Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1872-11-15
Ds.fTH or cB.r. GRO. q. .uE.,DE,

Major Gen. George Gordon Meade. one
of the commanders of the glorious old ar
my of the Potomac, died at his headauar-
tiers In Philadelphia, Pa, Wednesday Nov.
9th, of pneumonia, after brief illness.
Maj. Gen. Meade was born in Cadiz, Spain,
where his father was n resident rs Consul
of the United States, in 1916. and graduated
at West Point, June 30, 1885. He comes of
good stock; to his fathers diplomatic tai
ent and persistence the United States owes
the acquisition Of the territory of Florida
and an important portion of Southern Ala
bama. Maj. Gen. Meade entered the army
as I'd Lieut.. of artillery, but remained on
ly about year, and having resigned his
commission in October, 1885, lived in re-
tirement nearly six years. On the 10Th of
July, 1912, he received the appointment of
Second Lieutenant of Typographical En-
gineers, and, in tha. capacity, served
through the Mexican war, DISTINGUISHING
himself in the battles of Palo Alto and
Monterey. He was brevotcd Firs, Lieu
tenant September %, 1915, for bravery at
Monterey; was engaged in the geodetic
survey of the northern lakes from 1856 TO
1861, and on the organization of the Penn
sylvania Reserve Corps under Gen. Mccall
was appointed a Brigadicr General, Au-
gust 81, 1861, ard entrusted with one OF the
thee brigades.
Gen. Meade was at the battle of Mechan-
icsviile on the 18th of June, 1852, and also
took part in that of Gaines Mill on the
next day. a few days afterwards he was
wounded, but not seriously. At The battle
of Antietam, September I, 1862, he was
again slightly wounded. In tho battlD Of
Fredericksburg, in December, 1869. when
the Union forces, under Gen. Burnside, az
ter severe fighting, were defeated with great
loss, Meade distinguished himself by a dis
play of courage, and two days aflerwarl
superseded Gen. Butterfield in the COM
mand of the Fiflh Army Corps. On the
2Sth of June, 1868, 6 en-. Meade was APP
pointed ommander-in-Chefc Ct the Poto-
mac. lie commenced his career in this ca
pacity by defeating the Confederate forces
under General Longstreet, at the battle OF
Gettysburg. The success made him for a
time the most popular of Federal COM
manders, and he held his position at the
head of the Union forces until the nomina-
ton of General Grant in April, 1865, as
COMMUNICATIVE Meade served I'M
der Grant in his memorable campaign a
gainst Richmond, and was intrusted with
one of the earliest of the important opera
tions-the passage of the Rapidan- when,
having been tiercely assailed by Lees force,
he narrowly escaped utter defeat, the final
charge of Conlederates having been rem
dered less effective by the wounding of
Gen. Longstreet. After the close of the
war Gen. Meade was assigned to the De-
partment of the East, including the New
England States, New York, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania and Fort Delaware, and had
his headquarters at Philadelphia. On the
10Th of April, 1865, the Fenians having in
vaded Canada, General Meade went to
Eastport, took command in person and
collected troops ut that point, and he also,
acting under Gen. Grants orders, assigned
Gen. Barry to the command of the frontier
during the second invasion, in the June
following. Since that period he has remain
ed in command of the Department which
he controlled at the time of his death.