Born: October 27, 1825
Birthplace: Adams County, Mississippi
Father: Richard Gaillard Ellis 1800 – 1844
(Buried: Saint John’s Episcopal Cemetery, Thibodeaux, Louisiana)
Mother: Jane Towson 1805 – 1877
(Buried: Saint John’s Episcopal Cemetery, Thibodeaux, Louisiana)
Husband: General Braxton Bragg 1817 – 1876
(Buried: Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama)
Married: June 7, 1849 in Louisiana
Children: None
Died: September 25, 1908
Place of Death: Orleans Parish, Louisiana
Age at time of Death: 82 years old
Burial Place: Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama
Eliza Brooks Ellis was born on October 27, 1825 in Adams County, Mississippi to Richard and Jane Ellis. Her father was a wealthy plantation owner. When Braxton Bragg made a tour of Evergreen Plantation in Thibodaux, Louisiana, he met the 23 year old Eliza. They were married on June 7, 1849.
The newlyweds moved to Jefferson Barracks, Missouri in September of 1849. This was a comfortable assignment. But then they were transferred to Fort Gibson in the Indian Territory in October 1853. Eight months later they were transferred to Fort Washita near the Texas border. This was a very primitive fort and Braxton moved Eliza back to Thibodaux. He traveled to Washington to request a reassignment but was denied.
On Jan. 3, 1856, Bragg resigned from the military and he and Eliza purchased a sugar plantation of 1600 acres, 3 miles north of Thibodaux. Both his father and his wife's father were slave owners and Braxton was not opposed to slavery. His plantation used 105 slaves in the production of sugar. There is no evidence that the Braggs were cruel owners. He did continued to uphold his reputation as a stern disciplinarian and an advocate of military efficiency. His methods resulted in almost immediate profitability despite the large mortgage on the property.
The Braggs opposed the concept of session, believing that in a republic no majority could set aside a written constitution. However, he was a colonel in the Louisiana Militia and was promoted to major general of the militia in 1861. On March 7th, his commission was transferred to a brigadier general of the Confederate Army.
Eliza and Braxton Bragg had no children. It was known her life centered on her husband. He died in 1876. Eliza died on Sept. 25, 1908. She is buried in Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, Alabama.
Source: https://civilwartalk.com/threads/eliza-brooks-ellis-bragg.106219/
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