Waller T. Patton

Waller T. Patton
William D. Washington · Public domain · source
Name	Waller T. Patton
Birth date	1835
Death date	July 14, 1863
Birth place	Fredericksburg, Virginia, United States
Death place	Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, United States
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Serviceyears	1861–1863
Rank	Lieutenant Colonel
Unit	7th Virginia Infantry

Waller T. Patton was an American planter, lawyer, and Confederate officer who served as lieutenant colonel of the 7th Virginia Infantry and was mortally wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg. A member of a prominent Virginia family, he was associated with figures from the Antebellum South, the American Civil War, and Virginia legal circles, connecting to many leaders, regiments, campaigns, and institutions tied to mid‑19th century United States history. His death at Gettysburg placed him among the officers remembered alongside generals and politicians of the Confederate and Union sides.

Early life and education

Born in Fredericksburg, Virginia, Patton came from a family linked to the Second Party System, Virginia House of Delegates, and regional planter society that included contemporaries such as Robert E. Lee, Stonewall Jackson, Thomas J. "Stonewall" Jackson allies and neighbors in counties like Spotsylvania County, Virginia and Fredericksburg, Virginia. He attended local academies and pursued legal studies in an era when aspirants often studied under practicing attorneys connected to courts like the Supreme Court of Virginia and institutions such as the University of Virginia and Washington College (Pennsylvania). His formative years overlapped politically with figures including James K. Polk, John C. Calhoun, Henry Clay, and regional leaders in Virginia politics like Rutherford B. Hayes's predecessors and contemporaries in the antebellum legislature.

Military career

Patton's military involvement reflected the mobilization of Southern militia and volunteer regiments that paralleled formations like the Army of Northern Virginia, the Confederate States Army, and Virginia line regiments such as the 7th Virginia Infantry. He trained and served with officers and enlisted men who would serve under commanders including James Longstreet, A. P. Hill, Richard S. Ewell, and brigade commanders operating in campaigns that matched operations by Union counterparts like George G. Meade, Winfield Scott Hancock, George B. McClellan, and Ulysses S. Grant. Patton's role as a field officer placed him in the command network that engaged with logistical and tactical issues faced by units at engagements comparable to the Seven Days Battles, the Second Battle of Bull Run, and later the campaign culminating at Gettysburg.

Civil War service and Gettysburg

During the Civil War Patton rose to lieutenant colonel of the 7th Virginia Infantry, participating in campaigns with divisions led by A. P. Hill and corps under James Longstreet and Richard S. Ewell. His regiment fought in operations connected to major battles and movements involving figures such as Robert E. Lee, George G. Meade, J.E.B. Stuart, Daniel Harvey Hill, and Union corps commanders like John F. Reynolds and Oliver O. Howard. At Gettysburg, his unit was part of assaults coordinated with brigades and divisions that included soldiers from regiments associated with names like Pickett's Charge participants, brigadiers whose commanders included Lewis Armistead, James L. Kemper, and other Confederate leaders engaged on July 1–3, 1863, against Union lines held by troops under Winfield Scott Hancock and Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.

Wounding, capture, and death

Patton was wounded during fighting on July 3 at Gettysburg in actions contemporaneous with charges and counterattacks involving regiments and brigades that included veterans of earlier fights such as the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of Chancellorsville. After his wounding he was captured and became part of the large number of officers and enlisted men taken or hospitalized alongside those treated at field hospitals, railroad evacuations, and prisoner exchanges administered amid policies debated by leaders like Jefferson Davis, Abraham Lincoln, Salmon P. Chase, and administrators of the Confederate States War Department and Union medical services. He died of his wounds shortly after the battle, joining lists of Confederate casualties remembered alongside officers such as Lewis Armistead and soldiers from units that included the Stonewall Brigade and other prominent Virginia regiments.

Personal life and family

Patton belonged to a Virginia family connected by blood and marriage to regional social networks that included members of the Patton family (Virginia), planters, lawyers, and public servants who interacted with families like the Lee family, the Jackson family, and other gentry such as the Custis and Randolph lines. His relatives engaged with institutions such as the University of Virginia, local churches, and county courts, and some family members served in political or military roles comparable to contemporaries in the Virginia General Assembly and Confederate service, aligning socially with figures like Jubal Early, George Pickett, and regional lawyers in cities like Richmond, Virginia and Fredericksburg, Virginia.

Legacy and memorials

Patton's death contributed to commemorations that emerged after the Civil War, including monuments, cemetery inscriptions, and regimental histories produced by veterans and historians connected to organizations such as the United Confederate Veterans, the Sons of Confederate Veterans, and preservation efforts at sites like the Gettysburg National Military Park and Virginia battlefields like Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park. His memory appears in period publications, rosters, and genealogies alongside names of military and political leaders such as Robert E. Lee, George G. Meade, James Longstreet, and preservationists such as David Wills and civic figures involved in battlefield commemoration. Contemporary historical work situates him within studies of Confederate officer casualty rates, regimental actions, and mid‑19th century Virginia society, connecting his story to broader narratives featuring politicians, generals, and institutions of the Civil War era.

Category:1835 births Category:1863 deaths Category:Confederate States Army officers Category:People of Virginia in the American Civil War