Robert Houston Anderson
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Robert Houston Anderson (October 1, 1835 – February 8, 1888) was a cavalry and artillery officer in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War.
Born in Savannah, Georgia, Anderson was stationed in upstate New York, and later as an infantry lieutenant at Fort Walla Walla in the Washington Territory. In early 1861, shortly before the official succession of his home state, Anderson accepted a commission in the Confederate Army as a lieutenant in the artillery.
In September 1861, he was promoted to major. He was later appointed assistant adjutant general to Maj. Gen. W.H.T. Walker of the Georgia State militia, later seeing action at the Battle of Fort McAllister before his transfer to the frontlines as Colonel of the 5th Georgia Cavalry.
Commissioned a brigadier general on July 26, 1864, Anderson was attached to the Army of Tennessee as a cavalryman during the Atlanta Campaign. After the death of commanding officer Brig. Gen. John H. Kelly near Franklin, Tennessee, Anderson assumed temporary command of the division before resuming his former position as brigade commander following the fall of Atlanta. He would later lead his brigade against advancing Union forces during Sherman's March to the Sea and the Carolinas Campaign before the Confederacy's surrender in April 1865.
Following the war, Anderson served as the police chief of Savannah.
[edit] References
- Linedecker, Clifford L., ed. Civil War, A-Z: The Complete Handbook of America's Bloodiest Conflict. New York: Ballentine Books, 2002. ISBN 0-89141-878-4
[edit] External links
- Robert Houston Anderson at Find A Grave Retrieved on 2008-02-13
- Bio of Robert H. Anderson
