James Deering Fessenden James Deering Fessenden ( September 28 , 1833 – November 18 , 1882 ) was a lawyer , politician , and soldier from the state of Maine who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War . Primarily a staff officer and operations planner until the latter stages of the war , he commanded an infantry brigade in the Western Theater in 1864 and 1865 . In 1862 , he organized in South Carolina what became one of the first black regiments in the Federal army . He was a member of the powerful Fessenden family , which was prominent in national politics during the mid - 19th century . Early life and career . James D . Fessenden was born in Westbrook , Maine , in the early autumn of 1833 . He was the son of U . S . Senator William P . Fessenden and a brother of Francis Fessenden , who would also serve as a general in the Union army . Another brother , Samuel , would be killed at the Second Battle of Manassas during the war . Two uncles , Samuel C . Fessenden and T . A . D . Fessenden were U . S . Congressmen . He was educated in the local schools and then graduated from Bowdoin College in 1852 . He studied law , passed his bar exam , and joined his father ' s law firm . Civil War . After the outbreak of the Civil War in early 1861 , Fessenden spent the summer recruiting and organizing a company of skilled riflemen and marksmen that became a company in the United States Sharpshooters . In November of that year , he received a commission as a captain in the sharpshooter company and served in the defenses of Washington , D . C . Through the influences of his powerful father , he received a promotion to lieutenant colonel and a new position as a staff officer and aide - de - camp to Union Maj . Gen . David Hunter . He held that position from March 1862 until January 1863 , serving primarily in the Department of the South and the X Corps . During that period , he was promoted to colonel in July 1862 . He was involved in planning the Union operations against the Confederate defenses of Charleston , South Carolina , but missed participating in the major attacks while recovering in Washington , D . C . , from a riding accident suffered in the field . During his recuperation , he frequently used his oratory and organizational skills to recruit new volunteers for military service . In November 1863 , Fessenden became the aide - de - camp to Maj . Gen . Joseph Hooker , who had been sent to Tennessee with two corps of the Army of the Potomac to reinforce the Army of the Cumberland . Hooker commended him for his bravery at the Battle of Missionary Ridge and recommended his promotion to brigadier general . He was commended three times for his actions during the Atlanta Campaign and again recommended for higher rank by Hooker . In August 1864 , he finally received his long desired promotion to brigadier general , but did not get a field command initially as his sponsor Hooker had since left the army . He was assigned to command a brigade in the Army of the Shenandoah in the Shenandoah Valley region of Virginia , an assignment initially meant for his brother , who lost a leg in the Red River Campaign that precluded his taking the assignment . James Fessenden arrived in Virginia and assumed command of a brigade in the XIX Corps under Maj . Gen . William H . Emory . He participated in the Battle of Cedar Creek in October , engaged in scouting duty , and then was assigned command of the Union garrison in the defenses of Winchester , Virginia , in January 1865 . In May 1865 , he led his brigade in the Grand Review of the Armies in Washington , D . C . , following the surrender of the two leading Confederate armies in the Eastern Theater . He subsequently commanded troops under Maj . Gen . Winfield S . Hancock and an occupation garrison in South Carolina before mustering out of the army on January 15 , 1866 . He received a brevet promotion to major general before leaving the service . Postbellum career . Fessenden returned to Maine , where he resumed his law career in partnership with his surviving brother Francis . He entered local and state politics , and was elected to serve three terms in the Maine State Legislature . He also served the Federal government as the Register of Bankruptcy for his district . Late in his life , he edited his brother ' s book , " Life and Services of William Pitt Fessenden " , which was published posthumously in 1907 . James D . Fessenden died in Portland , Maine , where he is buried in Evergreen Cemetery .