Laid To Rest

Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson was laid to rest on May 15th 1863.


While reconnoitering during the battle of Chancellorsville on May 2nd 1863 Confederate General Thomas Stonewall Jackson was accidentally shot. He was shot by “friendly fire” coming from the 18th North Carolina Infantry. Hit in the arm; Jackson was taken to a field hospital on the battlefield, and his left arm was amputated. He was moved to the home of Thomas and Mary Chandler about thirty miles from the battlefield on May 4th 1863. Although Jackson’s wound was healing well, pneumonia set in and he died on May 10th 1863. His funeral was held in Lexington Virginia where his home had been while he was a Professor at Virginia Military Institute on May 15th 1863. Cadets of VMI carried his body into his old classroom where he lay state while a battery fired salutes. He was buried in the Stonewall Jackson Memorial Cemetery. Jackson’s wife Mary Anna Morrison Jackson never remarried.

The Stonewall Fell

The Battle of Chancellorsville saw the last charge ever made by General Thomas Stonewall Jackson. It was there on May 2nd 1863 that he was accidentally shot during a nighttime reconnoiter by one of his own soldiers. The shooter was an unknown member of the 18th North Carolina Infantry. Major John D Barry gave the order to fire, and many of his soldiers fired at the same time.

Jackson would have to have his left arm amputated under chloroform. On becoming conscious following the surgery Jackson told Captain James Smith "I have always thought it wrong to administer chloroform in cases where there is a probability of immediate death. It was the most delightful physical sensation I ever experienced. I seem to remember the most delightful music that ever greeted my ears, but I should dislike above all things to enter eternity in such a condition." It was felt at the time that he would recover. Stonewall died from pneumonia eight days latter in a field hospital near Guiney Station VA.

If you would like to read more try these
Stonewall Jackson: Popular Questions

All Things for Good: The Steadfast Fidelity of Stonewall Jackson

Stonewall Jackson's Book of Maxims