American politician
William Ruffin Cox
(March 11, 1831/1832 – December 26, 1919) was an American soldier and politician from the state of
North Carolina
. He was a
brigadier general
in the
Confederate Army
during the
Civil War
, a three-term member of the
United States House of Representatives
from 1881 to 1887, and
Secretary of the Senate
from 1893 to 1900.
Early life and career
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]
William R. Cox was born in
Scotland Neck
,
Halifax County, North Carolina
, to an aristocratic family that lived in North Carolina since the colonial days. His father died when Cox was only four years old. His mother and his siblings subsequently moved to
Nashville, Tennessee
, where he was raised and educated. He graduated from
Tolbert Fanning
's Franklin College in
Franklin, Tennessee
[1]
and studied law at
Cumberland University
.
[2]
After passing his bar exam, Cox formed a partnership with a prominent Nashville attorney, and his practice flourished.
In 1857, Cox ceased his practice, married, moved back to North Carolina, and owned a
plantation
in
Edgecombe County
. Two years later, he moved to
Raleigh
and entered politics, running as a
Democrat
for the state legislature. He was narrowly defeated, losing a hard-fought election by just thirteen votes in his district.
Civil War
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With North Carolina's
secession
and the outbreak of the Civil War in early 1861, Cox raised and outfitted the "Ellis Artillery Company". He soon afterwards raised an
infantry
company and was appointed as the
major
of the 2nd North Carolina Infantry Regiment by Governor
Ellis
. He fought in the
Battle of Antietam
, and was given a promotion to
lieutenant colonel
, as he and the officer previously holding that rank were promoted with the death of the regiment's first colonel,
Charles C. Tew
, in that battle. Not long afterwards, the new colonel resigned and Cox assumed command of the veteran regiment. He was formally commissioned as the colonel of the 2nd North Carolina in March 1863. In May of that year, Cox was wounded three times in the fighting at the
Battle of Chancellorsville
. Despite his painful wounds, he stayed in command until late in the fighting when exhaustion forced him to retire to a field hospital to be treated.
Missing the
Gettysburg Campaign
due to his injuries, Cox did not return to the field until the fall of 1863. While temporarily in command of
Ramseur's
Brigade because the general was on leave to get married, Cox was wounded in the face and right shoulder early in the battle of Kelly's Ford on November 7, 1863. Shipped to the hospital in Richmond, the wound resulted in a 40-day furlough to recuperate.
[3]
He fought with distinction at the battles of
the Wilderness
and
Spotsylvania Court House
, being personally commended by General
Robert E. Lee
for bravery in fighting on May 12. Afterwards he was assigned command of a
brigade
of North Carolina infantry, despite being junior in rank to other colonels in the brigade. He led his troops at the
Battle of Cold Harbor
and then accompanied the
Army of the Valley
under
Maj. Gen.
Jubal Early
in the
Shenandoah Valley
. At the
Battle of Monocacy
, Cox's brigade played a prominent role in the day-long fighting.
Returning to the
Army of Northern Virginia
, Cox served in the trench defenses during the
Siege of Petersburg
, including the counterattack of Confederate forces on the Union's Fort Stedman. Promoted to
brigadier general
, Cox led a
brigade
during the final year of the war, including the
Appomattox Campaign
. He surrendered his men to the Federal army at
Appomattox Court House
in April 1865 and returned home. During the course of the war, he survived a total of eleven wounds.
Postbellum career
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After the war, Cox resumed his legal practice in Raleigh and became President of the Chatham Railroad. He spent six years as the solicitor (prosecuting attorney) for metropolitan Raleigh, and was chairman of the
North Carolina Democratic Party
from 1874 through 1877. In January 1877, he became Circuit
Superior Court
Judge of the Sixth Judicial District. He endured the death of his wife in 1880. He resigned his judgeship when he was elected to the
United States Congress
, serving for six years as a representative from North Carolina. In the House, he championed
civil service reform
, a stance which alienated some prominent Democrats, leading to him losing the party nomination for re-election in 1886.
[4]
He remarried and retired to his plantation in Edgecombe County, but was appointed Secretary of the U.S. Senate to replace former Union army general
Anson G. McCook
in 1893. He served until the turn of the century, when he again retired, this time for good, to his plantation.
At the time of his death in 1919, he was one of the last surviving generals of the Confederate army. He is buried in Raleigh's
Historic Oakwood Cemetery
.
Namesake
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In
World War II
the United States
liberty ships
SS
William R. Cox
(November 1943)
,
William R. Cox
(December 1943)
, and
William Cox
were all named in his honor.
See also
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Notes
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References
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]
- Eicher, John H., and
David J. Eicher
,
Civil War High Commands.
Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001.
ISBN
978-0-8047-3641-1
.
- Evans, Clement A.
,
Confederate Military History.
Volume IV, Atlanta, Georgia: Confederate Publishing Company, 1899.
- Sifakis, Stewart.
Who Was Who in the Civil War.
New York: Facts On File, 1988.
ISBN
978-0-8160-1055-4
.
- Warner, Ezra J.
Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.
Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959.
ISBN
978-0-8071-0823-9
.
Further reading
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External links
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