|
|
VITAL STATISTICS
|
BORN: 1833 in Charleston, SC.
DIED: 1908 in Vicksburg, MS.
CAMPAIGNS: Fort Sumpter, Second Bull Run, Antietam, Chickasaw Bayou,
Champion's Hill, Vicksburg, Atlanta, Franklin and Nashville, and Carolinas.
HIGHEST RANK ACHIEVED: Lieutenant General
|
|
BIOGRAPHY
|
| Stephen Dill Lee was born on September 22, 1833, in Charleston, South Carolina, and was distantly related to Robert E. Lee. After graduating from West Point in 1854, he served in the US Army for seven years, in artillery and staff positions. In February of 1861, he resigned and joined the Confederate army. Lee was a member of Brig. Gen. P. G. T. Beauregard's staff at Fort Sumter, and performed well as an artillerist at the Second Battle of Bull Run and Antietam. In Mississippi, he became an artillery brigadier general, participating in the fighting at Chickasaw Bayou, Champion's Hill and the Siege of Vicksburg. Captured at Vicksburg, he was exchanged and promoted to major general. In May of 1864, he was appointed commander of the Department of Alabama, Mississippi and East Louisiana. Promoted to lieutenant general to rank from June 23, 1864, he led troops in the Atlanta Campaign, the Battle of Ezra Church and the Franklin and Nashville Campaign. He was wounded while retreating from Nashville, and was unable to return to active duty until the last Carolinas Campaign. He was surrendered in April of 1865. In the years after the Civil War, Lee lived in Mississippi. There, he worked as a farmer, a member of the state legislature and first president of the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical College (1878-97). One of the founders and active members of the United Confederate Veterans, Lee served as its president from 1904 to 1908. He also helped promote women's rights, wrote about history and made efforts to preserve the Vicksburg battlefield sites. Lee died in Vicksburg, Mississippi, on May 29, 1908. |
|
