Isaac Ridgeway Trimble

[War Horse]

If you were introduced to Major General Isaac Ridgeway Trimble as I was, it was enjoying actor W. Morgan Sheppard's passionate report to Robert E. Lee concerning Richards Ewell's failure to take that bloody hill in the movie Gettysburg. Although this encounter never actually happened. It certainly made Trimble a character I hungered to learn more about. His story is somewhat a tragic one so I thought I'd share it.

Trimble was born in Virginia on 1/2/1802. He really was an old man who lacked tact when addressing senior officers. He attended West Point Military Academy where he graduated 17th out of 42 students in 1822. Trimble was a civil engineer and worked on many of the northern railroads. He is credited with being in charge of the construction of the Presidents Street Station in Baltimore. Now the oldest standing railroad station in the country. Trimble also served at superintendent of the Baltimore Potomac railroad. A position that would cost him dearly during his civil war years.

At the beginning of the war Trimble served in the Maryland Militia were he spent most of his time burning bridges in the DC area. In May of 61 he joined the Confederate State Army where he was promoted to Brigadier General. Trimble was assigned to Jackson's command and performed well at the battles of Cross Keys, Gains Mill, Malvern Hill and Cedar Mountain. At the battle of 2nd Manassas Trimble performed so well he managed to draw very rare praise from Jackson in a letter of recommendation for promotion to Major General. However in typical Jackson style Jackson tempered his praise with the sentence "Although I don't consider him a good disciplinary". Trimble suffered a sever wound at the battle 2nd Manassas when he was shot in the left leg. Jackson's letter lead to Trimble launching a letter writing campaign from his hospital bed demanding promotion to Major General. Tremble reportedly told Jackson he would be a Major General or a corpse before the end of the war. During this time Trimble was also feuding with JEB Stuart concerning their conflicting reports on who bore primary responsibility for the capture of a Union Supply depot at the battle of 2nd Manassas.

Tremble was finally promoted to Major General on 1/17/1863 and given command of Jackson's old division. However the wound he received in his left leg would hamper his ability to perform his duties. At the battle of Chancellorsville Tremble was forced to relinquish command to Brigadier Gen Raleigh Colston. During the Gettysburg campaign Tremble was desperate to regain command and began hanging around Lee's headquarters unsolicited. This quickly wore on Lee's last nerve and Trimble was sent to join Ewell as a supernumerary. A Major General without command. This also resulted in conflict due to Trimble lack of tact which lead to frequent arguments between the two men.

At the battle of Gettysburg Trimble was finally given command of Dorsey Pender's division in A.P Hill's Corps to lead them in the assault on day three known as Pickett's Charge. During the assault Tremble had the misfortune of being shot in the same leg. This time his wound ended up in the amputation of that leg. To his misfortune Tremble's condition left him unstable to travel and the Confederate army had no choice but to leave him behind while they retreated from Gettysburg. Trimble was taken prisoner and sent to Johnson's Island and then Then Ft Warren. US Secretary of war Simon Cameron recommended against his parole due to his extensive knowledge of northern railroads. For that reason Tremble was not paroled until April 16, 1865. Just days after Lee's surrender.

Later Tremble was known to be fond of saying. "If the men I had the honor to command could not take that hill on July 3rd. All hell could not have taken it".

Trimble was also fond of saying. If my leg would have been amputated the first time the Bullet at Gettysburg would have completely missed me.

Now as for that passionate speech given by actor W. Morgan Sheppard to Robert E. Lee in the movie Gettysburg. It turns out Trimble did in fact pen a very similar account in a letter now on file in historical records.

There you have it. A very short look into the life of Isaac Ridgeway Trimble.

 

[bdtex]

Nicely done sir. He had a good tailor too. Nice picture.

 

[Jamieva]

His appealing to Lee at Gettysburg is very similar to what he did at Cross Keys. He had led a flank attack on the left of Milroy's forces. He wanted to continue to attack late in the day but Ewell who was in charge of the battlefield said no. Keep in mind Ewell is outnumbered about 2 to 1, and Jackson is not on the field, he is at Port Republic at the time. So the victory they already had was a good one. Trimble gets on his horse and rides 7 miles in the dark to Port Republic to appeal to Stonewall to let him make a night attack. That was Trimble in a nutshell. He was uber aggressive

 

[Cavalier]

@War Horse He was a pretty wild character for an old guy. As it happens he lived a few miles down the road from me and I passed the lot where his house stood frequently, when taking my grandson to school. Sadly, the house burned down sometime in the eighties way before I move out here so I never saw it. I should have made it a point to though. Another major screw up on my part!

Thanks for posting this. John

 

[War Horse]

His appealing to Lee at Gettysburg is very similar to what he did at Cross Keys. He had led a flank attack on the left of Milroy's forces. He wanted to continue to attack late in the day but Ewell who was in charge of the battlefield said no. Keep in mind Ewell is outnumbered about 2 to 1, and Jackson is not on the field, he is at Port Republic at the time. So the victory they already had was a good one. Trimble gets on his horse and rides 7 miles in the dark to Port Republic to appeal to Stonewall to let him make a night attack. That was Trimble in a nutshell. He was uber aggressive

I'll have to look that up. He's certainly an interesting character isn't he.

 

[Luke Freet]

I find it strange how he was just replaced as commander of the Stonewall Division by Edward Johnson. Trimble was an extremely capable and aggressive commander when he was available.

 

[War Horse]

I find it strange how he was just replaced as commander of the Stonewall Division by Edward Johnson. Trimble was an extremely capable and aggressive commander when he was available.

Sure was. Unfortunately the truth was the same then as it is now. It's not what you did for me yesterday that counts. It's what can you do for me today that matters. A sad fact of life.

 

[FarawayFriend]

Thank you, @War Horse for bringing Trimble up for closer inspection. Like you, I was introduced to him by that scene where he displayed "holy wrath" over Ewell's apparent incompetence - and as intended I fell in that trap. Now over the years as a member here I have already learned that Ewell was not so wrong in not taking "that hill" - and now I get the notion that Trimble was maybe driven by his own demons. Very interesting indeed!
Now when you said you hungered to learn more about Trimble, I'm afraid that hunger is not yet satiated... right on the contrary - at least my own appetite is definitely whetted now!
I have snooped around the internet for him and found that there is a master thesis free for download with the promising title: "Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, the indefatigable and courageous" by William M. Grace.
From the abstract:
"Trimble had long been exposed to rigorous challenges. His loyalty rested with Maryland and its right to decide its own destiny. "Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, The Indefatigable and Courageous," is a story about this man's quest to resist what he considered to be Federal tyranny and regain his state's sovereignty. No matter what the hardship or price, Trimble willingly sacrificed to see his dream materialize. With the Confederacy, Trimble placed his fortune and fought to insure its survival. Even in defeat, Trimble remained convinced of Confederate virtue and Union despotism. Throughout the remainder of his life, Trimble continued to be a diehard warrior espousing the justness of the Confederate cause."

VTechWorks Home

The outbreak of civil war convulsed the entire nation. Nowhere were its effects felt stronger than in the border states. The states of Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri found their inhabitants loyalties closely split over the secessionist issue. Under such an explosive situation, men of great...

vtechworks.lib.vt.edu

I can imagine the number of downloads will increase a bit now.

 

[War Horse]

Thank you, @War Horse for bringing Trimble up for closer inspection. Like you, I was introduced to him by that scene where he displayed "holy wrath" over Ewell's apparent incompetence - and as intended I fell in that trap. Now over the years as a member here I have already learned that Ewell was not so wrong in not taking "that hill" - and now I get the notion that Tfimble was maybe driven by his own demons. Very interesting indeed!
Now when you said you hungered to learn more about Trimble, I'm afraid that hunger is not yet satiated... right on the contrary - at least my own appetite is definitely whetted now!
I have snooped around the internet for him and found that there is a master thesis free for download with the promising title: "Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, the indefatigable and courageous" by William M. Grace.
From the abstract:
"Trimble had long been exposed to rigorous challenges. His loyalty rested with Maryland and its right to decide its own destiny. "Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, The Indefatigable and Courageous," is a story about this man's quest to resist what he considered to be Federal tyranny and regain his state's sovereignty. No matter what the hardship or price, Trimble willingly sacrificed to see his dream materialize. With the Confederacy, Trimble placed his fortune and fought to insure its survival. Even in defeat, Trimble remained convinced of Confederate virtue and Union despotism. Throughout the remainder of his life, Trimble continued to be a diehard warrior espousing the justness of the Confederate cause."

VTechWorks Home

The outbreak of civil war convulsed the entire nation. Nowhere were its effects felt stronger than in the border states. The states of Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri found their inhabitants loyalties closely split over the secessionist issue. Under such an explosive situation, men of great...

vtechworks.lib.vt.edu

I can imagine the number of downloads will increase a bit now.

Thank you @FarawayFriend I'll have to have a look.

 

[Lubliner]

Thank you @FarawayFriend I'll have to have a look.

I had recently questioned the activity surrounding the Baltimore bridge burning on the Railroad and Steam Locomotive Forum, as to why no railroad company men were a part of the counsel with Mayor Brown and the police commissioners to burn the bridges. I had surmised they were left out of the loop, for none were named to my knowledge. Do you possibly know if Trimble was in with Marshal Kane and the rest of the group? Thank you.
Lubliner.

 

[FarawayFriend]

I had recently questioned the activity surrounding the Baltimore bridge burning on the Railroad and Steam Locomotive Forum, as to why no railroad company men were a part of the counsel with Mayor Brown and the police commissioners to burn the bridges. I had surmised they were left out of the loop, for none were named to my knowledge. Do you possibly know if Trimble was in with Marshal Kane and the rest of the group? Thank you.
Lubliner.

Does this help?

Source , page 242

 

[Paul Yancey]

Thank you, @War Horse for bringing Trimble up for closer inspection. Like you, I was introduced to him by that scene where he displayed "holy wrath" over Ewell's apparent incompetence - and as intended I fell in that trap. Now over the years as a member here I have already learned that Ewell was not so wrong in not taking "that hill" - and now I get the notion that Trimble was maybe driven by his own demons. Very interesting indeed!
Now when you said you hungered to learn more about Trimble, I'm afraid that hunger is not yet satiated... right on the contrary - at least my own appetite is definitely whetted now!
I have snooped around the internet for him and found that there is a master thesis free for download with the promising title: "Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, the indefatigable and courageous" by William M. Grace.
From the abstract:
"Trimble had long been exposed to rigorous challenges. His loyalty rested with Maryland and its right to decide its own destiny. "Isaac Ridgeway Trimble, The Indefatigable and Courageous," is a story about this man's quest to resist what he considered to be Federal tyranny and regain his state's sovereignty. No matter what the hardship or price, Trimble willingly sacrificed to see his dream materialize. With the Confederacy, Trimble placed his fortune and fought to insure its survival. Even in defeat, Trimble remained convinced of Confederate virtue and Union despotism. Throughout the remainder of his life, Trimble continued to be a diehard warrior espousing the justness of the Confederate cause."

VTechWorks Home

The outbreak of civil war convulsed the entire nation. Nowhere were its effects felt stronger than in the border states. The states of Maryland, Kentucky and Missouri found their inhabitants loyalties closely split over the secessionist issue. Under such an explosive situation, men of great...

vtechworks.lib.vt.edu

I can imagine the number of downloads will increase a bit now.

Thanks for providing the link. I enjoyed reading this paper. Provided good insight into the time he spent as a POW. Sometimes people forget that Trimble was in his early 60's at the time of the war. He was one tough man.

 

[Lubliner]

Does this help?
View attachment 364876

Source , page 242

Thank you, yes it does help some. I knew Maryland's responses were to activate as many as 10,000 men situated close to Baltimore, and I knew of Bradley Johnson but I had not seen Trimble mentioned. I noticed your source is in German.
Lubliner.

 

[O. A. Williams]

Thank you for this write up, sir.
I have not found much on Trimble in my readings, but was always interested.

 

[FarawayFriend]

I noticed your source is in German.

So sorry for that! Maybe it is because I found it in the German version of Google Books. Therefore the frame unfortunately is in German, but the book itself is an American book in English (as of course you have already noticed from the clip I provided above )

 

[Gavrilo Sartorys]

I find it strange how he was just replaced as commander of the Stonewall Division by Edward Johnson. Trimble was an extremely capable and aggressive commander when he was available.

I remember having read somewhere that Edward Johnson finally got the command because Trimble wasn't able to take charge of the division on the field. Trimble being wounded at Manassas surely deprived the ANV of a competent officer from fall 1862 to spring 1863. A favorite of Lee, Johnson was nonetheless a good leader of men and he conducted his troops effectively on numerous actions. Trimble's leadership was too agressive-minded (in my opinion) but he could have become a well-famed division commander alongside McLaws, A.P. Hill or Sam Hood. With such a senior officer put in charge of the Light Division following Chancellorsville, I think his command could have been better used at Gettysburg (the near-destruction / complete capture of the 1st Corps, the repulse of the 11th Corps out of the heights before the arrival of the remaining union units, etc.).

 

[James N.]

... At the beginning of the war Trimble served in the Maryland Militia were he spent most of his time burning bridges in the DC area. In May of 61 he joined the Confederate State Army where he was promoted to Brigadier General. Trimble was assigned to Jackson's command and performed well at the battles of Cross Keys, Gains Mill, Malvern Hill and Cedar Mountain. At the battle of 2nd Manassas Trimble performed so well he managed to draw very rare praise from Jackson in a letter of recommendation for promotion to Major General. However in typical Jackson style Jackson tempered his praise with the sentence "Although I don't consider him a good disciplinary". Trimble suffered a sever wound at the battle 2nd Manassas when he was shot in the left leg. Jackson's letter lead to Trimble launching a letter writing campaign from his hospital bed demanding promotion to Major General. Tremble reportedly told Jackson he would be a Major General or a corpse before the end of the war. During this time Trimble was also feuding with JEB Stuart concerning their conflicting reports on who bore primary responsibility for the capture of a Union Supply depot at the battle of 2nd Manassas.

Easy to understand - Trimble's Brigade was then part of Richard Ewell's Division, and although Stuart's cavalry led the way for Jackson's flanking maneuver, it was actually Ewell's/Trimble's infantry that captured and held Manassas Junction.

Tremble was finally promoted to Major General on 1/17/1863 and given command of Jackson's old division. However the wound he received in his left leg would hamper his ability to perform his duties. At the battle of Chancellorsville Tremble was forced to relinquish command to Brigadier Gen Raleigh Colston. During the Gettysburg campaign Tremble was desperate to regain command and began hanging around Lee's headquarters unsolicited. This quickly wore on Lee's last nerve and Trimble was sent to join Ewell as a supernumerary. A Major General without command. This also resulted in conflict due to Trimble lack of tact which lead to frequent arguments between the two men.

This wasn't the first time there had been problems between them. At Cross Keys during the Shenandoah Valley Campaign where Ewell's Division had been given rearguard duties, Trimble repeatedly pressed Ewell to instead attack Fremont's larger Union force. He maneuvered forward against orders and laid a devastating ambush for the 8th New York of Blenker's Federal division, and after repulsing its sortie proceeded to follow it up - again against orders. Trimble must've been what is termed a difficult subordinate! However, it was at Lee's headquarters where Trimble was a supernumerary - it was recognized that in such a campaign, operating as they were at a distance from their base, it was likely there would be casualties among the commanding officers and therefore vacancies to fill on the spot. Of course that is exactly what happened when Dorsey Pender was wounded and Trimble replaced him.

... Trimble was also fond of saying. If my leg would have been amputated the first time the Bullet at Gettysburg would have completely missed me.

Of course that was exactly what had happened to his nemesis Ewell in the same situation at Gettysburg!

 

[James N.]

I'll also add that his Gettysburg story is told in part in the Museum Of The First Day located in what used to be the main Lutheran Seminary Building on Seminary Ridge - that's the "hospital" where both Trimble and James Kemper, both severely wounded in Pickett's Charge, wound up for treatment and recovery. One entire floor of the building is currently devoted to the Seminary's use as a hospital both during and after the battle with many exhibits and story panels.