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Born in Yorktown, Va., on 14th December 1808. Represented Hanover Co. in the state legislature. Captain, Hanover Light Artillery: April 1861. Dropped at the 1862 reorganization. Major of Artillery: 26th May 1862. On 11th February 1863 General Pendleton wrote: “Maj. William Nelson, long in command of this battalion, is as gallant and efficient an officer as we have in his grade. He has served from the beginning of the war as Captain and Major, has exhibited courage of the highest order and fidelity undeviating, and well deserves the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel.” Lt-Colonel: 3rd March 1863. Colonel, Nelson’s Bn.: 18th February 1865. “William Nelson, closely connected by blood with Lee, Pendleton, Page, Braxton, Carter, and many other officers of the Artillery, was a picturesque character….he was not noted for dash, nor was he by training a soldier. But he possessed an unblemished character, was sternly courageous, as dependable as any officer in the Army, and was adored by his men who regarded him as a father…in appearance, the ‘Old Colonel’, as his men affectionately styled him, was truly a remarkable figure…[and] adorned himself with a high silk hat! On many occasions as he rode past strange troops, the men with shouts of merriment cried after him, ‘Old man, come out of that hat!’ and similar humorous gibes. This eccentricity of dress, however, was not abandoned by him in spite of the derisive comments of the soldiery. His own men knew and loved him, for after all it was the head and heart and not the helmet of their leader that mattered.” Never married. Died on 17th April 1892.
[Wise, The Long Arm Of Lee, I, p.417; II, pp.878-879.]
Born in Craytonville, S.C., on 12th May 1822. Son of Christopher Orr & Martha McCann. Graduate of U.Va. “Orr worked on the farm and kept books in his father’s store between the school terms, until he went to the labor school, near Pendleton, and thence to the University of Virginia, where he took a literary course and commenced studying law. He commenced his law course and was admitted to the bar in 1843, beginning at once the practice, and editing the Anderson Gazette.” Married Mary Jane Marshall in 1844. Lawyer & state legislator. Opposed nullification. U.S. Congressman: 1849-59. “In 1854 he was among the first leaders to take strong ground and publicly denounce Know-nothingism; his speech on the 4th of July, at Independence hall, in Philadelphia, being published over the whole country. He retired from Congress with the expectation of devoting his time to his family, but secession coming on with irresistible force compelled him to go into public life again. Although he had most earnestly opposed secession for sixteen years, and used his whole influence against it, because he believed ruin and desolation of the South were inevitable, still when his State seceded he thought it better that the people as a whole should go into the struggle, though desperate, that to have the horrors of Toryism…or guerilla warfare in our midst.” Colonel, Orr’s Rifles: 20th July 1861. Resigned in December 1861 or on 1st February 1862, in order to enter the C.S. Congress. In her diary entry for 8th February 1865 Mary Chesnut wrote: “Orr in the Senate has told the Yankees that we dare not use the negroes as soldiers – that they would betray us & go to the Yankees - & told no end of lies besides, insulting Hood.” Elected Governor of S.C. in November 1865: “no courts had been held for months and a state of anarchy existed, but by Governor Orr’s firmness, good common sense and fairness, order was restored, and everything indicated peace and prosperity, but the reconstructionist acts took effect, and the country was put under military rule…” Post-war judge. U.S. Minister to Russia: 1872-73. “The change of climate from his home was so great, and the exposure incurred in the journey and in making the tremendous number of official visits proved too much for his constitution, and what was thought at first to be merely a severe cold terminated in pneumonia, and proved fatal on May 5, 1873.” Buried in Anderson, S.C.
[Woodward & Muhlenfeld, The Private Mary Chesnut, pp.226-227; Capers, Confederate Military History Of South Carolina, pp.780-782.]
Last edited by bill_torrens; 08-28-2005 at 05:32 PM.
Born in Fauquier Co., Va., on 15th March 1836. Son of Brandt Kincheloe & Mary Rawlings. Educated at the Alexandria Boarding School. In the summer of 1855 he returned to his father's farm near Rectortown, "assisting in the plantation work in busy seasons and continuing his studies at other times." For a few months in 1856 he was assistant instructor in mathematics at Upperville Military Academy. In 1857 he entered U.Va., where he graduated in law. Pre-war lawyer in Warrenton, Va. Orderly Sergeant of the Fauquier Guards: 1861. Promoted Lieut. & Adjutant of the 49th Va. Inf. Colonel Smith's report on Seven Pines:- "My adjutant, Kincheloe, always calm and collected yet prompt and ready, contributed much to the steadiness of the command and cheerfully obeyed all my orders. He himself escaped, but had his horse badly shot." Wounded in thigh at 2nd Manassas on 29th August 1862. Wounded at Spotsylvania on 12th May 1864 by a piece of shell that struck him in the shoulder. Hospitalised in Richmond until the middle of July. Mortally wounded at Smithfield, Va., on 29th August 1864: "As Kincheloe gave the command 'Right about. Company C!' he was seen to fall, and upon examination was found to be shot in the back of the head, the ball penetrating the brain. The report of the gun was not heard. He was buried in the cemetery at Smithfield."
Born on 6th April 1836. Educated at Washington College & U.Va. Lawyer in Lexington, Va. Lieut., Rockbridge Art.: April 1861. Wounded in face at 1st Manassas: 21st July 1861. Captain, Baltimore Light Art.: 2nd March 1862. “He was a young man, not long from college, but in that intellectual face you read more than the ordinary man, and the honor and glory with which he subsequently enveloped his fine command is a matter of history.” Captain & Chief of Artillery to Taliaferro: November – December 1862. Severely wounded in arm at Fredericksburg on 13th December 1862, while serving as a gunner. In her diary for 8th January 1863 Judith W. McGuire wrote: “On the 16th of December…I went to Richmond, and found B.B. [i.e. “Beau” Brockenbrough] at the house of Mr. P., on Grace Street, surrounded by luxury, and the recipient of unnumbered kindnesses; but so desperately ill!....I found B. suffering the most intense agony, and Mrs. P. agitated and anxious. No surgeon could be obtained for private houses. I sent for one, who was not an army surgeon…he told me at once that his situation was critical in the extreme; the Minie ball had not been extracted; he must die, if not soon relieved. He wanted assistance – another surgeon….hour after hour I sat by him. To cut off his bloody clothes, and replace them by fresh ones, and to administer the immense doses of morphine, was all that Mrs. P. and myself could do. At dark, Surgeons G. and B., accompanied by my brother, arrived. They did what they could, but considered the case hopeless. His uncle, General C., arrived, to our great relief. He joined us in nursing him during the night…after days and nights of watching, I left him improving, and in the hands of his parents. The physicians seem still doubtful of the result, but I am full of hope. The ball, after much difficulty, was extracted, since which time he has gradually improved; but his sufferings have been indescribable.” Major: 2nd March 1863. On 20th November 1863 General Pendleton wrote to R.E. Lee: “Brockenbrough, entitled to praise for extended and good service, is disabled, and will probably long so continue, by the lingering effects of a wound received at Fredericksburg last December. He ought to be relieved of responsible connection with this army and assigned some post of comparatively light duty.” Retired on 23rd March 1864, and served on the Slave Claims Board in Richmond. Married Lucy Alice Murrell in 1864. Lawyer in Lexington, Va. Married a second time, and moved to Oregon, California & Wyoming, where he was a Federal land inspector. Died in Evanston, Wyoming, on 15th November 1901. Buried in Loudoun Park Cemetery, Baltimore.
[Krick, Staff Officers In Gray, pp.83-84; Driver, The 1st & 2nd Rockbridge Artillery, p.61; Ruffner, Maryland’s Blue & Gray, pp.298-299; McGuire, Diary Of A Southern Refugee During The War, pp.177-181; 186.]
Born in Fairfield Dist., S.C., on 8th December 1836. Grew up in Lancaster Co., S.C. Graduated from S.C. Military Academy in 1856. Farmer in Craigsville. Sgt., Co.A, 9th S.C. Inf.: date unknown. Lieut., Co.B, 6th S.C. Inf.: date unknown. Wounded at Sharpsburg on 17th September 1862. Captain & A.A.G. to Micah Jenkins: 1st January 1863. Slightly wounded at Wauhatchie. Was roughly handled in a snowball fight during the winter of 1864; “as to poor Bob Sims, General Jenkins’ Adjutant, they gave him such a wallowing in the snow at the start that I think he went to the hospital, for I never saw anything more of him during the fight.” Captain & A.A.G. to Bratton: May 1864. Captain & A.A.G. to Gary: 9th August 1864. Captain & A.A.I.G. to Longstreet: 14th December 1864. He bore the last flag of truce at Appomattox – a towel which he had bought in Richmond for $40. “After the war, Sims returned to Lancaster County as a planter in the Waxhaws where he also served as ruling elder of the Waxhaw Presbyterian Church. Sims was also politically active. He was senator from Lancaster County, 1868-70. He moved to Rock Hill and was intendant (mayor) in 1873 (a fact not mentioned on his Rock Hill marker). Sims also was principal of the Rock Hill Male Academy and a trustee of the Yorkville Female Academy. Sims campaigned for Wade Hampton in 1876, and was South Carolina Secretary of State, 1876-1880. The beautification of the State House grounds was a major project of Sims. Intensely interested in agriculture and horticulture, Sims was elected president of the South Carolina Horticultural Society in 1882. In 1885, Pres. Grover Cleveland appointed Sims as an inspector of the Charleston Customs House. After four years, he returned to Columbia where he built a home in the Shandon section. The Sims house and part of his acreage are today on the property of Epworth Orphanage, a children's home owned by the South Carolina United Methodist Church. Robert M. Sims married twice. His first wife was Catharine C. Lucky of Mecklenburg Co. N.C. They had two children. She died in 1867 and was buried at Six Mile Presbyterian Church in upper Lancaster County. He married Ada Walton Sims of Columbia in 1869 and they had at least 6 children. After Sims' death, she and three of the children moved to California. Sims died at his Columbia home December 9, 1898 and was buried in Elmwood Cemetery. At the time of his death, his white towel, or "flag of surrender," was in the possession of the widow of Gen. George Custer. Some time after Mrs. Custer's death, the towel was acquired by the Smithsonian.” Died in Columbia on 9th December 1898. Buried in Elmwood Cemetery. [Lewis, Camp Life Of A Confederate Boy, p.79; Krick, Staff Officers In Gray, p.266; http://www.rootsweb.com/~sclancas/re...imsrobertm.htm ]
Captain, Co.I, 2nd S.C. Inf.: 12th March 1861. Edmund Ruffin called him "an excellent officer", who commanded the Iron Battery at the siege of Sumter. Ruffin wrote on 15th December 1861: "Our captain, Geo. B. Cuthbert, who was a planter near Beaufort has had his whole crops of cotton etc. burnt (& willingly) & all his slaves...made free of control, & will be lost to the owners, if the Yankees can so arrange the matter..." Wounded in a skirmish on the 9 Mile Road on 18th June 1862. In her diary for 2nd August 1862 Mary Chesnut wrote about a trip she was taking from the Granville Hotel in Greenville, N.C.: “Cuthbert, with his arm in a sling from a wound by no means healed, was going to risk the shaking of a stage coach. He was on his way to his cousin William Cuthbert’s, at Flat Rock. Now George Cuthbert is a type of the very finest kind of Southern soldier. We cannot make them any better than that. Before the war I knew him. He travelled in Europe with my sister Kate, and Mary Withers. At once I offered him a seat in the comfortable hack Nathan Davis had engaged for me…I was so ill I could barely sit up, and Captain Cuthbert could not use his right hand or arm at all. I had to draw his match and light his segar. He was very quiet, grateful, gentle; I was going to say docile. He is a fiery soldier, one of those whose whole face becomes transfigured in battle – or so one of his men told me, describing his way with his company. He does not blow his own trumpet, but I made him tell me the story of his duel with the Mercury’s reporter. He seemed awfully ashamed of wasting time in such a scrape.” At Fredericksburg he and his "company of sharpshooters" were "thrown out on the edge of Hazel Run, and did good service in annoying the flank of the enemy as their columns advanced to the attack. His loss was considerable." Moxley Sorrel wrote of him: "I was in Europe in the summer of 1860, and traveled on the continent a few weeks with George Cuthbert, of Beaufort, South Carolina. He was a pleasant fellow, and handsome, of good height and figure, and the fairest blonde, with beautiful blue eyes. Even in fair-haired Saxony, people turned to look at him. The war broke out and I did not know where Cuthbert would be serving. One day, however, in the winter of 1862-63, riding by the lines of one of our South Carolina regiments, up rose Cuthbert, and I was immediately on my feet beside him. He was a line captain, had been wounded, and was at the moment as shabby a Confederate soldier as could be found anywhere." Mortally wounded at Chancellorsville. Mary Chesnut recalled that “the surgeons did not think him mortally wounded. He sent me a message that he was coming at once to our house. He ‘knew he would soon get well there.’ Then he asked one of his friends to write a letter to his mother. Afterwards he said he had another letter to write, but that he wished to sleep first. At his request they then turned his face away from the light and left him; and when they came again they found him dead. It was bitter cold, and the wounded who had lost so much blood often weakened in that way.” Died at Guinea Station on 10th May 1863.
From now on photos of officers will only appear for a short while. I'll delete them once a few more posts have been added.
ETHERIDGE, William Henry
Born in Norfolk Co., Va., on 27th July 1820. Farmer & blacksmith. Captain, Co.F, 41st Va. Inf.: 22nd April 1861. Major: 29th July 1862. At the Battle of the Crater, “Major William H. Etheridge….displayed great bravery and wonderful coolness in this fight, although he was always brave in danger. As he jumped into the ‘Retrenched Cavalier’, a Federal in the front line fired through the traverse and killed a soldier at his side. The Federal immediately dropped his empty musket and snatched another from a cowering comrade to shoot Major Etheridge. At this moment the Major, with most remarkable self-possession, caught up two Federals who were crouching in the ditch, and held their heads together before him, swinging them to and fro to cover the aim of the musket, the Federal doing his best to get in his shot so as not to harm his comrades. The major was a very athletic man, especially in his arms, so by his strength and cool determination he saved his own life. Peter Gibbs, seeing the danger of his officer, rushed up and shot the Federal dead.” At Appomattox. Died in Norfolk on 3 June 1908. Buried in Magnolia Cemetery. [Stewart, A Pair of Blankets, pp.159-160.]
Etheridge's actions sound like something Forrest would do. It would do one well to remember that a lot of men back then were exceedingly powerful. They may not have had Stair-Masters or Nautilus' weight lifting equipment but their daily activities we far more strenuous than our own. Heck, we lost a lot of daily exercise when we got remote controls and indoor toilets.
Indeed. We're probably the puniest human beings ever to have lived on this planet.
Just after the war my father used to ride by bicycle to the coast for a day out at the weekend. Went to a particular resort. From where he lived it was approximately a 65 mile round trip, and he did it without giving it a second thought. It wasn't a big deal at all.
My aunts and uncles used to bicycle anywhere from 12 to 18 miles, one way, to go to work each day. And all at the ages from 13-16. It was considered normal. Like you said, no second thought, no big deal. It brings to mind to me the story of the two mules tied side by side at a hitch rack. One was a town mule. The other was a miner's mule. The miner's mule was heavily loaded down with every manner of tool and supply imaginable. The town mule looked over at him and asked in amazement "How can you carry such a heavy load?" The miner’s mule looked around, puzzled, and asked "What Load?"
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