CSA Bios: Trapier, Tracy and Toon

[Battleline]

Brig. Gen James H. Trapier, CSA (b. 1815 d. 1865) Third in the U.S. Military Academy (West Point) Class of 1838, James Heyward Trapier was destined for a military life. Born at "Windsor" on the Black River near Georgetown, S.C., Nov. 24, 1815, Trapier's first military assignment was in the corps of engineers, mainly in the north. He decided he had enough of U.S. military life in 1848, tendering his resignation. He moved back to his plantation in South Carolina. He also served in local militia units and aided in construction of batteries in Charleston Harbor under Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard, first as a captain and then as a major. Trapier received his promotion to brigadier general Oct. 21, 1861. He commanded the District of Eastern and Middle Florida and later had a division in Gen. Braxton Bragg's army at Corinth, Miss. His performance was less than expected as both the Florida state convention and Bragg criticized his performance. After fall of 1862, he was hidden in a number of inferior roles in South Carolina through the rest of the war. Shortly after the end of the war, he died at the home of a friend in Georgetown, S.C., Dec. 21, 1865.

Brig. Gen. Edward D. Tracy, CSA (b. 1833 d. 1863) Edward Dorr Tracy saw quite a bit of war during his 29 years of life. Born in Macon, Ga., Nov. 5, 1833, Tracy studied to be a lawyer and was engaged in this line of work in Huntsville, Ala. He got into politics, stumping through northern Alabama for John C. Breckinridge and was an alternate elector for the state at large in the 1860 election. At the start of the war, he was picked as the captain for a company which became part of the Fourth Alabama Infantry. He declined a commission as major of the 12th Alabama and fought with the Fourth Alabama at First Manassas. He received a transfer to the 19th Alabama Infantry Oct. 12, 1861, and was named that unit's lieutenant colonel (under Col. Joseph Wheeler). At Shiloh, Tracy had a horse killed under him. Following that, he went to east Tennessee with Gen. John P. McCown's division. Gen. Kirby Smith recommended Tracy for promotion to general and he received his commission to date from Aug. 16, 1863. His brigade consisted of five Alabama regiments. Early in 1863, his brigade was sent to Vicksburg, Miss. His unit was at Port Hudson Miss., May 1, 1863, and was heavily involved in the fighting. Of the 1500 officers and men in Tracy's Brigade, 272 were killed, wounded or captured in the battle. That included Tracy, who was killed. He "fell near the front line, pierced through the breast, and instantly died without uttering a word," according to one of his regimental commanders, Col. (later Brig. Gen.) Isham W. Garrott. Garrott suffered a similar fate six weeks later, May 28, 1863.

Brig. Gen Thomas F. Toon, CSA (b. 1840 d. 1902) Born in Columbus County, N.C., Thomas Fentress Toon was a senior at Wake Forest College when he joined the Columbus Guards No. 2, a company which became part of the 20th North Carolina Infantry (led by Col. Alfred Iverson, Jr.) May 20, 1861. After graduation in June, 1861, he was elected lieutenant of his company and in the following month, he became captain. He was wounded seven times through the war, fighting with conspicuous gallantry at Seven Pines, the Seven Days Campaign, South Mountain and Fredericksburg. Another milestone came Feb.26, 1863, when he was elected colonel when his seniors waived rights to promotion. He led the 20th North Carolina during Stonewall Jackson's famous flank attack at Chancellorsville. He was involved at Gettysburg (20th North Carolina suffered horribly during July 1 action, one officer offered this history "Initiated at Seven Pines, sacrificed at Gettysburg, surrendered at Appomattox."), the Mine Run Campaign and the Battles of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania. When Gen. R.D. Johnston was wounded at Spotsylvania, Toon was promoted to brigadier general to date from May 31, 1864. He commanded the brigade during Gen. Early's Valley Campaign and advance on Washington. His troops fought during the Battle of Monocacy. When Johnston returned to duty, Toon reverted to colonel. He served in that capacity during the remainder of the Shenandoah Campaign, at the Petersburg defenses and in the March 25, 1865, assault on Fort Stedman, he was wounded for the seventh time. This wound knocked him out of the war. He returned home to Columbus County, N.C., moving to Robeson County, N.C., in 1891.He was elected state superintendent of publc instruction around the turn of the century. He died in Raleigh, N.C., Feb. 19, 1902.

Yes, those of you who follow the Premiership (English "football"), particularly Newcastle United, I realize how ironic it is that there was a General Toon. Had he ascended to higher rank, he would have been in command of the Toon Army!

No, I have nothing better to do on a Friday night. It's one of the rare Friday night's I don't have to work. Of course, by writing bios, I can continue to delay actually reading the game manual!

[Gil R.]

Thanks. The soccer reference is beyond me...

[Roger Neilson II]

As a Geordie and supporter of 'The Toon' I found this amazing. Shame the guy didn't get a bit more fame.

[Gil R.]

Here's Trapier, about which I have a question. (One that Google wouldn't answer.)


Brig. Gen. James Heyward Trapier (b. 1815, d. 1865). Born at the Windsor Plantation on the Black River near Georgetown, South Carolina on November 24, 1815, Trapier was destined for a military life. He graduated third in the U.S. Military Academy at West Point’s Class of 1838, following which his first military assignment was in the Corps of Engineers, mainly in the North. After ten years, he decided that he had enough of U.S. military life, tendering his resignation and moving back to his plantation. Trapier, however, was not done with the military life altogether: he served in local militia units and aided in construction of batteries in Charleston Harbor under Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard, first as a captain and then as a major, in the prelude to the outbreak of hostilities at Fort Sumter. Trapier received his promotion to brigadier general on October 21, 1861, first commanding the Department of Middle and Eastern Florida until the following March, and later a division in Gen. Braxton Bragg’s army at Corinth, Mississippi. (THIS HAS ME CONFUSED. DID HE JOIN BRAGG ONCE HE HAD REPLACED BEAUREGARD AS COMMANDER OF THE ARMY OF TENNESSEE? AND THEREFORE HE FOUGHT DURING THE 1ST SIEGE OF CORINTH?) His performance in both commands was less than expected, as both the Florida state convention and Bragg criticized him. Beginning in the fall of 1862 and lasting through the rest of the war, Trapier was buried in a number of inferior roles in South Carolina. Shortly after the end of the war, Trapier died at the home of a friend in Georgetown, South Carolina, on December 21, 1865. (Bio by Bill Battle)

Leadership: 2
Tactical: 1
Initiative: 1
Command: 1
Cavalry:

Start date: 19

[Gil R.]

Done with this Tracy. A bit of rewriting, nothing major other than one honest-to-goodness mistake: some detective work led me to discover that if he died on May 1 it was Port Gibson, not Port Hudson, where this happened, since Port Hudson’s siege began May 21. And here’s proof: http://www.nps.gov/archive/vick/vcmpgn/ptgibson.htm . I also changed his promotion date to 1862, since the next sentence began with “early in 1863,” which suggests that’s a typo. Let me know if I’m wrong.

Brig. Gen. Edward Dorr Tracy (b. 1833 d. 1863). Tracy saw quite a bit of war during his twenty-nine years of life. Born in Macon, Georgia, on November 5, 1833, Tracy studied to be a lawyer and was engaged in this line of work in Huntsville, Alabama. Getting involved in politics during the 1860 elections, he stumped through northern Alabama for John C. Breckinridge and served as an alternate at-large state elector. At the start of the Civil War, he was picked as the captain for a company which became part of the 4th Alabama Infantry. Having declined a commission as major of the 12th Alabama, Tracy fought with the 4th Alabama at the First Battle of Bull Run on July 21, 1861. He received a transfer to the 19th Alabama Infantry on October 12, and was named that unit’s lieutenant colonel, serving under Col. Joseph Wheeler. At the Battle of Shiloh the following April, Tracy had a horse killed under him, but himself was unwounded. He next went to eastern Tennessee with Gen. John P. McCown’s division in Gen. Kirby Smith’s Army of Kentucky, at whose recommendation Tracy soon received his commission as a brigadier general, dating to August 16, 1862, and gained command of a brigade consisting of five Alabama regiments. The following spring, Tracy’s brigade was sent to defend Vicksburg, Mississippi, the Confederacy’s vital stronghold on the Mississippi River. On May 1, 1863, one day after the 23,000 men of Gen. Ulysses S. Grant’s Army of the Tennessee crossed the river and began their march on Vicksburg, the invading force found itself confronted by 8,000 men under Gen. John S. Bowen giving them battle at Port Gibson. Among these Confederates were Tracy’s Alabamans, who were heavily involved in the fighting, holding their line despite suffering nearly 20% casualties. By the time the battle had ended in defeat, 272 of the 1,500 officers and men in Tracy’s brigade had been killed, wounded or captured – including Tracy, who was killed. He “fell near the front line, pierced through the breast, and instantly died without uttering a word,” according to one of his regimental commanders, Col. (later Brig. Gen.) Isham W. Garrott, who was to suffer a similar fate four weeks later. (Bio by Bill Battle)

Leadership: 3
Tactical: 3
Initiative: 3
Command: 4
Cavalry:

Start date: 39
Death date: 56

[Gil R.]

I figured I might as well finish off this thread, so here's Toon:


Brig. Gen. Thomas Fentress Toon (b. 1840 d. 1902). Born in Columbus County, N.C., Toon was a senior at Wake Forest College when he joined the Columbus Guards No. 2, a company which became part of the 20th North Carolina Infantry, led by Col. Alfred Iverson, Jr., on May 20, 1861. After graduation in June 1861, he was elected lieutenant of his company, and in the following month he became captain. Toon was wounded seven times during the Civil War, fighting with conspicuous gallantry during the spring 1862 Peninsular Campaign at Seven Pines and in the Seven Days’ Battles, and later that year at South Mountain and Fredericksburg. Another milestone in his career came on February 26, 1863, when he was elected colonel of the 20th North Carolina after his seniors waived their rights to promotion. Toon led his regiment during Gen. Stonewall Jackson’s famous flank attack at Chancellorsville on May 2. Two months later, his men fought and suffered horribly at Gettysburg, leading one officer to summarize the unit’s history thusly: “Initiated at Seven Pines, sacrificed at Gettysburg, surrendered at Appomattox.” At the very end of the campaigning season that fall, Toon’s regiment had been present for the relatively bloodless Mine Run Campaign, while the following spring saw them engaged at the very bloody Battles of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania. When Gen. R.D. Johnston was wounded at Spotsylvania, Toon was promoted to brigadier general, to date from May 31, 1864. He commanded his brigade during Gen. Jubal Early’s Shenandoah Valley Campaign and subsequent failed advance on Washington, D.C. that summer, seeing action at the Battle of Monocacy on July 9. When Johnston returned to duty, Toon reverted to colonel. He served in that capacity during the remainder of Early’s campaign and subsequent Siege of Petersburg. On March 25, 1865, Toon was wounded for the last time during the assault on Fort Stedman, a failed attempt by the besieged Confederates to break out of Petersburg. This wound knocked him out of the war, which was to last two more weeks. He returned home to Columbus County, moving to nearby Robeson County in 1891 and later being elected state superintendent of public instruction around the turn of the century. Toon died in Raleigh, North Carolina on February 19, 1902. (Bio by Bill Battle)

Leadership: 4
Tactical: 3
Initiative: 2
Command: 3
Cavalry:

Start date: 81

[Battleline]

Wow! This one goes back a ways! This was before I was checking my sources two or three times. You were absolutely right about Tracy. About Trapier, my Historical Times Illustrated Encyclopedia says Trapier was sent to A.S. Johnston in March of 1862 and Johnston assigned him a division in the Army of Mississippi. Trapier commanded at Corinth (stated as "in the spring of 1862") and Farmington, Mississippi May 9-10, 1862. It was reported that superior officers were asking for him to be relieved as Trapier had little experience with infantry and did not do very well in his first engagement. He was returned to the Department of South Carolina in November of 1862.
Battleline

[jkBluesman]

ORIGINAL: Gil R.

This wound knocked him out of the war, which was to last two more weeks.

So the fighting was over for the Army of Northern Virginia but would you say the whole war ended then? The last battle was May 26 (Palmito Ranch) and Kirby Smith surrendered on June 2.

[Gil R.]

The war was also fought outside of Virginia?!?

Okay, I guess I'll rephrase it.

[Gil R.]

Okay, thanks for the added info. I fixed this, though I have to admit I’m still a bit confused, since Trapier’s not shown commanding a division at Shiloh, which I would think he would have been if Johnston had given him a division. I guess it was securing some key point in the area, such as Corinth, and missed the battle.

Brig. Gen. James Heyward Trapier (b. 1815, d. 1865). Born at the Windsor Plantation on the Black River near Georgetown, South Carolina on November 24, 1815, Trapier was destined for a military life. He graduated third in the U.S. Military Academy at West Point’s Class of 1838, following which his first military assignment was in the Corps of Engineers, mainly in the North. After ten years, he decided that he had enough of U.S. military life, tendering his resignation and moving back to his plantation. Trapier, however, was not done with the military life altogether: he served in local militia units and aided in construction of batteries in Charleston Harbor under Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard, first as a captain and then as a major, in the prelude to the outbreak of hostilities at Fort Sumter. Trapier received his promotion to brigadier general on October 21, 1861, first commanding the Department of Middle and Eastern Florida until the following March, when he was sent to serve under Gen. Albert S. Johnston, who gave him a division in the Army of Missippi. He continued to command this division under Gen. Braxton Bragg during the Siege of Corinth that spring, participating in the skirmish at Farmington, Mississippi on May 9-10. His performance in both commands was less than expected, as both the Florida state convention and Bragg criticized him, along with other superior officers concerned over his lack of experience with infantry. Beginning in November 1862 and lasting through the rest of the war, Trapier was buried in a number of inferior roles in the Department of South Carolina. Shortly after the end of the war, Trapier died at the home of a friend in Georgetown, South Carolina, on December 21, 1865. (Bio by Bill Battle)