wheeler. During the period of December 26-31, Allen's command saw action at Stewart's Creek Bridge and at Overall's Creek; the latter at which he would recieve a serious wound - his second - which resulted in the the partial loss of his right hand and a lengthy recuperation at his home. For these actions, Allen again would be commended by Wheeler for "gallantry and good soldierly conduct."

On February 26, 1864 following his recovery, Allen was promoted to brigadier general and given command of a cavalry brigade (the only full-strength cavalry brigade in the Army of Tennessee) stationed at Dalton, Georgia, in Brigadier General John H. Kelly's division of Wheeler's corps. During the spring of 1864, his brigade was detailed to probe the front lines of Major General William T. Sherman and to prevent any advances toward Atlanta. However, with the Confederate Army in retreat, the 1st Alabama soon found itself in Marietta where it became part of an all-Alabama brigade composed of the 1st, 3rd, 4th, 9th, 12th and 51st Cavalry regiments. Allen led the brigade during the Atlanta Campaign and in August 1864 he succeeded Major General William T. Martin in command of a division composed of his own brigade and the Georgia brigade of Colonel Charles C. Crew. Prior to the fall of Atlanta, Allen again distinguished himself in actions at Cassville, Pickett's Mill and Decatur. This period was highlighted by his capture of a raiding column - under the command of Major General George Stoneman - near Macon, Georgia on July 29.

The Montgomery Mounted Rifles - Allen's first command - led by Brigadier General Robert H. Anderson, joined Allen's division in the fall of 1864. During an engagement at Waynesboro, Georgia on November 28, Allen was again wounded while fighting bravely along side his men, while also having another two horses shot out from beneath him. However, although in great pain, he stayed on the field throughout the battle. Later, his division entered South Carolina where it fought a series of delaying actions against Sherman's advancing army, including a brilliant stand at Aiken which prevented the enemy from seizing the town. For this action he received praise by South Carolina's governor, Andrew G. Magrath and from the ladies of Aiken; the latter which presented him with a beautiful silk flag that bore the inscription: "Your valor cheers our hearts."

On March 4, 1865, Allen recieved a promotion to major general with temporary rank, the last such appointment made by President Davis. Although his nomination was received by the Confederat Senate on March 14, there is no sign that they acted upon it before adjourning for the final time on March 18. Following the war, Allen would contest this in his autobiography but it still has not been proven either way. He was paroled on May 3, 1865 as a brigadier general at Salisbury, North Carolina. Amazingly, during the war, he had ten horses shot from under him but was wounded only three time.

Following the war, he resumed operating his plantation and served as a city official in Montgomery. In 1870, he became adjutant general of Alabama, a post he would hold for several years. President Grover Cleveland appointed him as a U.S. Marshal for the Middle and Southern districts of Alabama and he was also the first president of the Confederate Survivor's Association of Montgomery. His bullet-ridden coat is still sealed in the cornerstone of the Confederate monument in that city. He later moved to Sheffield, Alabama in 1893. After his death on November 21, 1894 he was buried in Florence although he later was reinterred in Birmingham.

Anderson, George Burgwyn-Brig. Gen.

George Burgwyn Anderson was born on April 12, 1831 in Hillsboro, North Carolina exactly 30 years before the War for Southern Independence commenced with the bombing of Fort Sumter. Following an prepartory education, he entered the state university at Chapel Hill in 1847. After only a year, he left to enter the US Military Academy where he immediately showed scholastic excellence. A Northern contemporary wrote that Anerson "was not only one of the brightest intellects, but the very superior mind of his class." After one year at the Academy, he was second in his class of 56 cadets. While this standing would drop over time, it was due only to the fact that classes on drawing were factored into one's GPA and evidently Anderson just could not draw. However, despite the drag on his grades this brought, Anderson still graduated tenth of 43 cadets in the class of 1852.

After two years as a brevet 2nd lieutenant in the 2nd US Dragoons, Anderson received his promotion to 2nd lieutenant in 1854. He received the rank of 1st lieutenant in December 1855 and for much of 1857-59 would serve as regimental adjutant. During this time he would receive valuable training including a stint at the cavalry school at Carlisle Barracks and with an engineer detachment surveying routes to California. Following the movement of the 2nd Dragoons to Kansas, Anderson had a first-hand view of the unrest preceding the War for Southern Independence. After a brief expedition to Utah in 1858, he became a US Army recruiter in Louisville, Kentucky and there was married.

The 4th North Carolina transferred to Virginia in July 1861 arriving at Manassas just a few days after the war's first engagement. Assuming the position of commandant at Manassas Junction, Anderson's regiment remained throughout the winter before moving in March 1862 to Orange County and on to the Peninsula in April.

The 4th North Carolina received its initiation to the war at Seven Pines on May 31, 1862. Due to the illness of W.S. Featherston, Anderson took command of his brigade. In the desparate battle, his brigade suffered nearly 900 casualties (50% of its strength); however, due to his competence, Anderson impressed the division commander, D.H. Hill who wrote, "I most earnestly request that Colonel G.B. Anderson be appointed a Brigadier and assigned to my command." Anderson promotion arrived three days later but actually dated from the time the letter was written.

Under the army's reorganization during June of 1862 (R.E. Lee taking command), Anderson's new brigade consisted entirely of North Carolina units - in accordance with President Jefferson Davis' request for such state-oriented brigades. In addition to the 4th North Carolina, Anderson took command of the 2nd, 14th and 30th. This brigade went on to perform brilliantly (much of its action came after Anderson's death) under others, none more then Stephen Dodson Ramseur. The brigade faced its first test during the violent Seven Days Campaign, serving under D.H. Hill at Gaine's Mill as well as at the tragic Malvern Hill. Anderson received his first wound at Malvern Hill (a serious hand wound) which took him out of command for several weeks. During this action, the brigade again suffered about 900 casualties for the second time within a month.

Although missing the action at 2nd Mansassas, Anderson's brigade engaged in several battles with the Army of Northern Virginia including those at South Mountain and Sharpsburg. It was during the Sharpsburg engagement that Anderson's brigade - along side the Alabamians of Robert E. Rode's brigade - fought so ferociously from a sunken road that the carnage became known as the famous Bloody Lane. Tragically, it was during this struggle that General Anderson, while encouraging his men from an elevated position behind the land, took a rifle ball in the right ankle. Although his wound did not appear serious, it became infected during a trip to his home in North Carolina to convalesce. This infection eventually necessitated the amputation of his leg, which in combination with the wound proved fatal. Brigadier General George Burgwyn Anderson died on the morning of October 16, 1862. Sadly, his wife gave birth to a daughter the very next day. He was buried in the Old City Cemetar! y in Raleigh.

Anderson, George Thomas-Brig. Gen.

GEORGE THOMAS ANDERSON, BRIG. GEN, CSA (February 3, 1824-April 4, 1901)

Born in Covington, Georgia on February 3, 1824, George Thomas Anderson became a man of considerable wealth although how much was inherited is unknown. He served as a 2nd lieutenant in a Georgia Mounted Volunteer Company during the Mexican War. A civilian when the 1st US Cavalry was established in 1855, he nonetheless drew a commission as a captain as did many during this period of military expansion. Three years later he resigned and returned to his home in Georgia.

Upon the outbreak of hositilities in the War for Southern Independence, Anderson offered to serve the Confederacy as an officer of Regular Cavalry. As there were no operational cavalry regiments at that time, Anderson took it upon himself to raise Company H of the 11th Georgia Infantry, filling it with many men from his home area in Walton County. His prior military experience in conjunction with his standing in the community resulted in his selection as colonel of the 11th Georgia on July 2, 1861. After the regiment transferred to service in Virginia, on July 17 it became part of Colonel Francis S. Bartow's brigade under Joseph E. Johnston's Army of the Shenandoah. The Army departed the very next day for Mansassas although over half its strength - including Anderson's regiment - arrived too late to take part in the battle of First Bull Run due to a railroad accident.

Due to the death of Colonel Bartow at Manassas, the brigade had a series of 'official' leaders during late 1861 and early 1862 - including brigadiers Samuel Jones, W.H.T. Walker and David R. Jones - however, in reality Anderson was in control of the brigade as its senior colonel. On March 12, 1862 he became the official leader of the brigade although his promotion to brigadier general was continously delayed until October 27. At the time he assumed command, the brigade consisted of the 7th, 8th, 9th and 11th Georgia and the 1st Kentucky, the latter which was replaced in May with the 1st Georgia Regular Infantry. After the 1st Georgia mustered out in the spring of 1863, they were replaced with the 59th Georgia and the brigade remained with this configuration for the rest of the war.

Serving in the division of John Bell Hood, Anderson's brigade saw a great deal of action during the Siege of Yorktown, the Seven Day's Battles (Garnett's Farm, Savage's Station and Malvern Hill), Thoroughfare Gap, Second Manassas, South Mountain and Antietam. Although most of the battle reports for this time were not effusive in their praise of Anderson's operations, his ability was lauded by John B. Magruder for action at Lee's Mill on April 16.

Regardless of questions concerning his competence as a commander, there is no doubt that he was beloved by his men. His officers also respected him and on April 24 and again on October 3, 1862, they petitioned the War Department for his promotion to brigadier general. The latter petition contained a document stating that, "He has led the Brigade in eight or ten hard-fought battles and in the midst of the greatest peril has always been cool, deliberate, and self-possessed and on every occasion has borne himself with marked ability and gallantry. He is always at his post." Of greater importance, however, was the respect he earned from Robert E. Lee and Lee's proposal for restructuring the Army of Northern Virginia in October 1862 requested Anderson's promotion to brigadier and that he retain command of the brigade he had led for so long. This request was granted and the brigade then became known as 'Anderson's Brigade'.

Following this series of battles, the brigade saw little action again until Gettysburg, where Anderson suffered a severe thigh wound on July 2. His recovery took over two months and neither he nor his brigade accompanied the corp in its journey to Chickamauga in September. By the time the brigade rejoined Longstreet's division in early October, Anderson was back in command and led his troops in a series of engagements at Campbell's Station, Fort Sanders and Mossy Creek.

Following the return of the brigade to Virginia in early 1864, it participated in a series of battles including the Wilderness, Spotsylvania, North Anna and Cold Harbor. After shifting to the Peninsula in late July, Anderson's brigade fought at Second Deep Bottom, Chaffin's Bluff and First Darbytown Road. It was during this period that his premature attack contributed significantly to the CSA's failure to recapture Fort Harrison.

After the retreat to Petersburg, Anderson and his men assisted in the final stand for the city and were part of Longstreet's rear guard at Appomatox. At the subsequent surrender, Anderson and 1000 of his men were still with the colors, Lee's third largest brigade.

After his parole, Anderson returned to Georgia, serving as the chief of police in Atlanta in the 1880s. Brigadier General George Thomas Anderson died on April 4, 1901, in Anniston and is buried there. While perhaps not among the more competent CSA leaders, Anderson's devotion to duty and to his men made him one of the most beloved.