Edward Porter Alexander

Edward Porter Alexander (May 26, 1835 – April 28, 1910) was an engineer, an officer in the U.S. Army and Confederate States Army, an author, and a railroad executive. He was known to his friends as Porter. Brig. ... Brig. ... May 26 is the 146th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (147th in leap years). ... | Come and take it, slogan of the Texas Revolution 1835 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... April 28 is the 118th day of the year (119th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 247 days remaining. ... -1... The Army is the branch of the United States armed forces which has primary responsibility for land-based military operations. ... Some Confederate soldiers The Confederate States Army (CSA) was formed in February, 1861, to defend the Confederate States of America, which had itself been formed that same year when seven southern states seceded from the United States (with four more to follow). ...

Early life and education

Alexander was born in Washington, Georgia. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy in 1857 as a second lieutenant of Engineers. He briefly taught engineering and fencing at the academy, but then joined Brig. Gen. Albert Sidney Johnston for an expedition to Utah to deal with Mormon resistance and attempt to replace Brigham Young as governor of the territory. This assignment was followed by his last for the U.S., in the Oregon Territory and at Alcatraz Island near San Francisco, California. Washington is a city located in Wilkes County, Georgia. ... Alternate meanings: West Point (disambiguation). ... 1857 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... Albert Sidney Johnston Albert Sidney Johnston (February 2, 1803 – April 6, 1862) was a career U.S. Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. ... Official language(s) English Capital Salt Lake City Largest city Salt Lake City Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 13th 219,887 km² 435 km 565 km 3. ... For other uses, see Mormon (disambiguation). ... Brigham Young (June 1, 1801 – August 29, 1877) was the second prophet and president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church; see also Mormonism). ... The Oregon Territory is the name applied both to the unorganized Oregon Country claimed by both the United States and Britain, as well as to the organized U.S. territory formed from it that existed between 1848 and 1859. ... Alcatraz Island is located in the middle of San Francisco Bay in California. ... Nickname: The City by the Bay Official website: http://www. ...

Civil War

Alexander resigned his commission May 1, 1861, to join the Confederate army. As a captain, he was the Chief Engineer and Signal Officer of the (Confederate) Army of the Potomac. At the First Battle of Bull Run he made history by transmitting the first message in combat using signal flags over a long distance. (Before the war, Alexander worked with Major Albert J. Myer, the first U.S. Army Signal Officer and the inventor of the "wig-wag" signal flag, or "aerial telegraphy", code.) Stationed atop "Signal Hill" in Manassas, Virginia, Alexander saw Union troop movements and signaled to the forces under P.G.T. Beauregard, "Look to your left, you are turned", which meant that they were going to be flanked on their left. In later battles he was one of only a few Confederate officers who conducted aerial reconnaissance using balloons. May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ... 1861 is a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Irvin McDowell Joseph E. Johnston P.G.T. Beauregard Strength 28,450 32,230 Casualties 460 killed 1,124 wounded 1,312 captured/missing 387 killed 1,582 wounded 13 captured/missing The First Battle of Bull Run, also known... Albert James Myer Albert James Myer (September 20, 1828 – August 24, 1880) was a surgeon and U.S. Army officer. ... Manassas is an independent city located in the state of Virginia. ... Map of the division of the states during the Civil War. ... Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard Pierre Gustave Toutant de Beauregard (BO-rih-gahrd) (May 28, 1818 – February 20, 1893), best known as a general for the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, was also a writer, civil servant, and inventor. ...

Porter Alexander is best known as the artillery chief for the First (Longstreet's) Corps of the Army of Northern Virginia, which he joined after Bull Run. Alexander's artillery played a prominent part throughout the Eastern theater. He was instrumental in arranging the artillery in defense of Marye's Heights at the Battle of Fredericksburg. And his artillery placements in Hazel Grove at the Battle of Chancellorsville proved decisive. But his most famous engagement was on July 3, 1863, at the Battle of Gettysburg, now as a full colonel at age 26. On that day, Alexander was effectively in control of the artillery for the full army (despite William N. Pendleton's formal role under Lee). He conducted a massive two-hour bombardment, arguably the largest in the war, using over 140 guns against the Union position on Cemetery Ridge. General Longstreet practically put Alexander in charge of launching George Pickett on his famous charge. James Longstreet James Longstreet (January 8, 1821 – January 2, 1904) was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War, and later enjoyed a successful post-war career working for the government of his former enemies, as a diplomat and administrator. ... The Army of Northern Virginia was the primary military force of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War in the eastern theater. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Ambrose E. Burnside Robert E. Lee Strength Army of the Potomac ~114,000 engaged Army of Northern Virginia ~72,500 engaged Casualties 12,653 (1,284 killed, 9,600 wounded, 1,769 captured/missing) 5,377 (608 killed, 4,116... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Joseph Hooker Robert E. Lee Stonewall Jackson† Strength 97,382 57,352 Casualties 16,839 (1,574 killed, 9,554 wounded, 5,711 missing) 13,156 (1,683 killed, 9,277 wounded, 2,196 missing) The Battle of Chancellorsville was... July 3 is the 184th day of the year (185th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar, with 181 days remaining. ... 1863 (MDCCCLXIII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar). ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders George G. Meade Robert E. Lee Strength 83,289 75,054 Casualties 23,049 (3,155 killed, 14,529 wounded, 5,365 captured/missing) 28,000 (3,500 killed, 18,000 wounded, 6,500 captured/missing) The Battle of Gettysburg... William Nelson Pendleton (December 26, 1809 – January 15, 1883) was an Episcopal minister and a Confederate general in the American Civil War, serving as Robert E. Lees chief of artillery. ... A strip of land in Gettysburg thats located between Cemetery Hill and Little Round Top. ... Portrait of George E. Pickett George Edward Pickett (January 28, 1825 – July 30, 1875) was a major-general in the army of the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. ...

Alexander accompanied the First Corps in 1863 to Tennessee to reinforce Gen. Braxton Bragg. He returned with them to Virginia for the remainder of the war, now with the rank of brigadier general. He was wounded in the shoulder by sharpshooter fire during the Siege of Petersburg and convalesced briefly in his native Georgia. 1863 (MDCCCLXIII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar). ... Official language(s) English Capital Nashville Largest city Memphis Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 36th 109,247 km² 195 km 710 km 2. ... Braxton Bragg Braxton Bragg (March 22, 1817 – September 27, 1876) was a career U.S. Army officer and a general in the Confederate States Army, a principal commander in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. ... Official language(s) English Capital Richmond Largest city Virginia Beach Area  - Total  - Width  - Length  - % water  - Latitude  - Longitude Ranked 35th 110,862 km² 320 km 690 km 7. ... Combatants United States of America Confederate States of America Commanders Ulysses S. Grant Robert E. Lee Strength average of 86,000 average of 52,000 Casualties 7,850 in the trenches (see main battle articles for further casualties) unknown The Siege of Petersburg (June 15, 1864 – April 2, 1865) was...

At Appomattox Court House, it was Alexander who proposed to Robert E. Lee that the army disperse into the hills for a guerrilla war, rather than surrendering. Lee rebuked him and Alexander later wrote about regretting his suggestion. Appomattox Court House is a historic village located three miles (5 km) east of Appomattox, Virginia (25 miles east of Lynchburg, in the southern part of the state), famous as the site of the Battle of Appomattox Court House and containing the house of Wilmer McLean, where the surrender of... Robert E. Lee, 1863 Portrait by Julian Vannerson Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a career army officer and the most successful general of the Confederate forces during the American Civil War. ...

Later life: mathematics, railroads, and writing

After the surrender, Alexander briefly toyed with joining the Brazilian Army. Finding that he no longer desired the Georgia plantation life of his youth, he taught mathematics at the University of South Carolina in Columbia, and then served in executive positions with the Charlotte, Columbia, and Augusta Railroad (executive superintendent), the Savannah and Memphis Railroad (president), and the Louisville and Nashville Railroad (president). He became friends with Grover Cleveland and spent many hours duck hunting. President Cleveland sent Alexander to be the arbiter of a boundary dispute between Nicaragua and Costa Rica, in preparation for a possible canal to be dug across Central America. He spent two years surveying and supervising the boundary, completed the work to the great acclaim of the two governments, and returned to the U.S. in 1899. The University of South Carolina, Columbia (USC or Carolina) is a public, coeducational, research university located in Columbia, South Carolina and is the flagship campus of the University of South Carolina System. ... Stephen Grover Cleveland (March 18, 1837 – June 24, 1908) was the 22nd (1885–1889) and 24th (1893–1897) President of the United States, and the only President to serve two non-consecutive terms. ... Map of Central America Central America is an area of the American continent in the Western Hemisphere. ... 1899 (MDCCCXCIX) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

Alexander was a respected author following the war. He wrote many magazine articles and two major books: Fighting for the Confederacy: The Personal Recollections of General Edward Porter Alexander and Military Memoirs of a Confederate: A Critical Narrative. Unlike such Confederate officers as Jubal Early and William Pendleton, he eschewed the bitter Lost Cause theories of why the South was doomed to fail, given the overwhelming superiority of the North. Most historians consider Alexander's memoirs to be one of the most objective and sharpest resources written by a person involved in the Civil War. Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a lawyer and Confederate general in the American Civil War. ... The Lost Cause was a movement that attempted to reconcile the Confederate States of Americas loss of the American Civil War. ...

Alexander died in Savannah, Georgia, and is buried in Magnolia Cemetery, Augusta, Georgia. Nickname: The Coastal Empire or The Hostess City Official website: Savannah, Georgia Location Government County Chatham Mayor Otis S. Johnson Geographical characteristics Area Total 202. ... Augusta skyline with The Lamar Building featured in the center Augusta is a city located in the state of Georgia. ...