Richard Wesley Cole was a seventh-generation American whose family
got caught up in America's Civil War. He enlisted as a foot soldier
with the 3rd Mississippi State Infantry in October 1863 and, less
than a year later, became a horseman with George's Regiment,
Mississippi Cavalry, which later became the 5th Mississippi Cavalry
in General Nathan Bedford Forrest's Cavalry Department. Richard
proudly rode with Forrest until Richard was killed on 12 April
1864, at the Battle of Fort Pillow in Lauderdale County, Tennessee.
Richard's story is a history of his family, a partial history of
the 5th Mississippi Cavalry, the 22nd Mississippi Infantry, and the
30th Mississippi Infantry, and is a history of the war itself seen
through the eyes of Richard and his family. When news reached Black
Hawk, Mississippi, that Confederate troops in South Carolina had
fired on Fort Sumter, the men and boys of the village were excited
about the possibility of war with the North and bragged that if war
came, it wouldn't be long before the Yankees were defeated and sent
scurrying back home. The men and boys misunderstood what war would
be like, but Richard's wife, Eliza, didn't and her worst fears
would be realized as the war decimated her family. Eight days after
the surrender of Fort Sumter, a volunteer state militia company was
formed in Black Hawk. Richard's oldest son, a son-in-law, and two
future sons-in-law enlisted with the company. Richard's second son
ran away from home in February 1862 and joined the Confederate
Army. Eight months later, Richard left home for the war. Richard
and his family lived through the most tumultuous period in our
Nation's history. They experienced firsthand the hardships and
horrors of a nation at war with itself and it affected them for the
rest of their lives.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!
Welcome to Loot.co.za!
Sign in / Register |Wishlists & Gift Vouchers |Help | Advanced search
(4)
