"Unidentified general"

[rosefiend]

At first I was going, "Well how could they not identify this general?" Then I figured out that there were approximately ... *makes up random number* 537 million generals in the army.

This is what the Library of Congress says about him:

[Unidentified general, bust portrait, facing left]

• Digital ID: (digital file from original item) ppmsca 35226 http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/ppmsca.35226
• Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-ppmsca-35226 (digital file from original item)
• Repository: Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division Washington, D.C. 20540 USA http://hdl.loc.gov/loc.pnp/pp.print

He's a bit of a faded fellow, though, so good luck!!

• 

 

[James N.]

At first I was going, "Well how could they not identify this general?" Then I figured out that there were approximately ... *makes up random number* 537 million generals in the army...

The Bibles of Civil War generals are Ezra Warner's Generals In Blue and Generals in Gray; in the latter he identifies 425 Confederates (plus another dozen or so who were appointed by Edmund Kirby Smith in the Trans-Mississippi but never confirmed) and in the former there are over 600 Federal, not counting the very many more colonels who were retired as generals by brevet (honorary) at the end of the war. That makes somewhere over a thousand total.

 

[James N.]

Something looks peculiar about this fellow's uniform, though: the button spacing's off because of that lone stray button at the very top - they should be grouped evenly in two rows in pairs (like the next two appear to be) for brigadiers; or in threes for major generals. Majors, lt. col's. and colonels had two rows of evenly spaced single buttons.

 

[7th Texas Mounted Rifles]

The Bibles of Civil War generals are Ezra Warner's Generals In Blue and Generals in Gray; in the latter he identifies 425 Confederates (plus another dozen or so who were appointed by Edmund Kirby Smith in the Trans-Mississippi but never confirmed) and in the former there are over 600 Federal, not counting the very many more colonels who were retired as generals by brevet (honorary) at the end of the war. That makes somewhere over a thousand total.

Well thank you, James.

Your high praise convinced me to 'pull the Amazon trigger' on both the Blue and Gray volumes of Warner's work.

I have probably 10 different 'generic overview' books on the Civil War generals, and not a single one is even halfway convenient for researching anyone other than the 'big names'.

I am excited to finally have a nearly all-encompassing resource.

 

[rosefiend]

Something looks peculiar about this fellow's uniform, though: the button spacing's off because of that lone stray button at the very top - they should be grouped evenly in two rows in pairs (like the next two appear to be) for brigadiers; or in threes for major generals. Majors, lt. col's. and colonels had two rows of evenly spaced single buttons.

Maybe he needed an extra button to hang, I don't know, stuff on?

His profile is crazy flat. It's like you could almost make a perfectly straight line down from his forehead to his beard.

 

[Patrick H]

Rosefiend, you just made me chuckle with your tongue in cheek speculation about the button.

 

[AndyHall]

Well thank you, James.

Your high praise convinced me to 'pull the Amazon trigger' on both the Blue and Gray volumes of Warner's work.

I probably 10 different 'generic overview' books on Civil War generals, and not a single one is even halfway convenient for researching anyone other than the 'big names'.

I am excited to finally have a nearly all-encompassing resource.

Those two books really ought to be in anyone's reference library. They've been around for decades, and have been supplemented (and in a few cases corrected) subsequently, but they're still mighty useful. You can probably pick them up cheap second-hand.

Who was and who was not officially recognized as a general gets very fuzzy. It's even more confusing when veterans in the UCV and GAR took on rank titles in those organizations that have little connection to their actual wartime appointments.

Two additional books that you might want to think about are Bruce Allardice's More Generals in Gray and Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register.

 

[rosefiend]

Another unidentified general! I hope those books have lots of pics, Andy and James, cause we're gonna need them.

• Title: [Unknown general]
• Creator(s): Brooks, Alden Finney, 1840-1932, artist
• Date Created/Published: [between 1862 and 1865]
• Medium: 1 drawing on cream paper : black ink and ink wash ; 11.4 x 8.8 cm. (sheet).
• Summary: Bust portrait of military officer in uniform.
• Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-22327 (digital file from original item)
• Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication.
  
• Call Number: DRWG/US - Brooks, no. 6 (AA size) [P&P]

 

[7th Texas Mounted Rifles]

(Duplicate Post)

 

[GELongstreet]

...

• Creator(s): Brooks, Alden Finney, 1840-1932, artist

...

Brooks enlisted in the 105th Ohio in 1862 and in 1864/65 served on the staff of George H. Thomas. So we can assume that thise picture was made late in the war and depicts somebody who was serving in the west/south at that time.

 

[7th Texas Mounted Rifles]

Those two books really ought to be in anyone's reference library. They've been around for decades, and have been supplemented (and in a few cases corrected) subsequently, But they're still mighty useful.

Who was and who was not officially recognized as a general gets very fuzzy. It's even more confusing when veterans in the UCV and GAR took on rank titles in those organizations that have little connection to their actual wartime appointments.

Two additional books that you might want to think about are Bruce Allardice's More Generals in Gray and Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register.

Andy,

Great information - so back to Amazon I go!

 

[GELongstreet]

Those two books really ought to be in anyone's reference library. They've been around for decades, and have been supplemented (and in a few cases corrected) subsequently, But they're still mighty useful.

Who was and who was not officially recognized as a general gets very fuzzy. It's even more confusing when veterans in the UCV and GAR took on rank titles in those organizations that have little connection to their actual wartime appointments.

Two additional books that you might want to think about are Bruce Allardice's More Generals in Gray and Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register.

Another one would be Civil War High Commands by John H. and David J. Eicher. My bible equivalent; great, grand and heavy ... but rather expensive so you should keep you eyes open for a used one. Was lucky to get a remainder book with a slight fault on the front cover that reduced the price to 1/3.

 

[James N.]

Well thank you, James.

Your high praise convinced me to 'pull the Amazon trigger' on both the Blue and Gray volumes of Warner's work.

I have probably 10 different 'generic overview' books on the Civil War generals, and not a single one is even halfway convenient for researching anyone other than the 'big names'.

I am excited to finally have a nearly all-encompassing resource.

I'm a visual sort of guy, as you might infer from the kinds of threads I create here, and one thing I like about Warner's books is that although the biographies are by necessity brief, usually a single page or less, there's a photo of each subject. Actually, my edition of Generals in Gray is so old (my mother gave it to me for Christmas back when I was in Junior High!) it had been published with one elusive subject not pictured. (I forget who.) In subsequent editions though this 425th general has received his due!

 

[rbasin]

Looks vaguely familiar.

 

[Reb]

Iv'e got an unidentified General for you...... His name is Thomas Cheatham Little, and he served in Capt. Jackson's Co., Tennessee Cavalry, CSA, also known as "Forrest's Escort". The reason I say he is an unidentified General is because he was a really a Private. He was born in 1848. He was 13 years old when the war broke out. His rank as a General was in the "United Confederate Veterans" association. I am compiling documents about the Escort and came across the picture.

 

[James N.]

Another unidentified general! I hope those books have lots of pics, Andy and James, cause we're gonna need them.

• Title: [Unknown general]
• Creator(s): Brooks, Alden Finney, 1840-1932, artist
• Date Created/Published: [between 1862 and 1865]
• Medium: 1 drawing on cream paper : black ink and ink wash ; 11.4 x 8.8 cm. (sheet).
• Summary: Bust portrait of military officer in uniform.
• Reproduction Number: LC-DIG-22327 (digital file from original item)
• Rights Advisory: No known restrictions on publication.
  
• Call Number: DRWG/US - Brooks, no. 6 (AA size) [P&P]

This one should be easier, because his uniform is definitely that of a Union major general - not so many of those as brigadiers! He reminds me of George Crook, but I'm not sure.

Expired Image Removed

 

[rbasin]

Could be. But there's a photo in the Civil War encyclopedia that I am trying to find that might be this person. If memory serves, he was a general only after the war (or maybe from that wonderful day in March 1865 when everyone became a general). Once I find it, I'll post it for review