William Hervey Lamme Wallace (July 8, 1821 – April 10, 1862), more commonly known as W.H.L. Wallace, was a lawyer and a

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

general in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

, considered by

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...

to be one of the Union's greatest generals.

Early life

Wallace was born in

Urbana, Ohio Urbana is a city in and the county seat of Champaign County, Ohio, United States, west of Columbus, Ohio, Columbus. Urbana was laid out in 1805, and for a time in 1812 was the headquarters of the Northwestern army during the War of 1812. It is t ...

on July 8, 1821, the son of John and Mary Lamme Wallace. In 1840, his family moved to

Mount Morris, Illinois Mount Morris is a village in Mt. Morris Township, Ogle County, Illinois, Mount Morris Township, Ogle County, Illinois, Ogle County, Illinois, United States. The population was 2,998 at the 2010 census, down from 3,013 in 2000. Geography Mount Mor ...

for a better education where Rock River Seminary was located.

Education and career

Although he planned to study law with

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation thro ...

Springfield Springfield may refer to: * Springfield (toponym), the place name in general Places and locations Australia * Springfield, New South Wales (Central Coast) * Springfield, New South Wales (Snowy Monaro Regional Council) * Springfield, Queenslan ...

, he joined

Theophilus Lyle Dickey Theophilus Lyle Dickey (October 12, 1811 – July 22, 1885) was an Illinois jurist and military leader. Pre-war life Born in Paris, Kentucky, Colonel Dickey moved to Macomb, Illinois in 1834 to study law under Cyrus Walker and was admitted to t ...

's practice in

Ottawa, Illinois Ottawa is a city located at the confluence of the navigable Illinois River and Fox River in LaSalle County, Illinois, United States. The Illinois River is a conduit for river barges and connects Lake Michigan at Chicago, to the Mississippi Riv ...

, instead. (Dickey was a friend of Lincoln's and would eventually be a justice of the Illinois Supreme Court.) Wallace became licensed in law in 1846 and that same year he joined the 1st Illinois Infantry as a private. He rose to the rank

second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army until ...

and adjutant and participated in the

Battle of Buena Vista The Battle of Buena Vista (February 22–23, 1847), known as the Battle of La Angostura in Mexico, and sometimes as Battle of Buena Vista/La Angostura, was a battle of the Mexican–American War. It was fought between the US invading forces, l ...

along with a few other minor engagements. After this brief experience in the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

, he became district attorney in 1853.

Civil War service and death

At the start of the Civil War, Wallace volunteered as a private with the 11th Illinois Infantry, which was assembled in

. He was then elected the unit's colonel. He rose up the ranks and commanded a brigade of Brig. Gen.

John A. McClernand John Alexander McClernand (May 30, 1812 – September 20, 1900) was an American lawyer and politician, and a Union Army general in the American Civil War. He was a prominent Democratic politician in Illinois and a member of the United States H ...

's division of Grant's

Army of the Tennessee An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

at the

Battle of Fort Donelson The Battle of Fort Donelson was fought from February 11–16, 1862, in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. The Union capture of the Confederate fort near the Tennessee–Kentucky border opened the Cumberland River, an important ave ...

in 1862. During the battle, much of McClernand's division had been driven back with heavy losses and Wallace's coolness under fire was especially noted. Brig. Gen.

Lew Wallace Lewis Wallace (April 10, 1827February 15, 1905) was an American lawyer, Union general in the American Civil War, governor of the New Mexico Territory, politician, diplomat, and author from Indiana. Among his novels and biographies, Wallace is ...

described the colonel as looking like a "farmer coming from a hard day's plowing". After this first time meeting upon the Fort Donelson battlefield, the two quickly learned each possessed the same surname and had commanded their respective states' 11th regiments, prompting Lew Wallace to muse the coincidence must have caused "great profanity in the army post office". For his service at Fort Donelson, Colonel Wallace was appointed a

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

of volunteers. During the expedition to

Savannah, Tennessee Savannah is a city in and the county seat of Hardin County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 7,213 at the 2020 census. Savannah is located along the east side of the Tennessee River. Savannah hosted the NAIA college football national ...

, Maj. Gen.

Charles Ferguson Smith Charles Ferguson Smith (April 24, 1807 – April 25, 1862) was a career United States Army officer who served in the Mexican–American War and as a Union General in the American Civil War. Early life and career Charles Ferguson Smith was born ...

injured his leg and was forced to turn over command of his

division Division or divider may refer to: Mathematics *Division (mathematics), the inverse of multiplication *Division algorithm, a method for computing the result of mathematical division Military *Division (military), a formation typically consisting ...

to Wallace.Wallace, p. vi> At the

Battle of Shiloh The Battle of Shiloh (also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing) was fought on April 6–7, 1862, in the American Civil War. The fighting took place in southwestern Tennessee, which was part of the war's Western Theater. The battlefield i ...

, Wallace was a new division commander, yet he managed to withstand six hours of assaults by the Confederates, directly next to the famous Hornet's Nest, or Sunken Road. When his division was finally surrounded, he ordered a withdrawal and many escaped, but he was wounded and only later found barely alive on the battlefield by his troops. They carried him to his wife, who coincidentally had arrived for a surprise visit to her husband on the very morning of the battle. She helped tend to him on the way back to General Grant's headquarters in the

Cherry Mansion Cherry Mansion is a historic antebellum age, antebellum house in Savannah, Tennessee, located on a bluff overlooking the east bank of the Tennessee River. It has historical significance for its role as General Ulysses S. Grant's headquarters at ...

. He died three days later in his wife's arms; his last words were "We meet in heaven." He is buried in

LaSalle County, Illinois LaSalle County is located within the Fox Valley and Illinois River Valley regions of the U.S. state of Illinois. As of the 2020 Census, it had a population of 109,658. Its county seat and largest city is Ottawa. LaSalle County is part of the ...

, in Ottawa. He was the brother of future Brevet Brigadier General Martin R. M. Wallace.

Personal life

In 1851 he married Dickey's daughter, Martha Ann.

Tribute

Wallace County, Kansas Wallace County (standard abbreviation: WA) is a county located in the U.S. state of Kansas. Its county seat is Sharon Springs. As of the 2020 census, the county population was 1,512, making it the second-least populous county in Kansas ( Gr ...

, was named in his honor in 1868.

Notes

References

* Cooling, Benjamin Franklin, ''The Campaign for Fort Donelson'', U.S. National Park Service and Eastern National, 1999, . * Daniel, Larry. ''Shiloh: The Battle that Changed the Civil War'', Simon and Schuster, 1997, . * Eicher, John H., and

David J. Eicher David John Eicher (born August 7, 1961) is an American editor, writer, and popularizer of astronomy and space. He has been editor-in-chief of ''Astronomy'' magazine since 2002. He is author, coauthor, or editor of 23 books on science and American ...

, ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . * Wallace, Isabel, ''Life and Letters of General William Hervey Lamme Wallace'', Lakeside Press, 1909. * Wallace, Isabel, ''Life and Letters of General William Hervey Lamme Wallace'', Southern Illinois University Press, 2000, .

External links

Biography of W.H.L. Wallace

Ottawa Visitors Center

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wallace, W.H.L. 1821 births 1862 deaths People from Urbana, Ohio American military personnel of the Mexican–American War Union Army generals People of Ohio in the American Civil War People of Illinois in the American Civil War Union military personnel killed in the American Civil War People from Ogle County, Illinois People from Ottawa, Illinois Wallace County, Kansas United States politicians killed during the Civil War