Samuel Garland, Jr.

Samuel Garland, Jr.
Born	(1830-12-16)December 16, 1830 Lynchburg, Virginia
Died	South Mountain, Maryland
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Service/branch	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–62
Rank	Brigadier General
Battles/wars	American Civil War First Battle of Bull Run Battle of Dranesville Battle of Williamsburg Seven Days Battles Second Battle of Bull Run Battle of Oak Grove Battle of Beaver Dam Creek Battle of Seven Pines Battle of Gaines's Mill Battle of South Mountain †
Relations	grand-nephew of James Madison brother-in-law of James Longstreet brother-in-law of Gilbert S. Meem

Samuel Garland, Jr., (December 16, 1830 – September 14, 1862) was an American attorney from Virginia and Confederate general during the American Civil War. He was killed in action during the Maryland Campaign while defending Fox's Gap at the Battle of South Mountain.

Early life and career

The grandnephew of James Madison, Garland was born in Lynchburg, Virginia. His father, Samuel Garland, Sr., was a well known attorney, but died when his son was only five years old. His uncle, John Garland, was a general that fought in many different wars including, the War of 1812, Seminole Wars, Mexican-American War, Utah War and very briefly in the American Civil War on the side of the union. Garland graduated third in his class from the Virginia Military Institute where he organized its first literary society. He completed law school at the University of Virginia when he was twenty. He married in 1856 to Elizabeth Campbell Meem and fathered one child, a son also named Samuel. Garland practiced law in Lynchburg and helped organize a militia company, the "Lynchburg Home Guard," and was elected as their captain. He also lectured on natural law at Lynchburg College.

He continued as an attorney until his home state seceded from the Union in the spring of 1861. The company soon joined others to form the 11th Virginia Infantry, and Garland was commissioned as the regiment's colonel. However, personal tragedy soon struck, as on June 12, 1861, his wife died, and on July 31, 1861, Garland's four year old son Sammie would also succumb to the flu. Garland's wife and son were buried side by side in the Presbyterian Cemetery in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Civil War

A grieving Garland saw action in July at First Bull Run. He also saw action at Dranesville, Battle of Oak Grove, Battle of Beaver Dam Creek, Battle of Seven Pines, Battle of Gaines' Mill, Battle of Malvern Hill, and Williamsburg, having been wounded at the latter. Garland earned a reputation for bravery in battle and was promoted to Brigadier General. After promotion to brigadier general, Garland distinguished himself in the Seven Days Battles and the Second Battle of Bull Run. He gained a reputation for fearlessness under fire, which some believed stemmed from a deathwish. In Battle of Gaines' Mill, Garland successfully attacked a Federal flank and took many prisoners giving him an outstanding reputation in the army.

The Battle of Gaines' Mill began on June 25 with Garland and his men trying to survive artillery and wait out the enemy in riffle pits on the Williamsburg Road. Garland was at this battle supporting Generals Armistead and Wright. At about 2am they began moving on the enemy. They stopped and hid at a position on the Mechanicsville turnpike just behind the crest of the commanding hill. They waited here for Major General A. P. Hill to attack the other side of Mechanicsville. While Garland was waiting for Hill to attack his troops here hit with heavy artillery fire from Beaver Dam Creek. Eventually the afternoon rolled around and Hill arrived and began to attack the enemy's other side. They were then given orders to advance, but they first had to get rid of the enemy at Beaver Creek Dam before they could cross. The enemy had artillery and a small amount of infantry so Garland's troops attacked with artillery until they eventually retired and retreated. This happened early on the 27th of June. They then advanced to their next positions, but before they could arrive they ran into enemy troops not far from their goal at New Cold Harbor. This battle raged on for some time. Eventually Captain Bondurant suffered heavy losses and was sent to the rear of the army. His losses included 2 dead, 1 mortally wounded, 14 wounded and 28 horses killed. Then Major General Jackson arrived and began rearranging the formations of the troops. Garland along with a couple other battalions then crossed an open field into the woods. Here they found an exposed enemy flank and began preparing to attack it. As soon as Hill joined up with them they commenced the attack on the exposed enemy flank. The enemy quickly gave up and began to flee. At one point they attempted a second stand, but even this was broken quickly as Garland and his men had momentum on their side. This ended the battle with a victory for Garland and the Confederates.

In the Battle Of Seven Pines Garland lead the left wing of the army, supported by G. B. Anderson. Each wing of the army was preceded by a regiment deployed as skirmishers. One important problem with the confederate plan was that the right wing of the army was delayed a quarter of an hour waiting for the relieving force. This exposed Garland and Anderson to the whole Yankee force. A few hundred yards after the right wing caught up they came under fire. The location for this battle was majorly important in determining the outcome. It had recently rained and the soldiers were marching through up to 3 feet of mud in a densely packed forest. As the battle proceeded both sides suffered a number of losses. Eventually general Robert E. Rodes managed to get behind and flank the enemy troops. In this he captured six pieces that were abandoned by the Yankees. He used these guns to turn back fresh Yankee soldiers that hoped to retake the woods and won the battle.

When Gen. Robert E. Lee divided the Army of Northern Virginia in the Maryland Campaign, Garland's brigade was tasked with defending Fox's Gap, one of the passes in the South Mountain chain. However, unbeknownst to the Confederates, Lee's battle plans had been discovered by Union forces and when Lee divided his army between Harpers Ferry and South Mountain the Union advanced. A mislaid copy of Lee's orders revealing the Confederates' plans and positions was given to Union commander Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan. Emboldened by this intelligence, McClellan tried to force his army through three passes in the South Mountain range on September 14, 1862. At the South Mountain gaps the Union met with a relatively small Confederate force, amongst this force was Garland's brigade. On September 14, 1862, Union troops from the Army of the Potomac attacked in an attempt to seize the vital passes. About 3,000 Federals were pressing hard against his troops with both artillery and infantry. During the spirited morning engagement at Fox's Gap, Garland was mortally wounded while defending a stone wall bordering one of farmer Daniel Wise's fields. He died within minutes. In his official report, his commander, D.H. Hill, memorialized him, "This brilliant service, however, cost us the life of that pure, gallant, and accomplished Christian soldier, General Garland, who had no superiors and few equals in the service."

Garland's body was retrieved by Union troops and sent down the mountainside, where Maj. Gen. George B. McClellan ordered an honor guard to accompany the body until it could be transferred to Garland's friends and transported home. On September 19, 1862, Garland was buried in the Presbyterian Cemetery in his hometown of Lynchburg next to his wife and son.

The Samuel Garland Camp of the United Confederate Veterans was named in his memory, as was the later Garland-Rodes Camp of the successor organization Sons of Confederate Veterans. In 1993, the Central Maryland Heritage League, owners of parts of the Fox's Gap battlefield (part of the South Mountain State Battlefield Park, erected and dedicated a commemorative marker near the spot of Garland's death near the earlier 1889 marker erected by Union soldiers of the IX Corps to Gen Jesse L. Reno on Reno Monument Road. Also nearby from 2005 is a bronze sculpture with a granite base monument to the North Carolina troops that held the line there.

References

• Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., Civil War High Commands, Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.
• U.S. War Department, The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880–1901.
• Central Maryland Heritage League website for Garland, retrieved July 4, 2006.