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Civil War Soldiers - Smith
Smith, Andrew J., major-general, U.S.
Army, was born in the state of Pennsylvania and was a cadet at the U.
S. military academy from July 1, 1834 to July 1, 1838, when he was
graduated and promoted in the army to second lieutenant in the 1st
dragoons. He served at Carlisle barracks, Pa., in the cavalry school
for practice, 1838-39; on recruiting service, 1839-40; on frontier
duty at Ft. Leavenworth, Kan., 1840-46, and he was commissioned first
lieutenant in the 1st dragoons on May 4, 1845. He served in the war
with Mexico, 1847-48, being commissioned captain in the 1st dragoons
on Feb. 16, 1847, and was on frontier duty at San Francisco, Cal.,
1848-49. He was on recruiting service, 1849-53; stationed at Fort
Lane, Ore., 1853-55; took part in the Oregon hostilities during the
latter year, being engaged in the skirmish at Cow creek on Oct. 31;
was in the Rogue River expedition in 1856, being engaged with hostile
Indians in several skirmishes during March and June, and he was
stationed at Fort Yamhill, Ore., 1856-57. He was on the Oregon war
claims commission, 1857-58 and on frontier duty at Fort Walla Walla,
Wash., 1858-59. He was at Fort Vancouver, Wash., 1859-60, and was
engaged against the Snake Indians in skirmishes near Harney lake on
May 24 and near Owyhee river on June 23. He was stationed at Fort
Walla Walla, 1860-61, and was on the march to Nez Perce Agency in the
latter year, being commissioned major in the 1st dragoons on May 13
and transferred to the 1st cavalry on Aug. 13. He served during the
Civil war, first as colonel of the 2nd Cal. cavalry, to which position
he was appointed on Oct. 2, 1861; was chief of cavalry, Department of
the Missouri, from Feb. 11 to March 11, 1862, and of the Department of
the Mississippi, March 11 to July 11, being engaged in the advance
upon and siege of Corinth, April 15 to May 30, including several
skirmishes. He was commissioned brigadier- general of volunteers,
March 17, 1862; was in command of the troops in Covington, Ky., and
vicinity, Sept. 9-Oct. 9; in command of a division in the movements
through Kentucky, October-November; was stationed at Memphis, Tenn.,
Nov 28 to Dec. 21, and was on the expedition to the Yazoo river in
December, being engaged in the assault of Chickasaw bluffs on Dec.
27-29. He was in the expedition to Arkansas Post, which was carried by
assault on Jan. 11, 1863; in the Vicksburg campaign from January to
July, commanding a division in the 13th army corps, and was engaged in
the advance to Grand Gulf, the battles of Port Gibson, Champion's
hill, Big Black river, assaults on Vicksburg, May 19 and 22, the siege
of the place, and the capture of Jackson, Miss., on July 16. He was in
command of the 6th division, 16th army corps, and District of
Columbus, Ky., from Aug. 5, 1863, to Jan. 21, 1864; in command of the
3d division, 16th army corps, Jan. 24 to March 16, in the Department
of the Tennessee; was in the Red River campaign, commanding
detachments of the 16th and 17th army corps, March 6 to May 22, and
was engaged in the assault and capture of Fort De Russy, the battle of
Pleasant Hill, the action at Cane river, and in covering the retreat
of Gen. Banks' army, with almost daily heavy skirmishing. He was
commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the 5th cavalry on May 9,
major-general of volunteers on May 12, and was in command of the right
wing of the 16th army corps in the operations in Mississippi and
Tennessee from June to September, being engaged in the actions near
Lake Village and Tupelo, Miss., and on the expedition from Memphis to
Holly Springs. He was engaged in the operations in Missouri, covering
St. Louis from a threatened attack by Gen. Price; in command of a
detachment of the Army of the Tennessee in Maj.-Gen. Thomas' campaign
against the Confederates under Gen. Hood, from Dec, 1864 to Jan. 1865,
being engaged in the battle of Nashville and the pursuit of the enemy
to Pulaski. He was in the movement from Eastport, Miss., via Cairo, to
New Orleans, Feb. 6-21, 1865; in command of the 16th army corps, Feb.
18-July 20, being brevetted brigadier- general U. S. A., on March 13,
1865, for gallant and meritorious services at the battle of Tupelo,
and the brevet title of major-general, U. S. A., was conferred upon
him at the same time for gallant and meritorious services in the
battle of Nashville. He was engaged in the Mobile campaign, taking
part in the siege of Spanish Fort, but was in reserve during the
storming of Blakely. He was in the movement to and occupation of
Montgomery, Ala., making detachments to various points in Alabama; was
in command of the District of Montgomery, and later of the District of
Western Louisiana, Oct. 27, 1865 to Jan. 15, 1866, when he was
mustered out of the volunteer service. He was on the board for the
recommendation of officers for brevet promotions from March 10 to June
22, and he was commissioned colonel of the 7th cavalry on July 28,
1866. He served in command of the District of Upper Kansas from Nov.
25, 1866 to Sept., 1867, and of the Department of Missouri from Sept.
14, 1867, to March 2, 1868, when he was given a leave of absence, and
he resigned from the service on May 6, 1869. He was appointed
postmaster of St. Louis, Mo., on April 3, 1869, and he pursued
vocations of civil life until Jan. 22, 1889, when he was
recommissioned colonel of cavalry and placed upon the retired list.
Gen. Smith died on Jan. 30, 1897. Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
Smith, Charles F., major-general, U.S.
Army, was born in Pennsylvania about 1806. He was a son of the late
Dr. Samuel B. Smith, U. S. A., graduated with honor at West Point in
1825, and was made second lieutenant of artillery on July 1 in the
same year. In 1820 he was appointed assistant instructor in infantry
tactics at West Point; in 1831 was promoted to the adjutancy, and in
1832 was made a first lieutenant. In 1838 he was appointed instructor
in infantry tactics and commandant of cadets, and the same year was
promoted to a captaincy. He took an important part in most of the
battles during the Mexican war; in 1847 was brevetted major for
gallant conduct in the battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, in
Texas, and at the battles of Monterey, Contreras, and Churubusco, won
the successive brevets of lieutenant-colonel and colonel. In the same
year he was appointed acting inspector-general in Mexico. On Nov. 25,
1854, he was made major of the 1st artillery, and the following year
lieutenant-colonel of the 10th infantry. In Sept., 1861, he was
promoted to the colonelcy of the 3d infantry, having the previous
month been appointed brigadier-general of volunteers and taken charge
of the troops at Paducah, Ky. At the attack on Fort Donelson, the most
brilliant charge was made by the troops under his command and had much
to do with the surrender. For his gallantry on that memorable occasion
he was promoted to a major- generalship in the volunteer army, and
ordered to take possession of Savannah, Tenn., where he died of
chronic dysentery contracted during the Mexican war, and fatally
aggravated by his exposures in the campaign of the West. His death
occurred on April 25, 1862.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
Smith, Giles A., major-general, U.S.
Army, was born in the state of New York but in early life established
his home in the state of Illinois, where he was residing at the
beginning of the Civil war. On June 14, 1861 he became the captain of
a company then organizing for service as a part of the 8th Mo.
infantry. Before the organization of the regiment was complete it was
called on to suppress the guerrillas engaged in committing
depredations along the line of the North Missouri railroad, defeating
them in the vicinity of St. Charles and Mexico, in which engagements
Capt. Smith got his introduction to actual warfare. On July 29 he left
St. Louis with the regiment and on Sept. 7 landed at Paducah, Ky.,
where he remained until the following February, the regiment then
joining the forces moving against Forts Henry and Donelson. Fort Henry
surrendered before the regiment arrived, but at Donelson it showed the
metal of which it was made, and, under the command of Gen. Lew
Wallace, assisted in the repulse of the attempt of the enemy to cut
his way out. Capt. Smith at the head of his company and under the
command of Wallace was in some of the heaviest fighting at Shiloh on
the second day of that battle; was in the engagements about Corinth,
Miss., and the operations in that vicinity until November, when the
regiment was ordered to Memphis, Tenn. He was promoted to
lieutenant-colonel of his regiment on June 12, 1862, and eighteen days
later was commissioned as its colonel. He joined Gen. Sherman's forces
for the assault on the Confederate works at Chickasaw bluffs, where
his regiment acquitted itself with credit, and a few days later was on
the skirmish line in the assault on Arkansas Post. His was one of the
regiments assigned to Steele's bayou expedition in the early movements
against Vicksburg; took part in the feint against Haynes' bluff; was
then in the battles of Raymond and Champion's hill, and in the advance
on Vicksburg it was the first regiment to encounter and drive in the
enemy's pickets. With his regiment he took part in the assaults on the
Vicksburg works, and after the fall of that city was in the movement
to drive Gen. Johnston from Jackson. On Aug. 4, 1863, he was
commissioned brigadier-general of volunteers, and on Nov. 24, 1865,
was commissioned major-general of volunteers. Previous to the latter
date, on Sept. 1, 1864, he was brevetted major-general of volunteers
for long and continued service and for special gallantry and
completeness as an officer during the Atlanta and Savannah campaigns.
Gen. Smith was honorably mustered out of the service on Feb. 1, 1866
and returned to the pursuits of civil life, in which he continued
until his death, Nov. 5, 1876.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
Smith, Green Clay, brigadier-general,
U.S. Army, was born in Richmond, Ky., July 2, 1832. In 1847 he
enlisted in a cavalry regiment and served a year in the Mexican war.
He was graduated at Transylvania university in 1850 and at the
Lexington law school in 1853; began practicing with his father;
removed to Covington in 1858, and was elected to the legislature,
where he defended the national government in 1860. In the following
year he was commissioned major in the 3d Ky. cavalry; was appointed
colonel of the 4th Ky. cavalry in Feb., 1862; was wounded at Lebanon,
Tenn.; and was promoted brigadier-general of volunteers, June 11. He
resigned his commission, Dec. 1, 1863, having been elected to
Congress, where he served till 1866, then resigned to accept the
office of governor of Montana, where he remained three years. He was
brevetted major-general of volunteers, March 13, 1865, for gallantry
in the field. In 1869 he was ordained to the ministry of the Baptist
church and settled in Frankfort, Ky. He devoted most of his time to
service as an evangelist, but in 1876 was the candidate of the
National Prohibition party for the presidency, and received a popular
vote of 9,522. In 1890 he was called to the pastorate of the
Metropolitan Baptist Church, Washington, D. C., and he died in that
city on June 29, 1895.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
Smith, Gustavus A., brigadier-general,
U.S. Army, was born in the state of Pennsylvania, but removed to
Illinois and was residing in that state at the outbreak of the Civil
war. He assisted in organizing and became the colonel of the 35th Ill.
infantry in July, 1861, the regiment being accepted by the secretary
of war on July 23, as Col. G. A. Smith's Independent Regiment of
Illinois Volunteers. On Aug. 4 it left Decatur, Ill., and arrived at
Jefferson barracks, Mo., the following day. With his regiment Col.
Smith first experienced the realities of war in Feb., 1862, when he
followed Price's retreating army, skirmishing with the Confederates
nearly every day. He participated in the battle of Pea ridge, and in
May moved to Farmington, Miss., and took part in the siege of Corinth
until the evacuation of that place. On Sept. 19, 1862, he was
commissioned brigadier-general of volunteers and served as such until
March 4, 1863, when his commission expired and he was reverted to
colonel of his regiment. In the following August with Hoge's brigade
his command crossed the Tennessee river on pontoons and drove the
Confederate pickets back while the bridge was being laid — being the
first infantry on the south side of the Tennessee river. His regiment
participated in the battle of Chickamauga, following which, on Sept.
22, 1863, he left the service and returned to his home in Illinois. In
Feb., 1865, he again entered the military service as colonel of the
155th Ill. infantry, the regiment being mustered in on Feb. 28 for one
year. On March 2 he moved with his command via Louisville and
Nashville to Tullahoma, Tenn., and was assigned to the brigade of Gen.
Dudley. On March 13, 1865, Gen. Smith was given the brevet rank of
brigadier-general of volunteers for faithful and meritorious service
during the war, and on Dec. 14, 1865, he was honorably mustered out of
the service. He then returned to the civil pursuits of life in which
he remained until his death on Dec. 11, 1885.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
SMITH, GUSTAVUS W., Kentucky.
Major general, P. A. C. S., September 19, 1861.
Resigned February 11, 1863.
Died at New York city, June 24, 1896.
Commands.
May 31, 1861, commanding, temporarily, Army of Potomac, after the
wounding of General Joseph E. Johnston. Commanding, July — , 1861,
Second Corps, Army of the Potomac. Commanding First Division, in Army
of Northern Virginia, under General Joseph E. Johnston. Relieved
General T. H. Holmes of command at Yorktown, Va. Division composed of
the brigades of Whiting, Hood, Hampton, Pettigrew and Hatton. Acting
Secretary of War, from November 17 to November 20, 1862. June 1, 1864,
assigned command of Georgia Militia at and near Atlanta. September 1,
same command. September 15, 1864, relieved General Wagner at Macon,
Ga. Died in New York city, __.
Smith, Gustavus Woodson, born in Kentucky, appointed from Kentucky
cadet United States Military Academy, July 1, 1838; graduated eighth
in a class of fifty-six.
Brevet second lieutenant, engineers, July 1, 1842.
Second lieutenant, January 1, 1845.
First lieutenant, March 3, 1853.
Brevet first lieutenant, April 18, 1847, for gallant and meritorious
conduct at the battle of Cerro Gordo, Mexico, and
Captain, August 20, 1847, for gallant and meritorious conduct in the
battle of Contreras. Mexico.
Resigned December 18, 1854.
Source: Military Records of General Officers of the Confederate
States of America, by Charles B. Hall, 1898
|
Smith, John E., brigadier-general,
U.S. Army, was born in the state of Pennsylvania, but removed to
Illinois and became aide-de-camp to Gov. Yates, which position he held
during the early part of 1861. He was commissioned colonel of the 45th
Ill. infantry in July of that year and was engaged successively at the
capture of Forts Henry and Donelson, Tenn., battle of Shiloh, siege of
Corinth, action of Meadow Station, and the Mississippi campaign. He
was commissioned brigadier-general of volunteers in Nov., 1862, and
was assigned to the command of the 8th division, left wing of the 16th
army corps in December. He engaged in the expedition to Yazoo Pass,
battles of Port Gibson, Raymond, Jackson, Champion's hill and Big
Black river. In June, 1863, he took command of the 1st division, 17th
army corps, the division being transferred to the 15th army corps in
September, and he was engaged at the siege of Vicksburg, battle of
Missionary ridge, Atlanta campaign, Sherman's Georgia and Carolina
campaign, and the battle of Bentonville, N. C. He was relieved from
duty with the Army of the Tennessee in April, 1865, and commanded the
District of West Tennessee until April, 1866, when he was honorably
mustered out of the volunteer service. On Jan. 12, 1865, he was
brevetted major-general of volunteers for faithful and efficient
services and for gallantry in action. In the regular army he was
commissioned colonel of the 27th U. S. infantry in July, 1866, and on
March 2, 1867, was brevetted brigadier-general, U. S. A., for gallant
and meritorious services at the siege of Vicksburg, Miss., and on the
same date he was given the brevet title of major-general, U. S. A.,
for gallant and meritorious services at the capture of Savannah, Ga.
He was retired from the regular army service on May 19, 1881, and he
died Jan. 28, 1897.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
SMITH, E. KIRBY, Florida.
Lieutenant colonel, Corps of Cavalry, C. S. A., March 16, 1861.
Brigadier general, P. A. C. S., June 17, 1861.
Major general, P. A. C. S., October 11, 1861.
Lieutenant general, P. A. C. S., October 9, 1862.
General, P. A. C. S., February 19, 1862.
Died at Sewanee, Tenn., March 28, 1893.
Commands.
Chief of staff to General Joseph E. Johnston, commanding Army of the
Potomac, June to July, 1861. Commanding Reserve Division, Army of the
Potomac, July 2, 1861, consisting of the brigades of Trimble, Taylor
and Elzey, brigade composed of the Ninth, Tenth and Eleventh Alabama,
Fourteenth Mississippi and Thirty-eighth Virginia Regiments Infantry,
Army of the Potomac. Commanding Department of East Tennessee and
Kentucky, North Georgia and Western North Carolina, and the infantry
divisions of Stevenson, McCown and Heth, and cavalry brigades of
Forrest, Morgan, Scott and Ashby, March to October, 1862. Assigned,
February 9, 1863, to the command of the Trans-Mississippi Department,
with sub-divisions as follows : The District of Louisiana, first
occupied by Major General R. Taylor's (afterward Major General
Buckner's) Corps, consisting of Walker's and Polignac's Divisions of
Infantry and Green's Cavalry Brigade; the District of Texas, occupied
by Magruder's Corps, consisting of Forney's, McCulloch's and Wharton's
Division; the District of Arkansas, occupied by Price's Corps,
consisting of the divisions of Price and Churchill and the unattached
brigades of Fagan, Shelby and Marmaduke; also, the District of the
Indian Territory, under command of Major General Maxey.
Smith, Edmund Kirby, born in Florida, appointed from Florida cadet
United States Military Academy, July 1, 1841; graduated twenty- fifth
in a class of forty-one.
Brevet second lieutenant, Fifth Infantry, July 1, 1845.
Second lieutenant, Seventh Infantry, August 22, 1846.
First lieutenant, March 9, 1851.
Captain, Second Cavalry, March 3, 1855.
Major, January 31, 1861.
Brevet first lieutenant, April 18, 1847, for gallant and meritorious
services at the battle of Cerro Gordo, Mexico, and
Captain, August 20, 1847, for gallant and meritorious conduct in the
battles of Contreras and Churubusco, Mexico.
Resigned April 6, 1861.
Source: Military Records of General Officers of the Confederate
States of America, by Charles B. Hall, 1898
|
SMITH, M. L., Florida.
Major, Corps of Engineers, C. S. A., March 16, 1861.
Colonel Twenty-first Louisiana Infantry.
Brigadier general, P. A. C. S., April 11, 1862.
Major general, P. A. C. S., November 4, 1862.
Died July 29, 1866.
Commands.
April 16, 1861, assigned as engineer in chief of defenses of New
Orleans. Commanding Third District, Department of South Mississippi
and East Louisiana, June 26, 1862. Commanding Second Military
District, Department of Mississippi and East Louisiana, October 21,
1862. April — , 1863, commanding a division in Department of
Mississippi and East Louisiana. March 9, 1864, assigned to duty,
temporarily, as chief of Engineer Bureau. April 16, 1864, assigned as
chief engineer of the Army of Northern Virginia. July 20, assigned
chief engineer of Army of Tennessee. January 4, 1865, relieved from
duty at Mobile, Ala., and ordered to resume as chief engineer of
military division of the West.
Smith, Martin Luther, born in New York, appointed from New York
cadet United States Military Academy, July 1, 1838; graduated
sixteenth in a class of fifty-six.
Brevet second lieutenant, topographical engineers, July 1, 1842.
Second lieutenant, November 1, 1843.
Brevet first lieutenant, May 30, 1848, for meritorious conduct while
serving with the army in Mexico.
First lieutenant, March 3, 1853.
Captain, July 1, 1856.
Resigned April 1, 1861.
Source: Military Records of General Officers of the Confederate
States of America, by Charles B. Hall, 1898
|
Smith, Morgan L., brigadier-general,
U.S. Army, was born in the state of New York, and in early manhood, on
July 19, 1845, he joined the United States regular army in which he
served five years. For some reason or other he enlisted under the name
of Martin L. Sanford, and as such his name appears upon the rolls, as
private, corporal and sergeant. After retiring from the regular army
service he located in Missouri where he was living at the time of the
outbreak of the Civil war. On July 4, 1861, he was commissioned
colonel of the 8th Mo. infantry, which, before its organization was
complete, was called upon to suppress the guerrillas engaged in
committing depredations along the line of the North Missouri railroad,
defeating them in the vicinity of St. Charles and Mexico. On July 29
he left St. Louis with his regiment and on Sept. 7 landed at Paducah,
Ky., where he remained until the following February and then joined
the forces moving against Forts Henry and Donelson. Fort Henry had
surrendered before the regiment arrived, but at Donelson the regiment
and its colonel behaved in a gallant manner, assisting in the repulse
of the enemy when he attempted to cut his way out. Col. Smith was in
some of the heaviest fighting at Shiloh on the second day of that
battle, then participated in the advance upon Corinth, and while in
that vicinity, on July 16, 1862, he was commissioned brigadier-general
of volunteers. He continued to serve in that capacity until the close
of the war, rendering faithful and meritorious service, and on July
12, 1865, he resigned his commission and took up the threads of civil
life. He died on Dec. 29, 1874.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
Smith, Thomas C. H.,
brigadier-general, U.S. Army, was born in the state of Massachusetts,
but was a resident of Ohio at the time of the out- break of the Civil
war. On Sept. 5, 1861, he was commissioned lieutenant-colonel of the
1st Ohio cavalry, then being organized at Camp Chase for the three
years' service. In December the regiment broke camp and proceeded by
rail and steamboat to Louisville, being the first regiment of cavalry
to enter that department. Col. Smith with his regiment participated in
the advance upon Corinth, having frequent skirmishes with the enemy,
and after the evacuation joined in pursuit of Beauregard's army, going
as far as Booneville. During this pursuit four sharp engagements were
had with the enemy. Returning to Kentucky with Buell's army, on Nov.
29, 1862, Col. Smith was commissioned brigadier-general of volunteers,
but he remained with his regiment until April 27, 1863. On the first
day of the battle of Stone's river the regiment made a heroic charge
against a foe flushed with success, and it continued the remaining two
days until the victory was complete. Gen. Smith continued in the
service until some time after Lee's surrender and was mustered out of
the volunteer service on Jan. 15, 1866. He then followed civil
pursuits until April 17, 1878, when he was appointed paymaster in the
regular army service with the rank of major, and he served as such
until March 24, 1883, when he was retired. Gen. Smith died on April 8,
1897.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
Smith, Thomas Kilby,
brigadier-general, U.S. Army, was born in Dorchester, Mass., Sept. 23,
1820. In 1825 his parents removed to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he
studied at the military and engineering school of Prof. O. M. Mitchel,
and, after spending some time in civil engineering, read law in the
office of the late Chief-Justice Chase and was admitted to the bar,
where he had for associates such men as George Hoadley, Stanley
Matthews, Edward Marshall, and George Pugh. In 1861 he volunteered to
raise a brigade of troops for the national service at his own expense,
and Gov. Dennison appointed him lieutenant-colonel of the 54th Ohio
infantry, and promoted him to the colonelcy before he left the state.
His regiment was part of Gen. Sherman's division in the battle of
Shiloh, and when Gen. Stuart, commanding the brigade, was wounded, the
command was given to Col. Smith, who held it till the siege of
Vicksburg. When Gen. Grant assumed the direction of the siege Col.
Smith was promoted to the rank of brigadier-general and acted for some
time as chief of Gen. Grant's staff. After the capitulation of
Vicksburg Gen. Smith was given command of a division of the Army of
the Tennessee to assist Gen. Banks in the Red River expedition, and
succeeded in protecting Admiral Porter's fleet while withdrawing down
the river after the disaster of Sabine cross-roads. He assisted in the
reduction of Mobile and was then placed in command of the District of
Southern Alabama and Florida, which was his last military service. He
was brevetted major-general of volunteers for distinguished services
in the war, and on being mustered out was appointed by President
Johnson United States consul at Panama, holding the office till after
the inauguration of President Grant. Gen. Smith died in New York city
Dec. 14, 1887.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
|
SMITH, WILLIAM, Virginia.
Colonel, Forty-ninth Virginia Infantry, __, 1861.
Brigadier general, P. A. C. S., January 31, 1863.
Major general, P. A. C. S., August 30, 1863.
Resigned December 31, 1863, having been elected Governor of Virginia.
Died at Warrenton, Virginia, May 18, 1889.
Commands.
Brigade composed of the Fifty-eighth Virginia Regiment, Colonel Board;
Fifty-second Virginia Regiment, Colonel Harman; Thirteenth Virginia
Regiment, Colonel Terrell; Thirty-first Virginia Regiment, Colonel
Hoffman; and Forty-ninth Virginia Regiment, Colonel Gibson, January —
, 1863. At the battle of Chancellorsville, May 3, 1863, brigade
composed of Thirteenth, Forty-ninth, Fifty-second, Fifty-eighth and
Thirty-first Virginia Regiments, Early's Division, Army of Northern
Virginia.
Source: Military Records of General Officers of the Confederate
States of America, by Charles B. Hall, 1898
|
Smith, William F., major-general, U.S.
Army, was born in the state of Vermont, and was a cadet at the U. S.
military academy from July 1, 1841 to July 1, 1845, when he was
graduated and promoted in the army to brevet second lieutenant of
topographical engineers. He served as assistant topographical engineer
on the survey of the Northern lakes, 1845-46; at the military academy
as assistant professor of mathematics, Nov. 6, 1846, to Aug. 21, 1848;
as assistant topographical engineer on explorations in the Department
of Texas, 1848-50, being commissioned second lieutenant of
topographical engineers on July 14, 1849. He was on the survey of the
boundary between the United States and Mexico, 1850-52, on the survey
of the canal route across Florida in 1853, and was commissioned first
lieutenant of topographical engineers on March 3, 1853. He was on
explorations in Texas, 1853-55; at the military academy as principal
assistant professor of mathematics, Sept. 4, 1855, to Sept. 8, 1856;
as engineer of the 11th light-house district, Dec. 11, 1856, to Nov.
3, 1859, and he was commissioned captain of topographical engineers on
July 1, 1859, for fourteen years' continuous service. He then served
as engineer secretary of the light-house board from Nov. 3, 1859, to
April 15, 1861. He served during the Civil war, first on mustering
duty at New York city, April 15 to May 31, 1861; on the staff of
Maj.-Gen. Butler at Fort Monroe, Va., June 1 to July 20, and was
commissioned colonel of the 3d Vt. infantry on July 16, 1861. He was
on the staff of Brig- Gen. McDowell, July 20 to Aug. 13; served in the
Manassas campaign and was engaged in the battle of Bull Run; in the
defenses of Washington, D. C., July 27, 1861 to March 10, 1862, and he
was commissioned brigadier-general of volunteers on Aug. 13, 1861. He
served in the Virginia Peninsular campaign, in command of a division
of the Army of the Potomac, being engaged in the siege of Yorktown,
including the skirmish of Lee's mill, the battles of Williamsburg,
Fair Oaks, White Oak swamp, Savage Station, Glendale and Malvern hill.
On June 28, 1862, he was brevetted lieutenant- colonel, U. S. A., for
gallant and meritorious services in the battle of White Oak swamp, and
in the Maryland campaign he was in command of a division of the Army
of the Potomac, being engaged in the battles of South mountain and
Antietam, and on the march to Falmouth. On Sept. 17, 1862, he was
brevetted colonel, U. S. A., for gallant and meritorious services in
the battle of Antietam; participated in the Rappahannock campaign, in
command of the 6th corps, Nov. 14, 1862 to Feb. 4, 1863, and of the
9th corps from Feb. 4 to March 17, being engaged in the battle of
Fredericksburg. He was commissioned major of the corps of engineers on
March 3, 1863, and was in command of a division in the Department of
the Susquehanna, being engaged in the pursuit of the Confederate army
retreating from Gettysburg, and was then in the Department of West
Virginia from Aug. 3 to Sept. 5. He served as chief engineer of the
Department of the Cumberland, Oct. 10 to November, and of the Military
Division of the Mississippi from Nov., 1863 to March 31, 1864, in
operations about Chattanooga, being engaged in surprising a passage
and throwing a pontoon bridge across the Tennessee river at Brown's
ferry, and he was also engaged in the battle of Missionary ridge. On
March 9, 1864, he was commissioned major- general of volunteers, and
was in command of the 18th corps of the Army of the Potomac from May 2
to July 19, being engaged in the operations before Richmond and in the
battle of Cold Harbor and siege of Petersburg. He was on special duty,
under the orders of the secretary of war, from Nov. 22, 1864 to Dec.
15, 1865, and was then on leave of absence until March 7, 1867, when
he resigned from the regular army, having resigned his volunteer
commission on Nov. 4, 1865. He was brevetted brigadier-general, U. S.
A., on March 13, 1865, for gallant and meritorious services in the
battle of Chattanooga, and on the same date was given the brevet title
of major- general, U. S. A., for gallant and meritorious services in
the field during the Rebellion. He served as president of the
International Telegraph company, 1864-73, and became Commissioner of
Police of New York city on May 1, 1875, and then served as president
of the Board of Police Commissioners from Dec. 31, 1875, to March 11,
1881. After this date he followed civil engineering in the service of
the United States. He was reappointed as major, U. S. A., on March 1,
1889, and placed upon the retired list. Gen. Smith died on Feb. 28,
1903.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
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Smith, William S., brigadier-general,
U.S. Army, was born in Tarlton, Ohio, July 22, 1830. He was graduated
at the Ohio university in 1849 and from the U. S. military academy in
1853. Resigning from the army in 1854 he became assistant to
Lieut.-Col. James D. Graham of the U. S. topographical engineers, then
in charge of the government improvements in the great lakes. In 1855
he moved to Buffalo, N. Y., and for a while was principal of a high
school. In 1857 he was employed by the city of Buffalo as an expert to
examine the various plans submitted for the international bridge
across the Niagara river. Later he became engineer and secretary of
the Trenton (N. J.) locomotive works, holding that connection until
1861. He visited Cuba in the interests of this company and also
constructed an iron bridge across the Savannah river, where he
introduced improvements in sinking cylinders pneumatically. At the
commencement of the Civil war in 1861 he promptly offered his
services, and was appointed lieutenant-colonel of Ohio volunteers and
assigned to duty as assistant adjutant-general at Camp Dennison. He
was commissioned colonel of the 13th Ohio infantry on June 26, 1861,
took part in the campaigns of western Virginia, then entered the Army
of the Ohio and was present at Shiloh and Perryville. He became
brigadier-general of volunteers, April 15, 1862, when he joined the
forces under Grant and participated in the Vicksburg campaign as
commander of the 1st division of the 16th corps. Later he was made
chief of cavalry of the Department of the Tennessee, and in that
capacity was attached to the staff of Gen. Grant and Gen. W. T.
Sherman until failing health compelled his resignation in Sept., 1864.
Resuming his profession after the war, he built the Wangoshanee
lighthouse at the entrance of the Straits of Mackinaw, where he sank
the first pneumatic caisson in 1867. He built the first great entire
steel bridge in the world, across the Missouri river at Glasgow, Mo.,
and was concerned in the construction of many others, including those
at Leavenworth, Kan., and Omaha and Plattsmouth, Neb. He was president
of the Civil Engineers' club of the Northwest in 1880.
Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal
States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
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