George W . Taylor ( general ) George William Taylor ( November 22 , 1808 – August 31 , 1862 ) was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War . He commanded a brigade in the Army of the Potomac before being mortally wounded at the Second Battle of Bull Run in Northern Virginia . The poem " The General ' s Death " by Joseph O ' Connor was based on George W . Taylor ' s death . Early life and career . Taylor was born at " Solitude , " the family ' s mansion near High Bridge , New Jersey , which was the home to five generations of the Taylor family . He was the son of Arch Taylor , a prominent local businessman . Taylor graduated from a private military academy in Middletown , Connecticut . George W Taylor joined his fathers company as an ironworker with Taylor Iron Works . Taylor Iron Works / Taylor Wharton is the oldest foundry in US History and the 13th longest continually operating company in the world history ( Economist 2004 ) In 1827 , Taylor joined the United States Navy as a midshipman , serving aboard the USS " Fairfield " during her Mediterranean deployment from 1828 - 1831 . When the ship returned to the U . S . , he resigned from the Navy and entered his family ' s mercantile business With the outbreak of the war with Mexico in 1846 , he became a captain in the 10th U . S . Infantry under Zachary Taylor . While in Mexico , he developed a reputation for discipline and order among his men . He also cultivated a strong friendship with Philip Kearny , a fellow future Civil War general . After receiving his honorable discharge with the end of the hostilities , Taylor joined the California Gold Rush and spent three years mining at Corte Madera , California , ( near San Francisco ) before returning to New Jersey , where he engaged in the manufacturing of iron until the Civil War erupted in early 1861 . Civil War service . Taylor helped recruit and organize what became the 3rd New Jersey Volunteer Infantry in May 1861 and was appointed by Governor Olden as the new regiment ' s first colonel . His son , Archibald II , served as his aide - de - camp . Taylor was involved in the fighting at the First Battle of Bull Run . Later , his 3rd New Jersey was brigaded with the 1st , 2nd , and 4th New Jersey Volunteer Infantry to make up what became famed as the " First New Jersey Brigade " . Taylor ' s regiment served in the 1st Brigade , 1st Division of the VI Corps , in numerous battles in the Seven Days Battles during the end of the Peninsula Campaign . When his mentor and friend Kearny was elevated to division command in June 1862 , Taylor was promoted to brigadier general ( date of rank May 9 , 1862 ) of the 1st New Jersey Brigade , leading it in the Seven Days Battles . During the Northern Virginia Campaign , his brigade was sent down from Washington to scout out Confederate troop movements . On August 27 , the brigade stumbled into Stonewall Jackson ' s entire corps and was quickly routed . Taylor suffered a severe leg wound from an artillery shell and died in a Washington hospital four days later . His body was transported to Clinton , New Jersey , via train , where hundreds of people turned out for his funeral . He was buried there in Riverside Cemetery ( also known as Clinton Presbyterian Churchyard ) . A year later , his nephew was killed at the Battle of Chancellorsville and buried beside him .