Thomas Chamberlain
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| Thomas Davee Chamberlain | |
|---|---|
| April 29, 1841 – August 12, 1896 (aged 55) | |
 Thomas D. Chamberlain |
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| Nickname | Tom |
| Place of birth | Brewer, Maine |
| Place of death | Bangor, Maine |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1861 – 1866 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Unit | 20th Maine Infantry, Army of the Potomac. |
| Other work | Miscellaneous |
Thomas Davee Chamberlain (April 29, 1841 – August 12, 1896) was an officer in the 20th Maine Infantry during the American Civil War, the brother of Union general Joshua L. Chamberlain, the commanding officer of the 20th Maine Infantry.
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[edit] Early life
Thomas D. Chamberlain was born Brewer, Maine, he was the youngest of five children. Young Tom grew up on the family farm in Brewer, Maine, with his four older siblings: Joshua Lawrence (born in 1828), Horace Beriah (1834), Sarah Brastow (1836) and John Calhoun (1838). Their upbringing seems to have been strict and religious but also loving. Thomas was a mischievous and likable boy - his brother called him a "little rogue" - and, as the baby of the family, he was his mother's favorite. Thomas, alone of the boys, did not go to college. Whether this was due to lack of intelligence, application or inclination, it is difficult to say, but many events in his later life tend to suggest that he was prone to lose interest when things were not working out as he hoped, and also that he was easily led by ill-chosen friends. For whatever reason it may have been, by his mid-teens Thomas was working as a clerk in a grocery store in Bangor. He seemed to have settled down well enough in the job, and was soon a trusted and valued employee; when the Civil War broke out it became clear that his employer, Frank Sabine, had come to rely almost too much on him.
[edit] Civil War service
Chamberlain's great-grandfathers were soldiers in the American Revolutionary War and his grandfather had served during the War of 1812. His father also had served during the abortive Aroostook War of 1839. His brother Joshua was also in the army.
In 1862, at the height of the Civil War, Chamberlain joined the Union Army. His motives were mixed—some personal, some patriotic, and some religious.
He was soon placed in the newly formed 20th Maine Infantry along with his brother Joshua, who was made lieutenant colonel of the regiment.
The 20th Maine regiment marched to the Battle of Antietam, but did they did not participate in the fighting. They fought at the Battle of Fredericksburg, suffering small numbers of casualties in the assaults on Marye's Heights, but they were forced to spend a miserable night on the freezing battlefield among the many wounded from other regiments. They missed the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863 due to a bad outbreak of smallpox in their ranks, which kept them on guard duty in the rear. In June 1863, Joshua was promoted to colonel of the regiment, upon the promotion of its first colonel, Adelbert Ames, to brigade command. Thomas Chamberlain was involved in most of the other battles in which the 20th Maine fought, most notably the Battle of Gettysburg.
[edit] The Battle of Gettysburg
During the defense of Little Round Top on July 2, 1863, at Gettysburg, the 20th Maine came under heavy attack from the Confederate 15th Alabama regiment, part of the division led by Maj. Gen. John Bell Hood, and after about 3-4 hours of fighting the 20th Maine completely ran out of ammunition. Chamberlain's brother Joshua recognized the dire circumstances and ordered his left wing to respond to the rebels by charging downhill with fixed bayonets, thus ending the Confederate attack on the hill. The 20th Maine and the 83rd Pennsylvania together captured over 400 soldiers from the attacking Confederate forces. Joshua was slightly wounded in the foot by a spent bullet. Thomas was unhurt, except for "several scratches". As a result of their valiant defense of the hill, the Chamberlain brothers, Joshua Chamberlain especially, and the 20th Maine gained a great reputation and they were the subject of many publications and stories.
[edit] After Gettysburg
After Gettysburg, the major battles in which Thomas Chamberlain and the 20th Maine were involved were the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House and Siege of Petersburg.
[edit] The Siege of Petersburg
At the Siege of Petersburg, the 20th Maine was in reserve, while Joshua (against his better judgment) led his Pennsylvania Bucktail brigade in a charge on a section of the Confederate defenses known as Rives's Salient. Turning to direct his troops, Joshua was struck by a minié ball, which entered just below his right hip, nicked his bladder and urethra, and stopped at his left hip. Such a devastating wound should have been fatal, and when he arrived at the field hospital, three miles behind the lines, his life was despaired of. But Thomas Chamberlain, back with his regiment, eventually got hold of the dreadful news. Quickly gathering up the surgeon of the 20th Maine, Dr. Abner O. Shaw, Thomas searched for some time before finding the hospital where his brother laid. As Thomas Chamberlain waited, Dr. Shaw, with Dr. Morris W. Townsend of the 44th New York, worked all night to try to save Joshua Chamberlain and more than once came to the point of giving up. Thirty-five years later, Joshua Chamberlain wrote that, after the surgeons had finished: "Tom stood over me like a brother, and such a one as he was." Remarkably, Col. Chamberlain survived to enjoy his "on the spot" promotion to brigadier general, although he never returned to full fitness. Many Joshua Chamberlain biographers say that "his (Joshua's) life was saved through the activity of his brother, Thomas."
[edit] After Petersburg
After Petersburg, the major battles which Thomas Chamberlain and the 20th Maine were involved in the were the Battle of Five Forks and the Battle of Appomattox Courthouse
At the end of the war, the 20th Maine marched from Appomattox, Virginia, on May 2, reaching Washington, D.C., on May 12, where it was then finally mustered out of service on July 16, 1865. He was Joshua Chamberlain's younger brother.
[edit] Postbellum
After the war, despite his distinguished military record, Chamberlain drifted from one job to another, often neglecting his wife, Delia Farley Jarvis Chamberlain, whom he married in 1870, in his restlessness; and he suffered probably from alcoholism as well as other health problems, including severe lung disease and heart disease.
[edit] Death
It was only a matter of time before Chamberlain's constitution broke down completely, and the inevitable happened in the summer of 1896. Thomas D. Chamberlain died at age 55 due to his poor health in Bangor, Maine. After the funeral service on August 14, his body was taken from Bangor to be buried, the following day, in the cemetery at Castine, Maine.
[edit] In Popular Media
Chamberlain was a character in Michael Shaara's Pulitzer Prize-winning historical novel, The Killer Angels. He was also portrayed in the movie based on that novel, Gettysburg, in which Chamberlain was played by actor C. Thomas Howell, who repeated that role in the Gods and Generals prequel, based of the novel, Gods and Generals, written by Jeff Shaara, Michael Shaara's son.
[edit] Further reading
- Michael, Shaara, The Killer Angels, Random House, 1974, ISBN 1586635247.
