Jump to content

William Steele (Confederate general): Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Content deleted Content added
Monkbot (talk | contribs)
m Early life and career: Task 14: cs1 template fixes: misused |publisher= (0×/0×); skipped: unrecognized periodical (1×); fixed web site (1×);
m Several Updates
 
(11 intermediate revisions by 8 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{short description|16th adjutant general of Texas from 1874 to 1879}}
{{Infobox military person
{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2022}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| name = William Steele
| name = William Steele
| image = WSteele-laterlife.JPG<!-- EDITORS NOTE: Please do not change the postbellum picture without prior consensus; see [[Talk:William Steele (Confederate general)]]. Thank you. -->
| order = 16th
| office = Adjutant General of Texas
| term_start = January 20, 1874
| term_end = January 25, 1879
| governor = {{ublist|[[Richard Coke]]|[[Richard B. Hubbard|Richard Hubbard]]}}
| predecessor = Frank Britton
| successor = [[John B. Jones|John Jones]]
| birth_date = {{birth date|1819|05|01}}
| birth_date = {{birth date|1819|05|01}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1885|01|12|1819|05|01}}
| death_date = {{death date and age|1885|01|12|1819|05|01}}
| birth_place = [[Albany, New York]]
| birth_place = [[Albany, New York]], U.S.
| death_place = [[San Antonio, Texas]]
| death_place = [[San Antonio, Texas]], U.S.
| placeofburial = [[Oakwood Cemetery (Austin, TX)|Oakwood Cemetery]] in [[Austin, Texas]]
| resting_place = [[Oakwood Cemetery (Austin, TX)|Oakwood Cemetery]],<br>[[Austin, Texas]]
| allegiance = {{unbulleted list|{{flag|United States|1860}}|{{flag|Confederate States|1865}}}}
| placeofburial_label = Place of burial
| branch = <!-- EDITORS NOTE: Please do not add the Army flag adopted by the U.S. government in 1956 (71 years after Ferguson's death) as it would be historically inaccurate. Thank you. -->{{unbulleted list|[[United States Army]]|{{army|CSA}}}}
| image = WSteeleACW.jpg
| branch_label = [[Military branch|Branch]]
| caption = William Steele
| allegiance = {{flagicon|USA|1837}} [[United States|United States of America]]<br/>{{flagicon|CSA}} [[Confederate States of America]]
| serviceyears = {{unbulleted list|1840–1861 ([[United States|U.S.]])|1861–1865 ([[Confederate States of America|C.S.]])}}
| rank = {{unbulleted list|[[File:Union army cpt rank insignia.jpg|23px]] [[Captain (armed forces)|Captain]] (U.S.)|[[File:Confederate States of America General-collar.svg|23px]] [[Brigadier general|Brigadier-General]] (C.S.)}}
| branch = {{army|USA}}<br>{{army|CSA}}
| battles =
| serviceyears = 1840–61 (USA)<br>1861–65 (CSA)
{{collapsible list|title = {{nobold|''See list''}}|
| rank = [[File:Union army cpt rank insignia.jpg|35px]] [[Captain (United States)|Captain (USA)]]<br/>[[Brigadier General (CSA)]]
{{tree list}}
| commands =
* [[Second Seminole War]]
| unit =
| battles = [[Mexican–American War]]<br/>[[American Civil War]]
* [[Mexican–American War]]
** [[Battle of Palo Alto]]
| awards = [[Hall of Honor (Texas Military)|Hall of Honor]]
** [[Battle of Monterrey]]
** [[Siege of Veracruz]]
** [[Battle of Cerro Gordo]]
** [[Battle of Contreras]]
** [[Battle of Churubusco]]
** [[Battle of Molino del Rey]]
* [[American Indian Wars]]
* [[American Civil War]]
** [[New Mexico campaign]]
** [[Battle of Perryville (Indian Territory)|Battle of Perryville]]
** [[Red River campaign]]
{{tree list/end}}
| awards = [[Hall of Honor (Texas Military)|Texas Hall of Honor]]
}}
}}
}}
'''William Steele''' (May 1, 1819 – January 12, 1885) was a career [[United States Army]] officer who served with distinction during the [[Mexican–American War]]. He later served as a [[Confederate States Army|Confederate]] [[General officer|general]] during the [[American Civil War]].

'''William Steele''' (May 1, 1819 – January 12, 1885) was a career military officer and [[businessperson|businessman]] who served as the 16th [[Adjutant General of Texas|adjutant general of Texas]] from 1874 until 1879. He previously served as a senior [[Officer (armed forces)|officer]] of the [[Confederate States Army]] who commanded [[cavalry]] in the [[Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War|Trans-Mississippi Theater]] of the [[American Civil War]].


==Early life and career==
==Early life and military career==
Steele was born in [[Albany, New York]]; his mother was from [[Florida]] and his father originally from [[New England]].<ref name=Warner289>Warner, p. 289.</ref> He attended the [[United States Military Academy]] at [[West Point, New York|West Point]] in 1836, graduating four years later standing 31st out of 42 cadets. He was appointed a [[Brevet (military)|brevet]] [[Second Lieutenant#United States|second lieutenant]] in the [[2nd Cavalry Regiment (United States)|2nd U.S. Dragoons]] on July 1, 1840.<ref name=Eicher508>Eicher, p. 508.</ref>
Steele was born in [[Albany, New York]]; his mother was from [[Florida]] and his father originally from [[New England]].<ref name=Warner289>Warner, p. 289.</ref> He attended the [[United States Military Academy]] at [[West Point, New York|West Point]] in 1836, graduating four years later standing 31st out of 42 cadets. He was appointed a [[Brevet (military)|brevet]] [[Second Lieutenant#United States|second lieutenant]] in the [[2nd Cavalry Regiment (United States)|2nd U.S. Dragoons]] on July 1, 1840.<ref name=Eicher508>Eicher, p. 508.</ref>


Line 32: Line 57:
Steele and the 2nd Dragoons were stationed at Fort Conrad in the [[New Mexico Territory]] from 1852 to 1853, and was on scouting duty in 1853, during which Steele was engaged against [[Apache]] in a skirmish near Fort Conrad on July 28, 1853. He then served at Fort Craig in the New Mexico Territory in 1854 and at [[Fort Leavenworth]] in [[Kansas]] from 1854 to 1855. Steele participated in the expedition against the [[Sioux]] in 1855, during which he fought near Blue Water on September 3, 1855. He returned to Fort Leavenworth in 1855 and 1856, and then was at Fort Randall in the [[Dakota Territory]] from 1856 to 1857. Another stint at Fort Leavenworth followed in 1857 and 1858, and then in garrison at [[St. Louis, Missouri]], in 1858. Steele was on sick leave from 1858 to 1859, and on frontier duty at [[Fort Kearny]] in the [[Nebraska Territory]] from 1859 into 1860. Steele was part of the expedition against the [[Kiowa]] and [[Comanche]] in 1860, then stationed once at Fort Scott in Kansas from 1860 to early 1861.<ref name="Military biography of William Steele"/>
Steele and the 2nd Dragoons were stationed at Fort Conrad in the [[New Mexico Territory]] from 1852 to 1853, and was on scouting duty in 1853, during which Steele was engaged against [[Apache]] in a skirmish near Fort Conrad on July 28, 1853. He then served at Fort Craig in the New Mexico Territory in 1854 and at [[Fort Leavenworth]] in [[Kansas]] from 1854 to 1855. Steele participated in the expedition against the [[Sioux]] in 1855, during which he fought near Blue Water on September 3, 1855. He returned to Fort Leavenworth in 1855 and 1856, and then was at Fort Randall in the [[Dakota Territory]] from 1856 to 1857. Another stint at Fort Leavenworth followed in 1857 and 1858, and then in garrison at [[St. Louis, Missouri]], in 1858. Steele was on sick leave from 1858 to 1859, and on frontier duty at [[Fort Kearny]] in the [[Nebraska Territory]] from 1859 into 1860. Steele was part of the expedition against the [[Kiowa]] and [[Comanche]] in 1860, then stationed once at Fort Scott in Kansas from 1860 to early 1861.<ref name="Military biography of William Steele"/>


==Civil War service==
==American Civil War==
[[File:WSteeleACW (cropped).jpg|left|thumb|162px|Steele in uniform, {{Circa|1862}}]]
On May 30, 1861, Steele resigned his U.S. Army commission and moved to Texas. Choosing to follow the [[Confederate States of America|Confederate cause]] and his adopted home state, he entered the [[Confederate States Army]] as a [[Colonel (United States)|colonel]] in the 7th Texas Cavalry on October 29.<ref name=Eicher508/> His first assignment was heading the Confederate forces in [[Mesilla, New Mexico|Mesilla]] during the [[New Mexico Campaign]].<ref name=Warner289/> Steele was promoted to [[Brig. Gen. (CSA)|brigadier general]] on September 12, 1862, and then the following year was sent to the [[Western Theater of the American Civil War|Western Theater]]. He commanded the Confederate District of the Indian Territory in [[Lt. General (CSA)|Lt. Gen.]] [[Edmund Kirby Smith]]'s Department of the [[Trans-Mississippi]] from January 8 to December 11, 1863.<ref name=Eicher508/> He also commanded the rear guard of the Confederate force at the [[Battle of Perryville (Indian Territory)]], where the Confederates were defeated in August, 1863.<ref>[http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=PE021 Edwards, Whit. "Perryville, Battle of." Oklahoma Historical Society. 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2015.]</ref>
On May 30, 1861, Steele resigned his [[Regular Army (United States)|Regular Army]] commission and moved to Texas. Choosing to follow the [[Confederate States of America|Confederate cause]] and his adopted home state, he entered the [[Confederate States Army]] as a [[Colonel (United States)|colonel]] in the 7th Texas Cavalry on October 29.<ref name=Eicher508/> His first assignment was heading the Confederate forces in [[Mesilla, New Mexico|Mesilla]] during the [[New Mexico Campaign]].<ref name=Warner289/>


Steele commanded the Department's Eastern Subdistrict of the District of Texas, New Mexico, & [[Arizona]] beginning on March 18, 1864. He participated in the [[Red River Campaign]] that spring, and was praised for his performance in the [[Battle of Pleasant Hill]] on April 9.<ref name=Warner290>Warner, p. 290.</ref> He then briefly led a [[Division (military)|division]] of cavalry until May 26, 1865, the day Gen. Smith surrendered the department. Steele was paroled on August 4 from San Antonio, Texas.<ref name=Eicher508/>
Steele was promoted to [[Brig. Gen. (CSA)|brigadier general]] on September 12, 1862, and then the following year was sent to the [[Western Theater of the American Civil War|Western Theater]]. He commanded a district of the [[Trans-Mississippi Department]] from January 8 to December 11, 1863.<ref name=Eicher508/> He also commanded the rear guard of the Confederate force at the [[Battle of Perryville (Indian Territory)|Perryville]] in the [[Indian Territory]], where the Confederates were defeated in August, 1863.<ref>[http://www.okhistory.org/publications/enc/entry.php?entry=PE021 Edwards, Whit. "Perryville, Battle of." Oklahoma Historical Society. 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2015.]</ref> He commanded the department's Eastern Sub-district of the District of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona beginning on March 18, 1864, participating in the [[Red River Campaign]] that spring under General [[Richard Taylor (Confederate general)|Richard Taylor]].<ref name=Warner290>Warner, p. 290.</ref> He then briefly led a [[Division (military)|division]] of cavalry until May 26, 1865, the day Gen. Smith surrendered the department. Steele was paroled on August 4 from San Antonio, Texas.<ref name=Eicher508/>


After the war, Steele returned to Texas and became a [[Cotton factor|commission merchant]] of cotton from 1866 to 1873. He moved to Austin in 1873 and was then [[Texas Military Department|Adjutant General of Texas]] until his death in early 1885. He died in San Antonio, Texas, at the age of 65, and is buried at [[Oakwood Cemetery (Austin, TX)|Oakwood Cemetery]] in Austin.<ref>Eicher, p. 508; Warner, p. 290.</ref>
==Postbellum==
[[File:WSteele-laterlife.JPG|right|thumb|Steele in later life]]
After the war, Steele returned to Texas and became a [[Cotton factor|Commission merchant]] of cotton from 1866 to 1873. He moved to Austin in 1873 and was then [[Texas Military Department|Adjutant General of Texas]] until his death in early 1885. He died in San Antonio, Texas, at the age of 65, and is buried at [[Oakwood Cemetery (Austin, TX)|Oakwood Cemetery]] in Austin.<ref>Eicher, p. 508; Warner, p. 290.</ref>


== Legacy ==
== Honors ==
* Steele was inducted to the [[Hall of Honor (Texas Military)|Texas Hall of Honor]] in 1982.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org/hallofhonor/chronological.htm|title=HOH|last=|first=|date=|website=TMFM|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=}}</ref>

* Steele was inducted to the Texas Military Hall of Honor in 1982.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://texasmilitaryforcesmuseum.org/hallofhonor/chronological.htm|title=HOH|last=|first=|date=|website=TMFM|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=}}</ref>


==See also==
==See also==
{{Portal|American Civil War|Biography}}
* [[List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)|Confederate States Army generals]]

*[[List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)]]
==Footnotes==
{{reflist|30em}}


==References==
==References==
{{Div col|colwidth=30em}}
* Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]], ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-8047-3641-1}}.
* Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]], ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|978-0-8047-3641-1}}.
* Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. {{ISBN|978-0-8160-1055-4}}.
* Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. {{ISBN|978-0-8160-1055-4}}.
* [[Ezra J. Warner (historian)|Warner, Ezra J.]] ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. {{ISBN|978-0-8071-0823-9}}.
* [[Ezra J. Warner (historian)|Warner, Ezra J.]] ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. {{ISBN|978-0-8071-0823-9}}.
{{Div col end}}
* [http://www.library.ci.corpus-christi.tx.us/MexicanWar/steelew.htm www.library.ci.corpus-christi.tx.us] Online military biography of William Steele


==Notes==
==External links==
<!--
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}
===============================================================================
WIKIPEDIA IS NOT A COLLECTION OF LINKS. Only a limited number of new links
should be added to this article. PLEASE DO NOT ADD external links to sites with
information already in the article or in its sources.

See [[Wikipedia:External links]] and [[Wikipedia:Spam]] for further details
===============================================================================
-->
* {{Commons category-inline|William Steele (Confederate general)|William Steele}}
* {{Find a Grave|9090}}
<!-- EDITORS NOTE: Please follow the [[WP:EL]] guideline where possible and consider discussing on the talk page. Thank you. -->

{{s-start}}
{{s-mil}}
{{s-bef|before=Frank Britton}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Adjutant General of Texas]]|years=1874–1879}}
{{s-aft|after=[[John B. Jones|John Jones]]}}
{{s-end}}
{{Portal bar|American Civil War|Biography|Texas}}
{{Authority control}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:Steele, William}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Steele, William}}
[[Category:1819 births]]
[[Category:1819 births]]
[[Category:1885 deaths]]
[[Category:1885 deaths]]
[[Category:People of New York (state) in the American Civil War]]
[[Category:American military personnel of the Mexican–American War]]
[[Category:United States Army personnel of the Seminole Wars]]
[[Category:Confederate States Army brigadier generals]]
[[Category:Confederate States Army brigadier generals]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Texas]]
[[Category:Northern-born Confederates]]
[[Category:People of New York (state) in the American Civil War]]
[[Category:United States Army officers]]
[[Category:United States Army officers]]
[[Category:United States Military Academy alumni]]
[[Category:United States Military Academy alumni]]
[[Category:American military personnel of the Mexican–American War]]
[[Category:Northern-born Confederates]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Albany, New York]]
[[Category:American people of the Seminole Wars]]

Latest revision as of 12:30, 5 August 2024

William Steele
16th Adjutant General of Texas
In office
January 20, 1874 – January 25, 1879
Governor
Preceded byFrank Britton
Succeeded byJohn Jones
Personal details
Born(1819-05-01)May 1, 1819
Albany, New York, U.S.
DiedJanuary 12, 1885(1885-01-12) (aged 65)
San Antonio, Texas, U.S.
Resting placeOakwood Cemetery,
Austin, Texas
Military service
Allegiance
Branch
Years of service
Rank
Battles/wars
See list

William Steele (May 1, 1819 – January 12, 1885) was a career military officer and businessman who served as the 16th adjutant general of Texas from 1874 until 1879. He previously served as a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded cavalry in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War.

Early life and military career

[edit]

Steele was born in Albany, New York; his mother was from Florida and his father originally from New England.[1] He attended the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1836, graduating four years later standing 31st out of 42 cadets. He was appointed a brevet second lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Dragoons on July 1, 1840.[2]

Steele served at the Cavalry School for Practice at the Carlisle Barracks in Pennsylvania in 1840 and 1841, during which he was promoted to second lieutenant on February 2, 1841. He participated during the Seminole Wars in Florida in 1841 and 1842, engaged there in two skirmishes. Steele and the 2nd Dragoons were on frontier duty at Fort Jesup in Louisiana from 1842 to 1844, and then in garrison at Jefferson Barracks in Missouri in 1844 and 1845.[3]

The 2nd Dragoons were part of the Military Occupation of Texas in 1845 and 1846, just prior to the start of the Mexican–American War. Steele fought at the Battle of Palo Alto on May 8, 1846, after which he was promoted to the rank of first lieutenant in the 2d Dragoons on May 9. He then saw action at the Battle of Monterrey that September, the Siege of Vera Cruz in March 1847, and the Battle of Cerro Gordo in April. Steele then fought in the Battle of Contreras and the Battle of Churubusco on August 20, and the Battle of Molino del Rey that September.[3] Steele was appointed to the rank of brevet captain for his performance at Contreras and Churubusco as of August 20, 1847.[4]

After the war with Mexico ended, Steele was the acting asst. adjutant general of the cavalry brigade in 1847 and 1848. He was also the adjutant of the 2d Dragoons from December 20, 1847, to April 10, 1849, during which the 2nd was in garrison duty at East Pascagoula, Mississippi in 1848. Steele then served on recruiting service in 1848 and 1849, and on frontier duty with the 2nd at several locations in Texas. Included in these assignments were being stationed at Fredericksburg in 1849 and 1850, at Fort Martin Scott, in Austin in 1850, and at Fort Lincoln in 1850 and 1851. Steele and the 2nd Dragoons returned to Fort Martin Scott and later back at Fort Lincoln in 1851, and Steele served as Quartermaster in Austin in 1851 and 1852, during which he was promoted to captain as of November 10, 1851.[3] Due to his multiple postings in Texas, he married a woman from there in 1850.[1]

Steele and the 2nd Dragoons were stationed at Fort Conrad in the New Mexico Territory from 1852 to 1853, and was on scouting duty in 1853, during which Steele was engaged against Apache in a skirmish near Fort Conrad on July 28, 1853. He then served at Fort Craig in the New Mexico Territory in 1854 and at Fort Leavenworth in Kansas from 1854 to 1855. Steele participated in the expedition against the Sioux in 1855, during which he fought near Blue Water on September 3, 1855. He returned to Fort Leavenworth in 1855 and 1856, and then was at Fort Randall in the Dakota Territory from 1856 to 1857. Another stint at Fort Leavenworth followed in 1857 and 1858, and then in garrison at St. Louis, Missouri, in 1858. Steele was on sick leave from 1858 to 1859, and on frontier duty at Fort Kearny in the Nebraska Territory from 1859 into 1860. Steele was part of the expedition against the Kiowa and Comanche in 1860, then stationed once at Fort Scott in Kansas from 1860 to early 1861.[3]

American Civil War

[edit]
Steele in uniform, c. 1862

On May 30, 1861, Steele resigned his Regular Army commission and moved to Texas. Choosing to follow the Confederate cause and his adopted home state, he entered the Confederate States Army as a colonel in the 7th Texas Cavalry on October 29.[2] His first assignment was heading the Confederate forces in Mesilla during the New Mexico Campaign.[1]

Steele was promoted to brigadier general on September 12, 1862, and then the following year was sent to the Western Theater. He commanded a district of the Trans-Mississippi Department from January 8 to December 11, 1863.[2] He also commanded the rear guard of the Confederate force at the Perryville in the Indian Territory, where the Confederates were defeated in August, 1863.[5] He commanded the department's Eastern Sub-district of the District of Texas, New Mexico, and Arizona beginning on March 18, 1864, participating in the Red River Campaign that spring under General Richard Taylor.[6] He then briefly led a division of cavalry until May 26, 1865, the day Gen. Smith surrendered the department. Steele was paroled on August 4 from San Antonio, Texas.[2]

After the war, Steele returned to Texas and became a commission merchant of cotton from 1866 to 1873. He moved to Austin in 1873 and was then Adjutant General of Texas until his death in early 1885. He died in San Antonio, Texas, at the age of 65, and is buried at Oakwood Cemetery in Austin.[7]

Honors

[edit]

See also

[edit]

Footnotes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c Warner, p. 289.
  2. ^ a b c d Eicher, p. 508.
  3. ^ a b c d "Military biography of William Steele". www.library.ci.corpus-christi.tx.us. Archived from the original on March 5, 2008. Retrieved September 10, 2008.
  4. ^ ..."for Gallant and Meritorious Conduct in the Battles of Contreras and Churubusco, Mex."
  5. ^ Edwards, Whit. "Perryville, Battle of." Oklahoma Historical Society. 2009. Retrieved January 8, 2015.
  6. ^ Warner, p. 290.
  7. ^ Eicher, p. 508; Warner, p. 290.
  8. ^ "HOH". TMFM.

References

[edit]
[edit]
Military offices
Preceded by
Frank Britton
Adjutant General of Texas
1874–1879
Succeeded by