City of Manassas - Photo Gallery - Prince William Cavalry

George William Herndon

Thu, 28 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

In 1912, one of his last requests was "bury me in a suit of Confederate gray; ...let my horses bear my casket to my resting place."

Amos Benson

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

History remembers Benson and his wife Margaret for an act of kindness to a wounded Union soldier that was repaid years after the war.

Lucien Alexander Davis

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

A merchant at the start of the war, Davis advanced from a private to captain of Company A in 2 ½ years, replacing his relative Captain Philip D. Williams who was killed in October 1863.

Charles Allen Dunnington

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

In the early part of October 1863, he was scouting the position of a brigade of cavalry encamped at Stafford Court House. He and four men of the Fourth Virginia Cavalry went on foot. Finding that there was a division instead of a brigade, and seeing no ch

John W. Fewell

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Fewell waited until he was 16 years old to enlist in March of 1862. Soon after, the 4th was reorganized and Colonel Williams C. Wickham was elected to lead the regiment. By then, the regiment numbered 540 men, one of the largest in Stuart’s cavalry divisi

Henry Holland

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Henry was Robert’s older brother and one of the older soldiers in Company A at age 29.

Henry Fairfax Lynn

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Lynn went to Chimbarazo Hospital in Richmond for a very serious wound in his upper thigh and was discharged for 40 days to recover.

Francis A. Merchant

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Merchant signed up at the age of 18, son of the farmer Robert B. Merchant. Like most Southern cavalrymen, he brought his own horse and equipment, valued at $120. In March 1864, Merchant left to find a new horse and never returned.

Benjamin Dyer Merchant

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

According to the family history, Sergeant Merchant “captured the first prisoner of war taken at the Fairfax Court House in June of 1861.”

Horatio Nelson

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Nelson received a gunshot wound to the chest on June 24, 1862, and died that evening at a field hospital. His last orders were to tell “his mother and sis good bye. He hoped he would be better off.”

Thomas Henry Selecman

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Born in the Occoquan area, Selecman worked on his father’s farm until the start of the war. He enlisted at age 24 and served steadily in Company A.

Richard Henderson Shepherd

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

One of the older enlistees at 24, Shepherd was a farm hand in Prince William County. He brought a valuable horse with him, which may have helped shape his military career.

James Marshall Shirley

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Shirley, a 27-year old store clerk from Gainesville, joined the Prince William Cavalry in April 1861.

James M. Sinclair

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Sinclair joined from Loudoun County in 1862 as a Private. After a few months, he was detailed to the Quartermaster’s Division.

William Willis Thornton

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Thornton enlisted on April 23, 1861 and led his company until April 28, 1862 when he was promoted to Major.

Marshall Baker Weedon

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

In the final charge of the Civil War, a ball lodged in his finger to remain there for 10 months, after which he lost part of the finger.

Robert C. Weedon

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Weedon had a horse shot out from under him in 1862 and two years later was himself wounded. He survived, received the Southern Cross of Honor and lived until 1906.

Edgar Vaux Weir

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

At 23, Weir was the next-to-youngest son of William and Harriet Weir of Liberia Plantation in Manassas.

William Henry Wilkins

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Wilkins enlisted as soon as he was 18 years old. He abandoned his classical studies (the “English Branches” of Greek, Latin, and Mathematics) preparing him for college.

John Taylor Williams

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Like many former military officers, Williams participated in the rapid western expansion of the nation’s transportation system.

Philip Dawe Williams

Wed, 27 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Twenty-three year old merchant Philip Dawe Williams enlisted as a Private in April 1861. By July of that year, he had risen to First Lieutenant and a year later to Captain of Company A.

Return to Photo Gallery

Fri, 22 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Manassas Museum Exhibit runs until July 4, 2011

James Monroe Barbee

Thu, 21 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

James Monroe Barbee was a 26-year old married farmer near Occoquan. At his enlistment he was made 2nd Lieutenant.

Peter Trone Weedon

Thu, 21 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Though raised in Dumfries, after the war Peter farmed in Brentsville. He represented the Brentsville District on the Prince William County Board of Supervisors in 1879 - 1890 and died while in office.

Robert Walter Holland

Wed, 6 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Robert Walter Holland joined Company A of the 4th Virginia Cavalry in 1862.

Robert Brown Cushing

Fri, 1 Apr 2011 00:00 -0500

Robert Brown Cushing joined Company A in 1863 at age 16. He was Prince William County's last surviving Civil War veteran. He died in 1945 at age 99.