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 General Walter Washington Williams Posted by:  Deafdillos
N 31° 01.417 W 096° 25.415
14R E 745938 N 3435070
A burial of the last surviving soldier of the Civil War
Waymark Code: WM41BA
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 06/22/2008
Views: 47
Marker Number: 10957
Marker Text:
(Nov. 14, 1842-Dec. 19, 1959)
Reputed to have been last surviving soldier of the Civil War (1861-1865). Born in Ittawamba County, Miss., Williams during the war was a forage master for the celebrated Hood's Texas Brigade. Soon after the war he moved to Texas and farmed near here. He was twice married and had a large family, with the descendants numbering over 200 when he died. He had lived very quietly until in extreme old age he gained fame as one of a very few remaining veterans. After the nation lost all other men who had fought in the Civil War, he was given honorary rank of General by President Dwight D. Eisenhower. When Gen. Williams died in Houston at home of a daughter, President Eisenhower proclaimed a period of national mourning. Williams rests here in Mount Pleasant Cemetery among families who migrated to Texas and braved the dangers of the frontier for years before he came. This is one of the oldest public burial grounds in Robertson County, situated within boundaries of colony planted north of El Camo Real by the pioneer Sterling C. Robertson, from Tennessee. The Robertson colony was founded in the 1820s and was a major civilizing influence in East Texas.
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