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Robert Ransom, Jr.

 

 
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Robert Ransom, Jr.
 
 
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Robert Ransom, Jr. (1828 – 1892) was a major general
Major general (United States)

In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a 2 star rank general officer rank, with the U.S....
 in the Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was a military organization whose primary mission was to provide the necessary forces and capabilities to support the National Security and defense of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865....
 during the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
. His brother Matt W. Ransom was also a Confederate general officer and U.S. Senator
United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism United States Congress, the lower house being the United States House of Representatives....
.

rt Ransom, Jr. was born in Warren County, North Carolina
Warren County, North Carolina

Warren County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 19,972. Its county seat is Warrenton, North Carolina....
 to Robert Ransom, Sr. and Priscilla Whitaker Ransom. He graduated from the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational United States Service academies located at West Point, New York, New York....
 at West Point
West Point, New York

West Point is a federal military reservation located North of the Highland Falls, New York in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 7,138 at the 2000 census....
 in 1850. Ransom was assigned to the 1st dragoons on July 1, 1850. He attended the cavalry school at Carlisle Barracks
Carlisle Barracks

Carlisle Barracks is a United States Army facility located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. It is part of the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command and is the site of the U.S....
 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Carlisle is a borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, 18 miles west by southwest of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the State capital....
 in 1850-51/ On October 9, 1851 he was promoted to Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant

Second Lieutenant is the lowest Officer military rank in many armed forces.In British English the rank is pronounced second /l?f't?n?nt/ , while in American English it is pronounced second /lu't?n?nt/ ....
.






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Robert Ransom, Jr. (1828 – 1892) was a major general
Major general (United States)

In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a 2 star rank general officer rank, with the U.S....
 in the Confederate States Army
Confederate States Army

The Confederate States Army was a military organization whose primary mission was to provide the necessary forces and capabilities to support the National Security and defense of the Confederate States of America during its brief existence from 1861 to 1865....
 during the American Civil War
American Civil War

The American Civil War , also known as the War Between the States and several Naming the American Civil War, was a civil war in the United States....
. His brother Matt W. Ransom was also a Confederate general officer and U.S. Senator
United States Senate

The United States Senate is the upper house of the Bicameralism United States Congress, the lower house being the United States House of Representatives....
.

Early life

Robert Ransom, Jr. was born in Warren County, North Carolina
Warren County, North Carolina

Warren County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of 2000, the population was 19,972. Its county seat is Warrenton, North Carolina....
 to Robert Ransom, Sr. and Priscilla Whitaker Ransom. He graduated from the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy

The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational United States Service academies located at West Point, New York, New York....
 at West Point
West Point, New York

West Point is a federal military reservation located North of the Highland Falls, New York in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 7,138 at the 2000 census....
 in 1850. Ransom was assigned to the 1st dragoons on July 1, 1850. He attended the cavalry school at Carlisle Barracks
Carlisle Barracks

Carlisle Barracks is a United States Army facility located in Carlisle, Pennsylvania. It is part of the United States Army Training and Doctrine Command and is the site of the U.S....
 in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Carlisle, Pennsylvania

Carlisle is a borough in Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania, 18 miles west by southwest of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the State capital....
 in 1850-51/ On October 9, 1851 he was promoted to Second Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant

Second Lieutenant is the lowest Officer military rank in many armed forces.In British English the rank is pronounced second /l?f't?n?nt/ , while in American English it is pronounced second /lu't?n?nt/ ....
. Ransom then performed frontier service in New Mexico from 1851-54. Ransom married Minnie Huntt in 1854. He was assistant instructor of cavalry tactics at West Point from 1854-55. In 1855 he was promoted to First Lieutenant
First Lieutenant

First Lieutenant is a military rank.The rank of Lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations , but the majority of cases it is common for it to be sub-divided into a senior and junior rank....
 and transferred to the 1st U.S. Cavalry. Ransom served as adjutant of the regiment at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas from 1855-1857, where he took part in the Sioux expedition and in policing the Kansas disturbances. The next few years saw him in the recruiting service and frontier duty in Arkansas, Kansas and Colorado. He was also promoted to Captain. He resigned his commission on January 31, 1861, with the discussion of secession
Secession

Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. It is not to be confused with succession, the act of following in order or sequence....
 and the sectional crisis that led to the Civil War.

Civil War

He was initially appointed as a captain in the North Carolina cavalry in early 1861 and served with his regiment
Regiment

A regiment is a military unit, composed of variable numbers of battalions, commanded by a Colonel. Depending on the nation, military branch, mission, and organization, a modern regiment resembles a brigade, in that both range in size from a few hundred to 5,000 soldiers ....
 in Northern Virginia
Northern Virginia

Northern Virginia consistsof several County and independent cities in the U.S. state of Virginia in a widespread region generally radiating southerly and westward from Washington, D.C....
, where he fought in several minor skirmishes. On October 13, 1861, he was appointed to the colonelcy
Colonel (United States)

In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, Colonel is a senior field officer United States Military Officer military rank just above the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and just below the rank of Brigadier General ....
 of the 1st North Carolina Cavalry. He commanded the Confederate forces at the skirmish around Vienna
Vienna, Virginia

Vienna is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, Virginia, United States. The population was 14,453 at the 2000 census and it has grown by about 3% since....
 on November 26, 1861, and was afterward returned to North Carolina. On March 1, 1862, Ransom was promoted to brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)

A brigadier general in the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, is a 1 star rank general officer, with the U.S....
 and fought on the Peninsula
Virginia Peninsula

The Virginia Peninsula is a peninsula in southeast Virginia, bounded by the York River , James River , Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay.Hampton Roads is the common name for the metropolitan area that surrounds the body of water of the same name....
 attached to Huger's Division.

He led his North Carolina brigade
Brigade

A brigade is a military unit that is typically composed of two to five regiments or battalions, depending on the era and nationality of a given army....
 in the September 1862 invasion of Maryland
Maryland Campaign

The Maryland Campaign, or the Antietam Campaign, of September 1862 is widely considered one of the major Turning Point of the American Civil War of the American Civil War....
 and participated in the capture of Harpers Ferry
Battle of Harpers Ferry

The Battle of Harpers Ferry was fought from September 12 to September 15, 1862, as part of the Maryland Campaign of the American Civil War. As Robert E....
 and the Battle of Antietam
Battle of Antietam

The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern United States soil....
. On November 7, he was placed in temporary command of the division
Division (military)

A division is a large military unit or Formation usually consisting of between ten to thirty thousand soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions make up a corps....
 and led it through the Battle of Fredericksburg
Battle of Fredericksburg

The Battle of Fredericksburg, fought in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, from December 11 to December 15, 1862, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate States Army Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army Army of the Potomac, commanded by Major general Ambrose E....
, where Ransom's division had successfully defended Marye's Heights against the attacking Federals
Union Army

The Union Army was the army that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S....
.

In January 1863, Ransom and his brigade were sent back to North Carolina. In May he was promoted to major general and performed duty around Richmond, western Virginia, and eastern Tennessee
East Tennessee

East Tennessee is a name given to approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee, one of the three Grand Divisions defined in state law....
. In May 1864 he led a division under General P.G.T. Beauregard in the defense of Drewry's Bluff against Union General Benjamin Butler
Benjamin Butler

Benjamin or Ben Butler may refer to:*Benjamin Franklin Butler , U.S. lawyer who served as Attorney General, 1833–1838*Benjamin Franklin Butler , U.S....
. He was sent to command the cavalry in 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 bound 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 and to the south by the James River ....
 in the summer, under the command of General Jubal A. Early, where he participated in the battles of Monocacy
Battle of Monocacy

}|-||}The Battle of Monocacy was fought on July 9, 1864, just outside Frederick, Maryland, as part of the Valley Campaigns of 1864, in the American Civil War....
 and Fort Stevens
Fort Stevens

Fort Stevens may refer to one of two decommissioned American military forts:*Fort Stevens , a fort in Oregon that guarded the mouth of the Columbia River...
.

He was relieved of command in August 1864 due to illness and never returned to front line service. He ended the war serving on military courts at administrative posts in Kentucky and at Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston is a city in Charleston County, South Carolina in the U.S. state of South Carolina. It is the largest city and county seat of Charleston County....
, before surrendering to Federal troops on May 2, 1865.

Postbellum career

Following the war, he was an express agent and city marshal at Wilmington, North Carolina
Wilmington, North Carolina

Wilmington is a city in and the county seat of New Hanover County, North Carolina, North Carolina, United States. The population was 75,838 at the United States Census, 2000....
, and then was a farmer until 1878. He then was a civil engineer
Civil engineer

A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering, one of the many engineering professions. Originally a civil engineer worked on public works projects and was contrasted with the military engineer, who worked on armaments and defenses....
 in charge of Federal river and harbor works at New Bern, North Carolina
New Bern, North Carolina

New Bern is a city in Craven County, North Carolina, North Carolina with a population of 23,128 as of the 2000 census. The estimated population in 2006 was 27,650....
. In 1881, his first wife died. The couple had nine children. In 1884, he married Katherine DeWitt Lumpkin and they had three children. Ransom died in New Bern in 1892.

See also