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Class of 1837

[image ALT: A head-and-torso photograph of a middle-aged man with a gaunt air; he has a full but close-cropped beard and moustache, and wears a plain military uniform tunic with two rows of buttons and a high collar. He is the Confederate general Braxton Bragg.]

Vol. I
p663 895

(Born N. C.)

Braxton Bragg

(Ap'd N. C.)

Born Mar. 22, 1817, Warren Co., NC.

Military History. — Cadet at the Military Academy, July 1, 1833, to July 1, 1837, when he was graduated and promoted in the Army to

Second Lieut., 3d Artillery, July 1, 1837.

Served: in garrison at Ft. Monroe, Va., 1837; in the Florida War, 1837‑38; in the Cherokee Nation, 1838, while transferring the Indians to

(First Lieut., 3d Artillery, July 7, 1838)

the West; in the Florida War, 1838‑39; on Recruiting service, 1840; in the Florida War, 1840‑41, 1841‑42; in garrison at St. Augustine, Fla., 1842‑43, — and Ft. Moultrie, S. C., 1843‑44, 1844‑45; in Military Occupation of Texas, 1845‑46; in the War with Mexico, 1846‑48, being engaged in the Defense of Ft. Brown, Tex., May 3‑9, 1846, — Battle of

(Bvt. Capt., May 9, 1846, for Gallant and Distinguished Conduct in the Defense of Ft. Brown, Tex.)

(Captain, 3d Artillery, June 18, 1846)

Monterey, Sep. 21‑23, 1846, — and Battle of Buena Vista, Feb. 22‑23,

(Bvt. Major, Sep. 23, 1846, for Gallant Conduct in the several Conflicts at Monterey, Mex.)

1847; on the Staff of Bvt. Maj.‑General Gaines, as Acting Asst. Inspector-General,

(Bvt. Lieut.‑Col., Feb. 23, 1847,
for Gallant and Meritorious Conduct in the Battle of Buena Vista, Mex.)

Western Division, Feb. 21 to Aug. 10, 1849; in garrison p664 at Jefferson Barracks, Mo., 1849, 1850‑52, 1853; on frontier duty at Ft. Gibson, I. T., 1853‑54, — and Ft. Washita, I. T., 1854‑55; and on

(Major, 1st Cavalry, Mar. 3, 1855: Declined)

leave of absence, 1855‑56.

Resigned, Jan. 3, 1856.

Civil History. — Sugar Planter, Lafourche Parish, La., 1856‑61. Commissioner of the Board of Public Works of the State of Louisiana, 1859‑61.

Joined in the Rebellion of 1861‑66 against the United States.a

Civil History. — Superintendent of New Orleans Water Works, 1868 to 18–––. Chief Engineer of the Board for the Improvement of the River, Harbor, and Bay of Mobile, Ala., 18––– to 18–––; and of Gulf, Colorado, and Santa Fé, N. M., Railroad, 1874.

Died, Sep. 27, 1876, at Galveston, Tex.: Aged 59.

Buried, Magnolia Cemetery, Mobile, AL.

Thayer's Note:

a As with other Confederate officers, Cullum's Register omits his war record. Braxton Bragg was one of a very small group of officers to rise to the rank of General in the C. S. A., but the ambiguous consensus, both now and pretty much then, is that his tactical victories were turned into strategic defeats. He was timid in following up successes, and was not well supported by his high command: historians stress one or the other of these points and thus vary a great deal as to his share of blame in his ultimate failure. For the details of his Confederate career, see the two pages at Civil War Home.

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