William Hoomes Davis, class of 1859

He enlisted in the 12th VA Infantry, Co. E on April 19, 1861 in Petersburg as a private with his friend Leroy Edwards. Davis died of a fever in a field hospital at Chancellorsville, VA on May 7, 1863 shortly after being promoted from corporal to sergeant on April 1, 1863.

Edwin S. Hardy, class of 1859

Hardy, a school teacher, enlisted in the 20th VA Co C on May 20, 1861. He was discharged for disability (a “hepatic disorder,” or liver disease) on August 24, 1861. 

Thomas J. Overby, class of 1859 (A.B.) and 1866 (A.M.)

Overby, also spelled Overbey, was a school teacher in Granville County, NC at the outbreak of the war when he enlisted in the 23rd NC Infantry, Co I on June 17, 1861. Overby was discharged for disability August 27, 1863 due to heart and nervous disorders. He was awarded an AM degree by R-MC in 1866.

Luther Wright, class of 1859

A teacher in Caroline County at the beginning of the war, Wright enlisted in 47th Va Infantry, Co. G on August 2, 1861 as a 1st lieutenant. He was wounded on June 27, 1862 at Gaines’ Mill, VA; promoted to Captain on August 30, 1862; and wounded again on December 13, 1862 at Fredericksburg, VA. Wright resigned on April 25, 1863, citing family illness and the fact that the company had dwindled in size, and his resignation was accepted.

After the war, he was a farmer in 1870 in Caroline County, VA. In 1880 and 1900, he was a working for the railroad. By 1910, he is listed in the census as having his "own income." He died November 24, 1921 and is buried in Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, VA. 

William Gabriel Starr, class of 1859; R-MC President 1899-1902

Starr enlisted as chaplain in the 47th Alabama Infantry on March 18, 1863. He was promoted to Captain, and then discharged for disability in 1864 at Petersburg. He was a Methodist minister and educator, serving as President of Marengo Military Institute in Alabama at the beginning of the war.  He was awarded an AM degree by R-MC in 1862, and became the 9th President of Randolph-Macon College, serving from 1899-1902. He is buried in Richmond's Hollywood Cemetery.

Tigmal J. Morton, student 1858-1859

Born in 1843 in Boydton, Virginia, Tigmal J. Morton attended Randolph-Macon from 1858 to 1859 at the age of 15. He later attended the Virginia Military Institute until he left to join the Confederate army. On May 3, 1862, when he was 19, Morton enlisted as the Captain of Company B, 56th Virginia Infantry and was described at the time of his enlistment as six feet, two inches tall, with a fair complexion, dark eyes and light hair. He saw action during Lee’s Seven Days campaign during which he was wounded at the Battle of Glendale or Frazier’s Farm on June 30, 1862. On January 9, 1863 he was dropped from command “because of prolonged absence,” presumably due to his wounding. On August 15, 1863 he was commissioned into the Field and Staff of the 53rd Tennessee Infantry with the rank of Colonel. He was again wounded on October 15, 1863 and a year later, on October 14, 1864 he was declared “permanently disabled.” After this, he married Suzanne Davis of Alabama, with whom he would have two children. On May 4, 1865 he surrendered to Federal forces at Citronelle, Alabama and on June 15, took the oath of allegiance to the government of the United States at Mobile. Morton died of tuberculosis six years later in 1871 at the age of 28.

Contributed by Matthew Guillen '14

Christopher Thrower, class of 1859

"Kit" Thrower enlisted in the 1st AR Infantry, Co C (the "Camden Knights") on May 8, 1861 and served until the end of the war.  His profession is listed as lawyer. After the war he was a lawyer, judge, and newspaper editor, and served in the Arkansas legislature. Thrower died in Camden, AR in 1882.

Henry Brown Cowles Jr., class of 1859

He enlisted in the 12th VA Infantry, Co. E on July 9, 1861 as a private, and died August 20, 1863 of typhoid fever at Virginia Hospital in Petersburg, VA. His father was a prominent Methodist minister and an agent for Randolph-Macon College.  Henry Jr. was a school teacher in Petersburg at the time he enlisted.

John W. Heartsfield, class of 1859

He enlisted in the 1st NC Infantry, Co I on July 16, 1861 as 1st sergeant. Heartsfield was killed at Ellerson’s Mill, VA on June 26, 1862. The Battle of Ellerson's Mill is also known as the Battle of Beaver Dam Creek or the Battle of Mechanicsville, and is part of the Seven Days Battles in the Peninsula Campaign.

Frank X. Miller, class of 1859

Miller enlisted in the NC 1st Light Artillery, Co. B on June 21, 1861. He was promoted to Sergeant Major on December 27, 1862 and to Ordnance Sergeant on May 17, 1863. He was taken POW at Fort Macon, NC on April 26, 1862, and exchanged on August 15, 1862. from September, 1863 through August, 1864, he was detailed as engineer in Goldsboro, N.C. After the war, Miller moved to Florida.