Julian Edward Wood
Encyclopedia
Julian Edward Wood was a founder of Pi Kappa Alpha
Fraternity
.
Wood was the son of William Edward Wood and Sophia Marchant (Trotman) Wood and was born in 1844 in Currituck County, North Carolina
, not far from the site of the ill-fated Raleigh colony on Roanoke Island
. His father, a practicing physician, later lived at Hampton, Virginia
and in Norfolk, Virginia
. At Hampton, his home was the site of the present Hampton Institute (now Hampton University
). Most of the son's early life was therefore spent around Hampton Roads, Virginia.
When still of high school age, he volunteered for service in the Confederate Army at the outbreak of the Civil War. He was assigned to drilling troops from his native eastern North Carolina as early as June 1861, and he spent the rest of that year as a drill master; letters to his family portray an eagerness to see military action.
Because his father insisted that he further his education Wood entered Virginia Military Institute
on January 9, 1862, from Hickory Groves, Norfolk County, Virginia. His father's occupation was listed as "farming". His cadetship extended over a period of two years and ten months at V.M.I. and he earned the sobriquet Ajax because of his size and prowess. Wood however was not a model student and was suspended in January, 1864 for being absent from barracks after taps. He was reinstated the following month by the V.M.I. Board of Visitors.
Wood served as a corporal in Company C in the V.M.I. Cadet Corps which was ordered in May 1864 to join the Confederate Army of Major General John C. Breckinridge
, who was attempting to stop a Union advance up the Shenandoah Valley
. At New Market, Virginia
on May 14, 1864, a rainy Sunday afternoon, a corps of 247 teenage V.M.I. cadets, with no battle experience, held a sector of Confederate front lines against an assault by seasoned Federal troops headed by Major General Franz Sigel
. The esprit among the V.M.I. cadets enabled them to turn what might have been a defeat for Breckinridge into an astounding victory, now known as the Battle of New Market
. In this battle Wood was "on the colors," or urging the cadet colors onward. Actually the flag "urged forward" was not the Confederate flag but the V.M.I. Cadet flag. Federal troops seeing it are reported to have assumed that troops of a foreign nation had joined forces with Breckinridge's troops.
In 1867, Wood entered the University of Virginia
to study medicine. His interest in that profession was no doubt stimulated by his father's distinguished career as a medical doctor; moreover, one of Wood's best friends in the Confederate Army had been his superior officer, Captain Whitson, who had been a professor of medicine in Washington, D.C. prior to the war.
While stayed at the University of Virginia two years, then finished his M.D. degree at Baltimore Medical College in 1869. At the completion of his education, he practiced medicine in Elizabeth City, North Carolina
. He married Mary Scott (b. 1846) and they had two children, a son William E. Wood (b. 1880) and a daughter Annie M. Wood (b. 1876). Wood continued his interest in the military: he was connected with the North Carolina state militia and attained the rank of colonel.
Wood died in 1911 after a severe illness from the preceding year. Wood is buried among the maples in the cemetery of his adopted home, Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
Pi Kappa Alpha
Pi Kappa Alpha is a Greek social fraternity with over 230 chapters and colonies and over 250,000 lifetime initiates in the United States and Canada.-History:...
Fraternity
Fraternities and sororities
Fraternities and sororities are fraternal social organizations for undergraduate students. In Latin, the term refers mainly to such organizations at colleges and universities in the United States, although it is also applied to analogous European groups also known as corporations...
.
Wood was the son of William Edward Wood and Sophia Marchant (Trotman) Wood and was born in 1844 in Currituck County, North Carolina
Currituck County, North Carolina
-National protected areas:*Currituck National Wildlife Refuge*Mackay Island National Wildlife Refuge -Demographics:As of the census of 2010, there were 23,547 people, 6,902 households, and 5,204 families residing in the county. The population density was 70 people per square mile . There were...
, not far from the site of the ill-fated Raleigh colony on Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island
Roanoke Island is an island in Dare County near the coast of North Carolina, United States. It was named after the historical Roanoke Carolina Algonquian people who inhabited the area in the 16th century at the time of English exploration....
. His father, a practicing physician, later lived at Hampton, Virginia
Hampton, Virginia
Hampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
and in Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
. At Hampton, his home was the site of the present Hampton Institute (now Hampton University
Hampton University
Hampton University is a historically black university located in Hampton, Virginia, United States. It was founded by black and white leaders of the American Missionary Association after the American Civil War to provide education to freedmen.-History:...
). Most of the son's early life was therefore spent around Hampton Roads, Virginia.
When still of high school age, he volunteered for service in the Confederate Army at the outbreak of the Civil War. He was assigned to drilling troops from his native eastern North Carolina as early as June 1861, and he spent the rest of that year as a drill master; letters to his family portray an eagerness to see military action.
Because his father insisted that he further his education Wood entered Virginia Military Institute
Virginia Military Institute
The Virginia Military Institute , located in Lexington, Virginia, is the oldest state-supported military college and one of six senior military colleges in the United States. Unlike any other military college in the United States—and in keeping with its founding principles—all VMI students are...
on January 9, 1862, from Hickory Groves, Norfolk County, Virginia. His father's occupation was listed as "farming". His cadetship extended over a period of two years and ten months at V.M.I. and he earned the sobriquet Ajax because of his size and prowess. Wood however was not a model student and was suspended in January, 1864 for being absent from barracks after taps. He was reinstated the following month by the V.M.I. Board of Visitors.
Wood served as a corporal in Company C in the V.M.I. Cadet Corps which was ordered in May 1864 to join the Confederate Army of Major General John C. Breckinridge
John C. Breckinridge
John Cabell Breckinridge was an American lawyer and politician. He served as a U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator from Kentucky and was the 14th Vice President of the United States , to date the youngest vice president in U.S...
, who was attempting to stop a Union advance up the Shenandoah Valley
Shenandoah Valley
The Shenandoah Valley is both a geographic valley and cultural region of western Virginia and West Virginia in the United States. The valley is bounded to the east by the Blue Ridge Mountains, to the west by the eastern front of the Ridge-and-Valley Appalachians , to the north by the Potomac River...
. At New Market, Virginia
New Market, Virginia
New Market is a town in Shenandoah County, Virginia, United States. It had a population of 2,146 at the 2010 census. New Market is home to the Rebels of the Valley Baseball League, and the New Market Shockers of the Rockingham County Baseball League.-History:...
on May 14, 1864, a rainy Sunday afternoon, a corps of 247 teenage V.M.I. cadets, with no battle experience, held a sector of Confederate front lines against an assault by seasoned Federal troops headed by Major General Franz Sigel
Franz Sigel
Franz Sigel was a German military officer, revolutionist and immigrant to the United States who was a teacher, newspaperman, politician, and served as a Union major general in the American Civil War.-Early life:...
. The esprit among the V.M.I. cadets enabled them to turn what might have been a defeat for Breckinridge into an astounding victory, now known as the Battle of New Market
Battle of New Market
The Battle of New Market was a battle fought on May 15, 1864, in Virginia during Valley Campaigns of 1864 in the American Civil War. Cadets from the Virginia Military Institute fought alongside the Confederate Army and forced Union General Franz Sigel and his army out of the Shenandoah...
. In this battle Wood was "on the colors," or urging the cadet colors onward. Actually the flag "urged forward" was not the Confederate flag but the V.M.I. Cadet flag. Federal troops seeing it are reported to have assumed that troops of a foreign nation had joined forces with Breckinridge's troops.
In 1867, Wood entered the University of Virginia
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia is a public research university located in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, founded by Thomas Jefferson...
to study medicine. His interest in that profession was no doubt stimulated by his father's distinguished career as a medical doctor; moreover, one of Wood's best friends in the Confederate Army had been his superior officer, Captain Whitson, who had been a professor of medicine in Washington, D.C. prior to the war.
While stayed at the University of Virginia two years, then finished his M.D. degree at Baltimore Medical College in 1869. At the completion of his education, he practiced medicine in Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Elizabeth City, North Carolina
Elizabeth City is a city in Pasquotank County and Camden County in the State of North Carolina. With a population of 18,683 at the 2010 census, Elizabeth City is the county seat of Pasquotank County....
. He married Mary Scott (b. 1846) and they had two children, a son William E. Wood (b. 1880) and a daughter Annie M. Wood (b. 1876). Wood continued his interest in the military: he was connected with the North Carolina state militia and attained the rank of colonel.
Wood died in 1911 after a severe illness from the preceding year. Wood is buried among the maples in the cemetery of his adopted home, Elizabeth City, North Carolina.
External links
- Pi Kappa Alpha at www.pka.org