A while back, I thought that I remembered that someone was looking for information on Gen. Jenkins of the Confederacy. I found this on a hyperlink of Civil War biographies from the Virginia Civil War homepage. It is on the server noted in the heading/body of the text. "THE CIVIL WAR RIVER. February 1st, 1997 THE BUMBLING JENKINS DEAD POLITICIAN OF THE DAY By "Cookie" Reb [email protected] Jenkins, Albert Gallatin (1830 - 1864) Born at Greenbottom Plantation near Huntington, Virginia, now West Virginia. Member of United States House of Representatives, 1858 - 1861. Reorganized Border Rangers, later becoming Co. E, of 8th Virginia Cavalry. As a Captain, he participated in the first skirmish in the Kanawha alley at Scary Creek, July 17, 1861. After managing to control his run away horse, he returned to the battle and called a retreat at Scary as the Federals called a retreat. In January, 1862, he was elected to the rank of Lt. Col. In August of that year, he was appointed as Brig. Gen. in command of the 8th and 14th Virginia Cavalry. In the spring of 1861, he led a raid of horseless cavalrymen from Salem, Virginia, across the mountains over 200 miles to Pt. Pleasant, Virginia. He was detained at Hurricane, Virginia, in a useless 5 hour fire fight with the Federals. On March 30, he raided Pt. Pleasant, which resulted in miserable failure. In June, 1863, he was chosen to lead the Confederate vanguard into the North. One of his notable accomplishments on the way to Gettysburg was at Chambersburg. On June 15, he ordered him men on a midnight charge through the streets. When some of the men's horses ran into a dug out area for street repair, their horses fell and one of the men's pistols discharged. The sound convinced Jenkins that a force of Union soldiers was present. He was about to call a retreat when someone pointed it out to him that it was merely a hole in the paving. Finally making it to Gettysburg on late on July 1st, he discovered that the fighting had finished for the day. On July 2nd, he was ordered to the York Pike to relieve Smith's and Gordon's divisions. Instead, he took his staff to Blotcher's Hill (Now Barlow's Knoll). Apparently, disoriented or lo the fourth or fifth shot from Cemetery Hill, he was wounded by a shell fragment. For some unknown reason, his brigade never reached Smith's and Gordon's divisions, which left them stranded for the better part of the day watching for the enemy and unavailable to Ewell. Jenkin's unusual career came to an end on May 9, 1864, when he was wounded in the arm while attempting to rally his poorly placed troops at the battle of Cloyd's Mountain/Dublin Depot, Virginia. Unable to make it to his retreating troops, he was captured. His arm was amputated by a Union surgeon, but complications set it, and he died May 21. Perhaps he should have remained in politics. Reb [email protected]