The Fontenot Brothers of Louisiana

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Three of the six Fontenot brothers (left to right) Hypolite, Denis and Horthere of the “Opelousas Guards,” Company F., 8th Louisiana Infantry.

Hypolite O. Fontenot, Company F, 8th LA Infantry, enlisted March 30th, 1862 Opelousas, LA, residence Ville Platte, LA POW captured Rappahannock, VA, November 7th, 1863, exchanged March 10th, 1864, mortally wounded July 9th, 1864 and left in the enemy's hands, died August 5th from pneumonia (wounded at Frederick, MD).

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All privates in the “Opelousas Guards,” Company F., 8th Louisiana Infantry. Identified (from left) as four of the six Fontenot brothers—Hypolite, Denis, Alexander, and Horthere—from Ville Platte, St. Landry’s Parish near Opelousas who served in the gallant 8th Louisiana, Army of Northern Virginia. Each of the Fontenots has placed his hand on the shoulder of his sibling making for an enduring composition rich in innocence and brotherly camaraderie. The two older boys, Denis and Alexander, survived the war; the younger two, Hypolite and Horthere in uniform, did not.

Alexander enlisted in the original Opelousas Guards at Camp Moore, La. in June 1861 while his brothers waited until March 1862 and were forwarded to the regiment in the field as “recruits.” The 8th Louisiana was engaged in the Valley fighting at the time and managed to replace heavy losses with drafts from back home. Records show Hypolite as “wounded” at Gettysburg July 2, 1863, and later that year captured at Rappahannock, Virginia on November 7. He was a POW at Point Lookout, Maryland until exchanged on March 10, 1864, rejoining his regiment.

The unfortunate Hypolite was “mortally wounded” on July 9, 1864 and “left in the enemy’s hand,” dying the next day in hospital. Denis was captured at Spotsylvania Court House on May 15, 1864 and paroled nine months later on February 25, 1865. He was stricken with small pox in April and sent to the US Hospital in Richmond where he recovered. Alexander had spent several months sick in Centerville, Virginia before being detailed as a brigade teamster with the Quartermaster Dept. for the duration.

At the end of the war he was hospitalized and released in June 1865 after signing his oath. Brother Horthere also spent most of his early service sick in the hospital in Lynchburg, Virginia being furloughed to Louisiana to recover. Horthere was then “present” at Chancellorsville and Gettysburg where he was “mortally wounded” July 2nd or 3rd and died shortly thereafter in a field hospital.

http://www.pinterest.com/pin/466404105129449670/
http://www.cowanauctions.com/auctions/item.aspx?ItemId=12272



The 8th Louisiana Infantry Regiment

1861 June 15; Organized at Camp Moore, Louisiana. July 17; Arrived in Manassas. July 21; Reserve Guard at Manassas. ~ Became part of 1st Louisiana Brigade. Wintered in northern Virginia and in the spring joined General Stonewall Jackson's army in the Shenandoah Valley.

1862 May 23; Participated in the capture of Front Royal. May 25; Winchester. May 30; Part of the regiment captured at Front Royal. June 8; Limited action at Cross Keys. June 9; Port Republic. June 27; Gaines' Mill. July 1; Malvern Hill. August 27-28; Skirmish at Bristoe Station and Kettle Run. August 29; Drove back Federal attack at 2nd Manassas. September 1; Chantilly. September 17; 103 killed or wounded at Sharpsburg. December 13; In reserve at Fredericksburg.

1863 May 3-4; Marye's Heights and Salem Church. June 13-14; In reserve at Winchester. July 1; Helped route part of the Federal army near Gettysburg. July 2; Lost flag in attack on Cemetery Hill. October 9-22; Bristoe Station Campaign. November 7; 162 captured at Rappahannock Station.

1864 May 5; Battle of the Wilderness. May 12; Helped stop Federal attack that overran most of the entrenchments known as the Mule Shoe. June 1-3; Cold Harbor. July 9; Monocacy. July 24; Winchester. August 25; Shepherdstown. September 19; Winchester. September 21-22; Fisher's Hill. October 19; Cedar Creek. December; Returned to Petersburg.

1865 February-March; Petersburg. April 9; 3 Officers and 54 enlisted men surrendered at Appomattox.

The 8th Louisiana Regiment was organized June 15, 1861 at Camp Moore, Louisiana with 889 men. Companies of the regiment included; Company A (Creole Guards) of East Baton Rouge Parish, Company B (Bienville Rifles) of Orleans Parish, Company C (Attakapas Guards) of St. Martin Parish, Company D (Sumter Guards) of Orleans Parish, Company E (Franklin Sharpshooters) of Franklin Parish, Company F (Opelousas Guards) of St. Landry Parish, Company G (Minden Blues) of Claiborne Parish, Company H (Cheneyville Rifles) of Rapides Parish, Company I (Rapides Invincibles) of Rapides Parish and Company K (Phoenix Company) of Ascension Parish.

Of the 1,321 men enrolled in the regiment during the war, 252 were killed, 171 died if disease, 2 murdered, 1 died in an accident, and about 80 deserted.

https://sites.google.com/site/hardtackjournal/home/8th-louisiana/history
 
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Thought I'd go back to this old thread and post this image of Pvt. Thomas Taylor here as well. I've seen the photo many times but just recently realized he was also of Company F, 8th Louisiana and I bet he knew the Fontenot brothers.

The son of a prominent Louisiana politician, Thomas Taylor enlisted as a private in Company F, 8th Louisiana Infantry Regiment which served in the Army of Northern Virginia throughout the war. He fought with his company in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign in 1862, the Second Battle of Manassas and he was severely wounded on 17 September 1862 at the Battle of Sharpsburg, Maryland. He survived the wound and the war.

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Here is the full ambrotype of Thomas Taylor, from the Virginia Museum of History & Culture's collection.

Note that he was actually a member of Company K "Phoenix Company" of the 8th Louisiana, but in Portraits of Conflict: A Photographic History of Louisiana in the Civil War he is misidentified as a member of Co. F, hence my mistake above.

Cpl. Thomas Taylor, Co. K, 8th Louisiana Infantry.jpg


Description:

Half-plate ambrotype with applied color of a full length portrait of Corporal Thomas Taylor in uniform, holding a rifle with a bayonet. The front and back case sections are detached from each other. Adhered to reverse is an old museum identification number, LA 85. Inscription on back: Thomas Taylor - a private soldier who belonged to Company K. of the 8th Louisiana Regiment - of the 8th Brigade C.S.A. "I am glad to report that my chief service in the field was with 'Stonewall Jackson,' our regiment helping to win his first decisive victories in the Valley Campaign in which he chased Banks from Winchester into Maryland - and led to the active, vigorous and [wond]erful successes of the Confederate [for]ce immediately after, Wounded and taken prisoner [at]the Battle of Sharpsburg-." Given by Mrs Mary May of New Orleans.​

http://museumcatalog.virginiahistory.org/final/portal.aspx?lang=en-US


Thomas was born in Assumption Parish, LA, the son of Miles Taylor, an attorney and U.S. Congressman before the war. He enlisted at 20 years old, June 19, 1861, at Camp Moore, LA. He is described as a single farmer, five feet nine inches tall, with light complexion and hair and blue eyes.

Thomas was present through 1861 to 62, serving in the Shenandoah Valley Campaign, Seven Days battles, Second Manassas, until severely wounded at Antietam. Fighting in the vicinity of the Cornfield during the morning phase of the battle, the 1st (Hays') Louisiana Brigade lost 334 out of only 550 engaged. Taylor was struck by a bullet just above his left knee, was left on the field and captured. Initially sent to U.S. General Hospital No. 4 in Frederick, MD, he was later transferred to Saratoga, NY, to recover. Eight months later he was shipped to City Point, VA, where he was exchanged and admitted to the Confederate hospital at Petersburg on May 23, 1863. There he was examined and given a sixty-day furlough, but he would never return to his regiment or see action again due to his wounds. He was later detailed to the Confederate Quartermaster Department at Montgomery, AL. At war's end Taylor surrendered and was paroled at Montgomery on May 15, 1865.


Some of his items can be viewed here, including a jacket he was issued from the Quartermaster Department at Montgomery: https://moconfederacy.pastperfectonline.com/byperson?keyword=Taylor,+Thomas


The above and below photos were probably taken in late 1861. I think he is wearing a uniform from the Louisiana state quartermaster, as indicated by the black trim on his jacket and what appears to be stripes on the sides of his trousers.


Another image of Thomas Taylor, from Antietam: The Photographic Legacy of America's Bloodiest Day by William A. Frassanito:

Thomas Taylor.jpg
 
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@Guepe you might be interested in this. Enlisted men with more than one photo of them taken during the war.
 
It's crazy going back through threads in this forum- you could spend 3 days getting side tracked. Adding ' sharable ' tags to quite a few. There's an astonishing amount of amazing images every, single page.
 
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