Benjamin Stoddert Ewell
Encyclopedia
Benjamin Stoddert Ewell was a United States
and Confederate
army officer, civil engineer
, and educator from James City County
, Virginia
. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York in 1832 and served as an officer and educator.
Although he personally did not favor secession of Virginia
from the Union, at the outset of the American Civil War
(1861–1865), he helped form local militia in the Peninsula
region of Hampton Roads
. His work designing and constructing the Williamsburg Line of defensive works of the city and Fort Magruder
at its center was a factor in delaying Federal troops attempting to chase retreating Confederates during the Peninsula Campaign
, a failed attempt to capture the capital city of Richmond
in 1862. His younger brother was Confederate General Richard S. Ewell
, a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson
and Robert E. Lee
.
Benjamin Ewell is best-remembered for his long tenure as the sixteenth president of the College of William and Mary
in Williamsburg
before, during and after the American Civil War. Benjamin Ewell's tireless efforts to restore the historic school and its programs during and after Reconstruction became legendary in Williamsburg and at the College and were ultimately successful, with funding from both the U.S. Congress and the Commonwealth of Virginia.
section of Washington, D.C.
. He was the son of Dr. Thomas Ewell and his wife Elizabeth Stoddert Ewell, and was a grandson of Benjamin Stoddert
, first U.S. Secretary of the Navy.
He was graduated from the United States Military Academy
at West Point, New York
in 1832, and assigned to the Fourth Artillery of the U.S. Army. However, Ewell stayed on as an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at West Point from 1832 to 1835, and Asst. Professor, Natural and Experimental Philosophy there in 1835 and 1836.
In 1836, he left West Point and became an assistant engineer of the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad, connecting Baltimore, Maryland with Sunbury, Pennsylvania
, from 1836 until 1839.
Moving to Virginia in 1839, at Hampden-Sydney College
, he became Professor of Mathematics, serving from 1839–1842 and of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy from 1842 to 1846. He then moved to Lexington, Virginia
where he was Professor of Mathematics and Military Science at Washington College (which later became Washington and Lee University
) from 1846 to 1848.
In 1848, he accepted a position as Professor of Mathematics and Acting President of the College of William and Mary
in Williamsburg, Virginia
. He purchased a farm in nearby James City County west of the old colonial capital city along the Richmond-Williamsburg Stage Road (now U.S. Route 60
) and built a large plantation
house there which became known as Ewell Hall. He was later named permanent president, and served in that capacity between 1854 and 1861.
depleted the student body and on May 10, 1861, the faculty voted to close the College for the duration of the conflict. The College Building
was used as a Confederate barracks and later as a hospital, first by Confederate, and later Union forces.
Although he had been opposed to secession for Virginia, during the American Civil War
, he joined the regular forces. The 32nd Virginia Infantry
was accepted into Confederate service on July 1, 1861 after it had been formed for local defense at Hampton
by Ewell from several local militia units from Elizabeth City County
, Warwick County
, York County
, and James City County. He was commissioned as a Colonel
in the Confederate Army. In 1861 and 1862, under General John B. Magruder
and the Army of the Peninsula, Ewell had the primary responsibility for developing and constructing the Williamsburg Line, a line of defensive fortifications across the Virginia Peninsula
east of Williamsburg anchored by College Creek
a tributary of the James River
on the south and Queen's Creek
, a tributary of the York River
on the north. A series of 14 redoubts were built along the line, with the earthen Fort Magruder
at the junction of the two main loads leading from the lower Peninsula to the east, the Williamsburg-Yorktown Road, and the Lee's Mill Road.
Following the Battle of Williamsburg on May 5, 1862 during the Peninsula Campaign
, with 3,800 Confederate and Union casualties, Williamsburg and the College of William and Mary were occupied by the Union Army
. The Brafferton building of the College
was used for a time as quarters for the commanding officer of the Union garrison occupying the town. On September 9, 1862, drunken soldiers of the 5th Pennsylvania Cavalry set fire to the College Building, purportedly in an attempt to prevent Confederate snipers from using it for cover. Much damage was done to the community during the Union occupation, which lasted until September 1865.
After the Battle of Williamsburg, Ewell left the 32nd Virginia Infantry to join the staff of General Joseph E. Johnston
. He was later adjutant
to his younger brother, General Richard S. Ewell
, who was a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson
and Robert E. Lee
.
In 1869, Ewell finally re-opened with school with his own personal funds and became president of the College of William and Mary again. He mortgaged his family farm, purchased nearby in 1858, and it was lost to a foreclosure and auction sale. Despite Ewell's efforts, the College was forced to close again for financial reasons in 1881 did not reopen until 1888.
It has become legendary at the College and in the Williamsburg community that, every single morning of that long seven-year period, Benjamin Stoddert Ewell would arise and ring the bell calling students to class, so it could never be said that William and Mary had abandoned its mission to educate the young men of Virginia.
In 1888, William & Mary resumed operations under a substitute charter when the Virginia General Assembly
passed a bill appropriating $10,000 to support the College as a state teacher-training institution. Once he had ensured that the College he had cherished and protected would survive, the 71-year-old Ewell relinquished the presidency and went into retirement. Lyon Gardiner Tyler
(son of US President and alumnus John Tyler
) became the 17th president of the College following President Ewell's retirement.
Benjamin Ewell remained in Williamsburg as President Emeritus of the College until his death on June 19, 1894. He was interred in the College of William and Mary Cemetery in Williamsburg. Both his personal papers and papers relating to his service as president of the College of William and Mary
can be found at the Special Collections Research Center at the College of William and Mary.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Confederate
Confederate States of America
The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...
army officer, civil engineer
Civil engineer
A civil engineer is a person who practices civil engineering; the application of planning, designing, constructing, maintaining, and operating infrastructures while protecting the public and environmental health, as well as improving existing infrastructures that have been neglected.Originally, a...
, and educator from James City County
James City County, Virginia
James City County is a county located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. Its population was 67,009 , and it is often associated with Williamsburg, an independent city, and Jamestown which is within the...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. He graduated from the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, New York in 1832 and served as an officer and educator.
Although he personally did not favor secession of Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
from the Union, at the outset of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
(1861–1865), he helped form local militia in the Peninsula
Virginia Peninsula
The Virginia Peninsula is a peninsula in southeast Virginia, USA, bounded by the York River, James River, Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay.Hampton Roads is the common name for the metropolitan area that surrounds the body of water of the same name...
region of Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads
Hampton Roads is the name for both a body of water and the Norfolk–Virginia Beach metropolitan area which surrounds it in southeastern Virginia, United States...
. His work designing and constructing the Williamsburg Line of defensive works of the city and Fort Magruder
Fort Magruder
Fort Magruder was an high earthen fortification straddling the road between Yorktown and Williamsburg, Virginia, just outside the latter city during the American Civil War...
at its center was a factor in delaying Federal troops attempting to chase retreating Confederates during the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
, a failed attempt to capture the capital city of Richmond
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
in 1862. His younger brother was Confederate General Richard S. Ewell
Richard S. Ewell
Richard Stoddert Ewell was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E...
, a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
and Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
.
Benjamin Ewell is best-remembered for his long tenure as the sixteenth president of the College of William and Mary
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
in Williamsburg
Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg is an independent city located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 Census, the city had an estimated population of 14,068. It is bordered by James City County and York County, and is an independent city...
before, during and after the American Civil War. Benjamin Ewell's tireless efforts to restore the historic school and its programs during and after Reconstruction became legendary in Williamsburg and at the College and were ultimately successful, with funding from both the U.S. Congress and the Commonwealth of Virginia.
Youth, education, early career
Benjamin Stoddert Ewell was born in the GeorgetownGeorgetown, Washington, D.C.
Georgetown is a neighborhood located in northwest Washington, D.C., situated along the Potomac River. Founded in 1751, the port of Georgetown predated the establishment of the federal district and the City of Washington by 40 years...
section of Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. He was the son of Dr. Thomas Ewell and his wife Elizabeth Stoddert Ewell, and was a grandson of Benjamin Stoddert
Benjamin Stoddert
Benjamin Stoddert was the first United States Secretary of the Navy from May 1, 1798 to March 31, 1801.-Early life:...
, first U.S. Secretary of the Navy.
He was graduated from the United States Military Academy
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy at West Point is a four-year coeducational federal service academy located at West Point, New York. The academy sits on scenic high ground overlooking the Hudson River, north of New York City...
at West Point, New York
West Point, New York
West Point is a federal military reservation established by President of the United States Thomas Jefferson in 1802. It is a census-designated place located in Town of Highlands in Orange County, New York, United States. The population was 7,138 at the 2000 census...
in 1832, and assigned to the Fourth Artillery of the U.S. Army. However, Ewell stayed on as an Assistant Professor of Mathematics at West Point from 1832 to 1835, and Asst. Professor, Natural and Experimental Philosophy there in 1835 and 1836.
In 1836, he left West Point and became an assistant engineer of the Baltimore and Susquehanna Railroad, connecting Baltimore, Maryland with Sunbury, Pennsylvania
Sunbury, Pennsylvania
Sunbury is a city in Northumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city is located on the east bank of the Susquehanna River, just downstream of the confluence of its main and West branches. The population was 9,905 at the 2010 census...
, from 1836 until 1839.
Moving to Virginia in 1839, at Hampden-Sydney College
Hampden-Sydney College
Hampden–Sydney College is a liberal arts college for men located in Hampden Sydney, Virginia, United States. Founded in 1775, Hampden–Sydney is the oldest private charter college in the Southern U.S., the last college founded before the American Revolution, and one of only three four-year,...
, he became Professor of Mathematics, serving from 1839–1842 and of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy from 1842 to 1846. He then moved to Lexington, Virginia
Lexington, Virginia
Lexington is an independent city within the confines of Rockbridge County in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 7,042 in 2010. Lexington is about 55 minutes east of the West Virginia border and is about 50 miles north of Roanoke, Virginia. It was first settled in 1777.It is home to...
where he was Professor of Mathematics and Military Science at Washington College (which later became Washington and Lee University
Washington and Lee University
Washington and Lee University is a private liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States.The classical school from which Washington and Lee descended was established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, about north of its present location. In 1776 it was renamed Liberty Hall in a burst of...
) from 1846 to 1848.
In 1848, he accepted a position as Professor of Mathematics and Acting President of the College of William and Mary
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
in Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg, Virginia
Williamsburg is an independent city located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of Virginia, USA. As of the 2010 Census, the city had an estimated population of 14,068. It is bordered by James City County and York County, and is an independent city...
. He purchased a farm in nearby James City County west of the old colonial capital city along the Richmond-Williamsburg Stage Road (now U.S. Route 60
U.S. Route 60 in Virginia
U.S. Route 60 in Virginia runs west to east through the central part of the state, generally close to and paralleling the Interstate 64 corridor, except for the crossing of the Blue Ridge Mountains, and in the South Hampton Roads area....
) and built a large plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
house there which became known as Ewell Hall. He was later named permanent president, and served in that capacity between 1854 and 1861.
American Civil War
In 1861, he became captain of the college militia. Enlistments in the Confederate States ArmyConfederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
depleted the student body and on May 10, 1861, the faculty voted to close the College for the duration of the conflict. The College Building
Wren Building
The Wren Building is the signature building of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. Along with the Brafferton and President's House, these buildings form the College's Historic Campus....
was used as a Confederate barracks and later as a hospital, first by Confederate, and later Union forces.
Although he had been opposed to secession for Virginia, during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
, he joined the regular forces. The 32nd Virginia Infantry
32nd Virginia Infantry
The 32nd Virginia Volunteer Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia....
was accepted into Confederate service on July 1, 1861 after it had been formed for local defense at Hampton
Hampton, Virginia
Hampton is an independent city that is not part of any county in Southeast Virginia. Its population is 137,436. As one of the seven major cities that compose the Hampton Roads metropolitan area, it is on the southeastern end of the Virginia Peninsula. Located on the Hampton Roads Beltway, it hosts...
by Ewell from several local militia units from Elizabeth City County
Elizabeth City County, Virginia
Elizabeth City County was a county in southeastern Virginia from 1634 to 1952. Originally created in 1634 as Elizabeth River Shire, it was one of eight shires created in the Virginia Colony by order of the King of England. In 1636, it was subdivided, and the portion north of the harbor of Hampton...
, Warwick County
Warwick County, Virginia
Warwick County was a county in Southeast Virginia that was created from Warwick River Shire, one of eight created in the Virginia Colony in 1634. It became the City of Warwick on July 16, 1952...
, York County
York County, Virginia
York County is a county located on the north side of the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. Situated on the York River and many tributaries, the county seat is the unincorporated town of Yorktown...
, and James City County. He was commissioned as a Colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in the Confederate Army. In 1861 and 1862, under General John B. Magruder
John B. Magruder
John Bankhead Magruder was a career military officer who served in the armies of three nations. He was a U.S. Army officer in the Mexican-American War, a Confederate general during the American Civil War, and a postbellum general in the Imperial Mexican Army...
and the Army of the Peninsula, Ewell had the primary responsibility for developing and constructing the Williamsburg Line, a line of defensive fortifications across the Virginia Peninsula
Virginia Peninsula
The Virginia Peninsula is a peninsula in southeast Virginia, USA, bounded by the York River, James River, Hampton Roads and Chesapeake Bay.Hampton Roads is the common name for the metropolitan area that surrounds the body of water of the same name...
east of Williamsburg anchored by College Creek
College Creek
College Creek is located in James City County in the Virginia Peninsula area of the Hampton Roads region of southeastern Virginia in the United States...
a tributary of the James River
James River (Virginia)
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia. It is long, extending to if one includes the Jackson River, the longer of its two source tributaries. The James River drains a catchment comprising . The watershed includes about 4% open water and an area with a population of 2.5 million...
on the south and Queen's Creek
Queen's Creek
Queen's Creek is located in York County in the Virginia Peninsula area of the Hampton Roads region of southeastern Virginia in the United States...
, a tributary of the York River
York River (Virginia)
The York River is a navigable estuary, approximately long, in eastern Virginia in the United States. It ranges in width from at its head to near its mouth on the west side of Chesapeake Bay. Its watershed drains an area including portions of 17 counties of the coastal plain of Virginia north...
on the north. A series of 14 redoubts were built along the line, with the earthen Fort Magruder
Fort Magruder
Fort Magruder was an high earthen fortification straddling the road between Yorktown and Williamsburg, Virginia, just outside the latter city during the American Civil War...
at the junction of the two main loads leading from the lower Peninsula to the east, the Williamsburg-Yorktown Road, and the Lee's Mill Road.
Following the Battle of Williamsburg on May 5, 1862 during the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
, with 3,800 Confederate and Union casualties, Williamsburg and the College of William and Mary were occupied by the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
. The Brafferton building of the College
Brafferton (building)
The Brafferton, built in 1723, is located southeast of the Sir Christopher Wren Building, facing the President's House on the campus of the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.-History of the building:...
was used for a time as quarters for the commanding officer of the Union garrison occupying the town. On September 9, 1862, drunken soldiers of the 5th Pennsylvania Cavalry set fire to the College Building, purportedly in an attempt to prevent Confederate snipers from using it for cover. Much damage was done to the community during the Union occupation, which lasted until September 1865.
After the Battle of Williamsburg, Ewell left the 32nd Virginia Infantry to join the staff of General Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph Eggleston Johnston was a career U.S. Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
. He was later adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...
to his younger brother, General Richard S. Ewell
Richard S. Ewell
Richard Stoddert Ewell was a career United States Army officer and a Confederate general during the American Civil War. He achieved fame as a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson and Robert E...
, who was a senior commander under Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
and Robert E. Lee
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee was a career military officer who is best known for having commanded the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia in the American Civil War....
.
Post-war: Restoration of the College of William and Mary
After the War, the College and its building lay in ruins, and the Virginia economy was destitute. Ewell had opposed Virginia's secession from the Union in 1861. He went to Washington, DC, and unsuccessfully sought reparations from the U.S. Congress, speaking there several times in an attempt to gain appropriations for the College for the damages done during the War. Some payment was finally made by the U.S. Government, but not until 1893.In 1869, Ewell finally re-opened with school with his own personal funds and became president of the College of William and Mary again. He mortgaged his family farm, purchased nearby in 1858, and it was lost to a foreclosure and auction sale. Despite Ewell's efforts, the College was forced to close again for financial reasons in 1881 did not reopen until 1888.
It has become legendary at the College and in the Williamsburg community that, every single morning of that long seven-year period, Benjamin Stoddert Ewell would arise and ring the bell calling students to class, so it could never be said that William and Mary had abandoned its mission to educate the young men of Virginia.
In 1888, William & Mary resumed operations under a substitute charter when the Virginia General Assembly
Virginia General Assembly
The Virginia General Assembly is the legislative body of the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the oldest legislative body in the Western Hemisphere, established on July 30, 1619. The General Assembly is a bicameral body consisting of a lower house, the Virginia House of Delegates, with 100 members,...
passed a bill appropriating $10,000 to support the College as a state teacher-training institution. Once he had ensured that the College he had cherished and protected would survive, the 71-year-old Ewell relinquished the presidency and went into retirement. Lyon Gardiner Tyler
Lyon Gardiner Tyler
Lyon Gardiner Tyler, Sr. was a U.S. educator and historian.-Biography:He was the son of President John Tyler and First Lady Julia Gardiner Tyler, born at Sherwood Forest Plantation. He graduated in 1875 at the University of Virginia...
(son of US President and alumnus John Tyler
John Tyler
John Tyler was the tenth President of the United States . A native of Virginia, Tyler served as a state legislator, governor, U.S. representative, and U.S. senator before being elected Vice President . He was the first to succeed to the office of President following the death of a predecessor...
) became the 17th president of the College following President Ewell's retirement.
Benjamin Ewell remained in Williamsburg as President Emeritus of the College until his death on June 19, 1894. He was interred in the College of William and Mary Cemetery in Williamsburg. Both his personal papers and papers relating to his service as president of the College of William and Mary
College of William and Mary
The College of William & Mary in Virginia is a public research university located in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States...
can be found at the Special Collections Research Center at the College of William and Mary.
Legacy
- The unincorporated community of EwellEwell, VirginiaEwell was an unincorporated town in James City County west of Williamsburg, in the U.S. state of Virginia.Ewell was named for Benjamin Stoddard Ewell who was a U.S. and Confederate army officer, and civil engineer...
in James City CountyJames City County, VirginiaJames City County is a county located on the Virginia Peninsula in the Hampton Roads metropolitan area of the Commonwealth of Virginia, a state of the United States. Its population was 67,009 , and it is often associated with Williamsburg, an independent city, and Jamestown which is within the...
and Ewell Station located along the Peninsula ExtensionPeninsula ExtensionThe Peninsula Extension which created the Peninsula Subdivision of the Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was the new railroad line on the Virginia Peninsula from Richmond to southeastern Warwick County...
of the Chesapeake and Ohio RailwayChesapeake and Ohio RailwayThe Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from several smaller Virginia railroads begun in the 19th century. Led by industrialist Collis P...
(C&O) which was built through the area in 1881 by Collis P. HuntingtonCollis P. HuntingtonCollis Potter Huntington was one of the Big Four of western railroading who built the Central Pacific Railroad as part of the first U.S. transcontinental railroad...
, were named for him.
- Ewell Hall, the historic plantation house he built at the former Ewell Farm eventually became the restored centerpiece of a cemetery, Williamsburg Memorial Park, between Williamsburg and LightfootLightfoot, VirginiaLightfoot is an unincorporated community which straddles the James City–York county border, west of Williamsburg, in the U.S. state of Virginia....
in James City County.
- Ewell Hall at the College of William and Mary is named for him.
- In 1987, the Student Association of the College of William and Mary established an award in his honor.
Quotes
Benjamin Ewell is most-remembered for his tireless efforts to rebuild the College of William and Mary against overwhelming adversity after the American Civil War. Among his memorable words to the U.S. Congress were:- "No institution of learning in the South lost so much by the civil war, by actual destruction of property, and by consequent inability to resume its exercises as soon as peace was declared...The College, if this prayer be granted, will rise with renewed vigor, with improved faculties to repay any benificence (sic) which Congress may bestow, by giving again back to the Union what money can not buy, another host of mighty men to guard constitutions and laws, and to love the nation as devotedly as even its liberties."
Publications
- McCartney, Martha W. (1977) James City County: Keystone of the Commonwealth; James City County, Virginia; Donning and Company; ISBN 0-89865-999-X