Who was Benjamin Franklin stringfellow?

[Bryce]

Captain Benjamin Franklin Stringfellow was a member of the fourth Virginia cavalry, but under Jen Stuart he served as a scout and a spy.

He may have been in Wade Hampton's scouts during the siege of Petersburg. But I don't know whether that is true or not.

I do know that at one point, he and perhaps a band of other scouts attacked the third New Jersey Calvary at Petersburg and killed in captured the number of men.

Any help you can give me on his activities and the name of his unit during the senior Petersburg will be appreciated

 

[Fairfield]

Listed on HDS as "Benjamin Frank Stringfellow," he was a teacher. Residence in VA unknown. Enlisted on 5/28/1861 as a Private in Company E. He was captured on13June 1862 (Middleburg, VA) and imprisoned at the Old Capitol Prison in DC. On 25 June1863 he was echanged and on 1 Sep 1864 he was detailed with General Lee. "Returned" (I don't know what this term means) on 1 Nov 1865. Strindlaw was born 18 July 1840 and died in 1913; he is buried in Alexandria, VA at the Ivy Hill Cemetery, Notation: "(Health problems so Co A, C, D, F rejected him. $10,000.00 price on head; no amnesty; exiled in Canada until 1867.)" [all, HDS]

Find a Grave: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/8462790/benjamin-franklin-stringfellow Some one has entered a lot of information about him and his career; it might be worth contacting this person via the website.

 

[Nathan Stuart]

During the war, Benjamin Franklin 'Frank' Stringfellow (1840-1913) was a cavalryman who became both a scout and a spy (or agent) for the Confederacy. The information I found on his wartime service seems to be a bit patchy and sketchy. There may also be some exaggerated accounts appearing in the writings of his wartime incidents.

Stringfellow first enlisted (earlier in the war) as a private in Co. E, 4th VA Cavalry. Soon afterwards he served under Stuart as a scout and a spy, and he may have served on Stuart's staff at various times. He apparently crossed enemy lines multiple times into Union-occupied Alexandria, VA, and Washington, to gather and relay information for the Confederacy.

While temporarily assigned to Mosby's command, Stringfellow reportedly provided intelligence to Mosby and led (as a scout) a detachment of partisan rangers (43 VA Cavalry battalion) against Major Coles's Maryland Union cavalry at Loudoun Heights in an unsuccessful small mounted raid on Jan. 9/10, '64. (In Mosby's operations report for this action, he notably refers to Stringfellow as Stuart's scout - 'OR': Vol. 33, pp. 15-16).

It appears that Stringfellow's main service through '64 may have been as a military scout, at least during the period of the 'Overland Campaign.' He's mentioned by Lee as a scout providing military information on enemy troop strengths in a correspondence to Davis on Apr. 29, '64. ('OR': Vol. 33, p. 1326).

After Stuart was killed in May, '64, Stringfellow apparently got promoted to Captain and reported directly to Lee. (Thought this rise in rank may have been to the nominal status of 'Captain of Scouts'). Found Stringfellow, in his capacity as a scout, was evidently directly reporting in writing to Lee on enemy troop movements and deployments on May 30, '64. ('OR': Vol. 36, Part 3, pp. 850-51).

Interestingly, Davis supposedly dispatched Stringfellow in Mar. '65 to obtain advance information on the Washington defenses ahead of a special mission by explosives expert, Sgt. Thomas Harney, who was seemingly sent to kill Lincoln. (Harney was subsequently captured by Union cavalry en route, around the outskirts of Washington).

(Stringfellow fled to Canada shortly after the end of the war, before returning to VA In 1867, and he later became an Episcopalian Minister.)

His obit. In the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Jun. 11, 1913, is reproduced at the link below:-

Famous Scout is Laid to Rest - Newspapers.com™