Lewis Addison Armistead (1817 - 1863)

Born 18 Feb 1817 in New Bern, North Carolina, USA

Ancestors

Husband of Cecelia Lee (Love) Armistead — married 13 Feb 1844 in Lowndes, Alabama, United States

Husband of Cornelia Taliaferro (Jamison) Armistead — married 17 Mar 1853 in Alexandria, Virginia, United States

Descendants

Died 5 Jul 1863 at age 46 in Gettysburg, Adams, Pennsylvania, USA

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Biography

Lewis Armistead is Notable.

Brig Gen Lewis Armistead was Killed in Action during the United States Civil War.

Lewis Addison Armistead was born in 1817 in North Carolina. He was raised on his family's farm in northern Virginia. ^[1] He is best known for leading Pickett’s Charge at the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863 where he was mortally wounded on July 3rd. He died of his wounds two days later in a union army hospital.^[2]

Early Life

Lewis was born in the home of his great-grandfather, John Wright Stanley, in New Bern, North Carolina, to Walker Keith Armistead and Elizabeth Stanley.^[3]

He was known to friends as "Lo" (for Lothario).^[4] The name was a joke as he was known to admire the ladies "which was scarcely in keeping with his close cropped, grizzled beard or receding hairline."^[5] He came from a long line of military officers.^[1][6] His mother's side of the family had congressmen and governors as it's members.^[1]

In a letter dated October 29, 1833 Lewis's father wrote to Lewis Cass, the Secretary of War, requesting that his son be appointed as a cadet at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point.^[7] Lewis accepted his appointment to the academy in his letter to Secretary Cass dated April 12, 1833.^[7] Lewis Armistead entered West Point in 1833.^[8]

Lewis was disciplined for breaking the rules and cited in letters received by the Adjunct General for disciplinary actions.^[9] Conflicting reports say that he resigned after smashing a plate over another cadet's head (Jubal A. Early) and other reports say it was due to academic failings.^[1]

"He was also having academic difficulties, however, particularly in French (a subject of difficulty for many West Point cadets of that era), and some historians cite academic failure as his true reason for leaving the academy."^[10] Whether it was disciplinary actions, academic difficulties and/or poor conduct Lewis resigned from the Academy in 1836.^{[11][2] [12][10]}

Military Service

Brig Gen Lewis Armistead served in the United States Civil War.
Enlisted: Sep 15, 1861
Mustered out: Jul 5, 1863 (DOW)
Side: CSA
Regiment(s): 57 Virginia Infantry

His father and four uncles all served during the War of 1812, with one of those uncles, George Armistead, commanding Fort McHenry in Baltimore, Maryland, where the famous "Star Spangled Banner" flew.^[11][1]

Three years after his resignation from the academy, Lewis's father interceded on his behalf once again and he received a commission as second lieutenant in the 6th Infantry Regiment in the United States Army. He served primarily in garrison duty in the West.^[1][11][2]

Lewis Armistead was considered to be "good-natured" but demonstrated his fighting ability on the field. He received brevets for gallantry at Contreras, Churubusco, Molino del Rey, and Chapultepec in 1847. He was promoted to be captain 3 March, 1855, and he rendered good service in Indian warfare.^[13][11] He was wounded on 18 Sep 1847 in Chapultepec, Mexico.^[14]

Commission in the 57th Virginia.

Lewis A. Armistead, Capt. in the 6th Infantry of the U.S. Army resigned his commission on May 29, 1861 and joined the confederate army. ^[15][16]

"Armistead entered Confederate service on September 15, 1861, with the rank of major, but two weeks later he was promoted to colonel and given command of the 57th Virginia Infantry. For the next seven months, the unit manned defenses around the Confederate capital at Richmond and near Suffolk, Virginia. On April 1, 1862, Armistead, likely because of his prewar experience, was promoted to brigadier general and given command of a brigade that eventually consisted of five Virginia regiments. Two months later, on June 1, Armistead led his men into action for the first time at the Battle of Seven Pines. Though the brigade performed poorly, Armistead fought bravely, at one point having his horse killed under him."^[11]

He saw little action during the Second Manassas Campaign and was on a foraging expedition during the battle of Chancellorsville. Robert E. Lee, recognizing Armistead's qualities, appointed him provost marshal for the army. He was well-suited for such duty because, according to a colonel in his brigade, Armistead was a "strict disciplinarian" who believed that "obedience to duty" was "the first qualification of a soldier. He was wounded at Antietam, 17 Sept. 1862.^[13]

3rd Day at Gettysburg at the Angle.

At the Battle of Gettysburg, Armistead would be placed in charge of a brigade under Major General George Pickett. Armistead would lead his brigade during Pickett's Charge. He placed his hat on the end of his sword and waved it around to rally his troops to keep moving forward. Armistead take his brigade to the High Watermark of the Confederacy during the battle, only to be pushed back immediately by an overwhelming Union counterattack. In the counterattack, Armistead was shot three times. As he was being carried off the battlefield he encountered Captain Henry H. Bingham a Union soldier and Freemason. Armistead gave his possessions to Bingham and asked him to carry them to his friend Hancock, which Bingham did.^[1] Armistead told Bingham: “Say to General Hancock for me that I have done him and done you all an injury which I shall regret the longest day that I live.” ^[2][11][13]

Family

A letter dated January 12, 1844 from Walker Armistead to Adjunct General of the U.S. Army, Gen. Roger Jones, requested that Lewis have an extension to his leave due to his upcoming marriage to Cecilia Lee Love. It was requested that a copy of the reply be sent to Lewis in Church Hill, Lowndes County, Alabama where he was stationed.^[17] Lewis married Cecilia Lee Love on February 13, 1844 in Lowndes, Alabama.^[1][18][19]

Lewis and Cecilia had two children:^[1][19]

1. Walker Keith Armistead b. December 11, 1844^[20][21]
2. Flora Lee b. June 26, 1846 d. April 27, 1860.^[22]

Cecilia died on December 12, 1850 in Alabama.^[23][1] During this time, the Armistead family home in Virginia burned. Armistead took leave in October of 1852 to go home and help his family.^[24] Lewis married again while in Virginia to Cornelia Taliaferro Jameson on March 17, 1853.^[25]

Armistead brought his new wife when he returned to duty on the plains. They has a son, Lewis B., who died in December of 1854 and was buried next to Lewis’ first wife. In 1855 Lewis was promoted to captain, but tragedy struck again when Cornielia died that summer at Fort Riley, Kansas, during a cholera epidemic.^[24]

Freemasonry

Armistead was a Mason and a member of the Alexandria-Washington Lodge #22 [1] in Alexandria, Virginia.^[1] He later became a charter member of Union Lodge #7 Fort Riley, Kansas.^[26]

Friend to Friend Monument.

In California, Armistead became close friends with Winfield Scott Hancock. Armistead and Hancock were both members of the Masonic Fraternity.^[26] The two parted company as the American Civil War began. Hancock would serve for the Union and Armistead for the Confederacy.^[1]

Friend to Friend Monument

Depicted in this sculpture is Union Captain Henry Bingham, a Mason and staff assistant to General Hancock, himself wounded, rendering aid to the fallen Confederate General. Armistead is shown handing his watch and personal effects to be taken to his friend, Union General Hancock. Hancock survived the war and died in 1886. Armistead died at Gettysburg July 5, 1863. Captain Bingham attained the rank of General and later served 32 years in the United States House of Representatives. He was known as the “Father of the House.” Shown on the wall surrounding this monument are the names of the States whose soldiers fought at the Battle of Gettysburg.^[26]

The sculpture depicts Bingham at the side of Armistead and has a plaque on the reverse with information regarding the dedication: "This monument is presented by the Right Worshipful Grand Lodge of Free and Accepted Masons of Pennsylvania and dedicated as a memorial to the Freemasons of the Union and the Confederacy. Their unique bonds of friendship enabled them to remain a brotherhood undivided, even as they fought in a divided nation, faithfully supporting the respective governments under which they lived."

Death & Legacy

Armistead was carried off the field to a Union hospital. Both the field medics and the doctors at the hospital expected Armistead to survive his wounds, after two days, on July 5, 1863, he would pass away from what the doctor would call a secondary fever.^[1] Though initially buried near the hospital, his remains were later moved to Baltimore and interred in the family vault at Old Saint Paul's Cemetery in Baltimore, Maryland.^[11][2][27]

Colonel Henry H BinghamIn a letter to Union Major General Winfield Scott Hancock.

"I met Armistead just under the crest of the hill, being carried to the rear by several privates. I ordered them back, but they replied that they had an important prisoner and they designated him as General Longstreet... I dismounted my horse and inquired of the prisoner his name he replied General Armistead of the Confederate Army. Observing that his suffering was very great I said to him, General, I am Captain Bingham of General Hancock's staff, and if you have anything valuable in your possession which you desire taken care of, I will take care of it for you. He then asked me if it was General Winfield S. Hancock and upon my replying in the affirmative, he informed me that you were an old an valued friend of his and he desired for me to say to you, "Tell General Hancock for me that I have done him and done you all an injury which I shall regret or repent (I forget the exact word) the longest day I live." I then obtained his spurs, watch chain, seal and pocketbook. I told the men to take him to the rear to one of the hospitals."^[28] Letter from Captain Bingham to General Hancock

Lewis Armistead is buried next to his uncle, Lieutenant Colonel George Armistead, commander of the garrison of Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore during the War of 1812.^[29]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12} Harris, John Michael (2005) [TODAY in Masonic History: Lewis Addison Armistead is Born (18 Feb 1817)] Camberwell, London, England.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4} History.com Staff, Lewis Armistead born Lewis Armistead Born 2009. Publisher: A&E Networks. accessed: August 26, 2017
3. ↑ Marquis Who's Who, Inc. 1975. Who was who in American history, the military. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who. p. 14.
4. ↑ Wright, John D., and Henry Rasof. 2001. The Language of the Civil War. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO. http://public.eblib.com/choice/publicfullrecord.aspx?p=496807 p. 179
5. ↑ Foote, Shelby. 1991. The Civil War: a narrative. [Vol. 2], Fredericksburg to Meridian. London: Bodley Head. pp. 533-34
6. ↑ Heidler, David Stephen. 2001. Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: a political, social, and military history. 4, 4. Santa Barbara, Calif. [u.a.]: ABC-Clio.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} "US Military Academy Cadet Application Papers, 1805-1866" for Lewis A. Armistead, consulted as "US Military Academy Cadet Application Papers 1833; File #001-38 p. 33, 41, " database with digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 27 August 2017); citing U.S. Military Academy Cadet Application Papers, 1805-1866, National Archives micofilm publication M688, roll 0087.
8. ↑ "US Military Academy Cadet Application Papers, 1805-1866" for Lewis A. Armistead, consulted as "US Military Academy Cadet Application Papers Number 06; 1833-1835 Page 119," database with digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 27 August 2017); citing U.S. Military Academy Cadet Application Papers, 1805-1866, National Archives microfilm publication M688, roll 0001.
9. ↑ "Letters Received by the Office of the Adjutant General Main Series 1822-1860" for Lewis A. Armistead, consulted as "Letters Received, compiled 1805 - 1889", dated 1834 database with digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 27 August 2017), image 300368; citing Letters Received by the Office of the Adjutant General Main Series 1822-1860, National Archives micofilm publication M567, roll 0097.
10. ↑ ^{10.0 10.1} Heidler, David Stephen. 2001. Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: a political, social, and military history. 3, 3. Santa Barbara, Calif. [u.a.]: ABC-Clio. p. 78
11. ↑ ^{11.0 11.1 11.2 11.3 11.4 11.5 11.6} Dozier, G. T. Lewis A. Armistead (1817–1863). (2015, October 27). In Encyclopedia Virginia. Retrieved from Encyclopedia Virginia. First published: January 28, 2009 | Last modified: October 27, 2015.
12. ↑ Resignation of Cadet Lewis A. Armistead, January 29, 1836, RG 94, National Archives National Archives micofilm publication M688, roll 187.
13. ↑ ^{13.0 13.1 13.2} Wilson, James Grant, (1832-1914), Fiske, John, (1842-1901) Appleton's cyclopaedia of American biography. Volume I: Aaron - Crandall New York: D. Appleton, 1900. Archive.org (Page 90).
14. ↑ Heitman, Francis B., (1838-1926), Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, from it's Organization, September 29, 1789, to March 2, 1903 Washington : Govt. Print. Off., 1903. Heitman's Register and Dictionary of the US Army (Pages 13, 180).
15. ↑ "Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, from it's Organization, September 29, 1789, to March 2, 1903 by Francis B Heitman" for Lewis A. Armistead, cited as "US Army Historical Register - Volume 2; Part III - Alphabetical List of Officers Who Left the United States Army After Novemeber 1, 1860, and Joined the Confederate Service", dated 1 November 1860 database with digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 27 August 2017), citing Armistead, Lewis A. resigned 29 May 1861, Alphabetical List of Officers Who Left the United States Army After Novemeber 1, 1860, and Joined the Confederate Service, University of California Libraries, Internet Archive. 2013
16. ↑ Krick, Robert K. 2013. Armistead and Garnett: a UNC Press Civil War Short, Excerpted from The Third Day at Gettysburg and Beyond, edited by Gary W. Gallagher. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press. p. 110
17. ↑ "Letters Received by the Office of the Adjutant General Main Series 1822-1860" for Lewis A. Armistead, consulted as "Letters Received, compiled 1805 - 1889", dated 1844 database with digital images, Fold3 (http://www.fold3.com : accessed 27 August 2017), citing letter from W.K. Armistead, Letters Received by the Office of the Adjutant General Main Series 1822-1860, National Archives micofilm publication M567, roll 0281.
18. ↑ WPA Indices to Marriage Records, by County, 1814-1935. Alabama Department of Archives and History, Montgomery, Alabama. State of Alabama, Department of Archives and History, Inventory of County Archives, Marriage records Aug. 24, 1830 -- Feb. 14, 1848. Volume 1. Lowndes County. Page 405. Ancestry.com. Alabama, Marriage Indexes, 1814-1935 [database on-line]. https://www.ancestry.com/sharing/16981439?h=1199a0

    Name: Cecelia L. Love

    Gender: Female

    Marriage Date: 13 Feb 1844

    Marriage Place: Lowndes, Alabama, USA

    Spouse: Lewis A. Armstead

19. ↑ ^{19.0 19.1} "The Armistead Family. 1635-1910 : Garber, Virginia Armistead : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming." Internet Archive. January 01, 1970. Accessed July 03, 2019. https://archive.org/details/armisteadfamily100garb/page/68.
20. ↑ "Rhode Island Deaths and Burials, 1802-1950," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F8HS-DSQ : 10 March 2018), Walker Keith Armistead in entry for Lewis A. Armistead, 02 Oct 1933; citing Newport, Rhode Island, reference 1; FHL microfilm 1,941,478.
21. ↑ Find A Grave, database and images (accessed 02 July 2019), memorial page for Lieut Walker Keith Armistead, Sr (11 Dec 1844–28 Mar 1896), Find A Grave: Memorial #8684554, citing Berkeley Memorial Cemetery, Middletown, Newport County, Rhode Island, USA ; Maintained by aphillcsa (contributor 46613068) . (gravestone that includes dates and parents names included.
22. ↑ Find A Grave, database and images (accessed 02 July 2019), memorial page for Flora Love Armistead (26 Jun 1846–29 Apr 1850), Find A Grave: Memorial #20014, citing Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery, Lemay, St. Louis County, Missouri, USA ; Maintained by Find A Grave (contributor 8). (Photo of gravestone with dates included)
23. ↑ Find A Grave, database and images (accessed 02 July 2019), memorial page for Cecilia Lee Love Armistead (29 Oct 1823–12 Dec 1850), Find A Grave: Memorial #59622068, citing Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, Mobile County, Alabama, USA ; Maintained by Tim Childree (contributor 47125268). (gravestone photo included with dates)
24. ↑ ^{24.0 24.1} "Lewis Addison Armistead." The Civil War in the East. Accessed July 03, 2019. http://civilwarintheeast.com/people/lewis-a-armistead/.
25. ↑ Virginia, Marriages, 1785-1940. Salt Lake City, Utah: FamilySearch, 2013. Ancestry.com. Virginia, Select Marriages, 1785-1940 [database on-line].

    Name: Cornelia L. T. Jamesson

    Gender: Female

    Marriage Date: 17 Mar 1853

    Marriage Place: Arlington, Virginia

    Spouse: Lewis A. Armistead

    FHL Film Number: 30497

    Reference ID: 35

26. ↑ ^{26.0 26.1 26.2} Freemasonry, Ezekiel Bates Lodge A.F. & A.M. "Brother Lewis Armistead February 18th 1817 – July 5th 1863", Web accessed August 26, 2017
27. ↑ Smith, Derek. 2005. The gallant dead: Union and Confederate generals killed in the Civil War. Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books. pp. 174-75.
28. ↑ Sauers, R. Allen., Ladd, A. J., Ladd, D. L., Bachelder, J. B. (John Badger). (1994). The Bachelder papers: Gettysburg in their own words. "Letter from Captain Bingham to General Hancock", Vol. 1. Dayton, Ohio: Morningside.
29. ↑ Wikisource contributors (Poindexter, Rev. James E.), "Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 37.djvu/152," Wikisource, https://en.wikisource.org/w/index.php?title=Page:Southern_Historical_Society_Papers_volume_37.djvu/152&oldid=5464100 (accessed August 27, 2017) p. 144 - 151.

see also:

• "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MZ4Z-YDW : 12 April 2016), Lewis A Armistead in household of Samuel Woods, Boone county, Boone, Iowa, United States; citing family 876, NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
• United States Census, 1860", database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M417-XSV : 12 April 2016), Lewis A Armistead in entry for Elizabeth Armistead, 1860.
• JUNKIN, D X. 2015. LIFE OF WINFIELD SCOTT HANCOCK: personal, military, and political (classic reprint). [S.l.]: FORGOTTEN BOOKS. pages 113 - 119. archive.org
• Krick, Robert K. 2013. Armistead and Garnett: a UNC Press Civil War Short, Excerpted from The Third Day at Gettysburg and Beyond, edited by Gary W. Gallagher. Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press. See Notes.
• Wikipedia:Lewis_Armistead
• Wikipedia:Old_Saint_Paul's_Cemetery