Roger Weightman Hanson (August 27, 1827 – January 4, 1863) was a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. The commander of the famed " Orphan Brigade," he was mortally wounded at the Battle of Murfreesboro. He was nicknamed "Old Flintlock."

Early life

Hanson was born in Clark County, Kentucky. His father, Samuel Hanson, was a

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immigrant and well-known attorney and judge who had moved to Kentucky from Virginia. His mother, Matilda Calloway, was the daughter of a general. Hanson's brother, Charles S. Hanson, later fought for the Union Army; serving as Lieutenant Colonel of the

20th Regiment Kentucky Volunteer Infantry The 20th Kentucky Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 20th Kentucky Infantry Regiment was organized at Lexington, Kentucky, Camp Dick Robinson, and Smithfield, Kentu ...

in the 22nd Brigade under the command of Major General Thomas L. Crittenden. At age 18, Hanson was elected as lieutenant in a volunteer company of the 4th Kentucky Regiment during the Mexican–American War. He was cited for bravery at the Battle of Cerro Gordo. He returned home and studied law in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a city in Kentucky, United States that is the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, Fayette County. By population, it is the List of cities in Kentucky, second-largest city in Kentucky and List of United States cities by popul ...

, where he engaged in a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people, with matched weapons, in accordance with agreed-upon Code duello, rules. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the r ...

with a classmate. He was shot in the leg just above the knee, making him lame for the rest of his life. When he recovered, Hanson traveled to California, losing his horse on the way and being forced to walk over 200 miles to San Francisco on his injured leg. He returned to Kentucky within a year. In 1853, he married Virginia Peters of Woodford County, Kentucky. The following year, Hanson moved to Lexington and established a profitable law practice. Entering politics, Hanson was elected to the Kentucky

state legislature A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United Sta ...

as a representative from his home district. He was nominated in 1857 to run for the United States House of Representatives from Kentucky's 8th District, but was defeated by James B. Clay. In 1860, he was one of the electors in the Electoral College from Kentucky.

Civil War

With the outbreak of the Civil War, Kentucky declared itself neutral and stayed in the Union. Hanson was named as colonel of a regiment of Confederate troops he had raised in

but which enlisted in Tennessee because of Kentucky's neutrality. When President Abraham Lincoln sent Federal troops into Lexington and raised the Union flag over the city, Hanson and his Confederate

2nd Kentucky Infantry The 2nd Kentucky Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It was part of the First Kentucky Brigade. Service The 2nd Kentucky Infantry was organized in August 1861, at ...

Regiment were "orphaned", since they could not return home unless Lexington fell to the Confederates. The regiment was taken prisoner with the Confederate surrender of Fort Donelson to Union Brigadier General Ulysses S. Grant. After being exchanged for Michael Corcoran 7 months later, Hanson was presented with a new horse by admiring friends. His regiment reenlisted for the war, and Hanson was promoted to brigadier general in December 1862, commanding his old regiment as well as the

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6th 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

and 19th Kentucky Infantry regiments, plus the 41st Alabama Regiment and Cobb's Battery, in Major General John C. Breckinridge's division, Lieutenant General William J. Hardee's corps. In his first battle as a general, Hanson was mortally wounded on January 2, 1863, during a charge at Murfreesboro (Stones River) when he was struck above the knee by the fuse of a spent artillery shell. His brother-in-law vainly tried to stop the bleeding. He died two days later at the age of 35, with his last words as "I die in a just cause, having done my duty." General Breckinridge remarked in his official report, "Endeared to his friends by his private virtues and to his command by the vigilance with which he guarded its interest and honor, he was, by the universal testimony of his military associates, one of the finest officers that adorned the service of the Confederate States." Hanson was buried at Lexington Cemetery in

.Owen and Owen, ''Generals at Rest'', p. 81.

Legacy

The General Roger W. Hanson Camp #1844 ( Winchester, Kentucky) of the Sons of Confederate Veterans was named in his memory.

Notes

References

* Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . * Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War''. New York: Facts On File, 1988. . * Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. .

Further read

External links

Hanson family history, derived from Louisville newspapers
* Official Records of the American Civil War * {{DEFAULTSORT:Hanson, Roger 1827 births 1863 deaths American Civil War prisoners of war American military personnel of the Mexican–American War American people of Swedish descent Confederate States Army generals Confederate States of America military personnel killed in the American Civil War Kentucky lawyers Members of the Kentucky House of Representatives Orphan Brigade People from Clark County, Kentucky People of Kentucky in the American Civil War 19th-century American politicians 19th-century American lawyers