Civil War Leaders
Ulysses S. Grant -
was born Hiram Ulysses Grant on April, 27, 1822 in Point Pleasant, Ohio, near the mouth of the Big Indian Creek at the Ohio River. His famous moniker “U.S. Grant” came after he joined the military. Hiram was the first son of Jesse Root Grant, a tanner and businessman, and Hannah Simpson Grant. A year after Hiram was born, the family moved to Georgetown, Ohio, where he grew up in what he described as an “uneventful” childhood. He did, however, show great aptitude as a horseman in his youth.
Hiram Ulysses Grant was not a standout as a boy. Shy and reserved, he took after his mother rather than his outgoing father. He hated the idea of working in his father’s tannery business, a fact that Jesse begrudgingly had to acknowledge. When Hiram was 17, Jesse arranged for him to enter West Point. A clerical error had listed him as Ulysses S. Grant. Not wanting to be rejected, he changed his name on the spot. Grant didn’t excel at West Point, earning average grades and finding the academy “had no charms” for him. He received several demerits for slovenly dress and tardiness. He did well in mathematics and geology and excelled in horsemanship. In 1843, he graduated 21st out of 39 and was glad to be out. He planned to resign from the military after he served his mandatory four years of duty.
William T Sherman-
One of eleven children, was born into a distinguished family. His father had served on the Supreme Court of Ohio until his sudden death in 1829, leaving Sherman and his family to stay with several friends and relatives. During this period, Sherman found himself living with Senator Thomas Ewing, who obtained an appointment for Sherman to the United States Military Academy, and he graduated sixth in the class of 1840. His early military career proved to be anything but spectacular. He saw some combat during the Second Seminole War in Florida, but unlike many of his colleagues, did not fight in the Mexican-American War, serving instead in California. As a result, he resigned his commission in 1853. He took work in the fields of banking and law briefly before becoming the superintendent of the Louisiana Military Academy in 1859. At the outbreak of the Civil War, however, Sherman resigned from the academy and headed north, where he was made a colonel of the 13th United States Infantry.
Jefferson Finis Davis-
the first and only President of the Confederate States of America, was a planter, politician and soldier born in Kentucky and raised in Mississippi. Davis was the tenth and youngest child of Revolutionary War soldier Samuel Davis and his wife Jane Cook Davis (Finis in Latin means final—the couple wanted no more children after Jefferson). Born June 3, 1808, he was heavily influenced by his oldest brother, Joseph, who saw to it that he was well educated. Davis attended college in Kentucky at Transylvania before entering the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1824.
Robert E Lee-
Born to Revolutionary War hero Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee in Stratford Hall, Virginia, Robert Edward Lee seemed destined for military greatness. Despite financial hardship that caused his father to depart to the West Indies, young Robert secured an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated second in the class of 1829. Two years later, he married Mary Anna Randolph Custis, a descendant of George Washington. Yet with for all his military pedigree, Lee had yet to set foot on a battlefield. Instead, he served seventeen years as an officer in the Corps of Engineers, supervising and inspecting the construction of the nation's coastal defenses. Service during the 1846 war with Mexico, however, changed that. As a member of General Winfield Scott's staff, Lee distinguished himself, earning three brevets for gallantry, and emerging from the conflict with the rank of colonel.
was born Hiram Ulysses Grant on April, 27, 1822 in Point Pleasant, Ohio, near the mouth of the Big Indian Creek at the Ohio River. His famous moniker “U.S. Grant” came after he joined the military. Hiram was the first son of Jesse Root Grant, a tanner and businessman, and Hannah Simpson Grant. A year after Hiram was born, the family moved to Georgetown, Ohio, where he grew up in what he described as an “uneventful” childhood. He did, however, show great aptitude as a horseman in his youth.
Hiram Ulysses Grant was not a standout as a boy. Shy and reserved, he took after his mother rather than his outgoing father. He hated the idea of working in his father’s tannery business, a fact that Jesse begrudgingly had to acknowledge. When Hiram was 17, Jesse arranged for him to enter West Point. A clerical error had listed him as Ulysses S. Grant. Not wanting to be rejected, he changed his name on the spot. Grant didn’t excel at West Point, earning average grades and finding the academy “had no charms” for him. He received several demerits for slovenly dress and tardiness. He did well in mathematics and geology and excelled in horsemanship. In 1843, he graduated 21st out of 39 and was glad to be out. He planned to resign from the military after he served his mandatory four years of duty.
William T Sherman-
One of eleven children, was born into a distinguished family. His father had served on the Supreme Court of Ohio until his sudden death in 1829, leaving Sherman and his family to stay with several friends and relatives. During this period, Sherman found himself living with Senator Thomas Ewing, who obtained an appointment for Sherman to the United States Military Academy, and he graduated sixth in the class of 1840. His early military career proved to be anything but spectacular. He saw some combat during the Second Seminole War in Florida, but unlike many of his colleagues, did not fight in the Mexican-American War, serving instead in California. As a result, he resigned his commission in 1853. He took work in the fields of banking and law briefly before becoming the superintendent of the Louisiana Military Academy in 1859. At the outbreak of the Civil War, however, Sherman resigned from the academy and headed north, where he was made a colonel of the 13th United States Infantry.
Jefferson Finis Davis-
the first and only President of the Confederate States of America, was a planter, politician and soldier born in Kentucky and raised in Mississippi. Davis was the tenth and youngest child of Revolutionary War soldier Samuel Davis and his wife Jane Cook Davis (Finis in Latin means final—the couple wanted no more children after Jefferson). Born June 3, 1808, he was heavily influenced by his oldest brother, Joseph, who saw to it that he was well educated. Davis attended college in Kentucky at Transylvania before entering the U.S. Military Academy at West Point in 1824.
Robert E Lee-
Born to Revolutionary War hero Henry "Light-Horse Harry" Lee in Stratford Hall, Virginia, Robert Edward Lee seemed destined for military greatness. Despite financial hardship that caused his father to depart to the West Indies, young Robert secured an appointment to the United States Military Academy at West Point, where he graduated second in the class of 1829. Two years later, he married Mary Anna Randolph Custis, a descendant of George Washington. Yet with for all his military pedigree, Lee had yet to set foot on a battlefield. Instead, he served seventeen years as an officer in the Corps of Engineers, supervising and inspecting the construction of the nation's coastal defenses. Service during the 1846 war with Mexico, however, changed that. As a member of General Winfield Scott's staff, Lee distinguished himself, earning three brevets for gallantry, and emerging from the conflict with the rank of colonel.