The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson: The Mortal Wounding of the Confederacy's Greatest Icon
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May 1863. The Civil War was in its third spring, and Confederate Lt. Gen. Thomas Jonathan Jackson stood at the peak of his fame. He had risen from obscurity to become “Old Stonewall,” adored across the South and feared and respected throughout the North. On the night of May 2, however, just hours after Jackson executed the most audacious maneuver of his career and delivered a crushing blow against an unsuspecting Union army at Chancellorsville, disaster struck.
The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson recounts the events of that fateful night—considered one of the most pivotal moments of the war—and the tense vigil that ensued as Jackson struggled with a foe even he could not defeat. From Guinea Station, where Jackson crosses the river to rest under the shade of the trees, the story follows Jackson’s funeral and burial, the strange story of his amputated arm, and the creation and restoration of the building where he died (now known as the Stonewall Jackson Shrine). This newly revised and expanded second edition features more than 50 pages of fresh material, including almost 200 illustrations, maps, and eye-catching photos.
New appendices allow readers to walk in Jackson’s prewar footsteps through his adopted hometown of Lexington, Virginia; consider the ways Jackson’s memory has been preserved through monuments, memorials, and myths; and explore the misconceptions behind the Civil War’s great What-If: “What if Stonewall had survived his wounds?”
With the engaging prose of master storytellers, Chris Mackowski and Kristopher D. White make The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson a must-read for Civil War novices and buffs alike.
Chris Mackowski
Chris Mackowski, Ph.D., is the editor-in-chief and co-founder of Emerging Civil War as well as the managing editor of the Emerging Civil War Series published by Savas Beatie. Chris is a writing professor in the Jandoli School of Communication at St. Bonaventure University, where he also serves as the associate dean for undergraduate programs, and is the historian-in-residence at Stevenson Ridge, a historic property on the Spotsylvania Court House battlefield.
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The Last Days of Stonewall Jackson - Chris Mackowski
© 2013 by Chris Mackowski and Kristopher D. White
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form
or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording,
or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher.
Printed in the United States of America.
Second Savas Beatie edition 2015, first printing
ISBN-13: 978-1-61121-150-4
Digital Edition: 978-1-61121-151-1
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mackowski, Chris.
The last days of Stonewall Jackson / by Chris Mackowski and
Kristopher D. White. -- First Savas Beatie edition.
pages cm. -- (The emerging Civil War series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-61121-150-4 (alk. paper)
1. Jackson, Stonewall, 1824-1863--Death and burial. 2. Generals--
Confederate States of America--Biography. 3. Confederate States
of America. Army--Officers--Biography. 4. United States--History-
-Civil War, 1861-1865--Biography. 5. Chancellorsville, Battle of,
Chancellorsville, Va., 1863. I. White, Kristopher D. II. Title.
E467.1.J15M18 2013
973.7’42092--dc23
[B]
2012051709
Published by
Savas Beatie LLC
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Phone: 916-941-6896
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additional information.
Kris: For Donna and Evan, who never gave up on a son’s dream.
Chris: For Stephwall and Jackson, my little comforters.
We jointly dedicate this book to our friend and mentor, Frank O’Reilly.
Table of Contents
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
FOREWORD by Francis A. O’Reilly
CHAPTER ONE: THE ATTACK—Saturday, May 2, 1863
CHAPTER TWO: THE WOUNDING—Saturday, May 2, 1863
CHAPTER THREE: THE OPERATION—Sunday, May 3, 1863
CHAPTER FOUR: THE PLANTATION—Sunday, May 3, 1863
CHAPTER FIVE: THE ARRIVAL—Monday, May 4, 1863
CHAPTER SIX: THE RECOVERY—Tuesday, May 5–Wednesday, May 6, 1863
CHAPTER SEVEN: THE MISSION—Sunday, May 3–Thursday, May 7, 1863
CHAPTER EIGHT: THE LAST DAYS OF STONEWALL JACKSON—Thursday, May 7–Sunday, May 10, 1863
CHAPTER NINE: THE FUNERAL—Monday, May 11–Friday, May 15, 1863
CHAPTER TEN: THE ARM—May 3, 1863
CHAPTER ELEVEN: THE VISITORS—May 21, 1864
CHAPTER TWELVE: THE DECLINE—May 1864–August 1903
CHAPTER THIRTEEN: THE RESTORATION—1909–The Present
CHAPTER FOURTEEN: THE SHRINE—Today
APPENDIX A: TIMELINE OF THE CHANDLER OFFICE BUILDING
APPENDIX B: TIMELINE OF THE LIFE OF STONEWALL JACKSON
APPENDIX C: BEFORE HE WAS STONEWALL: THE LEXINGTON DAYS OF MAJOR THOMAS JONATHAN JACKSON by Steph Mackowski
APPENDIX D: STONEWALL JACKSON IN MEMORY by Chris Mackowski
APPENDIX E: MEMORIALIZING JACKSON by Chris Mackowski
APPENDIX F: IF STONEWALL HADN’T GOTTEN SHOT …
EXPLODING THE ASSUMPTIONS BEHIND THE CIVIL WAR’S GREAT WHAT IF?
by Chris Mackowski
APPENDIX G: HUNTER HOLMES MCGUIRE by Kristopher D. White
APPENDIX H: WHATEVER HAPPENED TO … ?
SUGGESTED READING
ABOUT THE AUTHORS
The Stonewall Jackson Shrine offers visitors a poignant experience. (cm)
List of Maps
Maps by Hal Jespersen
JACKSON’S FLANK ATTACK
WOUNDING OF STONEWALL JACKSON
ROUTE OF JACKSON’S AMBULANCE TO GUINEY STA.
Acknowledgments
The Jackson statue that surveys the Virginia State Capitol grounds is the oldest of several Jackson statues. (cm)
We appreciate the support of our colleagues past and present at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park, especially John Hennessy, Greg Mertz, Eric Mink, Don Pfanz, Janice Frye, and Noel Harrison, who all made contributions to this volume. We especially thank Frank O’Reilly for his editorial work, inspiration, and more—as our friend and mentor, he remains our indispensable man. We also thank Ray Castner, Richard Chapman, Joe Haydon, and Jim Good.
At St. Bonaventure University’s Russell J. Jandoli School of Journalism and Mass Communication, we thank Denny Wilkins and John Hanchette. Thanks, too, to the former dean, Lee Coppola, whose behind-the-scenes support and encouragement made much of the first edition possible. Thanks to the current dean, Pauline Hoffmann, for continuing that support. A special wave of the arm
to Patrick Vecchio for his editing and encouragement.
We offer our appreciation to Colonel Keith Gibson of the Virginia Military Institute, whose stewardship of Jackson remains stalwart and keen. Likewise, we thank Michael Anne Lynn of the Stonewall Jackson House. Both have offered years of support and assistance.
Thanks to John Cummings and the Friends of Fredericksburg Area Battlefields for supporting the publication of the first edition of this book and to Jackson Foster of The ID Entity for the handsome design work he did for same. Thanks to Theodore P. Savas and Sarah Keeney for their support of this reborn version, now going into its second edition.
Editorial assistance came from Heidi Hartley and, at the Stonewall Jackson House, Grace Abele. Maps, once more, come from Hal Jespersen. Our thanks to all of them. Thanks, too, to Kathleen Logothetis Thompson, Caity Stuart, and Kipp Teague for their photographic contributions to the first Savas Beatie edition of this book.
Although it says it marks the spot,
the monument for Jackson at Chancellorsville only marks the general area. (cm)
PHOTO CREDITS:
Americasroof at en.wikipedia, from Wikimedia Commons (wc); Civil War Trails (cwt); John Cummings (jc); Katy Davis (kd); Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park (fsnmp); Jack Humphries (jh); Library of Congress (loc); Chris Mackowski (cm); Presbyterian Church of Fredericksburg (pcf); The Stonewall Jackson House (sjh); Virginia Military Institute (vmi); and Washington and Lee University, Lexington, Virginia (w&l).
Finally—and most importantly—we offer our thanks to our families: to Sarah White; to Jennifer Mackowski; and to Heidi Hartley and Stephanie (Stephwall
) and Jackson Mackowski.
For the Emerging Civil War Series
A statue of Stonewall
Jackson stands over his gravesite in Lexington, Virginia. (cm)
Foreword
BY FRANCIS A. O’REILLY
There is a timelessness about heroes and legends. They can transcend time and space, and are almost prescient in everything they do.
Lieutenant General Thomas J. Stonewall
Jackson certainly had that special quality that brought hope to a generation of Confederates in the 1860s—and provided an inspiration that has resonated with every generation of Americans ever since. General George S. Patton admitted that as a boy, he learned to pray while two portraits of bearded figures watched over him. Early on, Patton concluded that they must be God and his son, Jesus Christ. Only later did he learn that God was actually Robert E. Lee, and the Christ-like figure was Stonewall
Jackson. Somehow, it still made perfect sense to the general. Similarly, the commandant of the U.S. Marine Corps, Medal of Honor recipient General Alexander Archer Vandegrift, recalled praying with his grandfather, a Baptist deacon who did not care much for men or mankind. But those that he did respect, he held in high esteem—as he insisted on praying every day to the God of Abraham and Isaac, and of Robert E. Lee and Stonewall
Jackson. Thomas J. Stonewall
Jackson had earned a reputation as a tenacious soldier, but he was also remembered as a pious, devout Christian. The combination transformed a shy, introverted professor from Lexington, Virginia, into an almost messianic symbol for the Confederacy and a pillar of the Lost Cause interpretation of the Civil War. Jackson’s ideals and actions certainly made an impact on America and the way Americans perceive themselves.
Lieutenant General Thomas Jonathan Stonewall
Jackson reached the pinnacle of his career at the very moment he was cut down tragically in the mistaken fire of his own men on May 2, 1863. In the course of two years, he had rocketed from obscurity to become an American folk hero. Jackson had become the living embodiment of what Horatio Alger later styled the Self-Made Man. He was the common clay made good, and he still serves as a role model for many today who study his personal as well as his martial virtues.
The Winchester portrait
of Thomas Jonathan Stonewall
Jackson (loc)
The death of Jackson sent shockwaves throughout the Confederacy. When Lee heard the news, he confessed, I know not how to replace him.
Confederate President Jefferson Davis called the general’s demise a great national calamity.
Peter Alexander of the Southern Literary Messenger eulogized Jackson: He is the idol of the people, and is the object of greater enthusiasm than any other military chieftain of our day.
Soldiers and civilians agreed. A member of the 21st Georgia wrote, A greater hero never lived … . If we could only see Jackson, we was all right.
An Englishman noted that the sight of him, and of him alone, stirred the blood like a trumpet, and the words ‘Stonewall is coming’ carried confidence to his friends and terror to his foes.
And sometimes, just the thought of him, sight unseen, inspired soldiers. A young Missouri captain, Norval Spangler, fell mortally wounded in a distant battle at Champion’s Hill, Mississippi, on May 16, 1863, shortly after news of Jackson’s death had been reported. Spangler announced, I guess I’ll take supper with Stonewall Jackson tonight.
So many worthy Confederate officers had fallen in the West, but Spangler, and his nation, fixated on the Virginian who had died at Guiney Station.
A matronly diarist from Winchester lamented in her journal: ‘The Mighty has fallen,’ but he carries to his grave the hopes, and is followed by the bitter tears of the people in whose defense he lost his life, and who loved him with grateful devotion.
Cornelia McDonald concluded, No loss could be felt as his will be.
In short, Thomas J. Jackson’s untimely death was deeply affecting for many who knew him and countless more who knew only of him. Southerners obviously mourned their general. But so did a surprising number of Northerners and much of the English-speaking world. Union soldiers sought out veteran officers of the Old Army to hear tales of Stonewall Jackson in better days. The Philadelphia Press lamented the death of the great captain, even though he fought for the Confederacy. President Abraham Lincoln wrote to the editor, John W. Forney, to thank him for his appropriate words and express his own admiration for Jackson, calling him a gallant man.
British newspapers lionized the fallen Stonewall with an unexpected degree of empathy. The Times of London reflected: even on this side of the ocean the gallant soldier’s fate will everywhere be heard of with pity and sympathy, not only as a brave man … but as one of the consummate generals that this century has produced,
instantly elevating him into an elite category with the likes of Napoleon and their own Duke of Wellington. Stonewall Jackson,
The Times concluded, will carry with him to his early grave the regrets of all who can admire greatness and genius.
An English admirer wrote at the time: It was impossible to look at the house where he lay … without a mist coming over the eyes and a choking sense of suffocation rising in the throat.
[I]T WOULD BE A MISTAKE TO LOOK AT JACKSON AS MERELY A DEAD RELIC OF A BYGONE ERA OR A PIECE OF ‘LOST CAUSE’ ICONOGRAPHY.
But it would be a mistake to look at Jackson as merely a dead relic of a bygone era or