Absalom Baird: Difference between revisions

Absalom Baird
Absolm Baird, Medal of Honor recipient
Allegiance	Union
Service / branch	Union Army
Rank	Brevet Major General
Battles / wars	American Civil War
Awards	Medal of Honor

Absalom Baird (born August 20, 1824, Washington, Pennsylvania; died June 14, 1905, near Baltimore, Maryland) was a career United States Army officer who distinguished himself as a Union Army general in the American Civil War.

Baird graduated from the preparatory department of Washington College (now Washington & Jefferson College) in 1841. He enrolled in the United States Military Academy and graduated in 1849, ranked ninth in a class of 43. From 1852-59, he was a mathematics instructor at West Point, where one of his students was James McNeill Whistler. From 1859-61, he served in Texas and Virginia.

When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Baird was promoted to brevet captain. He fought at the Battle of Bull Run under General Daniel Tyler, and was promoted to brevet major. He became chief of staff to General Erasmus D. Keyes and fought in the Peninsula Campaign, where his service earned him a further promotion to brevet Brigadier General.

In 1862, Baird commanded a brigade in the Army of the Ohio under General Don Carlos Buell, and helped secure the Cumberland Gap. He commanded a division in Kentucky, and then joined the Army of the Cumberland under General George Henry Thomas. It was in this post that he won fame for his heroic efforts at the Battle of Chickamauga and the Third Battle of Chattanooga. Later, in the Atlanta Campaign, Baird led a brigade charge in the Battle of Jonesborough. By the end of the war, Baird had been promoted to brevet Major General and permanent lieutenant colonel.

Following the war, Baird served as commander of the department of Louisiana and then as an assistant inspector general. He was appointed Inspector General of the Army in 1885 as a permanent brigadier general. In 1887, he traveled to France to observe military maneuvers, and was awarded the Légion d'honneur.

In 1896, Baird was awarded the Medal of Honor for leading the charge at Jonesborough. He died in 1905 and is buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

Rank and organization: Brigadier General, U.S. Volunteers. Place and date: At Jonesboro, Ga., 1 September 1864. Entered service at: Washington, Pa. Birth: Washington, Pa. Date of issue: 22 April 1896.

Citation:

Voluntarily led a detached brigade in an assault upon the enemy's works.

• List of Medal of Honor recipients
• List of Medal of Honor recipients: Civil War A-L

• Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography, edited by James Grant Wilson, John Fiske and Stanley L. Klos Six volumes, New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1887-1889 ]

• Absalom Baird at Find a Grave Retrieved on 2007-11-07
• American National Biography, vol. 1, pp. 906-907.
• Arlingtoncemetery.net profile, with gravestone photos
• Photographs of Absalom Baird
• New York Times obituary, June 15, 1905 (subscription required)
• Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography, edited by James Grant Wilson, John Fiske and Stanley L. Klos Six volumes, New York: D. Appleton and Company, 1887-1889 ]