Edward Lloyd Thomas
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| Edward Lloyd Thomas | |
|---|---|
| March 23, 1825 – March 8, 1898 | |
 Edward L. Thomas |
|
| Place of birth | Clarke County, Georgia |
| Place of death | McAlester, Oklahoma |
| Allegiance | Confederate States of America |
| Years of service | 1861 - 1865 |
| Rank | Brigadier General |
| Commands held | 35th Georgia Infantry Thomas's Brigade, ANV |
| Battles/wars | Mexican-American War American Civil War *Beaver Dam Creek *Seven Days Campaign *Second Manassas *Antietam *Fredericksburg *Chancellorsville *Gettysburg *Overland Campaign *Siege of Petersburg *Appomattox Campaign |
| Other work | planter, Land Bureau, Indian Bureau agent |
Edward Lloyd Thomas (March 23, 1825 – March 8, 1898) was a Confederate infantry general during the American Civil War from the state of Georgia.
Born in Clarke County, Georgia, Thomas, a graduate of Emory College, served in the Mexican-American War from May 1847 until August 1848 as a second lieutenant in an independent company of Georgia mounted men. After the war, he was a plantation farmer in Georgia prior to the outbreak of the Civil War.
After Georgia seceded, Thomas became colonel of the 35th Georgia Infantry in October 1861. The regiment was assigned to Joseph R. Anderson's brigade, which became part of A.P. Hill's famed "Light Division." While serving as head of the regiment, Thomas was wounded at Mechanicsville during the Seven Days Campaign. The wound was not serious, however, and Thomas remained on the field. When Anderson left to take control of the Tredegar Iron Works in Richmond, Thomas was promoted to command of the brigade. Thomas commanded the Georgia brigade of the Light Division for the rest of the war and was present at all of the major battles of the Army of Northern Virginia.
When division commander William D. Pender was mortally wounded at Gettysburg, Thomas was the senior commander left in the division. It is said the reason he was not promoted after Pender was that the division contained two North Carolina brigades, and a Georgian would not be in favor. Whatever the reason, Thomas remained a brigade commander until Appomattox.
Thomas returned to his plantation after the war. In 1885, President Grover Cleveland appointed Thomas to a position in the Land Bureau. Thomas ended his life with an appointment to the Indian Bureau. He died in South McAlester, Indian Territory and is buried today in Kiowa, Oklahoma.
[edit] References
- Warner, Ezra J., Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders, Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, ISBN 0-8071-0823-X.
[edit] External links
- Template:FindAGrave Retrieved on 2008-02-13
- Short biography of Edward L. Thomas
