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{{short description|American politician}}

{{Infobox military person
{{Infobox military person
|name= Benjamin J. Hill
|name= Benjamin J. Hill
|image= Brig. Gen. Benjamin Jefferson Hill.jpg
|birth_date= {{birth date|1825|06|13}}
|birth_date= {{birth date|1825|06|13}}
|death_date= {{death date and age|1880|01|05|1825|06|13}}
|death_date= {{death date and age|1880|01|05|1825|06|13}}
|nickname=
|nickname=
|birth_place=[[McMinnville, Tennessee]]
|birth_place=[[McMinnville, Tennessee|McMinnville]], [[Tennessee]]
|death_place=[[McMinnville, Tennessee]]
|death_place=McMinnville, Tennessee
|placeofburial=[[McMinnville, Tennessee]]
|placeofburial=Old McMinnville City Cemetery, McMinnville, Tennessee
|allegiance={{Flag|Confederate States of America}}
|allegiance= [[Confederate States of America]]
|branch={{army|CSA}}
|branch= [[Confederate States Army]]
|serviceyears=1861–1865
|serviceyears=1861–1865
|rank= [[File:CSAGeneral.png|35px]] [[Brigadier General (CSA)|Brigadier General]], CSA
|rank=[[File:Confederate States of America General-collar.svg|35px]] [[Brigadier General (CSA)|Brigadier General]], CSA
|unit=
|unit=
|battles=[[American Civil War]]
|battles=[[American Civil War]]
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==Early life==
==Early life==
Benjamin Jefferson Hill was born on June 13, 1825 in [[McMinnville, Tennessee]].<ref name="Eicher296">Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]]. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8047-3641-3. p. 296</ref><ref name="Warner135">Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. ISBN 0-8071-0823-5. pp. 135-136</ref> He was a successful merchant and Tennessee state senator from 1855 until the beginning of the Civil War in 1861.<ref name="Faust361">Faust, Patricia L. "Hill, Benjamin Jefferson" in ''Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War'', edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. ISBN 978-0-06-273116-6. p. 361</ref>
Benjamin Jefferson Hill was born on June 13, 1825, in [[McMinnville, Tennessee]].<ref name="Eicher296">Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]]. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|0-8047-3641-3}}. p. 296</ref><ref name="Warner135">Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. {{ISBN|0-8071-0823-5}}. pp. 135-136</ref> He was a successful merchant and Tennessee state senator from 1855 until the beginning of the Civil War in 1861.<ref name="Faust361">Faust, Patricia L. "Hill, Benjamin Jefferson" in ''Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War'', edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. {{ISBN|978-0-06-273116-6}}. p. 361</ref>


==American Civil War==
==American Civil War==
Benjamin J. Hill began his Civil War service as colonel of the 5th Tennessee Volunteers in the Provisional Army of Tennessee.<ref name="Faust361"/> He resigned to enter [[Confederate States Army]] service as colonel of the 35th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, which was the designation given to the 5th Tennessee Volunteers when they were mustered into Confederate service.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Hill's regiment was assigned to the brigade of [[Brigadier General (CSA)|Brigadier General]] [[Patrick Cleburne]] and fought at the [[Battle of Shiloh]].<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/><ref name="Faust361"/> Hill served under Cleburne until Cleburne was killed at the [[Battle of Franklin]] on November 30, 1864.<ref name="Faust361"/> Hill also led the regiment at the [[Siege of Corinth]].<ref name="Sifakis309">Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. ISBN 0-8160-1055-2. p. 309</ref>
Benjamin J. Hill began his Civil War service as colonel of the 5th Tennessee Volunteers in the Provisional Army of Tennessee.<ref name="Faust361"/> He resigned to enter [[Confederate States Army]] service as colonel of the 35th Tennessee Infantry Regiment by Tennessee Governor Isham Harris, which was the designation given to the 5th Tennessee Volunteers when they were mustered into Confederate service.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Hill's regiment was assigned to the brigade of [[Brigadier General (CSA)|Brigadier General]] [[Patrick Cleburne]] and fought at the [[Battle of Shiloh]].<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/><ref name="Faust361"/> Hill served under Cleburne until Cleburne was killed at the [[Battle of Franklin (1864)|Battle of Franklin]] on November 30, 1864.<ref name="Faust361"/> Hill also led the regiment at the [[Siege of Corinth]].<ref name="Sifakis309">Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. {{ISBN|0-8160-1055-2}}. p. 309</ref>


Hill led his regiment in Bragg's [[Kentucky Campaign]], in which they initiated the attack at the [[Battle of Richmond]], and at the [[Battle of Stones River]] (Murfreesboro).<ref name="Faust361"/> Hill led Cleburne's brigade at Richmond and at the [[Battle of Perryville]] after Cleburne was wounded in those battles.<ref name="Sifakis309"/><ref name="Boatner400">Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary''. New York: McKay, 1988. ISBN 0-8129-1726-X. First published New York, McKay, 1959. pp. 400-401</ref> Hill also was wounded at Richmond.<ref name="Eicher296"/> Hill and his regiment also fought at the [[Battle of Chickamauga]] and in the [[Chattanooga Campaign]], including the unsuccessful defense of [[Missionary Ridge]], where they were consolidated with the 48th Tennessee Infantry.<ref name="Faust361"/><ref name="Sifakis309"/><ref name="Boatner400"/> Hill served as provost marshal of the Army of Tennessee between February 3, 1864 and August 23, 1864.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref>Warner, 1959, p. 136, Faust, 1986, p. 361, and Sifakis, 1988, p. 309, state that this duty began in late 1863.</ref>
Hill led his regiment in Bragg's [[Kentucky Campaign]], in which they initiated the attack at the [[Battle of Richmond]], and at the [[Battle of Stones River]] (Murfreesboro).<ref name="Faust361"/> Hill led Cleburne's brigade at Richmond and at the [[Battle of Perryville]] after Cleburne was wounded in those battles.<ref name="Sifakis309"/><ref name="Boatner400">Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary''. New York: McKay, 1988. {{ISBN|0-8129-1726-X}}. First published New York, McKay, 1959. pp. 400-401</ref> Hill also was wounded at Richmond.<ref name="Eicher296"/> Hill and his regiment also fought at the [[Battle of Chickamauga]] and in the [[Chattanooga Campaign]], including the unsuccessful defense of [[Missionary Ridge]], where they were consolidated with the 48th Tennessee Infantry.<ref name="Faust361"/><ref name="Sifakis309"/><ref name="Boatner400"/> Hill served as provost marshal of the Army of Tennessee between February 3, 1864, and August 23, 1864.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref>Warner, 1959, p. 136, Faust, 1986, p. 361, and Sifakis, 1988, p. 309, state that this duty began in late 1863.</ref>


Hill was promoted to brigadier general (temporary) on November 30, 1864.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Although his experience had been in the infantry, Hill was transferred to Brigadier General [[William Hicks Jackson|William Hicks Jackson's]] division of [[Lieutenant General (CSA)|Lieutenant General]] [[Nathan Bedford Forrest|Nathan Bedford Forrest's]] Cavalry Corps.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Faust361"/> He cooperated with Major General [[William Brimage Bate|William Bate's]] division in destroying the railroad and blockhouses between [[Murfreesboro, Tennessee|Murfreesboro]] and [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] near the end of the [[Franklin-Nashville Campaign]].<ref name="Warner135"/> In the closing months of the war, he participated in Forrest's defense against [[Union Army]] [[Major general (United States)|Major General]] [[James H. Wilson|James H. Wilson's]] [[Wilson's Raid|raid]] in Alabama and Georgia, in particular at the [[Battle of Selma]].<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Hill was paroled at Chattanooga, Tennessee on May 16, 1865.<ref name="Eicher296"/>
Hill was promoted to brigadier general (temporary) on November 30, 1864.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Although his experience had been in the infantry, Hill was transferred to Brigadier General [[William Hicks Jackson|William Hicks Jackson's]] division of [[Lieutenant General (CSA)|Lieutenant General]] [[Nathan Bedford Forrest|Nathan Bedford Forrest's]] Cavalry Corps.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Faust361"/> He cooperated with Major General [[William Brimage Bate|William Bate's]] division in destroying the railroad and blockhouses between [[Murfreesboro, Tennessee|Murfreesboro]] and [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville]] near the end of the [[Franklin-Nashville Campaign]].<ref name="Warner135"/> In the closing months of the war, he participated in Forrest's defense against [[Union Army]] [[Major general (United States)|Major General]] [[James H. Wilson|James H. Wilson's]] [[Wilson's Raid|raid]] in Alabama and Georgia.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Hill was paroled at Chattanooga, Tennessee on May 16, 1865.<ref name="Eicher296"/>


==Aftermath==
==Aftermath==
After the war, Hill returned to McMinnville where he again engaged in business as a merchant and practiced law.<ref name="Warner135"/><ref name="Faust361"/> He was the Mayor of McMinnville, TN. He also was president of the McMinnville and Manchester Railroad.<ref name="Eicher296"/>
After the war, Hill returned to McMinnville where he again engaged in business as a merchant and practiced law.<ref name="Warner135"/><ref name="Faust361"/> He also was president of the McMinnville and Manchester Railroad.<ref name="Eicher296"/>


He was also the Mayor of McMinnville, TN. Col. Hill and Col. Savage took to the podium one day when there was a group crying out for the KKK. Both Col. Savage and Col. Hill denounced joining or supporting the KKK in the local middle Tennessee area around Warren County or any counties tangenting Warren County TN. Col. Hill spoke that the citizens and local County leadership work together for the benefit of all and did not need the KKK's help at all.
Benjamin Jefferson Hill died January 5, 1880 at McMinnville, Tennessee and is buried in Old City Cemetery, McMinnville.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/>

However, when 1878 arrived, so did a terrible cholera and yellow fever epidemic that affected all of Tennessee. It was so terrible that people were advised to stay away from crowds and not to assemble in large groups. This killed the hopes for a reunion of the 35th. By 1879, Hill's health was so poor that he could not organize a reunion. The reunion was to have included ex-President Jefferson Davis with an expected crowd of twenty thousand traveling to McMinnville for the festivities. Benjamin Jefferson Hill died at his home on January 5, 1880, only fifty-four years old. He was laid to rest under a large oak tree next to his baby daughter in the old City Cemetery in McMinnville. His devoted wife, Mary Vesta, lived until March 1, 1909, and became one of the last people to be interred in the old cemetery on High Street.

Benjamin Jefferson Hill died of yellow fever January 5, 1880, at McMinnville, Tennessee and is buried in Old City Cemetery, McMinnville.<ref name="Eicher296"/><ref name="Warner135"/> Benjamin Jefferson Hill died at his home on January 5, 1880, only fifty-four years old. He was laid to rest under a large oak tree next to his baby daughter in the old City Cemetery in McMinnville. His devoted wife, Mary Vesta, lived until March 1, 1909, and became one of the last people to be interred in the old cemetery on High Street, McMinnville TN.


==See also==
==See also==
{{portal|American Civil War|Biography}}
*[[List of American Civil War Generals (Confederate)|List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)]]
*[[List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)]]


==Notes==
==Notes==
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==References==
==References==
* Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary''. New York: McKay, 1988. ISBN 0-8129-1726-X. First published New York, McKay, 1959.
* Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary''. New York: McKay, 1988. {{ISBN|0-8129-1726-X}}. First published New York, McKay, 1959.
* Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]]. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.
* Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]]. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|0-8047-3641-3}}.
* Faust, Patricia L. "Hill, Benjamin Jefferson" in ''Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War'', edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. ISBN 978-0-06-273116-6.
* Faust, Patricia L. "Hill, Benjamin Jefferson" in ''Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War'', edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. {{ISBN|978-0-06-273116-6}}.
* Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. ISBN 0-8160-1055-2.
* Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. {{ISBN|0-8160-1055-2}}.
* Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. ISBN 0-8071-0823-5.
* Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. {{ISBN|0-8071-0823-5}}.


{{Persondata
|NAME= Hill, Benjamin J.
|ALTERNATIVE NAMES= Hill, Benjamin Jefferson
|SHORT DESCRIPTION= [[Confederate States Army]] [[Brigadier General (CSA)|brigadier general]]
|DATE OF BIRTH= June 13, 1825
|PLACE OF BIRTH=[[McMinnville, Tennessee]]
|DATE OF DEATH= January 5, 1880
|PLACE OF DEATH=[[McMinnville, Tennessee]]
}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Benjamin J.}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hill, Benjamin J.}}
[[Category:1825 births]]
[[Category:1825 births]]
[[Category:1880 deaths]]
[[Category:1880 deaths]]
[[Category:Confederate States Army generals]]
[[Category:People from McMinnville, Tennessee]]
[[Category:Confederate States Army brigadier generals]]
[[Category:People of Tennessee in the American Civil War]]
[[Category:People of Tennessee in the American Civil War]]
[[Category:Tennessee lawyers]]
[[Category:Tennessee state senators]]
[[Category:19th-century American lawyers]]
[[Category:19th-century American businesspeople]]
[[Category:19th-century American merchants]]
[[Category:American slave owners]]
[[Category:19th-century members of the Tennessee General Assembly]]

Latest revision as of 10:46, 11 December 2024

Benjamin J. Hill
Born(1825-06-13)June 13, 1825
McMinnville, Tennessee
DiedJanuary 5, 1880(1880-01-05) (aged 54)
McMinnville, Tennessee
Buried
Old McMinnville City Cemetery, McMinnville, Tennessee
AllegianceConfederate States of America
Service / branchConfederate States Army
Years of service1861–1865
Rank Brigadier General, CSA
Battles / warsAmerican Civil War

Benjamin Jefferson Hill (June 13, 1825 – January 5, 1880) was a Confederate States Army brigadier general during the American Civil War. Before the war, he was a merchant and served in the Tennessee Senate. After the war, he was a merchant, lawyer and president of the McMinnville and Manchester Railroad.

Early life

[edit]

Benjamin Jefferson Hill was born on June 13, 1825, in McMinnville, Tennessee.[1][2] He was a successful merchant and Tennessee state senator from 1855 until the beginning of the Civil War in 1861.[3]

American Civil War

[edit]

Benjamin J. Hill began his Civil War service as colonel of the 5th Tennessee Volunteers in the Provisional Army of Tennessee.[3] He resigned to enter Confederate States Army service as colonel of the 35th Tennessee Infantry Regiment by Tennessee Governor Isham Harris, which was the designation given to the 5th Tennessee Volunteers when they were mustered into Confederate service.[1][2] Hill's regiment was assigned to the brigade of Brigadier General Patrick Cleburne and fought at the Battle of Shiloh.[1][2][3] Hill served under Cleburne until Cleburne was killed at the Battle of Franklin on November 30, 1864.[3] Hill also led the regiment at the Siege of Corinth.[4]

Hill led his regiment in Bragg's Kentucky Campaign, in which they initiated the attack at the Battle of Richmond, and at the Battle of Stones River (Murfreesboro).[3] Hill led Cleburne's brigade at Richmond and at the Battle of Perryville after Cleburne was wounded in those battles.[4][5] Hill also was wounded at Richmond.[1] Hill and his regiment also fought at the Battle of Chickamauga and in the Chattanooga Campaign, including the unsuccessful defense of Missionary Ridge, where they were consolidated with the 48th Tennessee Infantry.[3][4][5] Hill served as provost marshal of the Army of Tennessee between February 3, 1864, and August 23, 1864.[1][6]

Hill was promoted to brigadier general (temporary) on November 30, 1864.[1][2] Although his experience had been in the infantry, Hill was transferred to Brigadier General William Hicks Jackson's division of Lieutenant General Nathan Bedford Forrest's Cavalry Corps.[1][3] He cooperated with Major General William Bate's division in destroying the railroad and blockhouses between Murfreesboro and Nashville near the end of the Franklin-Nashville Campaign.[2] In the closing months of the war, he participated in Forrest's defense against Union Army Major General James H. Wilson's raid in Alabama and Georgia.[1][2] Hill was paroled at Chattanooga, Tennessee on May 16, 1865.[1]

Aftermath

[edit]

After the war, Hill returned to McMinnville where he again engaged in business as a merchant and practiced law.[2][3] He also was president of the McMinnville and Manchester Railroad.[1]

He was also the Mayor of McMinnville, TN. Col. Hill and Col. Savage took to the podium one day when there was a group crying out for the KKK. Both Col. Savage and Col. Hill denounced joining or supporting the KKK in the local middle Tennessee area around Warren County or any counties tangenting Warren County TN. Col. Hill spoke that the citizens and local County leadership work together for the benefit of all and did not need the KKK's help at all.

However, when 1878 arrived, so did a terrible cholera and yellow fever epidemic that affected all of Tennessee. It was so terrible that people were advised to stay away from crowds and not to assemble in large groups. This killed the hopes for a reunion of the 35th. By 1879, Hill's health was so poor that he could not organize a reunion. The reunion was to have included ex-President Jefferson Davis with an expected crowd of twenty thousand traveling to McMinnville for the festivities. Benjamin Jefferson Hill died at his home on January 5, 1880, only fifty-four years old. He was laid to rest under a large oak tree next to his baby daughter in the old City Cemetery in McMinnville. His devoted wife, Mary Vesta, lived until March 1, 1909, and became one of the last people to be interred in the old cemetery on High Street.

Benjamin Jefferson Hill died of yellow fever January 5, 1880, at McMinnville, Tennessee and is buried in Old City Cemetery, McMinnville.[1][2] Benjamin Jefferson Hill died at his home on January 5, 1880, only fifty-four years old. He was laid to rest under a large oak tree next to his baby daughter in the old City Cemetery in McMinnville. His devoted wife, Mary Vesta, lived until March 1, 1909, and became one of the last people to be interred in the old cemetery on High Street, McMinnville TN.

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher. Civil War High Commands. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8047-3641-3. p. 296
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. ISBN 0-8071-0823-5. pp. 135-136
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Faust, Patricia L. "Hill, Benjamin Jefferson" in Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War, edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. ISBN 978-0-06-273116-6. p. 361
  4. ^ a b c Sifakis, Stewart. Who Was Who in the Civil War. New York: Facts On File, 1988. ISBN 0-8160-1055-2. p. 309
  5. ^ a b Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. The Civil War Dictionary. New York: McKay, 1988. ISBN 0-8129-1726-X. First published New York, McKay, 1959. pp. 400-401
  6. ^ Warner, 1959, p. 136, Faust, 1986, p. 361, and Sifakis, 1988, p. 309, state that this duty began in late 1863.

References

[edit]
  • Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. The Civil War Dictionary. New York: McKay, 1988. ISBN 0-8129-1726-X. First published New York, McKay, 1959.
  • Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher. Civil War High Commands. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.
  • Faust, Patricia L. "Hill, Benjamin Jefferson" in Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War, edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. ISBN 978-0-06-273116-6.
  • Sifakis, Stewart. Who Was Who in the Civil War. New York: Facts On File, 1988. ISBN 0-8160-1055-2.
  • Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. ISBN 0-8071-0823-5.