Ω Biography Thread Requests

Have a suggestion for a New American Civil War Biography Thread?

Do you know of an overlooked person who isn't listed in the Biography forum? Maybe an interesting personality that we'd all like to know better?

Here are the requirements for a Request:

The person must have been alive at some point between 1860 and 1865, it could be military, political, civilian, or even foreign, but they must have some legitimate connection to the American War Between the States, and have enough findable documentation available to create a profile. (These biographies have the best chance to be published)​
- or -​
If they died before 1860, and you want to request a biography on this forum, in their lifetime they must have done something of profound impact that effected those who lived through the Civil War, and have enough findable documentation available to create a profile. (These suggestions will be heavily moderated)​
The Biography Forum at CivilWarTalk in no way guarantees that suggestions will be followed, but we will consider all of them.​
PLEASE POST YOUR REQUEST BELOW IN THE REPLY BOX!
POST #2 will contain accepted suggestions!


This forum is not for Genealogical Research Threads!
We have other forums for that...


https://civilwartalk.com/forums/researching-your-civil-war-ancestry.38/
https://civilwartalk.com/forums/my-civil-war-ancestry.166/
 
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If we are talking about the "Men of the Civil War" Forum, and we are asking for subforums for that, these are the ones I suggest:

George Meade
John Brown Gordon
Patrick Ronayne Clebune
John Bell Hood
Joe Johnston

I would also include figures like Harriet Tubman or Frederick Douglas or other major Abolitionist leaders. Most of the forum, aside from Lincoln, is dedicated to generals like Longstreet or Chamberlain.
 
Col. Samuel Newitt Wood
Born: December 30, 1825
Birthplace: Mt. Gilead, Morrow County, Ohio
Father: David Wood 1792-1847
Mother: Esther Ward Mosher 1798-1864
1st Wife: Margaret Walker Lyon 1830-1919
(Buried: Prairie Grove Cemetery, Cottonwood Falls, Chase County, Kansas)

Children:
David Wood 1851-1944
(Buried: Cedar Creek Cemetery Montrose, Montrose County, Colorado)

William Lyon Wood 1853-1927
(Buried: Prairie Grove Cemetery Cottonwood Falls, Chase County, Kansas)

Florence Sarah Wood Abbott 1857-1936
(Buried: Hagerman Cemetery Hagerman, Gooding County, Idaho)

Mary Elizabeth "Deary" Wood 1865-1879
(Buried: Prairie Grove Cemetery Cottonwood Falls, Chase County, Kansas)


Education:
Law Student in the office of Messrs, Stinchcomb & Brumbaugh
Admitted to the bar of Morrow County on June 5, 1854

Occupation before War:
Underground Railroad conductor
Lawyer
Newspaper Publisher in Lawrence Kansas "Herald of Freedom"
Kansas State Senator
Collector of Customs at Paso del Norte, New Mexico

Civil War Career:
1861: Captain of Kansas Rangers (Company I, 2nd Kansas Infantry, mounted)
1861: Battle of Wilson's Creek - Missouri
1862: Samuel's son David Wood enlisted at the age of 11
1862: Colonel of Company A, 6th Regiment Cavalry, Missouri Volunteers
1862: Action at Spring River, Arkansas
1863: Morris County Rangers (Kansas Militia)

Occupation after War:
1863-1866: Kansas State Legislator representing Morris County Kansas
1863: Kansas State Adjutant General
1864: Brigadier General Kansas State Militia
1867: Judge of the 9th Judicial District of Kansas
1867: Organized the Impartial Suffrage Movement in Kansas
1867: Women's Suffrage Lecture Organizer in Kansas
1867: Established the Chase County Leader/Banner Newspaper
1869-1871: Operated a Texas Cattle Ranch
1873: Deputy County attorney of Chase County Kansas
1875-1877: Kansas State Legislator representing Chases County Kansas
1878: Editor of the Kansas Greenbacker of Emporia
1878: Register of Deeds Chase County Kansas
1885-1886: Editor of the Kansas State Journal of Topeka
1886: Founded the town of Woodsdale in Stephens County Kansas
1887: Publisher of the Woodsdale Democrat
1887: Mayor of Woodsdale
1890: Prosecutor for the "Haymeadow Massacre"

Died: June 23, 1891
Place of Death: the Courthouse at Hugoton, Stephens County, Kansas
Cause of Death: Assassinated
Age at time of Death: 66 years old
Burial Place: Prairie Grove Cemetery, Cottonwood Falls, Chase County, Kansas
 
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Governor Todd Watts- Governor of Alabama 1863-1865
General Dan Adams- Storied war record, ended up commanding the Reserves in Alabama in 64-65
General James H. Clanton- Alabama Cavalry commander
President Garland/Commandant Murfee- President and Commandant of the university of Alabama during the Civil War
General Richard Taylor- focused directly on late 64-and spring of 65
 
Irish born BG Joseph Finegan, CSA; (Nov 17, 1814 - October 29, 1885)

From 1862 to 1864 he commanded Confederate forces operating in Middle and East Florida, ultimately leading the Confederate victory at the Battle of Olustee, the state's only major battle. He subsequently led the Florida Brigade in the Army of Northern Virginia until near the end of the war. Wikipedia also Fernandina's Confederate General

MG Andrew Atkinson Humphreys, USA; (Nov 2, 1810 - Dec 27, 1883)

career United States Army officer, civil engineer, and a Union General in the American Civil War. He served in senior positions in the Army of the Potomac, including division command, chief of staff, and corps command, and was Chief Engineer of the U.S. Army. Wikipedia

Both distinguished pre and post war career. Co-authored Report upon the Physics and Hydraulics of the Mississippi River (1861), authored From Gettysburg to the Rapidan (1883) and The Virginia Campaign of 1864 and 1865 (1885).
 
I’d like to suggest a book which has been said to be the Northern equivalent of Mary Boykin Chesnut- which, to me, is a very tall order.
The author is Sidney George Fisher and the suggested title is A Philadelphia Perspective.
This is Mr. Fisher’s diary from 1834-1871. I’ve become interested and aware of him due to being on staff and as a volunteer at the plantation he owned in Cecil County, Maryland which is called Mount Harmon Plantation.
Mr. Fisher led an interesting life and upon marrying remained mostly in the society of Philadelphia. He was a fairly prolific writer and I’ve found a location in India which will reprint his many books, pamphlets and writings for the gift shop at Mount Harmon. However, he was a follower of Darwin and leading scientific data which followed the belief of the enslaved not being physically and mentally as astute as the white population. He chose to write a book called the Laws of Race as related to Slavery in 1860.
This book was his undoing as those in Philadelphia shunned him for writing such a horrific concept. The Abolitionist and Quakers in the area were not pleased and had him black balled from all the societal clubs and organizations within Philadelphia. In fact, his own son, Sidney George Fisher, changes the spelling of his name to Sydney George Fisher to make certain he would not be confused with his Father. The son is also an author and you can find many historical books which he wrote and published.

But, his diary during the times he stayed at Mount Harmon is very helpful for those of us who wish to properly portray accurate telling of the region and times. We also have the diary of Rose Hill Plantation written by Mrs. Forman who befriended the bachelor next door. She and her Captain husband would raise a flag at Rose Hill as a sign for Mr. Fisher to tie over for dinner. We use both diaries and entries describing the same date and situations in the area to see both a male and female perspective of the time.
Mount Harmon freed their slaves decades prior to the Civil War. And, Mr. Fisher is known to have stopped a man who was whipping slaves in Warwick, MD as Fisher was riding through- like a lot of men during this time, I believe he was very conflicted about denouncing slavery as it had become the norm and neighbors relied upon it. But, Quaker and personal influences also caused him to realize the horrific situation of slavery.

Do consider looking into his diary from Philadelphia as an option to see a Northern perspective of the war by a man ( he was a lawyer but didn’t really like to work as one ) who owned the most northern “southern style” plantation in the Tidewater area of Maryland.
 
Edwin "bad ed" terrell...
Guerrilla hunter for the union army. From the Shelby and spencer county areas of Kentucky.
Also the Guerrilla fighters that were seeking refuge in the "neutral " state of Kentucky, like Sue Mundy and Bill quantrill (who Edwin terrell killed in Wakefield ky)
 
Confederate and Union Colonels in the early part of the month the weeks of December 1st - December 13th
Surgeons and Others - December 14th - December 22nd
Gentleman Rob's Vacation - December 23rd - December 31st - (I really won't be on Vacation as I plan to get more pictures of graves My girlfriend ask me when we are going to take a real vacation and I told her we could but we been going on these grave picture trips for the last 9 years so we couldn't think of anywhere we really wanted to go)
Then we will start our new Politicians of the Civil War starting January 1st.
 
brevet BG James Grant Wilson
 
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