NC brigades paroled at Appomattox

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Brigadier-General William Ruffin Cox
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Brigadier-General William Ruffin Cox was born March 11, 1832,
at Scotland Neck, Halifax county, N. C. He is of English and
Scotch-Irish descent, and his ancestors were early and
prominent colonists in the new world.

The father of General Cox died when the latter was four years
old, and later his mother moved to Nashville, Tenn., where he
was educated and graduated in letters at the Franklin college,
and in law at the famous Lebanon law school. He formed a
partnership in the legal practice with a prominent member of
the Nashville bar, and was active in his profession until
1857, when he removed to North Carolina and engaged in
agriculture in Edgecomb county.

Removing to Raleigh in 1859, he was nominated for the
legislature on the Democratic ticket, and though leading the
same, was defeated by thirteen votes.

Upon the outbreak of the war in 1861, he contributed liberally
to the equipment of the "Ellis artillery" company, and was
employed in organizing a company of infantry when he was
commissioned, by Governor Ellis, major of the Second regiment,
North Carolina State troops, commanded by Col. C. C. Tew.

Upon the death of the gallant colonel at Sharpsburg, Judge W.
P. Bynum became colonel and Cox lieutenant-colonel, and soon
afterward Bynum resigned and Cox took command of the regiment,
and was promoted to colonel in March, 1863. In the battle of
Chancellorsville, where his brigade suffered great loss, he
was three times wounded.

In his official report General Ramseur gave unusual and
prominent attention to "the manly and chivalrous Cox of the
Second North Carolina, the accomplished gentleman, splendid
soldier and warm friend, who, though wounded three times,
remained with his regiment until exhausted. In common with
the entire command, I regret his absence from the field, where
he loves to be."

He was able to rejoin his command after the return from
Pennsylvania and take part in the Wilderness and Spottsylvania
battles of 1864. He took a conspicuous part with Ramseur's
brigade in the battle of May 12th, for which Generals Lee and
Ewell gave their thanks upon the field.

After this battle he, though the junior colonel, was promoted
to the command of the brigade, composed of the Second, Fourth,
Fourteenth and Thirtieth regiments, to which were attached
those of the First and Third regiments who escaped from the
wreck of Steuart's brigade of Johnson's division.

After the battle of Cold Harbor he served with Early's corps
in the relief of Lynchburg, the expedition through Maryland to
Washington, including the battle of Monocacy, and the
Shenandoah battles of the fall of 1864. He then returned to
the heroic army of Northern Virginia in the trenches before
Petersburg, participated in the gallant and desperate effort
of Gordon's corps to break the enemy's line at Fort Stedman,
and during the retreat rounded out his reputation for good
soldiership.

It has been related by Governor Vance that on one occasion
during the retreat to the west, when General Lee was
endeavoring to form a line from disorganized troops, his heart
was gladdened by the appearance of a small but orderly
brigade, marching with precision. He called out to an aide:
"What troops are those?" "Cox's North Carolina brigade," was
the reply. Then it was that, taking off his hat and bowing
his head with knightly courtesy, he said, "God bless gallant
old North Carolina."

Cox led the division at the last charge at Appomattox, and had
ordered his brigade to cover the retreat, when he was recalled
to the rear. It was the brigade of General Cox, marching in
the rear, which faced about, and with the steadiness of
veterans on parade, poured such a sudden and deadly volley
into the overwhelming numbers of the Federals that they
temporarily abandoned the attempt to capture the command.

General Cox was with his men to the bitter end. Eleven wounds
had not sufficed to retire him from the service.

Subsequently he resumed his law practice, and became president
of the Chatham railroad. For six years he held the office of
solicitor of the metropolitan district; was chairman of the
Democratic State executive committee for five years; was
delegate for the State-at-large in the national convention of
1876, and in January, 1877, was appointed circuit judge of the
Sixth judicial district.

This office he resigned to enter Congress, where he served
with distinction for six years. Intending to retire from
politics, General Cox returned to his estate in Edgecomb and
resumed the pursuit of agriculture, and was thus employed
when, without his knowledge, his name was agreed upon and he
was elected as secretary of the United States Senate, to succeed Gen. Anson G. McCook.

This position he has since filled to the entire satisfaction
of that great body, also giving much personal attention to his
agricultural interests.

General Cox was married in 1857 to a daughter of James S.
Battle, and after her death in 1880, to a daughter of Rt. Rev.
T. B. Lyman, bishop of North Carolina.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p303

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GRIMES, BRYAN


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NORTH CAROLINA


Major, Fourth North Carolina Infantry (State troops), July
16, 1861
Colonel, Fourth North Carolina Infantry, June 19, 1862.
Brigadier general, P. A. C. S., May 19, 1864.
Major general, P. A. C. S., February 15, 1865.

Died August 14, 1880.

Commands.

Brigade composed of the Thirty-second, Forty-third, Forty-
fifth and Fifty-third North Carolina Regiments Infantry, and
the Second North Carolina Battalion of Infantry, formerly
Brigadier General Daniels' Brigade.

Division composed of his own brigade and the brigades of
Battle, Cook and Cox, Army of Northern Virginia, from September
19, 1864, to April 9, 1865.

Source: Generals of the Confederate States Army

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Major-General Bryan Grimes was born at Grimesland, Pitt
county, N. C., November 2, 1828, the youngest son of Bryan and
Nancy Grimes. He was graduated at the university of North
Carolina in 1848, then made his home upon a plantation in Pitt
county, and in April, 1851, was married to Elizabeth Hilliard,
daughter of Dr. Thomas Davis, of Franklin county.

This lady died a few years later, and in 1860 he traveled in
Europe, but returned home soon after the national election.
He hastened to the scene of conflict at Fort Sumter as soon as
he heard of the bombardment, and then visited Pensacola and
New Orleans, returning to take a seat in the convention of his
State which adopted the ordinance of secession.

In the latter part of May he resigned his seat in this body
and accepted appointment as major of the Fourth infantry
regiment, in organization at Garysburg under Col. George B.
Anderson.

He reached Virginia after the battle of First Manassas; May 1,
1862, was promoted lieutenant-colonel, and thereafter
commanded his regiment with promotion to colonel June 19th.
At Seven Pines every officer of the regiment but himself, and
462 out of 520 men, were killed or wounded. His horse's head
was blown off by a shell, and the animal fell upon him, but he
waved his sword and shouted, "Forward!" and when released from
his painful position, seized the regimental flag and led his
men in their successful charge.

At Mechanicsville the remnant of the command was again
distinguished. At this time General Anderson declared,
"Colonel Grimes and his regiment are the keystone of my
brigade."

He was disabled by typhoid fever until the Maryland campaign,
and as he went into that his leg was so injured by the kick of
a horse that amputation was considered necessary; but
nevertheless he took the field at Sharpsburg, and another
horse was killed under him, the third of the seven which he
thus lost during his career.

General Anderson was mortally wounded in this battle, and in
November Grimes was assigned to temporary command of the
brigade, which he led at the battle of Fredericksburg. At
Chancellorsville he and his regiment were distinguished on all
three days of battle, on the third driving the enemy from
their breastworks at the point of the bayonet, but at the cost
of many lives. In this fight the gallant colonel again
narrowly escaped death.

In the Pennsylvania campaign he and his men were in the
advance of Ewell's corps, and on picket eight miles from
Harrisburg; and at Gettysburg on the first day they were the
first to enter the village and drive the enemy to the heights
beyond, only pausing in obedience to orders.

During the retreat from Pennsylvania he served efficiently on
the rear guard. At Spottsylvania Court House, after General
Ramseur was wounded, he led the brigade in an impetuous charge
which recovered much of the ground gained by Hancock at the
"bloody angle," in recognition of which General Lee told the
brigade "they deserved the thanks of the countryÄthey had
saved his army."

General Daniel having been mortally wounded in this fight,
Colonel Grimes was put in command of his brigade. On May
19th, after he had made an effective fight in a flank movement
upon the enemy, General Rodes declared: "You have saved
Ewell's corps, and shall be promoted, and your commission
shall bear date from this day. "

This promise was fulfilled early in June, and soon afterward
he took his men to the Shenandoah valley, and joined in the
movement through Maryland to Washington. In the fall campaign
in the valley, though in impaired health, he did his duty
gallantly and desperately against the overwhelming numbers of
the Federals, and had many remarkable escapes from death or
capture.

When Ramseur fell at Cedar Creek, he took command of the
division, which he held until the end, being promoted major-
general in February, 1865. In spite of their terrible
reverses, he infused such spirit in his men that they were
able to rout 4,000 Federal cavalry at Rude's hill, November
22nd.

In the spring of 1865 he fought in the Petersburg trenches,
and participated with great gallantry in the fight at Fort
Stedman, in which he rode a captured horse, and was a
conspicuous target to the enemy, but still seemed to bear a
charmed life. When his line was broken April 2nd, he rushed
down his line on foot, and seizing a musket joined in the fire
upon the enemy, until his troops, encouraged by his coolness,
were able to recover the greater part of their lines.

During the retreat from Petersburg he was almost constantly in
battle; at Sailor's Creek saved himself by riding his horse
through the stream and up the precipitous banks amid a shower
of bullets, and on the next day led his division in a splendid
charge which captured the guns taken from Mahone and many
Federal prisoners, winning the compliments of General Lee.

Bushrod Johnson's division was now added to his command, and
on April 9th the other two divisions of the corps, Evans' and
Walker's, were put under his command, he having volunteered to
make the attack to clear the road toward Lynchburg. He was
successful in driving the enemy from his front, but after
receiving repeated orders to withdraw fell back to his
original line, and was then informed of the proposed
surrender.

At first refusing to submit to this, he was about to call upon
his men to cut their way out, when General Gordon reminded him
of the interpretation which might be put upon such action
during a truce, and he was compelled by his sense of honor to
acquiesce.

As an estimate of his character as a soldier, the words of
Gen. D. H. Hill in March, 1863, are exact and comprehensive:
"He has been in many pitched battles and has behaved most
gallantly in them all. His gallantry, ripe experience,
admirable training, intelligence and moral worth constitute
strong claims for pro motion. "

After the close of hostilities he returned to his plantation.
He had married in 1863, Charlotte Emily, daughter of Hon. John
B. Bryan, of Raleigh, and several children were born to them.
His life went on in quiet and honor until August 14, 1880,
when he was shot by an assassin and almost instantly killed.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p. 314
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Brigadier-General Robert D. Johnston


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Brigadier-General Robert D. Johnston, of North Carolina, at
the time of the secession of his State, was second lieutenant
in the Beattie's Ford rifles, State troops. He entered the
Confederate service as captain of Company K, Twenty-third
North Carolina infantry, July 15, 1861.

His regiment was on the peninsula during 1861 and the spring
of 1862, and participated in the battle of Williamsburg. On
May 21, 1862, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant-
colonel. He was wounded at Seven Pines while gallantly
leading his men, and at South Mountain and Sharpsburg fought
with conspicuous bravery in Garland's brigade.

In describing the fighting on his part of the field near the
center of the Confederate line at Sharpsburg, Gen. D. H. Hill
reported the fact that the Twenty-third North Carolina was
brought off by "the gallant Lieutenant-Colonel Johnston" and
put in position in the sunken road, and he especially
commended Johnston among the officers distinguished on that
bloody field.

At Chancellorsville, when Major Rowe, leading the Twelfth
North Carolina, was killed, Lieutenant-Colonel Johnston took
command of that regiment. This regiment and the Twenty-third
were both in Rodes' gallant division, which was in the front
of Jackson's brilliant flank attack. In this battle the North
Carolinians under Johnston captured a stand of the enemy's
colors.

After Gettysburg Johnston was promoted to the rank of
brigadier-general, to date September 1, 1863, and assigned to
the command of his brigade, formerly led by Samuel Garland and
D. K. McRae. It was composed of the Fifth, Twelfth, Twentieth
and Twenty-third regiments and Second battalion of North
Carolina infantry. This command fought under its gallant
leader in the battles of the Wilderness and Spottsylvania, at
which latter battle General Johnston received a severe wound.

He was again in command during the valley campaign under
Early, participating in the series of severe battles which
ended with that of Cedar Creek, a victory in the morning, a
defeat in the afternoon.

He was with his men in the subsequent weary winter, watching
and fighting in the trenches around Petersburg, and was
included in the surrender at Appomattox.

After the close of hostilities General Johnston practiced law
at Charlotte for twenty years from 1867 as a partner of Col.
H. C. Jones.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p. 320

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Brigadier-General William G. Lewis




Brigadier-General William G. Lewis, of North Carolina, began
his service in the Confederate army as third lieutenant of
Company A, First North Carolina infantry, April 21, 1861.

By the close of the year he had shown such efficiency as an
officer that we find him on January 17, 1862, major of the
Thirty-third North Carolina, and before the active campaign of
1862 had fairly begun, lieutenant-colonel of the Forty-third
North Carolina infantry, April 25, 1862.

In the Gettysburg campaign this regiment was in the brigade of
Gen. Junius Daniel, of Rodes' division and Ewell's corps. On
June 10, 1863, Ewell's corps left Brandy Station, and two days
later reached Cedarville, whence Ewell sent Rodes and Jenkins
to capture Martinsburg, while he with Early's and Edward
Johnson's divisions marched directly upon Winchester.

On June 14th Ewell captured Winchester and Rodes captured
Martinsburg. The valley was thus cleared of Federal troops,
4,000 of whom were captured. Immense supplies were the spoils
of the Confederates, who marched on and crossed the Potomac.

In his report of the battle of Gettysburg, Gen. Junius Daniel,
after giving an account of the part acted by his brigade,
makes special mention of Lieut.-Col. W. G. Lewis among others,
and adds, "These officers all acted with bravery and coolness,
as did all my officers and men whose conduct came under my
observation, but the above were more conspicuous than the
rest."

Lewis participated with credit in the siege and capture of
Plymouth, N. C., in April, 1864, winning promotion to colonel,
and then, being ordered to Petersburg, won the rank of
brigadier-general in Beauregard's campaign against Butler.

Here he was in command of Hoke's old brigade, the Sixth,
Twenty-first, Fifty-fourth and Fifty-seventh North Carolina
regiments and First battalion, which was assigned to the
division of Gen. Robert Ransom.

The latter, in his report of the battle of Drewry's bluff, May
16th, said that after they had gained the enemy's outer works,
and were in confusion in the midst of a dense fog, a sudden
assault was delivered by the Federals, driving back the left
of Hoke's division. Though ammunition was almost exhausted,
"Colonel Lewis was ordered to throw the only regiment he had
in hand at double-quick" to the point of danger, "which was
handsomely done, and he engaged the enemy long enough to allow
Colquitt's brigade, of the reserve, to arrive. "

In command of his brigade, assigned to Ramseur's division,
General Lewis participated in Early's victorious march down
the Shenandoah valley and through Maryland to Washington, and
in the hard battles with Sheridan in the valley, during the
remainder of 1864, and then returning to Richmond and
Petersburg was on duty there until the retreat westward.

In a desperate fight of the rear guard at Farmville, April
7th, he was severely wounded and taken prisoner.

This gallant officer participated in thirty-seven battles and
heavy skirmishes. His life since the war has been one of
activity and honor. He has served as State engineer thirteen
years, and at present is chief engineer of the Albany &
Raleigh railroad, with his residence at Goldsboro.
 


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Brigadier-General John R. Cooke

Brigadier-General John R. Cooke was born at Jefferson
barracks, Mo., in 1833, the son of Philip St. George Cooke,
then first lieutenant First dragoons, U. S. A.

It is an interesting fact that while the son and his sister's
husband, J. E. B. Stuart, fought for Virginia in the war of
the Confederacy, the father, a native of Frederick county,
Va., remained in the United States army, and attained the rank
of major-general, finally being retired after fifty years'
service.

Young Cooke was educated at Harvard college as a civil
engineer, but in 1855 was commissioned second lieutenant,
Eighth infantry, after which he served in Texas, New Mexico
and Arizona.

When Virginia seceded he promptly resigned his commission,
reported to General Holmes at Fredericksburg as first
lieutenant, and after the battle of Manassas raised a company
of light artillery, which did splendid service along the
Potomac.

In February, 1862, he was promoted major, and assigned as
chief of artillery to the department of North Carolina. In
April, at the reorganization, he was elected colonel of the
Twenty-seventh North Carolina regiment.

On being ordered to Virginia his regiment was attached to A.
P. Hill's division, and was first in battle at Seven Pines.
After the battle of Sharpsburg, in which he won the admiration
of the whole army, he was promoted to brigadier-general,
general, and put in command of a brigade of North Carolinians,
the Fifteenth, Twenty-seventh, Forty-sixth, Forty-eighth and
Fifty-ninth regiments.

At Fredericksburg he supported General Cobb, holding the
famous stone wall, and all through the war, until its close,
he and his brigade were in the thickest of the fray. He was
wounded seven times, at Sharpsburg, Fredericksburg, Bristoe
Station, and in the Wilderness campaign.

No officer bore a more enviable reputation than General Cooke
for prompt obedience to orders, skill in handing his men,
splendid dash in the charge, or heroic, patient, stubborn
courage in the defense.

After the close of hostilities General Cooke entered
mercantile life at Richmond, and during his subsequent life
was prominent in the affairs of the city and State. He served
several years as a member of the city committee of the
Democratic party, was a director of the chamber of commerce,
and president of the board of directors of the State
penitentiary.

During the years of peace and reconciliation, the estrangement
in his family which had followed his espousal of the Southern
cause, was fully healed; but he remained loyal to his old
comrades. He was prominent as a founder and manager of the
Soldiers' Home at Richmond, was one of the first commanders of
the Lee camp, Confederate veterans, and acted as chief of
staff at the laying of the cornerstone of the Lee monument,
and at its unveiling.

He married Nannie G. Patton, of Fredericksburg, daughter of
Dr. William F. Patton, surgeon U. S. N., and they had eight
children. General Cooke's death occurred April 10, 1891.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p302

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Brigadier-General William MacRae


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Brigadier-General William MacRae was born at Wilmington, NC,
September 9, 1834, the son of Gen. Alexander MacRae, whose
wife was the daughter of Zilpah McClammy.

His family was descended from the clan MacRae, of Rosshire,
Scotland, whose valor is recorded in the history of many
famous wars, from the Crusades to Waterloo.

He was educated for the profession of civil engineering, in
which he was occupied at Monroe when the crisis arrived
between the North and South.

He at once enlisted as a private in the Monroe light infantry,
and was elected captain when it became Company B, Fifteenth
infantry. In April, 1862, he was promoted lieutenant-colonel;
in February, 1863, colonel, and in 1864 was commissioned
brigadier-general.

In the peninsular campaign in Virginia and at Second Manassas
his regiment was a part of Howell Cobb's brigade, first under
the division command of Magruder and later of McLaws. At
Sharpsburg he commanded the brigade, reduced to 250 men,
repelled three assaults of the enemy, and fell back when he
had but 50 men left and the ammunition was exhausted.

At Fredericksburg he fought with his regiment at Marye's hill.
Immediately after this battle the Fifteenth was transferred to
J. R. Cooke's North Carolina brigade, with which he served in
his native State and southeast Virginia until after the
Pennsylvania campaign.

Rejoining the army of Northern Virginia, he was distinguished
for valor at the battle of Bristoe Station. After General
Kirkland was wounded at Cold Harbor, 1864, Colonel MacRae,
with the temporary rank of brigadier-general, was assigned to
the command of that brigade, General Pettigrew's old command,
and he proved a fit leader for the heroes which composed it.

He was identified with the record of Hill's Third army corps
during the Richmond campaign, among the bravest of the brave.
At Reams' Station, August 25, 1864, the brigade under his
command, in line with Lane and Cooke, advanced at double-quick
without firing a gun, drove Hancock's corps from its
intrenchments in their front, and captured a Federal battery
which was fought with valor equal to that of its assailants.

It may be said that the success of this assault was largely
due to the keenness of General MacRae in selecting the moment
to strike without waiting for orders.

At Burgess' Mill, October 27, 1864, he displayed remarkable
coolness and gallantry. Having advanced against the enemy,
broken his line and captured a battery, he was left
unsupported while the Federals closed about him. In this
predicament he drew back his flanks and kept up a desperate
fight, holding the enemy at bay until night approached, when
he cut his way back through the Federal lines partly formed in
his rear.

He was with the army to the end at Appomattox, and then
returned to his native State, penniless, but enshrined in the
hearts of his countrymen.

He had not gained high rank speedily during his service, but
his ability, as well as his modesty, was recognized by General
Lee as well as by the people, and it was generally understood
that a major-general's commission would in a measure have
rewarded his services if the war had not come to a sudden
close.

In civil life, during the years of peace which followed, he
was conspicuous as general superintendent of the Wilmington &
Manchester railroad, later of the Macon & Brunswick, and
finally of the State road of Georgia, now known as the Western
& Atlantic.

His intense application to the duties of these positions
wrecked his strength, and he died at Augusta, GA, February 11,
1882, at the age of forty-seven years.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p. 330

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Brigadier-General James H. Lane


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Brigadier-General James H. Lane was born at Matthews Court
House, Va., the son of Col. Walter G. and Mary A. H.
(Barkwell) Lane. He was one of the two "star graduates" of
his class at the Virginia military institute, and afterward
pursued a scientific course at the university of Virginia.

After serving on the hydrographic survey of York river, he was
appointed assistant professor of mathematics and tactics at
the Virginia military institute, and later professor of those
branches at the Florida State seminary. At the time of the
formation of the Confederate States government he was
professor of natural philosophy in the North Carolina military
institute at Charlotte.

With the other officers of the college he offered his services
to the State. He acted as drillmaster and adjutant in the
first camp of instruction near Raleigh, where he was elected
major of the First North Carolina volunteers, Col. D. H. Hill.

His first service was on the Virginia peninsula, where on July
8th, with a detachment composed of the Buncombe riflemen and
one gun of the Richmond howitzers, he attacked and chased a
marauding party across New Market bridge in full view of Old
Point and Hampton, becoming responsible, as Colonel Hill
publicly declared at the time, for the subsequent affair at
Big Bethel.

In that encounter he served in the salient before which Major
Winthrop was killed. His regiment here earned the title of
the "Bethel" regiment, and he was dubbed the "Little Major"
and elected lieutenant-colonel when Hill was promoted.

Not long afterward he was elected colonel of the Twenty-eighth
North Carolina regiment, which he reorganized for the war,
before the passage of the conscript acts. He was then again
unanimously elected colonel, and at inspection near Kinston
his command was complimented by General Holmes for being the
first of the twelve months' regiments to re-enlist for the
war.

He commanded his regiment at Hanover Court House when it was
cut off by the overwhelming force under Fitz John Porter, and
was praised by Generals Lee and Branch for the gallantry of
the fight and the masterly extrication from disaster. At Cold
Harbor he was wounded at the same time that the noble Campbell
fell in front of his regiment, colors in hand, and at
Frayser's Farm he received an ugly and painful wound in the
face while charging a battery, but refused to leave the field.

At Sharpsburg, when the brigade under Branch was hastening to
the left, Lane and his regiment were detached by A. P. Hill
and sent into the fight to support a battery and drive back
the enemy. About dark Lane received an order from Branch to
join the brigade, and when coming up met Major Engelhard, who,
in response to an inquiry as to where General Branch could be
found, replied in a voice choked with emotion:
"He has just been shot; there he goes on that stretcher, dead,
and you are in command of the brigade. "

Two days after, Lane's brigade, with Gregg's and Archer's,
constituted the rear guard of the army in crossing the
Potomac. The brigade hailed with delight Lane's promotion to
brigadier-general, which occurred November 1, 1862, christened
him their "Little General," and presented him a fine sash,
sword, saddle and bridle.

He was at this time twenty-seven years old. In his last
battle under Stonewall Jackson, Chancellorsville, he and his
North Carolinians fought with gallantry and devotion.

At Gettysburg he participated in the first shock of battle on
July 1st, and on the 3rd his brigade and Scales' formed the
division which Trimble led up Cemetery hill. In this bloody
sacrifice half his men were killed or wounded, and his horse
was killed under him.

ubsequently he was in command of the light division until the
12th, when it was consolidated with Heth's.

During 1864 he was in battle from the Rapidan to Cold Harbor.
At Spottsylvania Court House, at the critical moment when
Hancock, having overrun the famous angle and captured
Johnson's division, was about to advance through this break in
the Confederate line, Lane's brigade, stationed immediately on
the right of the angle, rapidly drew back to an unfinished
earthwork, in which he flung two of his regiments, while the
other three were posted behind them to load and pass up rifles
to the front line.

Thus a terrible fire was opened upon the Federals, which
checked their triumph and permitted Gordon's and other
divisions to arrive in time to hold the line.

At Cold Harbor General Lane received a painful wound in the
groin which disabled him for some time, but he was with his
brigade at Appomattox.

After the surrender he made his way, penniless, to his
childhood home, and found his parents ruined in fortune and
crushed in spirit by the loss of two brave sons, members of
their brother's staff.

He worked here until he could borrow $150 to assist him in
search of other employment. Since then he has been
prominently associated with educational work in the South,
serving eight years as commandant of cadets and professor of
natural philosophy in the Virginia agricultural and mechanical
college; for a short time as professor of mathematics in the
school of mines of the Missouri State university, and for a
long time with the Alabama agricultural and mechanical
college, first acting as commandant, as well as professor of
civil engineering and drawing, the chair he still holds.

He has received the degrees of Ph. D., from the university of
West Virginia, and LL. D., from Trinity college, North
Carolina. At the first interment of President Davis he was
one of the three guards of honor.

General Lane married Charlotte Randolph Meade, of Richmond,
who died several years ago, leaving four daughters.

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Brigadier-General Alfred Moore Scales


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Brigadier-General Alfred Moore Scales was born November 26,
1827, in Rockingham county, son of Dr. Robert H. Scales. He
was educated at the Caldwell institute and Chapel Hill, and
after teaching for a time, studied law with Judge Settle and
later with Judge Battle.

He was elected county solicitor in 1852, and was a member of
the house of commons in 1852-53. In 1854 he made a creditable
race as the Democratic candidate for Congress in a Whig
district. Again being elected to the legislature, he served
as chairman of the finance committee.

In 1857 he was elected to Congress over his former opponent,
but was defeated for re-election. From 1858 until the spring
of 1861 he held the office of clerk and master of the court of
equity of Rockingham county. In 1860 he was an elector on the
Breckinridge ticket, and in 1861 was a candidate for the
convention, favoring the calling of the same, though he did
not propose immediate secession.

Soon after the call for troops from Washington he volunteered
as a private in the North Carolina service, but was at once
elected captain of his company, H of the Thirteenth, and
succeeded General Pender as colonel in the following October.

He was engaged in the skirmishes at Yorktown, the battle of
Williamsburg and the Seven Days' campaign about Richmond,
Fredericksburg and Chancellorsville. In the latter engagement
he continued on the field, though shot through the thigh,
until loss of blood forced him to a halt.

It was to his regiment that General Pender said: "I have
nothing to say to you but to hold you all up as models in
duty, courage and daring." In his official report Pender
referred to Colonel Scales as "a man as gallant as is to be
found in the service. "

While at home, recovering from his wound, he was promoted to
brigadier-general June 13, 1863, and on his return was
assigned to the command of Pender's old brigade. In the first
day's fight at Gettysburg he fought with great gallantry, and
fell severely wounded by a fragment of shell on Seminary
ridge, where every field officer of his brigade was killed or
wounded save one, and his brigade, already sadly reduced by
its terrible sacrifices at Chancellorsville, lost in all
nearly 550 men.

With General Pender at his side he was carried back to
Virginia in an ambulance, and being left at Winchester,
recovered. He took part in the campaigns of the army of
Northern Virginia during 1864, in command of his brigade, and
was faithful to the end, though at home on sick furlough at
the time of the surrender.

He subsequently resumed the practice of law, a profession in
which he gained very high distinction. In 1874 he was elected
to the Forty-fourth Congress, and his career in this capacity
met with such general approval that he was re-elected to the
four succeeding Congresses.

He was then in 1884, chosen governor of North Carolina by a
majority of over twenty thousand votes. Upon the expiration
of his term as governor he retired permanently from political
life, repeatedly refusing to be returned to Congress.

In 1888 he was elected president of the Piedmont bank at
Greensboro, and continued as its president until he died, in
February, 1892.

At the time of his death at Greensboro all business houses
closed and the city turned out en masse to attend his funeral.
He was greatly beloved and respected by all who knew him, and
his home life was particularly pleasant and charming. He was
survived by his wife, Kate Henderson Scales, and his daughter,
Mrs. John N. Wynne, who now reside at Danville, Va.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p349
 

RANSOM, MATTHEW WHITTAKER
P295.gif
NORTH CAROLINA.
Lieutenant colonel, First North Carolina Infantry.
Colonel, Thirty-fifth North Carolina Infantry, , 1862.
Brigadier general, P. A. C. S., June 13, 1863.
Major general, 1865.

Commands.

Brigade composed of the Twenty-fourth, Twenty-fifth,
Thirty-fifth, Forty-ninth and Fifty-sixth North Carolina
Regiments Infantry, Longstreet's Corps, Army of Northern
Virginia.

Source: General Officers of the Confederate States of America


Brigadier-General Matthew Whittaker Ransom was born in Warren
county, N. C., in 1826. His father was Robert Ransom, who was
descended from a colonial Virginia family of Gloucester
county. His mother was Priscilla West Coffield Whittaker,
whose lineage is traced to Alexander Whittaker, the English
clergyman who baptized Pocahontas.

He was graduated at Chapel Hill, the State university, in
1847, and was soon afterward admitted to the practice of law.
The remarkable ability which he at once displayed led to his
election five years later as attorney-general of the State.

This office he resigned in 1855 to return to general practice.
Three years later he was called upon to represent his district
in the legislature, and was re-elected twice, serving until
1861. In the latter year he was sent by North Carolina as a
peace commissioner to the provisional congress at Montgomery.

At the organization of the First regiment of infantry, at
Warrenton, June 3, 1861, he was commissioned lieutenant-
colonel. Subsequently he was appointed colonel of the Thirty-
fifth regiment, of Robert Ransom's brigade. With this command
he participated in the Seven Days' battles before Richmond,
and was particularly distinguished in the repulse of a night
attack June 25th, and in the attack on Malvern hill, where his
regiment suffered severely and he was twice wounded, so that
he had to be carried from the field.

He was again on duty with his regiment in the Maryland
campaign, and during part of the battle of Sharpsburg had
temporary command of the brigade, repelling a Federal assault,
and pursuing the enemy and inflicting such punishment that no
further attack was made in that quarter during the day.

After the battle of Fredericksburg he served at Wilmington and
other points in North Carolina, and being promoted brigadier-
general took command of the brigade formerly led by Robert
Ransom.

He held the Suffolk line during the Gettysburg campaign, and
in the latter part of July defeated the enemy's advance toward
Weldon. He continued to serve in North Carolina during 1863,
participated in the capture of Plymouth, defeated the enemy at
Suffolk March 9, 1864, and then fought with Beauregard before
Petersburg, with Longstreet on the north side of the James,
and in Bushrod Johnson's division on the Crater line.

During the latter part of 1864 he was in command of this
division, comprising his own brigade and those of Wise, Gracie
and Wallace. In the famous assault upon the Federal works on
Hare's hill, March 25, 1865, he commanded two brigades, whose
service was particularly complimented by General Lee.

He was again in battle at Five Forks, and finally surrendered
with Lee at Appomattox.

After the close of hostilities he resumed the practice of law
and engaged in planting, until 1872, when he was elected to
the United States Senate, where he served by re-election a
continuous period of twenty-four years.

As a member of this exalted body he rendered efficient service
to his State, and while retaining the affections of the people
of whom he was part, gained the respect and admiration of the
representatives of the whole nation.

As a forcible and elegant public speaker and a wise councilor
he held a high position during his public career in the
Democratic party. In the second administration of President
Cleveland he served as minister to Mexico, succeeding ex-
Governor Gray, of Indiana.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p. 343
.................................................................................................


Brigadier-General Rufus Barringer


P425.gif





Brigadier-General Rufus Barringer was born in Cabarrus county,
N. C., December 2, 1821. He was of sturdy German stock, a
grandson of John Paul Barringer, who was born in Wurtemburg,
June 4, 1721, and emigrated to this country, arriving at
Philadelphia, in the ship Phoenix, September 30, 1743.

John Paul or Paulus Barringer, as he was called, married
Catharine, daughter of Caleb Blackwelder and Polly Decker of
Germany. Of their ten children by this (second) marriage, the
eldest, Paul Barringer, was prominent in the service of the
State and was commissioned a brigadier-general during the war
of 1812. During his infancy his grandfather Blackwelder, and
his father Paulus Barringer, a captain in the colonial militia
and a conspicuous member of the committee of safety, were
taken prisoners by the tories and carried to Cheraw, S. C.

Paul Barringer married Elizabeth, daughter of Jean Armstrong
and Matthew Brandon, who was with Joseph Graham and Colonel
Locke in the repulse of the British near Charlotte, and also
served with Col. John Brandon at Ramseur's mill.

Gen. Rufus Barringer, son of the above, was born in 1821, and
was graduated at North Carolina university in 1842. He
studied law with his brother Moreau, then with Chief Justice
Pearson, settling in Concord. A Whig in politics, in 1848 he
served in the lower house of the State legislature, and here
was in advance of his time in advocating a progressive system
of internal improvements.

The following session he was elected to the State senate. He
then devoted himself to his practice until he was made in 1860
a Whig elector in behalf of Bell and Everett. He was
tenacious of his principles, and not to be swerved from duty
by any amount of ridicule or opposition; was devotedly
attached to the Union and the Constitution, and with rare
discernment saw that the consequence of secession would be
war, the fiercest and bloodiest of modern times, and he was so
outspoken with his convictions that he was once caricatured in
the streets of Charlotte.

However, when he saw that war was inevitable, his duty to his
State came uppermost, and even before the final ordinance of
secession was passed he urged the legislature, then in
session, to arm the State and warn the people that they must
now prepare for war.

He himself was among the first to volunteer. He raised in
Cabarrus county a company of cavalry, of which he was chosen
captain and which became Company F, First North Carolina
cavalry, his commission bearing date May 16, 1861.

He was promoted to major, August 26, 1863, and three months
later to lieutenant-colonel. In June, 1864, he was
commissioned brigadier-general, and succeeded to the command
of the North Carolina cavalry brigade, consisting of the
First, Second, Third and Fifth regiments.

General Barringer was in seventy-six actions and was thrice
wounded, most severely at Brandy Station. He had two horses
killed under him at other engagements. He was conspicuous at
the battles of Willis' Church, Brandy Station, Auburn Mills;
Buckland Races, where he led the charge; Davis' Farm, where he
was commander; and he was in command of a division at Reams'
Station.

His brigade was distinguished at Chamberlain Run, March 31,
1865, when it forded a stream one hundred yards wide, saddle-
girth deep, under a galling fire, and drove back a division of
Federal cavalry, this being the last decisive Confederate
victory on Virginia soil.

On April 3, 1865, at Namozine church, he was taken prisoner by
a party of "Jesse scouts" disguised as Confederates, Colonel
Young and Captain Rowland among them, and sent to City Point
along with General Ewell.

President Lincoln, then at City Point, was at Colonel Bowers'
tent and asked that General Barringer be presented to him,
jocosely adding, "You know I have never seen a real live rebel
general in uniform. " The President greeted him warmly, and
was pleased to recall acquaintanceship with his elder brother,
D. M. Barringer, with whom he served in Congress.

General Barringer was then sent on to the old Capitol prison,
and afterward transferred to Fort Delaware, where he was
detained till August, 1865. While there, he had the
opportunity of ascertaining the current of public sentiment in
regard to the results of the war, and as he had foreseen that
war would follow secession, he now realized that the
conquerors decreed free suffrage, and believed the wisest
action of the South would be to accept the consequences.

With his accustomed directness and fearlessness of action, he
advocated the acceptance of the reconstruction acts of 1867,
and urged his fellow citizens to the policy he believed best
suited to the country. Of course he suffered from the violent
animosity incident to political differences, yet the
appreciation of his home people was shown by his election in
1875 to the State constitutional convention, as a Republican
from a Democratic county, and though defeated for lieutenant-
governor in 1880, his own Democratic county gave him a
majority of its votes.

In 1865 General Barringer removed to Charlotte, and resumed
the practice of law till 1884; at first in partnership with
Judge Osborne. After his retirement from the bar he devoted
himself to his farming interests, striving to imbue the farmer
with ambition for improvement in himself and his
circumstances.

For this purpose he often had recourse to the press, the last
week of his life contributing to the papers an article
protesting against the farmers' desertion of their homes for
the towns. He had abiding faith in the power of the press and
in its influence for good.

Among his latest pleasures were talking with the old veterans
and contributing to the history of the war. In 1881 he wrote
a series of cavalry sketches describing the battles of Five
Forks and Chamberlain Run, Namozine Church, and other notable
engagements, which are preserved to-day among the most
interesting and valuable historical data of the war; and again
he made valuable contributions to " The War Between the
States," published by John A. Sloane.

He was ever interested in history, and zealous of the fame of
North Carolina. He wrote sketches of "The Dutch Side," a
history of the "Battle of Ramseur's Mill," "A History of the
North Carolina Railroad," etc.

On November 19, 1894, came a plea from Judge Clark for a
history of the Ninth regiment, State troops (First North
Carolina cavalry), saying, "You are very busy, and that is one
reason you are selected. Only busy men have the energy and
talent to do this work. Your record as a soldier satisfies me
that you will not decline the post of duty. "

Already confined to bed, he called for books and papers, and
with the zeal and haste of one impressed with the importance
of the work and the shortness of time, he put on the finishing
touches not many days before the end. It was a labor of love.

The purpose of his thought, which never seemed to weaken, was
the uplifting of his fellow men, the prosperity of his beloved
church, and care for his old comrades. One of his last
injunctions to his son was, "Remember Company F; see that not
one of them ever suffers want. They ever loved me, they were
ever faithful to me, and Paul, always stand by our Confederate
soldiers, and North Carolina. Let her never be traduced."

He died February 3, 1895, leaving a wife and three sons; the
eldest, Dr. Paul Barringer, now chairman of the university of
Virginia; the youngest, Osmond Long Barringer, with his mother
in Charlotte. His first wife was Eugenia Morrison, sister of
Mrs. T. J. (Stonewall) Jackson; the second Rosalie Chunn, of
Asheville; the surviving one Margaret Long of Orange county.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p294

................................................................................................
Brigadier-General William Paul Roberts


P302.gif





Brigadier-General William Paul Roberts was born in Gates
county, N. C., July 11, 1841. Before he was twenty years old
he entered the Confederate service as a noncommissioned
officer in the Nineteenth North Carolina regiment, or Second
cavalry, Col. S. B. Spuill.

He was promoted third lieutenant August 30, 1861; first
lieutenant September 13, 1862; captain November 19, 1863, and
though the junior captain, soon attained the rank of major.
He served with distinction during the operations of the
regiment in North Carolina, until transferred to Virginia in
the fall of 1862.

He then served on the Rappahannock line, at Fredericksburg, in
the Suffolk campaign, and in the famous battle of Brandy
Station, where the gallant Col. Sol Williams was killed.
After participating in the fighting of the spring of 1864, in
the North Carolina brigade of W. H. F. Lee's division, Roberts
was promoted to colonel of the regiment.

At Reams' Station, August 25th, with his regiment dismounted
he made a gallant charge upon the enemy's rifle-pits, carrying
them handsomely and capturing a number of prisoners. February
21, 1865, he was promoted brigadier-general, and General Lee's
gauntlets were presented him by the great chieftain as a mark
of personal recognition of the young hero's distinguished
gallantry.

With his command, mainly composed of North Carolinians, he
fought with valor at Five Forks, and during the retreat to
Appomattox.

After the close of hostilities he addressed himself with the
same activity and courage to the reestablishment of the State
and the restoration of its prosperity. In 1875 he represented
Gates county in the convention, and in 1876-77 served in the
legislature.

In 1880 and 1884 he was elected auditor of State, an office
the duties of which he discharged with notable ability for a
period of eight years.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p348
 
RANSOM, MATTHEW WHITTAKER
P295.gif
NORTH CAROLINA.
Lieutenant colonel, First North Carolina Infantry.
Colonel, Thirty-fifth North Carolina Infantry, , 1862.
Brigadier general, P. A. C. S., June 13, 1863.
Major general, 1865.

Commands.

Brigade composed of the Twenty-fourth, Twenty-fifth,
Thirty-fifth, Forty-ninth and Fifty-sixth North Carolina
Regiments Infantry, Longstreet's Corps, Army of Northern
Virginia.

Source: General Officers of the Confederate States of America


Brigadier-General Matthew Whittaker Ransom was born in Warren
county, N. C., in 1826. His father was Robert Ransom, who was
descended from a colonial Virginia family of Gloucester
county. His mother was Priscilla West Coffield Whittaker,
whose lineage is traced to Alexander Whittaker, the English
clergyman who baptized Pocahontas.

He was graduated at Chapel Hill, the State university, in
1847, and was soon afterward admitted to the practice of law.
The remarkable ability which he at once displayed led to his
election five years later as attorney-general of the State.

This office he resigned in 1855 to return to general practice.
Three years later he was called upon to represent his district
in the legislature, and was re-elected twice, serving until
1861. In the latter year he was sent by North Carolina as a
peace commissioner to the provisional congress at Montgomery.

At the organization of the First regiment of infantry, at
Warrenton, June 3, 1861, he was commissioned lieutenant-
colonel. Subsequently he was appointed colonel of the Thirty-
fifth regiment, of Robert Ransom's brigade. With this command
he participated in the Seven Days' battles before Richmond,
and was particularly distinguished in the repulse of a night
attack June 25th, and in the attack on Malvern hill, where his
regiment suffered severely and he was twice wounded, so that
he had to be carried from the field.

He was again on duty with his regiment in the Maryland
campaign, and during part of the battle of Sharpsburg had
temporary command of the brigade, repelling a Federal assault,
and pursuing the enemy and inflicting such punishment that no
further attack was made in that quarter during the day.

After the battle of Fredericksburg he served at Wilmington and
other points in North Carolina, and being promoted brigadier-
general took command of the brigade formerly led by Robert
Ransom.

He held the Suffolk line during the Gettysburg campaign, and
in the latter part of July defeated the enemy's advance toward
Weldon. He continued to serve in North Carolina during 1863,
participated in the capture of Plymouth, defeated the enemy at
Suffolk March 9, 1864, and then fought with Beauregard before
Petersburg, with Longstreet on the north side of the James,
and in Bushrod Johnson's division on the Crater line.

During the latter part of 1864 he was in command of this
division, comprising his own brigade and those of Wise, Gracie
and Wallace. In the famous assault upon the Federal works on
Hare's hill, March 25, 1865, he commanded two brigades, whose
service was particularly complimented by General Lee.

He was again in battle at Five Forks, and finally surrendered
with Lee at Appomattox.

After the close of hostilities he resumed the practice of law
and engaged in planting, until 1872, when he was elected to
the United States Senate, where he served by re-election a
continuous period of twenty-four years.

As a member of this exalted body he rendered efficient service
to his State, and while retaining the affections of the people
of whom he was part, gained the respect and admiration of the
representatives of the whole nation.

As a forcible and elegant public speaker and a wise councilor
he held a high position during his public career in the
Democratic party. In the second administration of President
Cleveland he served as minister to Mexico, succeeding ex-
Governor Gray, of Indiana.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p. 343
.................................................................................................


Brigadier-General Rufus Barringer


P425.gif





Brigadier-General Rufus Barringer was born in Cabarrus county,
N. C., December 2, 1821. He was of sturdy German stock, a
grandson of John Paul Barringer, who was born in Wurtemburg,
June 4, 1721, and emigrated to this country, arriving at
Philadelphia, in the ship Phoenix, September 30, 1743.

John Paul or Paulus Barringer, as he was called, married
Catharine, daughter of Caleb Blackwelder and Polly Decker of
Germany. Of their ten children by this (second) marriage, the
eldest, Paul Barringer, was prominent in the service of the
State and was commissioned a brigadier-general during the war
of 1812. During his infancy his grandfather Blackwelder, and
his father Paulus Barringer, a captain in the colonial militia
and a conspicuous member of the committee of safety, were
taken prisoners by the tories and carried to Cheraw, S. C.

Paul Barringer married Elizabeth, daughter of Jean Armstrong
and Matthew Brandon, who was with Joseph Graham and Colonel
Locke in the repulse of the British near Charlotte, and also
served with Col. John Brandon at Ramseur's mill.

Gen. Rufus Barringer, son of the above, was born in 1821, and
was graduated at North Carolina university in 1842. He
studied law with his brother Moreau, then with Chief Justice
Pearson, settling in Concord. A Whig in politics, in 1848 he
served in the lower house of the State legislature, and here
was in advance of his time in advocating a progressive system
of internal improvements.

The following session he was elected to the State senate. He
then devoted himself to his practice until he was made in 1860
a Whig elector in behalf of Bell and Everett. He was
tenacious of his principles, and not to be swerved from duty
by any amount of ridicule or opposition; was devotedly
attached to the Union and the Constitution, and with rare
discernment saw that the consequence of secession would be
war, the fiercest and bloodiest of modern times, and he was so
outspoken with his convictions that he was once caricatured in
the streets of Charlotte.

However, when he saw that war was inevitable, his duty to his
State came uppermost, and even before the final ordinance of
secession was passed he urged the legislature, then in
session, to arm the State and warn the people that they must
now prepare for war.

He himself was among the first to volunteer. He raised in
Cabarrus county a company of cavalry, of which he was chosen
captain and which became Company F, First North Carolina
cavalry, his commission bearing date May 16, 1861.

He was promoted to major, August 26, 1863, and three months
later to lieutenant-colonel. In June, 1864, he was
commissioned brigadier-general, and succeeded to the command
of the North Carolina cavalry brigade, consisting of the
First, Second, Third and Fifth regiments.

General Barringer was in seventy-six actions and was thrice
wounded, most severely at Brandy Station. He had two horses
killed under him at other engagements. He was conspicuous at
the battles of Willis' Church, Brandy Station, Auburn Mills;
Buckland Races, where he led the charge; Davis' Farm, where he
was commander; and he was in command of a division at Reams'
Station.

His brigade was distinguished at Chamberlain Run, March 31,
1865, when it forded a stream one hundred yards wide, saddle-
girth deep, under a galling fire, and drove back a division of
Federal cavalry, this being the last decisive Confederate
victory on Virginia soil.

On April 3, 1865, at Namozine church, he was taken prisoner by
a party of "Jesse scouts" disguised as Confederates, Colonel
Young and Captain Rowland among them, and sent to City Point
along with General Ewell.

President Lincoln, then at City Point, was at Colonel Bowers'
tent and asked that General Barringer be presented to him,
jocosely adding, "You know I have never seen a real live rebel
general in uniform. " The President greeted him warmly, and
was pleased to recall acquaintanceship with his elder brother,
D. M. Barringer, with whom he served in Congress.

General Barringer was then sent on to the old Capitol prison,
and afterward transferred to Fort Delaware, where he was
detained till August, 1865. While there, he had the
opportunity of ascertaining the current of public sentiment in
regard to the results of the war, and as he had foreseen that
war would follow secession, he now realized that the
conquerors decreed free suffrage, and believed the wisest
action of the South would be to accept the consequences.

With his accustomed directness and fearlessness of action, he
advocated the acceptance of the reconstruction acts of 1867,
and urged his fellow citizens to the policy he believed best
suited to the country. Of course he suffered from the violent
animosity incident to political differences, yet the
appreciation of his home people was shown by his election in
1875 to the State constitutional convention, as a Republican
from a Democratic county, and though defeated for lieutenant-
governor in 1880, his own Democratic county gave him a
majority of its votes.

In 1865 General Barringer removed to Charlotte, and resumed
the practice of law till 1884; at first in partnership with
Judge Osborne. After his retirement from the bar he devoted
himself to his farming interests, striving to imbue the farmer
with ambition for improvement in himself and his
circumstances.

For this purpose he often had recourse to the press, the last
week of his life contributing to the papers an article
protesting against the farmers' desertion of their homes for
the towns. He had abiding faith in the power of the press and
in its influence for good.

Among his latest pleasures were talking with the old veterans
and contributing to the history of the war. In 1881 he wrote
a series of cavalry sketches describing the battles of Five
Forks and Chamberlain Run, Namozine Church, and other notable
engagements, which are preserved to-day among the most
interesting and valuable historical data of the war; and again
he made valuable contributions to " The War Between the
States," published by John A. Sloane.

He was ever interested in history, and zealous of the fame of
North Carolina. He wrote sketches of "The Dutch Side," a
history of the "Battle of Ramseur's Mill," "A History of the
North Carolina Railroad," etc.

On November 19, 1894, came a plea from Judge Clark for a
history of the Ninth regiment, State troops (First North
Carolina cavalry), saying, "You are very busy, and that is one
reason you are selected. Only busy men have the energy and
talent to do this work. Your record as a soldier satisfies me
that you will not decline the post of duty. "

Already confined to bed, he called for books and papers, and
with the zeal and haste of one impressed with the importance
of the work and the shortness of time, he put on the finishing
touches not many days before the end. It was a labor of love.

The purpose of his thought, which never seemed to weaken, was
the uplifting of his fellow men, the prosperity of his beloved
church, and care for his old comrades. One of his last
injunctions to his son was, "Remember Company F; see that not
one of them ever suffers want. They ever loved me, they were
ever faithful to me, and Paul, always stand by our Confederate
soldiers, and North Carolina. Let her never be traduced."

He died February 3, 1895, leaving a wife and three sons; the
eldest, Dr. Paul Barringer, now chairman of the university of
Virginia; the youngest, Osmond Long Barringer, with his mother
in Charlotte. His first wife was Eugenia Morrison, sister of
Mrs. T. J. (Stonewall) Jackson; the second Rosalie Chunn, of
Asheville; the surviving one Margaret Long of Orange county.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p294

................................................................................................
Brigadier-General William Paul Roberts


P302.gif





Brigadier-General William Paul Roberts was born in Gates
county, N. C., July 11, 1841. Before he was twenty years old
he entered the Confederate service as a noncommissioned
officer in the Nineteenth North Carolina regiment, or Second
cavalry, Col. S. B. Spuill.

He was promoted third lieutenant August 30, 1861; first
lieutenant September 13, 1862; captain November 19, 1863, and
though the junior captain, soon attained the rank of major.
He served with distinction during the operations of the
regiment in North Carolina, until transferred to Virginia in
the fall of 1862.

He then served on the Rappahannock line, at Fredericksburg, in
the Suffolk campaign, and in the famous battle of Brandy
Station, where the gallant Col. Sol Williams was killed.
After participating in the fighting of the spring of 1864, in
the North Carolina brigade of W. H. F. Lee's division, Roberts
was promoted to colonel of the regiment.

At Reams' Station, August 25th, with his regiment dismounted
he made a gallant charge upon the enemy's rifle-pits, carrying
them handsomely and capturing a number of prisoners. February
21, 1865, he was promoted brigadier-general, and General Lee's
gauntlets were presented him by the great chieftain as a mark
of personal recognition of the young hero's distinguished
gallantry.

With his command, mainly composed of North Carolinians, he
fought with valor at Five Forks, and during the retreat to
Appomattox.

After the close of hostilities he addressed himself with the
same activity and courage to the reestablishment of the State
and the restoration of its prosperity. In 1875 he represented
Gates county in the convention, and in 1876-77 served in the
legislature.

In 1880 and 1884 he was elected auditor of State, an office
the duties of which he discharged with notable ability for a
period of eight years.

Source: Confederate Military History, vol. V, p348

East Tennessee, great work and thanks for posting.

Over the past several months I have prepared and given programs on the 23rd NC infantry, Robert D, Johnston brigade. With emphasis on Co. D

46th NC inf. John R.Cooke brigade emphasis Co.D

18th NC inf., James H. Lane brigade emphasis Co. F.

All three companies were locally raised.
 
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