Eugene Asa Carr

Eugene Asa Niel Carr
Born	(1830-03-20)March 20, 1830 Hamburg,New York, US
Died	December 2, 1910(1910-12-02)(aged 80) Washington, D.C., US
Place of burial	West Point Cemetery
Allegiance	United States of America Union
Service/ branch	United States Army Union Army
Years of service	1850–1893
Rank	Brigadier General BrevetMajor General
Unit	3rd Regiment Illinois Volunteer Cavalry
Commands	3rd Regiment Illinois Volunteer Cavalry Army of the Southwest 6th Regiment U.S. Cavalry
Battles / wars	Indian Wars Rocky Mountains Campaign Battle of the Diablo Mountains Sioux Campaign Border War Utah War American Civil War Battle of Wilson's Creek Battle of Pea Ridge Battle of Port Gibson Battle of Champion's Hill Siege of Vicksburg Camden Expedition Battle of Spanish Fort Battle of Fort Blakeley Indian Wars Battle of Summit Springs Battle of Slim Buttes Battle of Cibecue Creek Battle of Fort Apache
Awards	Medal of Honor

Major General Eugene Asa Carr of General Staff U.S. Volunteers Infantry Regiment, seated by a camp tent in uniform with sword. From the Liljenquist Family Collection of Civil War Photographs, Prints and Photographs Division,Library of Congress

Eugene Asa Niel Carr(March 20, 1830 – December 2, 1910) was a soldier in theUnited States Armyand a general in theUnion Armyduring theAmerican Civil War.He was awarded theMedal of Honorfor his actions at theBattle of Pea Ridge.

Early life

Carr was born inHamburg,New York. He graduated from theUnited States Military AcademyatWest Point, New York,in 1850, 19th in a class of 44 cadets. He was appointed abrevetsecond lieutenantin theRegiment of Mounted Riflemenand served in theIndian Warsuntil 1861. On October 3, 1854, Carr first saw combat in theBattle of the Diablo Mountains.By 1861, he had been promoted tocaptain(June 11, 1858) in the old1st U.S. Cavalry(later designated the 4th U.S.) and command ofFort Washitain theIndian Territory.

Civil War

During the Civil War, Carr's first combat was at theBattle of Wilson's Creekon August 10, 1861.He was appointed colonel of the 3rd Illinois Cavalry six days later and received a brevet promotion tolieutenant colonelin theregular army.

At theBattle of Pea RidgeinArkansas,on March 7, 1862, Carr led the 4th Division of theArmy of the Southwestin the fighting aroundElkhorn Tavern.He was wounded in the neck, arm, and ankle and was later awarded aMedal of Honorfor his actions. According to the official citation, Carr had "directed the deployment of his command and held his ground, under a brisk fire of shot and shell in which he was several times wounded."On April 30, 1862, PresidentAbraham Lincolnappointed Carrbrigadier generalof volunteers, to rank from March 7, 1862.The President had submitted the nomination to the U.S. Senate on April 11, 1862, and the Senate had confirmed the appointment on April 28, 1862Carr briefly commanded the Army of the Southwest from October 7 to November 12, 1863. He commanded the 2nd Division of the Army of Southeast Missouri before he and his division were transferred to theArmy of the Tennesseeas the 14th Division in theXIII Corps.

During theVicksburg Campaign,Carr led the attack on Confederate forces at theBattle of Port Gibson.He fought in subsequent battles atChampion's HillandVicksburg.After the fall of Vicksburg, Carr was transferred back to Arkansas where he was placed in command of a division in theArmy of Arkansas.Eventually, Carr commanded the Cavalry Division in theVII CorpsduringFrederick Steele'sCamden Expedition.For the rest of 1864, he commanded the District of Little Rock. His final assignment of the war was to command of the 3rd Division of the XVI Corps in preparation for the Union campaign againstMobile, Alabama,where he subsequently fought in theBattle of Fort Blakeley.On March 11, 1865, President Lincoln nominated and the U.S. Senate confirmed Carr for appointment to the brevet grade ofmajor generalof volunteers to rank from March 11, 1865. Carr was mustered out of the volunteers on January 15, 1866.On July 17, 1866, PresidentAndrew Johnsonnominated Carr for appointment to the brevet grade ofmajor general,USA (regular army), to rank from March 13, 1865, and the U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment on July 23, 1866.

Postbellum service

Subsequently, Carr stayed in theRegular Armyand conducted successful operations on thefrontieragainst the Indians, winning a significant battle atSummit Springs.He becameColonelof the6th Cavalry Regimentin 1879; and Brigadier General in 1892. He was in command at theincident at Cibecue Creekwith the Apache in 1881. He was the last commander of theDistrict of New Mexicofrom November 26, 1888, to September 1, 1890.

Carr finally retired in 1893. His military nickname was "The Black-Bearded Cossack".Carr died in Washington, D.C. in 1910 and is buried in theWest Point Cemetery,New York.

Medal of Honor citation

Rank and organization: Colonel, 3d Illinois Cavalry. Place and date: At Pea Ridge, Ark., March 7, 1862. Entered service at: Hamburg, Erie County, N.Y. Born: March 10, 1830, Boston Corner, Erie County, N.Y. Date of issue: January 16, 1894.

Citation:

Directed the deployment of his command and held his ground, under a brisk fire of shot and shell in which he was several times wounded.

See also

• List of Medal of Honor recipients
• List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F
• List of American Civil War generals (Union)

References

This article incorporatespublic domain materialfrom websites or documents of theUnited States Army Center of Military History.

• Eicher, John H., andEicher, David J.,Civil War High Commands,Stanford University Press, 2001,ISBN0-8047-3641-3.
• Warner, Ezra J.,Generals in Blue: Lives of the Union Commanders,Louisiana State University Press, 1964,ISBN0-8071-0822-7.
• "Texas History site for Carr".RetrievedSeptember 29,2010.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain:Gilman, D. C.;Peck, H. T.; Colby, F. M., eds. (1905).New International Encyclopedia(1st ed.). New York: Dodd, Mead.{{cite encyclopedia}}:Missing or empty|title=(help)

• Leighton, David, ″Gen. Eugene Asa Carr was NY-born Union officer, Indian fighter″, Arizona Daily Star, July 31, 2012.

External links

• Media related toEugene Asa Carrat Wikimedia Commons
• Works by or about Eugene Asa Carrat theInternet Archive