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Henry Gray (politician)
Encyclopedia
Henry Gray, Jr. was an American
lawyer and politician who served in the state legislatures of Mississippi
and then Louisiana
. During the American Civil War
, he was a general in the Confederate Army and subsequently served in the Confederate States Congress
.
. He was a son of Henry Gray (a captain in the United States Army
during the War of 1812
) and Elvira Flanagan Gray. His grandfather Fredrick Gray had been a captain in the American Revolutionary War
.
He graduated from South Carolina College
in 1834, and was admitted to the bar in 1838. He then settled in Winston County, Mississippi
, where he married Eleanora Ann Howard in 1841, and was the local district attorney
from 1839 until 1845. In 1846 Gray was elected to the Mississippi Legislature
and served one term. In 1850 he ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Congress as a Whig
.
In December 1850, he bought 332 acres (1.3 km²) of land in Bienville Parish, Louisiana
, in the community of Brushy Valley. In the campaign of 1856 he was an elector for the Democratic
ticket and canvassed the state with his friend Judah P. Benjamin
. He was elected to the State Legislature
in 1860 and later that year lost a close race for senator to Benjamin.
in a Mississippi infantry
regiment
in January 1861, until his friend Jefferson Davis
called him to go back to Louisiana to raise a regiment. In April and early May 1862, Gray organized the 28th Louisiana Infantry at Camp Taylor and was elected as its colonel
. He and his men were mustered into the Confederate Army on May 2.
On April 14, 1863 Gray was wounded in the fighting near Bayou Teche
, Louisiana. Department commander Edmund Kirby Smith
ordered his promotion to brigadier general on April 8, however the Confederate Congress disallowed it. Gray was given brigade
command in Polignac
's Division
in April.
Gray saw action around Vicksburg and in various battles within Louisiana while leading his brigade. He assumed the command of a division
during the Battle of Mansfield
on April 28, 1864, following the mortal wounding of Alfred Mouton
.
Gray was elected to represent his northwestern Louisiana congressional district to the Second Confederate Congress, a position he had not sought nor had any knowledge of until notified of his election. He subsequently left the army in camp at Camden, Arkansas
, and traveled to Richmond, Virginia
. He was promoted to brigadier general on March 17, 1865, backdated to the Mansfield fight, and Gray rejoined his brigade in Polignac's Division until the end of the war. There is no record of his being paroled from the U.S. Government.
. He spent most of the rest of his life trying to re-establish his finances. His only son had died in 1864, and his wife died a few years later. At the age of 76, Gray died at his daughter's house near Coushatta, Louisiana
, and was buried nearby in Springville Cemetery.
The Brig. Gen. Henry Gray Chapter #218 of the Military Order of the Stars and Bars
in Shreveport, Louisiana
, is named in his honor.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
lawyer and politician who served in the state legislatures of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
and then Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
. 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 was a general in the Confederate Army and subsequently served in the Confederate States Congress
Congress of the Confederate States
The Congress of the Confederate States was the legislative body of the Confederate States of America, existing during the American Civil War between 1861 and 1865...
.
Early life and career
Gray was born to a military family in the Laurens District of South CarolinaSouth Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
. He was a son of Henry Gray (a captain in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
during the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
) and Elvira Flanagan Gray. His grandfather Fredrick Gray had been a captain in the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
.
He graduated from South Carolina College
University of South Carolina
The University of South Carolina is a public, co-educational research university located in Columbia, South Carolina, United States, with 7 surrounding satellite campuses. Its historic campus covers over in downtown Columbia not far from the South Carolina State House...
in 1834, and was admitted to the bar in 1838. He then settled in Winston County, Mississippi
Winston County, Mississippi
-Demographics:At the 2000 census, there were 20,160 people, 7,578 households and 5,471 families residing in the county. The population density was 33 per square mile . There were 8,472 housing units at an average density of 14 per square mile...
, where he married Eleanora Ann Howard in 1841, and was the local district attorney
District attorney
In many jurisdictions in the United States, a District Attorney is an elected or appointed government official who represents the government in the prosecution of criminal offenses. The district attorney is the highest officeholder in the jurisdiction's legal department and supervises a staff of...
from 1839 until 1845. In 1846 Gray was elected to the Mississippi Legislature
Mississippi Legislature
The Mississippi Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The bicameral Legislature is composed of the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, with 122 members, and the upper Mississippi Senate, with 52 members. Both Representatives and Senators serve four-year...
and served one term. In 1850 he ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Congress as a Whig
Whig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
.
In December 1850, he bought 332 acres (1.3 km²) of land in Bienville Parish, Louisiana
Bienville Parish, Louisiana
Bienville Parish is a parish located in the northwestern portion of the U.S. state of Louisiana. The parish seat is Arcadia and as of the 2000 census, the population is 15,752....
, in the community of Brushy Valley. In the campaign of 1856 he was an elector for the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
ticket and canvassed the state with his friend Judah P. Benjamin
Judah P. Benjamin
Judah Philip Benjamin was an American politician and lawyer. Born a British subject in the West Indies, he moved to the United States with his parents and became a citizen. He later became a citizen of the Confederate States of America. After the collapse of the Confederacy, Benjamin moved to...
. He was elected to the State Legislature
Louisiana State Legislature
The Louisiana State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is bicameral body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 representatives, and the upper house, the Louisiana Senate with 39 senators...
in 1860 and later that year lost a close race for senator to Benjamin.
Civil War
At the beginning of the Civil War, Gray enlisted as a privatePrivate (rank)
A Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
in a Mississippi infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
in January 1861, until his friend Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Davis
Jefferson Finis Davis , also known as Jeff Davis, was an American statesman and leader of the Confederacy during the American Civil War, serving as President for its entire history. He was born in Kentucky to Samuel and Jane Davis...
called him to go back to Louisiana to raise a regiment. In April and early May 1862, Gray organized the 28th Louisiana Infantry at Camp Taylor and was elected as its colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
. He and his men were mustered into the Confederate Army on May 2.
On April 14, 1863 Gray was wounded in the fighting near Bayou Teche
Bayou Teche
The Bayou Teche is a waterway of great cultural significance in south central Louisiana in the United States. Bayou Teche was the Mississippi River's main course when it developed a delta about 2,800 to 4,500 years ago...
, Louisiana. Department commander Edmund Kirby Smith
Edmund Kirby Smith
Edmund Kirby Smith was a career United States Army officer and educator. He served as a general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War, notable for his command of the Trans-Mississippi Department of the Confederacy after the fall of Vicksburg.After the conflict ended Smith...
ordered his promotion to brigadier general on April 8, however the Confederate Congress disallowed it. Gray was given brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
command in Polignac
Camille Armand Jules Marie, Prince de Polignac
Camille Armand Jules Marie, Prince de Polignac was a French nobleman, scholar and soldier who joined the Confederate States Army at the outbreak of the American Civil War and became major general before the end of the war...
's Division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
in April.
Gray saw action around Vicksburg and in various battles within Louisiana while leading his brigade. He assumed the command of a division
Division (military)
A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of between 10,000 and 20,000 soldiers. In most armies, a division is composed of several regiments or brigades, and in turn several divisions typically make up a corps...
during the Battle of Mansfield
Battle of Mansfield
The Battle of Mansfield, also known as the Battle of Sabine Crossroads, occurred on April 8, 1864, in De Soto Parish, Louisiana. Confederate forces commanded by Richard Taylor attacked a Union army commanded by Nathaniel Banks a few miles outside the town of Mansfield, near Sabine Crossroads...
on April 28, 1864, following the mortal wounding of Alfred Mouton
Alfred Mouton
Jean-Jacques-Alfred-Alexandre "Alfred" Mouton was a Confederate general in the American Civil War. He was born in Opelousas, Louisiana, and spent most of his life in Lafayette. Beloved by those under his command, Mouton was a strict drillmaster and disciplinarian who simultaneously freely...
.
Gray was elected to represent his northwestern Louisiana congressional district to the Second Confederate Congress, a position he had not sought nor had any knowledge of until notified of his election. He subsequently left the army in camp at Camden, Arkansas
Camden, Arkansas
Camden is a city in and the county seat of Ouachita County in the southern part of the U.S. state of Arkansas. Long an area of American Indians villages, the French also made a permanent settlement here because of its advantageous location above the Ouachita River. According to 2007 Census...
, and traveled to Richmond, Virginia
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...
. He was promoted to brigadier general on March 17, 1865, backdated to the Mansfield fight, and Gray rejoined his brigade in Polignac's Division until the end of the war. There is no record of his being paroled from the U.S. Government.
Postbellum activities
After the war he was a member of Louisiana State SenateLouisiana State Senate
The Louisiana State Senate is the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. All Senators serve four year terms and are assigned multiple committees to work on. The Republicans control the State Senate following a Special Election Victory in District 26 by Jonathan W. Perry...
. He spent most of the rest of his life trying to re-establish his finances. His only son had died in 1864, and his wife died a few years later. At the age of 76, Gray died at his daughter's house near Coushatta, Louisiana
Coushatta, Louisiana
Coushatta is a town in and the parish seat of rural Red River Parish, Louisiana, United States. It is situated on the east bank of the Red River. The community is approximately forty-five miles south of Shreveport on U.S. Highway 71...
, and was buried nearby in Springville Cemetery.
The Brig. Gen. Henry Gray Chapter #218 of the Military Order of the Stars and Bars
Military Order of the Stars and Bars
The Military Order of the Stars and Bars is a fraternal organization for documented descendants of men who served as commissioned officers in the armed forces of the Confederate States of America or who are descended from members of the Confederate Congress, or any elected or appointed member of...
in Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport, Louisiana
Shreveport is the third largest city in Louisiana. It is the principal city of the fourth largest metropolitan area in the state of Louisiana and is the 109th-largest city in the United States....
, is named in his honor.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals