Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1900-03-20
StonewalI Brigade.
A Reunion Of he Famous Organization via
be He'd in Louisville.


be Held in Lo,dsuile.
The February number of The Lost
Cause. published at Louisville, KY. con-
tains something of interest to many JEFF
ferson county ex- Confederates. 1t says;
One of the notable events of the big
Confederate reunion to be held in Louis
vile in May. will be the reunion of the
famous Stonewall Jackson Brigade
No organization of all the Confederate
army is more historic than this brigade.
and no one has afnerrecord to its credit.
The brigade was composed of the
following regiments: Second, Fourth,
Fifth, Twenty-seventh and Thirty-third
Virginia Infantry and the Rockbridge
Artillery In all there were over 5000
men and their first brigade commander
was General Jackson, one of the best
beloved of all the leaders of the South
ern cause.
1t was this brigade that caused Gen
eral Jackson to be given his famous
name of Stonewall' 1t was at the first
battle of Bull Run, when the first great
blow for the Confederacy was struck. The
Jackson brigade had been ordered to Ma
nassas as a reserve. 1t was stationed
Immediately behind GeneralBee's brigade
of South Carolina troops, the litter re-
ceiving calling FIRE and repeated as
saults. Still they held their ground firm
ly until finally the battering became al
most too severe, and General Bee saw his
men dropping fast and the gray line be-
coming thinner and thinner. Leaping
to the front of his men he pointed his
sword tothe Jackson Brigade and shouted
the lires which are familiar to all readers
of American history: There stands
Jackson like stone wall. A moment
later the gallant Bee had paid the penalty
for his bravery with his life. But his line
held.
The brigade was always known as
the StonewaIl Brigade, although its first
famous commander was succeeded by
others. Its record is the story of gallant
conduct in many bloody engagements.
theft its dead on famous fields and it con
tributed its full quota to the deeds of hero
Manassas to peace it was in active service;
it saw little rest. At Winchester it helped
to destroy Banks army 1t fought at
Fredericksburg. at Charlottesville, was
in the bloody tide at Gettysburg, at Cold
Harbor, Newmarket and Port Republic
The Jackson Brigade flag fIuttered in
the smoke at Seven Pines, in the dark
days of the Wilderness and all through
the great campaign against Grant
Each succeeding year of the war saw its
number grow smaller and smaller, and
when the end ofthe war came there was
scarcely thousand men left to answer
to roll call. Four-ffths of the brigade had
been killed, wounded or missing.
Gen. Stonewall Jackson was sue
ceeded by Gen. Paxton, who was killed
in action. He was succeeded in turn by
Gen. Winder, who was succeeded by
Gen. Stewart The last two were also
killed in battle. The last brigade COM
mander was Gen. James A Walker, who
is still living at Wytheville, Va, and
who will be in Louisville for the reunion.
The Stonewall Brigade included the
RockbridgeArhllery, which went through
the whole war without losing gun.
This is a record achieved by few such
organizations. At the Louisville reunion
the survivors march in the parade head
ed by the Stonewall Brigade Band, of
StauntOn, Va. In the band are seven
members of the original band, which
went through the war with the fighting
men"