Biographical
[226] [227]Major-Generals and brigadier-generals, Pro-Visional army of the Confederate States, Accredited to Kentucky.
Major-General John Cabell Breckinridge
Major-General John Cabell Breckinridge was born near Lexington, Ky., in January, 1821, and was educated for the profession of law, which he practiced at Lexington. He was major of the Third regiment Kentucky volunteers in the Mexican war, and then began in the legislature of 1849 an illustrious political career. In 1851 he was elected to Congress from the Ashland district, and re-elected in 1853. He declined the mission to Spain offered by President Pierce and retired from public life; but in 1856 he was chosen Vice-President of the United States, and before the expiration of his term the Kentucky legislature elected him to the Senate for six years from March 4, 1861. He was the choice of the Southern States for President in 1860, and received the main part of the electoral vote of his party in the United States. On October 8, 1861, he issued an address from Bowling Green resigning his senatorship and proclaiming his devotion to the Southern cause. He was commissioned brigadier-general November 2, 1861, and given a brigade at Bowling Green. At Shiloh he distinguished himself in command of the Reserve corps, taking an active part in the battle and covering the subsequent retreat. Having been promoted major-general April 14, 1862, he was ordered with his division to Vicksburg in June. He defeated the enemy at Baton Rouge, took possession of Port Hudson, marched to the relief of Bragg, and took a conspicuous part in the battle of Murfreesboro. [228] In 1863 he joined Gen. Joseph E. Johnston in Mississippi, and repelled the enemy at Jackson. Returning to Bragg he participated in the battle of Chickamauga and succeeded D. H. Hill in command of an army corps, in this capacity serving at Missionary Ridge. Then going into Virginia, he defeated Sigel at New Market May 15, 1864, joined General Lee in the campaign of that summer, protected the communications during Sheridan's raid, and did good service at Cold Harbor. In conjunction with General Early he discomfited the Federals under Hunter in the Shenandoah valley and made the campaign in Maryland, defeating Wallace at Monocacy. Subsequently he fought in the valley until given command in southwest Virginia, whence he was called to the cabinet as secretary of war. After Appomattox he escaped to Cuba and visited Canada and Europe before returning home. His death occurred May 17, 1875, at Lexington.Brigadier-General Abram Buford
Brigadier-General Abram Buford was born in Kentucky in 1820. He entered the United States military academy in 1837, and at graduation in 1841 was promoted in the army to brevet second-lieutenant of the First dragoons. He served on the frontier and in the Mexican war, having reached by that time the grade of firstlieutenant. He was brevetted at Buena Vista for gallant and meritorious conduct, was ordered again on frontier duty and was in the Santa Fe expedition of 1848. On October 22, 1854, he resigned, having then the rank of captain in the First dragoons. He became a farmer near Versailles, Woodford county, Ky., being also at one time president of the Richmond & Danville railroad. When it became evident that war between the North and South could not be averted, Captain Buford without hesitation cast his lot with the South. During the occupation of Kentucky by Bragg and Kirby Smith in 1862, a cavalry brigade was organized in the State, of which [229] Buford was put in command with a commission as brigadier-general, dated 3d of September, 1862. He retired from Kentucky with the cavalry command of General Wheeler and formed part of the latter's force at Murfreesboro. In the latter campaign Buford's brigade was composed of the regiments of Colonels Smith, Grigsby and Butler, in all about 650 men, and was actively engaged in the cavalry fighting, including the La Vergne raid. Soon afterward he was ordered to report to General Pemberton at Jackson, Miss., and by the latter was assigned to Port Hudson, La. In April he was ordered to Jackson with two regiments, and this was the nucleus of the brigade under his command, Loring's division, which took part in the battle of Baker's Creek, Johnston's operations against Grant, and the defense of Jackson. Included in this brigade were the Seventh Kentucky, Colonel Crossland, and part of the Third, Maj. J. H. Bowman. The Eighth Kentucky, mounted, was detached. Buford's command took a prominent part at Baker's Creek, and he was commended for his leadership. Remaining with the army under Johnston and later Polk, his brigade in the early part of 1864 included five Alabama regiments, the Third, Seventh and Eighth Kentucky, and Twelfth Louisiana. But he soon returned to the cavalry service with his three Kentucky infantry regiments, mounted, and was given command of a division of Forrest's command, including the three Kentucky regiments already named, Colonel Faulkner's Twelfth and Forrest's Alabama regiment, forming one brigade under Col. A. P. Thompson, and the Tennessee brigade of Col. T. H. Bell. With this command Buford took part in Forrest's spring campaign in West Tennes see, including the capture of Fort Pillow, and was so prominent in the famous victory of Tishomingo Creek that Forrest declared his obligations principally due to Buford. During the Atlanta campaign he took part in the operations in northern Alabama and Tennessee in a [230] number of engagements, among which Johnsonville is the most famous; and later he was with Forrest in the operations about Franklin and Murfreesboro, and the rear-guard fighting of Hood's retreat, until he was severely wounded at Richland creek, December 24th. In February, 1865, he was assigned to command of all Alabama cavalry within the limits of General Taylor's department. He was in the last fight at Selma, April 2d. After the close of the war he resumed the occupation of farming in Kentucky, and served again in the legislature of 1879. His death occurred June 9, 1884, at Danville, Illinois.Brigadier-General George B. Cosby
Brigadier-General George B. Cosby was born in Kentucky, and from that State was appointed to the United States military academy on September 1, 1848. On July 1, 1852, he graduated and entered the army as brevet second-lieutenant of mounted riflemen. For one year thereafter he served at the Carlisle, Pa., cavalry school for practice, and the next year was on frontier duty at Fort Ewell, Fort Merritt and Edinburgh, Tex., having become full second-lieutenant September 16, 1853. During 1854 he was a great deal of the time on scouting duty, and on the 9th of May of that year was severely wounded in a skirmish with the Comanche Indians near Lake Trinidad. Subsequently he was on garrison duty at Fort Clark, Tex., and at Jefferson Barracks, Mo. He was assistant instructor of cavalry at the military academy 1855-57, next was on duty in Texas, and May 13, 1859, was again engaged against the Comanche Indians in the combat of Nescutunga valley. He was on leave of absence when the long-standing sectional quarrel developed into open hostility. Believing in the doctrine of State sovereignty and in the justice of the Southern cause, he resigned his commission on May 10, 1861, and offered his services to the Confederate States. His offer was accepted and he was immediately appointed [231] captain of cavalry and assigned to duty in Kentucky. By September he had been appointed major and was under orders of General Buckner in central and southern Kentucky. At the battle of Fort Donelson he was acting as chief-of-staff to General Buckner, and was the bearer of the note from Buckner to Grant regarding the surrender of the fort and garrison. General Buckner in his official report says: ‘Maj. George B. Cosby, my chief-of-staff, deserves the highest commendation for the gallant and intelligent discharge of his duties.’ As soon as the garrison of Fort Donelson had been exchanged Major Cosby reported for duty and was soon serving his country again as colonel of cavalry. On the 17th of January, 1863, Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, then at Jackson, Miss., in a letter to President Davis said: ‘Do give me by telegraph Armstrong, Cosby and R. A. Howard for brigadier-generals. They are strongly recommended by Major-Generals Van Dorn and Buckner and are, I am confident, fully competent.’ Three days later Colonel Cosby was notified of his appointment as brigadier-general. In the engagement at Thompson's Station, Tenn., March 5, 1863, where Colonel Coburn with more than 1,200 Federal officers and soldiers surrendered to General Van Dorn, Cosby's brigade bore a prominent part. Gen. Wm. T. Martin, commanding the First cavalry division on that occasion called attention in his report to ‘the activity and gallantry of General Cosby during the engagement, as well as the general good conduct of the officers and men of the brigade.’ During the Vicksburg and Jackson campaigns in Mississippi, Cosby and his brigade of cavalry did good service for Gen. Joseph E. Johnston, and he continued from this time to the close of the war to serve with great ability in the department of Alabama, Mississippi and East Louisiana. After peace had been restored he moved to Butte county, Cal., and began farming. He was not permitted to remain in retirement. From 1878 to 1883 he [232] was secretary of the board of State engineers of California; in 1886 was member of the board of visitors to the United States military academy; during 1888 was superintendent of construction of the United States building at Sacramento, Cal.; and subsequently recording clerk in the office of the secretary of state of California.Major-General George Bibb Crittenden
Major-General George Bibb Crittenden was born in Russellville, Logan county, Ky., March 20, 1812, and was the oldest son of J. J. Crittenden. He was graduated at West Point in 1832, but resigned from the army the next year. In 1835 he went to Texas and volunteered in the struggle for independence; was taken prisoner, and held by the Mexicans for nearly a year. At one time he generously took the place of a comrade who had drawn the fatal black bean when their captors had for some reason determined to adopt summary measures. After his release he returned to his native State and devoted himself for ten years to the practice of law. At the beginning of the Mexican war in 1846 he entered the army as captain of mounted rifles, was brevetted major for gallantry at Contreras and Churubusco, and on September 14, 1847, was among the first to enter the city of Mexico, where he had once suffered such disagreeable captivity. Continuing in the service, most of his time was spent upon the frontier. In 1848 he was commissioned major and in 1856 lieutenant-colonel. In the great sectional quarrel his sympathies were with the South. Accordingly he resigned his commission in the United States army and was appointed colonel of infantry in that of the Confederate States, to date March 16, 1861. On August 15th he was promoted to brigadier-general, and on November 9th to major-general in the provisional army. During the greater part of June, 1861, he had command of the Trans-Alleghany department. When commissioned major-general he was assigned to command of the district of East Tennessee and also placed in charge of military [233] operations in Kentucky. Gen. Geo. H. Thomas early in January began an advance toward East Tennessee, and on the 17th reached Logan's Cross-roads, ten miles north of the intrenched camp of Gen. Felix K. Zollicoffer. A few days before this General Crittenden had arrived at Zollicoffer's camp and assumed command. Hearing of the arrival of Thomas, Crittenden determined to attack that general before all his forces should come up. With this purpose in view he advanced, and on January 19th made the attack. But Thomas was ready with more men than Crittenden had. The result was the disastrous defeat at Mill Springs, or Logan's Crossroads, in which General Zollicoffer was killed. For the management of this affair General Crittenden was censured and kept under arrest for several months. If General Crittenden really deserved censure it was for relying too much upon the reports brought to him as to the actual strength of the enemy and condition of Fishing creek which, it was said, was so swollen as to delay the reinforcement of the enemy. At a council of war held the evening before the battle, it was unanimously decided that an attack ought to be made. Brig.--Gen. Wm. H. Carroll, whose brigade did some of the best fighting of the day, in his report of the battle made to General Crittenden says: ‘I cannot close my report without expressing the high appreciation both by myself and my officers for the personal courage and skill evinced both by yourself and staff during the entire engagement; and however much I may regret the unfortunate disaster which befell us, I feel conscious that it resulted from no want of gallantry and military tact on the part of the commanding general.’ General Crittenden resigned after this affair, but showed his patriotic devotion to the South by serving without rank on the staff of Gen. J. S. Williams. Gen. Basil Duke, in an article on John Morgan in 1864, makes mention of Crittenden as in southwest Virginia assisting Morgan in defeating a raiding force led [234] by General Averell. In his rank as colonel, C. S. A., he was put in temporary command of the department of Western Virginia and East Tennessee, May 31, 1864. After the war he returned to Kentucky and lived mostly at Frankfort. He was State librarian from 1867 to 1871. He died at Danville, Ky., November 27, 1880. General Crittenden had a brother, Thomas L., who sided with the Union, and rose to distinction as a major-general.Brigadier-General Basil Duke
Brigadier-General Basil Duke, colonel of the Second Kentucky cavalry in John H. Morgan's lifetime, and successor to that officer upon his death, appears first upon the scene of action in the great civil war as a captain in Missouri and commissioned by the governor of that State to go to Montgomery, Ala., and obtain arms from the Confederate government for the Missouri militia. In July, 1861, Duke became lieutenant-colonel of the Second Kentucky cavalry, and in December of the same year was commissioned colonel of that regiment. His military movements were intimately connected with those of John H. Morgan, the senior colonel and afterward brigadier-general of the famous body of cavalry whose daring and marvelously successful exploits attracted to its ranks many adventurous youths of the best families among the Kentuckians who sympathized with the Southern cause During 1862, when Bragg was getting ready for his march into Kentucky, the cavalry of Morgan was busy in Tennessee dispersing and capturing detached Federal garrisons. On the 28th of August, when Bragg crossed the Tennessee at Chattanooga and pushed northward, Kirby Smith, who was already in Kentucky, ordered Morgan to join him at Lexington in the blue grass region. Morgan entered that State, and with part of his command marched to the assistance of Marshall in the mountains of eastern Kentucky, while Duke with the balance of the command was to march toward the Ohio river. In obeying these [235] orders, Colonel Duke defeated two small steamers and captured the town of Augusta, taking between 300 and 400 prisoners. On the retreat from Kentucky, Morgan's command again moved into the rear of Buell, capturing hundreds of prisoners and some richly-laden wagon trains. Morgan's loss during the whole campaign in killed and wounded was not more than one hundred. He had entered Kentucky 900 strong. His command when he returned to Tennessee numbered nearly 2,000. Over 1,200 prisoners had been taken by the cavalry. Just before the battle of Murfreesboro Duke assisted in the defeat of a Federal brigade at Hartsville, Tenn., in which the Union loss was 2,096 and the Confederate 139 in all. The Union commander, Colonel Moore, was one of the 1,834 prisoners taken on this occasion. When Bragg was preparing to fall back from Tullahoma in the summer of 1863, Morgan made his celebrated raid into Ohio. In this expedition Colonel Duke was his righthand man. But Morgan and Duke with sixty-eight other officers were captured. Morgan made his escape from the Ohio penitentiary where they were confined, and Duke was afterward exchanged. In southwest Virginia these officers assisted in defeating Averell's attempt upon the salt works, and then by a raid into Kentucky delayed for several months another intended Federal attack. This compensated in some measure the disastrous losses of this last raid into Kentucky. When Morgan was killed on the 4th of September, 1864, Colonel Duke succeeded to the command of the brigade, being commissioned brigadier-general on the 15th of September. In April, 1865, after hearing of the surrender of Lee, General Duke hastened with his command to join Gen. Joe Johnston in North Carolina. These soldiers formed, after the capitulation of Johnston's army, Mr. Davis' escort to Georgia. After the cessation of hostilities General Duke went back to Kentucky and made his home in Louisville, where he still resides (1898), enjoying [236] the esteem of his neighbors, who with the true Kentucky spirit admire a brave man, whether they were with him or on the other side in the four years war.Major-General Charles W. Field
Major-General Charles W. Field was born in Woodford county, Ky., in 1818. Upon his graduation at West Point in 1849 he was commissioned as brevet secondlieu-tenant in the Second dragoons, Colonel Harney commanding. For five succeeding years he served against the Indians on the frontiers of New Mexico and Texas and on the plains. June 30, 1851, he was promoted to second-lieutenant, and March 3, 1855, to first-lieutenant and transferred to the Second cavalry, of which A. S. Johnston was colonel and R. E. Lee lieutenant-colonel. From 1856 to 1861 he served at West Point as chief of cavalry, being assistant instructor of cavalry tactics. On January 31, 1861, he was promoted to captain in the Second cavalry. On May 30th he resigned this position, and going to Richmond offered his services to the Confederate government. He was at once appointed captain of cavalry, and rapid promotion followed to major of the Sixth Virginia cavalry in July, then lieutenantcol-onel, and, in August, colonel. It was not, however, until 1862 that he appeared conspicuously in the field. On March 9th of that year he was commissioned brigadier-general, and assigned to an infantry brigade (all Virginians) in the division of A. P. Hill, under whose command he fought in the Seven Days battles, Cedar Run and Second Manassas. In the last-named battle he was severely wounded, the injury confining him to his bed for nearly a year. He was still on crutches when he reported for duty, and on the 12th of February, 1864, he was commissioned major-general. Field's division consisted of some of the best troops in the army. In the battle of the Wilderness (March 6th) this division and Kershaw's restored the fortunes of the day, when it looked as though Lee's right wing was about to be swept 237] from the field. During Grant's attempt to take Petersburg in June, while Field and Pickett were approaching that city, General Lee superintended in person the recapture of the Bermuda Hundred line, which had been seized by Butler when Bushrod Johnson left it to reinforce Beauregard. Pickett's and Field's divisions had been ordered to retake the line; but finding that a new line could be occupied without loss of life, the order was revoked. Field's division had been notified of the change, but Pickett's men, who had not received such notification, began the assault under the first order, whereupon Field's men without waiting for orders rushed forward and were soon in the formidable trenches. On the 14th of August, 1864, General Field had a fierce fight against heavy odds on his line extending from Chapin's Bluff to New Market heights. At one time the enemy broke through a gap of two brigades in the center, but Field, heading his old division, charged upon the advancing foe and snatched victory from defeat. On the day of the surrender at Appomattox Field's division was still in prime fighting condition, compact and firm and ready at the word of command to do or die. After the war General Field went abroad, and from July 17, 1875, to March 31, 1877, served as colonel of engineers in the Egyptian army, being inspector-general in the Abyssinian campaign, 1875-76. He was doorkeeper of the House of Representatives in Washington from April 18, 1878, to March 4, 1881. From 1881 to 1885 be was civil engineer in the service of the United States, and from 1885 to 1889 superintendent of the Hot Springs reservation in Arkansas. He died at Washington, D. C., in April, 1892.
Brigadier-General John Breckinridge Grayson
Brigadier-General John Breckinridge Grayson was born in Kentucky in 1807; was educated at West Point, and after graduating in 1826 became second lieutenant of the Second artillery; served in garrison at Fort Monroe, Virginia, 1826-28; on topographical duty from 1828 to [238] 1832; in garrison at the arsenal in Augusta, Ga., in 1833; in various Southern forts in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana; then in 1835-36 in the Seminole war in Florida, being engaged in the skirmishes at Camp Izard and the combat at Oloklikaha; then on commissary duty at New Orleans from 1836 to 1847, and finally in the war with Mexico 1847-48. During this time he had gone through the different grades up to captain, Second artillery. He was chief of commissariat of the army under Maj.-Gen. Winfield Scott and was present at the siege of Vera Cruz, battles of Cerro Gordo, Churubusco, Molino del Rey, Chapultepec, and at the assault and capture of the city of Mexico. He was brevetted major, August 20, 1847, for ‘gallant and meritorious conduct’ at the battles of Contreras and Churubusco, and lieutenant-colonel for the same reason at the storming of Chapultepec. From 1848 to 1855 he was chief of commissariat at Detroit, Mich., and until July 1, 1861, in the same position in New Mexico. Having such a long and honorable record in the old army, it is easy to understand how attached he must have been to the service, and with what strong ties he was bound to his companions in arms and to the flag which he had upheld with such conspicuous gallantry on so many bloody fields. There was a great principle back of the retirement of so many gallant officers, young and old, from a service which they really loved and which it cost them a bitter pang to leave. State sovereignty was just as truly an American idea as was National union, and those who held that their allegiance was due first of all to their States, and who believed that to lay violent hands on the sovereignty of the States was the rankest treason, were just as sincere and patriotic as those who placed the Union above all other things and regarded as treason the least resistance to its authority. Each side was perfectly loyal to its idea of what the American constitution was, and on many a bloody field they proved the sincerity of the motives [239] that prompted them to espouse the cause for which they were even willing to die. Colonel Grayson was no impetuous youth led astray by a sudden impulse, but like Robert Lee, he followed that which seemed to him the path of duty. Though with regret he left the old army, he entered that of the Confederacy from the purest of motives and with a sincere heart. On account of his experience as a soldier he was appointed a brigadier-general in the provisional army of the Confederate States, his commission bearing date August 15, 1861. He was at once placed in command of the department of Middle and Eastern Florida. But he never had an opportunity to strike a blow for the South; for on October 21, 1861, he died at Tallahassee, Fla., sincerely regretted by those with whom he had cast his lot.Brigadier-General Roger W. Hanson
Brigadier-General Roger W. Hanson was one of those gallant Kentuckians who, believing that the cause of the South was the cause of constitutional liberty, and fearing that the centralizing tendencies of the republican party would lead to the complete overthrow of the sovereignty of the States, left home and friends and, becoming an exile from his native State, threw his whole heart and soul into the struggle of the South for separate independence. His natural ability as a leader of men brought him to the front and he became colonel of the Second Kentucky infantry, commissioned September 3, 1861. His regiment was assigned to the Confederate army in central Kentucky, first under command of General Buckner. In the battle of Fort Donelson, amid a pitiless tempest of rain, snow and sleet and the more dreadful storm of shot and shell, Hanson and his men were distinguished for bravery and steady fighting, and are frequently mentioned in the official reports. It was late in the year when Colonel Hanson was exchanged. On the 13th of December, 1862, he was commissioned brigadier-general in the provisional army of the [240] Confederate States. On the 31st of the same month came the tremendous battle of Murfreesboro, in which Hanson commanded the Kentucky brigade of Breckinridge's division. On the 2d of January Bragg noticed that Beatty's Federal brigade east of Stone's river enfiladed Polk's line in its new position. Bragg ordered Breckinridge to take his division and dislodge these troops. Lieut.-Col. S. C. Kniffin, of the staff of the Union General Crittenden, says: ‘In the assault that followed a brief cannonade, Hanson's left was thrown forward close to the river bank, with orders to fire once, then charge with the bayonet. On the right of Beatty was Col. S. W. Price's brigade, and the charge made by Hanson's Sixth Kentucky was met by Price's Eighth Kentucky regiment, followed by Hanson and Pillow in successive strokes from right to left of Beatty's lines. * * * Beatty ordered retreat, and assailants and assailed moved in a mass toward the river. * * * Crittenden, turning to his chief of artillery, said, “Mendenhall, you must cover my men with your guns.” Never was there a more effective response to such a request. * * * In all, 58 pieces of artillery played upon the enemy. Not less than 100 shots per minute were fired. As the men swarmed down the slope they were mowed down by the score. Confederates were pinioned to the earth by falling branches. For a few minutes the brave fellows held their ground, hoping to advance, but the bank bristled with bayonets. Hanson was mortally wounded and his brigade lost 400 men.’ General Breckinridge in his official report says: ‘I cannot enumerate all the brave officers who fell, nor the living who nobly did their duty; yet I may be permitted to lament, in common with the army, the premature death of General Hanson, who received a mortal wound at the moment the enemy began to give way. Endeared to his friends by his private virtues and to his command by the vigilance with which he guarded its interest and honor, he was, by the universal [241] testimony of his military associates, one of the finest officers that adorned the service of the Confederate States.’Brigadier-General James M. Hawes
Brigadier-General James M. Hawes was born and reared in Kentucky. On July 1, 1841, he entered the United States military academy at West Point as a cadet, and four years later graduated as brevet second lieutenant of dragoons. His first service was in the military occupation of Texas, 1845-46, and he was soon called upon to meet the enemies of his country in the war with Mexico. He was engaged in the siege of Vera Cruz and in a skirmish at San Juan de los Llanos, at the battles of Contreras, Churubusco, Molino del Rey and other operations before the city of Mexico which led to its capture and occupation by the American forces. He was brevetted first lieutenant for gallant and meritorious conduct in these battles. From 1848 to 1850 he was assistant instructor of infantry tactics at West Point, then assistant professor of mathematics, next assistant instructor of cavalry tactics. From 1850 to 1852 he was on professional duty at the cavalry school of Saumur, France. Afterward he was assigned to the Texas frontier, then detached at Washington, D. C., later served on the Utah expedition, and finally in quelling Kansas disturbances. During this time he had reached the rank of captain of the Second dragoons. Believing in the justice of the Southern cause, when it became evident that war was about to begin, he resigned his commission in the United States army and tendered his services to the Confederate States. He was immediately appointed a captain in the Confederate army. On June 16, 1861, he was made major and ten days later was appointed colonel of the Second Kentucky cavalry. But preferring the rank of major in the regular army of the Confederacy, he resigned his position as colonel of the Second Kentucky. In October, Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston wrote to Mr. [242] Davis, asking for the appointment of Major Hawes as a brigadier-general. This was done on March 5, 1862. From the time that General Johnston took command of the Western department until April 7, 1862, Hawes commanded the cavalry and had the advance of the army at Green river, Ky., 1861-62. After Shiloh he asked to be relieved of command of the cavalry of the Western army, and was assigned to the command of a brigade in Breckinridge's division, composed of one Kentucky, one Mississippi and one Confederate regiment. In October he was sent to the Trans-Mississippi, where he commanded a Texas cavalry brigade near Little Rock, Ark., under Gen. T. H. Holmes. In 1863 he commanded an infantry brigade in the division of Gen. J. G. Walker, and was engaged in a fierce fight at Milliken's Bend while the siege of Vicksburg was in progress. During 1864 he commanded the troops and fortifications at Galveston Island. After the return of peace General Hawes entered into the business of a hardware merchant in Covington, Ky., and continued to be thus occupied until his death on the 22d of November, 1889. He was 66 years old at the time of his death.Brigadier-General Ben Hardin Helm
Brigadier-General Ben Hardin Helm, another gallant son of Kentucky, was born in Elizabethtown in 1830. He was graduated at West Point in 1851 as brevet second lieutenant and was assigned to the Second dragoons. After a little more than a year's service, during which time he was promoted to second lieutenant, he resigned his position in the army and took up the study and practice of law. He was a member of the State legislature 1855-56, and state's attorney 1856-58. In 1856 he married Miss Todd, the half-sister of Abraham Lincoln. Notwithstanding their very great divergence of political sentiment, Lincoln and Helm were much attached to each other. In April, 1861, although Mr. Lincoln knew his brother-in-law to be a Southern Rights Democrat, he [243] invited him to Washington. On the 27th of April he handed Helm a sealed envelope, saying, ‘Ben, here is something for you. Think it over by yourself and let me know what you will do.’ The envelope contained Helm's nomination as paymaster in the United States army. Helm said: ‘I will try to do what is right. You shall have my answer in a few days.’ Returning to Kentucky he found his State much divided, and each side full of patriotic fervor for what it deemed the right. According to his convictions of duty he made his decision, and that was for the South. He wrote to Mr. Lincoln declining the position of paymaster. He organized the First Kentucky cavalry for the Confederate army, reporting for duty to Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston October 19, 1 861, and received his commission as colonel and in March, 1862, he was commissioned brigadier-general. In June, 1862, when Breckinridge's division was sent to Vicksburg, Helm was in command of the Second brigade, which included the Fourth and Fifth Kentucky, one Mississippi and two Alabama regiments. He was on duty about Vicksburg during the naval operations in the summer of 1862, and in the latter part of July marched to Louisiana with the division. Just before the opening of the battle of Baton Rouge, during a stampede by some partisan rangers, General Helm was dangerously injured by the fall of his horse. He remained on duty in the district of the Gulf until the latter part of January, 1863, when he was ordered to take command of the brigade of the late General Hanson, in Breckinridge's division. He commanded this brigade, which included the Kentucky regiments of Breckinridge's division, during the Tullahoma campaign, and part of the time was in command of the division. On the morning of September 20, 1863, in the first assault upon the Federal breastworks, battle of Chickamauga, ‘the battle was opened by Helm's brigade with great fury.’ ‘This was one of the bloodiest encounters of the day,’ [244] says General Breckinridge. ‘Here General Helm, ever ready for action, and endeared to his command by many virtues, received a mortal wound while in the heroic discharge of his duties.’ A writer in the New Orleans States says: ‘How brave a soldier the Confederacy lost that day history records. Ben Hardin Helm was, in the highest sense of the word, one of nature's noblemen. He was a patriotic Southern gentleman. As he understood it, his line of conduct was clear and he unhesitatingly trod the path of duty.’ It is said that when Lincoln heard of the death of General Helm, his grief was uncontrollable. Four who commanded brigades on each side at Chickamauga were either killed or mortally wounded. Helm of Kentucky was one of the four on the Southern side. The government has erected monuments to these officers on the spots where each one fell, without making any distinction between those who fell on the Northern or on the Southern side. May this be a token of the brotherly love that shall henceforth prevail between the once severed sections of our now united country.Brigadier-General George B. Hodge
Brigadier-General George B. Hodge was born in Fleming county, Ky., in April, 1828. When quite young he entered the naval academy at Annapolis, Md.; became midshipman in December, 1845, and was acting lieutenant in the navy when he resigned in 1851. Then entering upon the study of law, he was admitted to the bar at Newport, Ky., and became prominent as a lawyer and political leader. In 1859 he was elected to the legislature of Kentucky and in 1860 was an elector on the Breckinridge ticket. He was an earnest Democrat and an ardent supporter of the State rights doctrine. Though regretting secession he stood ready to defend the sovereignty of the States which he thought endangered. His zeal for the Southern cause is shown by the fact that, though a man of civil prominence, he entered the Confederate [245] army as a private. He was soon after this elected to represent Kentucky in the Confederate Congress. When not serving in that body he was in the field. It was a common thing during the war between the States for men of the highest social standing to enter the army as privates, and some from the very best families served throughout the war in the ranks. That accounts in a great measure for the splendid fighting qualities of the Confederate soldier; for the heart of the private soldier throbbed with the same pride of birth and name as that of the commanding general. Private Hodge, the Confederate congressman, was soon made a captain and acting adjutant-general of Breckinridge's division. For gallantry at the battle of Shiloh he was promoted to major, with commission bearing date of May 6, 1862. Continuing to act as adjutant-general he was promoted to colonel, May 6, 1863. He was for a while inspector-general at Cumberland Gap, and commanded Preston's cavalry in various operations in east Tennessee. Coming to north Georgia with the forces under Buckner, he participated in Wheeler's raid in middle Tennessee, after Chickamauga, and was commended by Wheeler for his good conduct in command of a cavalry brigade. On August 2, 1864, he was commissioned brigadier-general and put in command of the district of Southwest Mississippi and East Louisiana, remaining in that position until the end of the war. He then returned to his home in Newport, Ky., where he resumed his law practice. He was an elector on the Greeley ticket in 1872, was elected State senator in 1873, and served until 1877. His death occurred shortly after the expiration of his term of office.Brigadier-General Joseph H. Lewis
Brigadier-General Joseph H. Lewis was born in Glasgow, Barren county, Ky. Before the war he was a lawyer of note. He entered the army of the Confederate States as colonel of the Sixth Kentucky infantry, commissioned [246] November 1, 1861. During the first year of the war his command had plenty of arduous military labor to perform, but no opportunity to display the splendid soldierly qualities of both the leader and the men until the battle of Shiloh, April 6-7, 1862. Here they were engaged in the fierce fighting which resulted in the capture of Prentiss and his entire command. Col. R. P. Trabue, who commanded the brigade to which the Sixth Kentucky was attached, says in his report, ‘I had occasion often to admire the courage and ability of Cols. Joseph H. Lewis and Thomas H. Hunt, as well as the steadiness of their men.’ At Murfreesboro Lewis and his gallant regiment sustained their for. mer reputation, showing the spirit of true Kentuckians, especially in Breckinridge's famous charge of January 2d. At the battle of Chickamauga Colonel Lewis was in the brigade of Gen. B. H. Helm, and upon the death of that noble soldier and patriot succeeded to his command. Again was Colonel Lewis mentioned in the most flattering terms by Breckinridge, commander of the division, and D. H. Hill, corps commander. On the 30th of September, 1863, he was promoted to brigadier-general and continued in command of the Kentucky brigade, then including the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Ninth regiments and the Forty-first Alabama. He led the brigade in the unfortunate battle of Missionary Ridge and on the retreat to Dalton. His command formed a reserve to support Cleburne at the battle of Ringgold Gap. On the Dalton-Atlanta campaign Lewis' brigade was actively engaged at Mill Creek Gap, Resaca, New Hope Church, Dallas, Pine Mountain and Kenesaw Mountain. It participated also in the battle of Peachtree Creek July 20th, and in that of Atlanta, July 22d. On the 6th of August at Utoy creek, Lewis' brigade participated in the fight of Bate's division against Schofield. This affair resulted in the great discomfiture of the enemy, the capture of several stand of colors and many prisoners and arms. [247] After the fall of Atlanta this famous Kentucky brigade was mounted and placed in Wheeler's cavalry corps. Lewis was with Wheeler in the campaign in Georgia, impeding Sherman's march through that State, and again in North Carolina he was engaged in the final marches and battles that ended at Bentonville. He formed a part of President Davis' escort, and was surrendered near Washington, Ga. Returning to his home, General Lewis at once became one of the most prominent men of Kentucky. For twelve years he represented the Third district in the Congress of the United States. After retiring from Congress he was made one of the associate judges of the court of appeals, and at the present time (1898) is chief justice of the State of Kentucky.Brigadier-General Hylan B. Lyon
Brigadier-General Hylan B. Lyon was born in the State of Kentucky about the year 1836. He was appointed to the West Point military academy in 1852, and on graduation in 1856 was promoted in the army to second-lieutenant of artillery. His first service was against the Seminole Indians in Florida, 1856-57. Then he was on frontier duty at various posts in California; in 1858 was engaged in the Spokane expedition, and in battle September 5-7, 1858. He served later in Washington and Montana with promotion to first-lieutenant, Third artillery. There were very few officers of the United States army who did not regret the great sectional quarrel and the war that resulted there from, and yet there were few from the seceding States that did not obey the voice of their States and range themselves under the banner of the South. Where there was great division of sentiment, as in Kentucky, Missouri, etc., some remained in the army and did splendid service for the Union, while others were unsurpassed in their zeal and fidelity to the South. Hylan B. Lyon was one of this latter class; on April 30, 1861, resigning his commission in the United States army. He entered the service of [248] the Confederate States, and was commissioned first-lieutenant of artillery. He was the first captain of Cobb's battery. By the 3d of February, 1862, he had been promoted to lieutenant-colonel of the Eighth Kentucky regiment. He led his regiment at the battle of Fort Donelson and was mentioned for gallantry by his brigade commander, Col. John M. Simonton. After the Donelson prisoners had been exchanged, Colonel Lyon and the Eighth Kentucky were placed in the army of West Tennessee, in the first division of the first corps. On the 5th of December, 1862, this division, commanded by Gen. Lloyd Tilghman, had an encounter with the Federals at Coffeeville, which was a complete success for the Confederates. General Tilghman reported that the Eighth Kentucky, under Col. H. B. Lyon, was conspicuous in the fight, where he had ‘seldom seen greater good judgment, and impetuous gallantry shown by any officers or men.’ In June, 1864, Colonel Lyon was commissioned brigadier-general, and in August he was assigned to the corps of General Forrest. His brigade consisted of the Third, Seventh, Eighth and Twelfth Kentucky regiments. These troops, with their commanders, shared the glories and hardships of Forrest's campaigns in north Mississippi, Alabama and Tennessee. During the march of Hood into Tennessee Lyon was very active, penetrating even into Kentucky. After the war he returned to his native State, where he has been honored with several important trusts, among them the position of warden of the penitentiary.Brigadier-General Humphrey Marshall
Brigadier-General Humphrey Marshall came of one of the most distinguished families of Kentucky. His father was an eminent lawyer and jurist, and his grandfather was Humphrey Marshall, the statesman. He was born in Frankfort, Ky., January 13, 1812, and was graduated at West Point in 1832 with promotion to brevet thirdlieuten-ant in the mounted rangers. He served in the Black [249] Hawk expedition, and was made brevet second-lieutenant of the First dragoons March 4, 1833, but resigned in April. He then practiced law at Frankfort and at Louisville and was successively captain, major and lieutenant-colonel of Kentucky militia. In the Mexican war he served as colonel of the First Kentucky cavalry volunteers, and under General Taylor won distinction at the battle of Buena Vista, where he led the cavalry charge. The term of service of the regiment expired July 7, 1847. Colonel Marshall then returned to his farm in Kentucky. He declined several nominations, both State and National, but at last consented to run for Congress, was elected as representative of the Louisville district in 1849, and at the expiration of his term was re-elected. President Fillmore nominated him in 1852 as commissioner to China, which position was raised to a first-class mission, and his nomination was at once confirmed by the senate. After his return he was elected on the American ticket to the Thirty-fourth Congress and then to the Thirty-fifth, in which he served on the committee on military affairs. In 1856, as a member of the council of the National American party, he succeeded in having the pledge of secrecy stricken from the rules of the society. In the presidential campaign of 1860 he canvassed his State for the ticket headed by John C. Breckinridge. Upon the secession of the Southern States he raised a large number of volunteers for the Confederate army and was commissioned brigadier-general October 30, 1861. The district of Eastern Kentucky was assigned to him with instructions to operate in the mountain passes on the Virginia border. On January 10, 1862, he met Federal forces under General Garfield at Middle creek in Floyd county. A severe combat ensued in which Marshall repulsed every attack, but many of his men having been without food for several hours and no provisions being near at hand, on the next day he began to retire toward Martin's Mill. In May he defeated the Federals under J. D. Cox [250] at Princeton, Va., and saved to Confederate use the Lynchburg & Knoxville railroad, for which service he received the thanks of General Lee. On the 16th of June he resigned his commission, but was reappointed June 20th, to date from his first commission. He was subsequently elected to the Confederate Congress as a representative from Kentucky, and served on the military committee. His final resignation from the army was sent in on June 7, 1863, and from this time he served the Confederate government in a civil capacity. After the war he returned to Louisville, Ky., and devoted himself to law, soon acquiring a large practice. He died at Louisville, Ky., March 28, 1872.Brigadier-General John Hunt Morgan
Brigadier-General John Hunt Morgan made one of the most unique records of the war between the North and South. He was born in Huntsville, Ala., June 1, 1826. When but four years of age, he was carried by his father to the vicinity of Lexington, Ky., where he was brought up on a farm and received a common school education. He was the oldest of six brothers, all of whom, except one, who was too young to bear arms, did military service for the Confederate States. It is said he was a lineal descendant of the celebrated Daniel Morgan of revolutionary fame. In the war with Mexico, young Morgan raised a company of which he was made captain. But peace was made before he had entered upon active service. It is stated that upon the disbanding of this company, Morgan indemnified out of his own means every man for the time that he had lost. Soon after the Mexican war he engaged in the manufacture of bagging and jeans for the Southern market. At the commencement of the war he was detained at home by the illness and death of his wife. As soon as he could do so, he secretly collected a band of twenty-five men, and leaving his home made his way to Green river and reported to the Confederate officer in command there as [251] ready for duty. He was soon commissioned as captain of Kentucky volunteers and placed under the command of Gen. Simon B. Buckner. He was stationed with some other cavalry upon duty on Green river. He immediately began his wonderful career, keeping the enemy between Green river and Bacon creek in a constant state of alarm. After the fall of Fort Donelson he was attached to Hardee's command and told to watch the movements of the enemy. This he did, and in a series of daring adventures alarmed the enemy even in the vicinity of Nashville. On — the earnest recommendation of General Beauregard, Morgan was appointed colonel of the Second Kentucky cavalry April 4, 1862. A short time before Bragg's Kentucky campaign Morgan, leaving Tennessee with less than 1,000 men, penetrated a country in the hands of the Federals, captured seventeen towns, destroying all government supplies and arms in them, dispersed 1,500 home guards and paroled nearly 1,200 regular troops. In his official report of these operations made to Gen. E. Kirby Smith, Morgan says that he left Knoxville with 900 men and returned with 1,200, having lost of the number that he carried into Kentucky in killed, wounded and missing about 90. During this raid he had destroyed military stores, railroad bridges and other property to the value of eight or ten million dollars. In this expedition he had greatly mystified the enemy by an instrument hitherto unused in offensive warfare. This was a portable electric battery. It was only necessary to take down the telegraph wire, connect it with his portable battery and head off and answer all messages passing between Louisville and Nashville. On his retreat Morgan took possession of the wires on his route and countermanded all the orders that had been sent to intercept him. In recognition of his great services he was, on the suggestion of General Bragg, commissioned brigadier-general December 11, 1862. His exploits made it necessary to garrison every important town in Kentucky and Southern Ohio and [252] Indiana. His most wonderful exploit was the great raid through those States from the 2d to the 20th of July, 1863. With about 2,000 horsemen and four cannon he crossed the Cumberland river near Burkesville. Moving rapidly forward he met and defeated Wolford's Kentucky Union command. At Brandenburg on the Ohio his bold raiders captured two steamboats. Then, while one half of the command crossed the Ohio and attacked about 1,000 men on the Indiana side, Morgan with the other half turned his artillery on two gunboats that had come down the river to prevent the crossing, and drove them off. Then crossing the river Morgan dispersed or captured the whole Federal force. Next he captured Corydon and about 1,200 citizens and soldiers who tried to defend it. No pillaging was allowed. Only provisions for men and provender for stock were taken. At last, after passing through fifty-two towns, nine in Kentucky, fourteen in Indiana and twenty-nine in Ohio, and having captured nearly 6,000 prisoners and damaged public property to the amount of ten million dollars, Morgan and his men were captured. Some were sent to Camp Morton, Indiana. Morgan and his chief officers were taken to Columbus, Ohio, where they were treated like common felons. But Morgan and six of his officers, with no tools but case knives, cut their way through the solid stone, tunneled underground and made their escape. In 1864 Morgan was again in the field giving his enemies any amount of trouble. On the 4th of September, 1864, at Greeneville, Tenn., he was surrounded by the enemy, and in attempting to escape was shot and instantly killed. Such was the sad fate of this illustrious cavalry leader.Major-General William Preston
Major-General William Preston was a member of the Preston family especially celebrated in the annals of three States, Virginia, South Carolina and Kentucky. He was born near Louisville, Ky., October 16, 1806, and was educated at a Jesuit school at Bardstown, Ky. Afterward [253] he studied at York, and attended the law school at Harvard, where he was graduated in 1838. He then began the practice of law and entered actively into politics. In the Mexican war he was lieutenant-colonel of the Fourth Kentucky volunteers. Returning home after the war, he again entered the political field, and in 1851 was elected to the Kentucky house of representatives as a Whig. In the following year he was sent to Congress to fill a vacancy caused by the resignation of Humphrey Marshall, and continued to represent his State until March 3, 1855, when he surrendered his seat to Marshall, elected the previous autumn as candidate of the Know-nothing party. On the splitting up of the old Whig party he allied himself with the Democrats and became a delegate to the convention that nominated James Buchanan to the presidency. Under that administration he was sent as minister to Spain. He returned home in time to take part in the great civil war, earnestly espousing the cause of the South. He joined Buckner at Bowling Green and was soon appointed on the staff of his brother-in-law, Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston, with the rank of colonel. He was acting in this capacity at Shiloh when the great Confederate chieftain received his mortal wound and died in Preston's arms. On April 14, 1862, he was commissioned brigadier-general, and he then took command of a brigade of Breckinridge's corps and served at Vicksburg, Baton Rouge and in middle Tennessee. He led his brigade in the battle of Murfreesboro, taking part in the great charge of Breckinridge's division. On April 28, 1863, he was ordered to relieve General Humphrey Marshall in southwest Virginia and east Tennessee, and later with headquarters at Abingdon, Va., he commanded the first brigade of General Buckner's army of east Tennessee. At the battle of Chickamauga he commanded the division brought from his mountain district to the reinforcement of Bragg. This division included the brigades of Gracie, Kelly and [254] Trigg. Commander and men alike made a glorious record at Chickamauga. In January, 1864, General Preston was assigned to the Trans-Mississippi department, under Gen. Kirby Smith, and on January 1, 1865, he was promoted to major-general. Throughout the war General Preston always performed his part with the chivalrous courage for which the men of Kentucky were noted, on whichever side they fought. After the close of the long and sanguinary struggle he returned to his home in Lexington, Ky., resuming his law practice and again taking an active part in the political affairs of his native State. In 1867 he served in the legislature of Kentucky, and in 1880 he was a delegate to the Democratic convention that nominated General Hancock for the presidency. Most of his time was occupied, however, with his lucrative law practice and in the pleasant retirement of his elegant home. Here he died on September 21, 1887, sincerely mourned, not only by his family and large circle of friends, but throughout the bounds of his native State.Major-General Gustavus W. Smith
Major-General Gustavus W. Smith was born at Georgetown, Ky., January 1, 1822. At the age of sixteen years he entered West Point military academy, and in 1842 he was graduated with a lieutenancy of engineers. Joining the army in Mexico in 1846, by the death of his captain he was thrown into command of the only company of engineers in the army, and in that capacity served in the siege of Vera Cruz, and the battles of the following campaign. He was commended by General Scott and brevetted captain for gallantry at Cerro Gordo. In 1849 he became principal assistant professor of engineering at West Point, a position he resigned December 18, 1854, to make his home at New Orleans. In 1856 he removed to New York City, and two years later was appointed street commissioner, but resigned in 1861 to join the Confederate movement. He was commissioned [255] as major-general and put in command of the Second corps of the army in Virginia, on the transfer of General Beauregard, and was at this time second in rank to General Johnston. He commanded the reserve at Yorktown and the rear guard in the retreat to Richmond. When General Johnston was wounded at Seven Pines May 31, 1861, the command of the army devolved upon General Smith, who was at the time sick, though on the field. On the day following the battle he was relieved by the assignment of Gen. Robert E. Lee to the command of the army afterward known as the army of Northern Virginia. This assignment was agreeable to and expected by General Smith, who was physically in an unfit condition to take command of the army. Later in 1862 he was acting secretary of war for a few days in the interregnum between Randolph and Seddon. He had done valuable service around Richmond, and presently continued these services under General Beauregard at Charleston, after which he engaged in superintending the Etowah iron works for the armies until they were destroyed on Sherman's advance. Governor Brown, of Georgia, having called out a militia force of about 10,000 men exempt from conscription, the command was given to General Smith, with General Toombs as adjutant-general, both of these officers having resigned their commissions in the Confederate army. In this service under General Johnston he organized the State forces, and fought them with very marked efficiency until the surrender, notably on the Chattahoochee river before Atlanta, and on the fortified line before Savannah. He surrendered at Macon, Ga., April 20, 1865. Subsequently he was superintendent of the Southwestern iron works at Chattanooga, 1866-70, insurance commissioner of Kentucky, 1870-76, and in business at New York City after 1876 until his death, June 3, 1896. He published ‘Notes on Life Insurance,’ and ‘Confederate War Papers.’[256]
