William T. Martin

William Thompson Martin
William Thompson Martin
Born	March 25, 1823; Glasgow,Kentucky
Died	March 16, 1910(aged 86); Natchez,Mississippi
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Service/branch	Confederate States Army
Rank	Major General(CSA)
Commands held	Jeff. Davis Legion; Martin's Cavalry Division; Cavalry Corps,; Longstreet's Command
Battles/wars	American Civil War
Other work	lawyer,politician,railroad president

William Thompson Martin(March 25, 1823 — March 16, 1910) was an Americanlawyerandpoliticianwho became aConfederate States Army major generalduring theAmerican Civil War.He later served in the Mississippi state senate, and was a delegate to fourDemocratic National Conventions.Martin was the president of theNatchez, Jackson, and Columbus Railroad,of which he oversaw the construction in 1884.

Biography

Early life

William T. Martin was born on March 25, 1823, inGlasgow, Kentucky.He graduated fromCentre Collegein 1844 and was admitted to the bar inMississippi.

Career

He served multiple terms as district attorney before the war. While himself opposingsecession,he raised theAdams Countycavalry troops, when war broke out, riding with them toRichmond, Virginia,the newConfederate States of Americacapitol.

He quickly rose to colonel of theJeff. Davis Legion,and served inJ.E.B. Stuart's brigade during thePeninsular Campaign,seeing action at theBattle of Williamsburg;theBattle of Seven Pines;as well as Stuart's circumnavigation of the Union army while it stood on the doorsteps of Richmond. During theSeven Days Battles,Martin's men primarily participated in raids on Union supply lines north of theChickahominy River.During theNorthern Virginia Campaign,Martin and his legion were left in the vicinity of Richmond to watch McClellan's departing army, and was assigned to the cavalry brigade ofWade Hampton III.Hampton's brigade re-joinedRobert E. Lee'sArmy of Northern Virginiafor theMaryland Campaign.Martin's men were not present for theBattle of South Mountainbut participated at theBattle of Antietamand Stuart'sChambersburg Raid.While the Confederate army was engaged at theBattle of Fredericksburg,the Jeff. Davis Legion was active in raids onDumfriesandOccoquan.

Promoted tobrigadier general,in January 1863 Martin was ordered to the Western Theater, where he commanded divisions at theTullahoma Campaignand theBattle of Chickamaugaand served as cavalry commander underJames LongstreetatKnoxville.After Longstreet's return to the east, he was promoted to major general, led a division under Major GeneralJoseph WheeleratAtlantaand rose to command of the military district of Northwest Mississippi by war's end.

After the war, he returned to his law practice in Mississippi, becoming a trustee of bothUniversity of MississippiandJefferson CollegeinWashington, Mississippi.He served in the state senate, and was a delegate to Democratic National Conventions in 1868, 1872, 1876, and 1880. He was the president of the Natchez, Jackson, and Columbus railroad, of which he oversaw the construction in 1884. Martin is notable for opposing theMississippi Constitution of 1890,ending black suffrage, being one of three delegates refusing to sign it. One of America's first black Congressmen,John R. Lynch,praised Martin in his memoirs for "reflecting the sentiments and respecting the wishes of the dominant and better element of the people of his county."

Martin also served as aprimary sourceon theForks of the Roadslave market for historianFrederic Bancroft.^[1]

Personal life

Martin married Margaret (Dunlop Conner) Martin. They resided atMontaigne,a mansion in Natchez, Mississippi, now listed on theNational Register of Historic Places.^[2]They had eleven children.

Death

Martin died on March 16, 1910, inNatchez, Mississippi.

Legacy

Pattison, Mississippiwas originally named Martin in honor of William Martin.^[3]

Notes

^Bancroft, Frederic(2023) [1931, 1996].Slave Trading in the Old South(Original publisher: J. H. Fürst Co., Baltimore). Southern Classics Series. Introduction by Michael Tadman (Reprint ed.). Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press. pp. 301, 304.ISBN 978-1-64336-427-8.LCCN 95020493.OCLC 1153619151.
^Caroline Seebohm,Enshrining the Old South,The New York Times,February 10, 1991
^Rowland, Dunbar (1907).Mississippi: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form.Vol. 2. Southern Historical Publishing Association. p. 174.

References

Boatner, Mark Mayo, III.The Civil War Dictionary.New York: McKay, 1988.ISBN 978-0-8129-1726-0.First published 1959 by McKay.
Eicher, John H., andDavid J. Eicher,Civil War High Commands.Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001.ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1.
Sifakis, Stewart.Who Was Who in the Civil War.New York: Facts On File, 1988.ISBN 978-0-8160-1055-4.
Warner, Ezra J.Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959.ISBN 978-0-8071-0823-9.

[:0-1] Bancroft, Frederic(2023) [1931, 1996].Slave Trading in the Old South(Original publisher: J. H. Fürst Co., Baltimore). Southern Classics Series. Introduction by Michael Tadman (Reprint ed.). Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina Press. pp. 301, 304.ISBN 978-1-64336-427-8.LCCN 95020493.OCLC 1153619151.

[2] Caroline Seebohm,Enshrining the Old South,The New York Times,February 10, 1991

[3] Rowland, Dunbar (1907).Mississippi: Comprising Sketches of Counties, Towns, Events, Institutions, and Persons, Arranged in Cyclopedic Form.Vol. 2. Southern Historical Publishing Association. p. 174.

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