	THE CIVIL WAR ARTILLERY PAGE

FAMOUS ARTILLERYMEN

The best generals are those who have served in the artillery.-- Napoleon
So many well-known generals got their start in the artillery that this could be a Who's Who of the Civil War. Instead, this is a brief list of men whose fame lay at least in part with their work in the artillery. More biographies will follow as time permits.

Union Artillerymen

Henry Jackson Hunt
A third-generation soldier, Henry Hunt was born in Detroit in 1819 and admitted to West Point at the age of 16. Brevetted for gallantry while serving with the 2nd Artillery in the war with Mexico, Hunt's talent for artillery organization was recognized by his appointment to the commission for the revision of light artillery tactics in 1856. The history of his Civil War career is virtually the history of the artillery in the eastern armies. His handling of artillery at Malvern Hill was decisive in holding that ground, and he was made a brigadier as a reward. He performed equally well at Antietam and Fredericksburg. His authority was diminished by Hooker, and the poor showing of the artillery at Chancellorsville was the result. The wisdom of restoring his position was amply demonstrated by his work in the Peach Orchard and during Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg. Almost any work on Union artillery in the eastern theater will shed some light on this pivotal figure; his biography is by Edward G. Longacre, The Man Behind the Guns. The Gettysburg Discussion Group pages have the text of his Order of September 12, 1862, organizing the artillery of the Army of the Potomac.

John Gibbon
Principally known to students of the Civil War as an infantry commander, Gibbon is listed here for his authorship of the exhaustive reference book, The Artillerist's Manual. He commenced the war as captain of Battery B, 4th U.S. Artillery; that battery was part of his first command as a general officer, the storied Iron Brigade. His Personal Recollections of the Civil War is a fine memoir, and he has also been the subject of a modern biography, Iron Brigade General: John Gibbon, a Rebel in Blue, by Dennis Lavery (1993).

Robert Parker Parrott
The story of his breakthrough in the development of useful cast iron artillery is told elsewhere on these pages, but some mention is due of the man. An 1824 West Point graduate, Parrott resigned his captaincy in 1836 to become superintendant of the West Point Foundry. His patent for reinforced cast iron cannon was granted in 1861; a true patriot, Parrott did not take advantage of the government during the crisis, but arranged that the Foundry would manufacture and sell the cannon on a cost recovery basis. Such was his rectitude that, in a period when the government was being imposed upon by purveyors of shoddy on all sides, he was entrusted with the inspection of his own cannon, and the wisdom of that trust was never questioned.
For a more detailed biographical information on Parrott, see Captain Robert Parker Parrott, submitted by Jack Melton.
Thomas Jackson Rodman
A gifted inventor, Rodman graduated seventh in the West Point class of 1841 and was commissioned in the ordnance department, where the army made good use of his talents until his death 30 years later. Rodman was an avid student of the swiftly-paced developments both in materials science and practical foundry work that resulted from the industrial revolution. His revolutionary hollow-core method of casting large guns, and the perforated gunpowder used with them, are described in more detail in Rodman's Great Guns. After his methods were finally approved and adopted by the U.S. government in 1859, Rodman was placed in command of the arsenal at Watertown, Massachusetts, where he spent the War producing cannon for the Union. Hard work broke down his health; although he was promoted to lieutenant colonel in 1867, after several war-time brevets, and was placed in command of the Rock Island Arsenal, he died at his post in 1871.
Franklin Butler Crosby
Lieutenant Crosby was killed at Chancellorsville after his first day of command in battle of Battery F, 4th U.S. Artillery. He isn't famous, but I include him here as a reminder, like Pelham, of the way the War destroyed so much of the youth of the nation. For his story, read the poem "One Day's Command".

Confederate Artillerymen

William Nelson Pendleton
Also a descendant of colonial Virginian ancestry, Pendleton's close resemblance to Robert E. Lee often confused their soldiers. An 1833 graduate of West Point, Pendleton resigned his commission after three years of service, and became an Episcopal priest. With the exception of his service during the War, he was pastor of Grace Church in Lexington, Virginia from 1853 until his death in 1883. His captaincy of the Rockbridge Artillery soon led to his being given overall command of the artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia, but his skills were often taxed to the limit in this capacity.

E. Porter Alexander
Alexander is known today for his fine pair of recollections: The Military Memoirs of a Confederate, which is actually a critical study of the operations of the Army of Northern Virginia, and later, the Army of Tennessee; and Fighting for the Confederacy, his personal recollections published only recently. Most of his work after his graduation from West Point in 1857 was as an engineer, where he gained some notoriety for his work on the army's signal service. After resigning from his post in California to join the Confederate service, he quickly rose to the post of chief of ordnance for the Army of Northern Virginia. Desiring a field command, he was made a colonel of artillery over a battalion in Longstreet's corps. His name is probably familiar to students of the Civil War for the famous disagreement over the order to commence Pickett's Charge.

John Pelham
Thanks in no small part to the writings of John Esten Cooke, "the boy major" passed from life into a symbol of Southern gallantry and bravery. Born in 1838, he was attending West Point during the secession crisis and resigned in April to enter the Confederate army. As captain of one of the batteries of Stuart's Horse Artillery, he displayed a real genius for the placement and maneuvering of artillery. The contrast between his aggressive tactical talents and his shy personal manner made him the perfect Galahad for Stuart's romanticized military family. His early death, at Kelly's Ford in March of 1863, assured that the name would not die before the man, and a club of admirers, the John Pelham Historical Association, still exists today.
My thanks to Joe Grau for the scans of Hunt, Gibbon, and Alexander, and to Dave Smith for Pendleton and Pelham. Parrott portrait from the USMA Archives.

Readers' Choices
Your opportunity to publish the story of your favorite artilleryman. Submit a biography and win a prize! (Well, at least a byline.)

Artillery Monuments
A small collection of artillerymen in stone and bronze, from battlefields, parks and courthouse memorials; just converted to thumbnails for easier loading and viewing.

The Library

L. VanLoan Naisawald, Grape and Canister; The Story of the Field Artillery of the Army of the Potomac, 1861-1865, 1960
Jennings Cropper Wise, The Long Arm of Lee, or, the History of the Artillery of the Army of Northern Virginia, 1915
Larry Daniel, Cannoneers in Gray: The Field Artillery of the Army of Tennessee, 1861-1865, 1990
Compiled Site Bibliography