James Ewell Brown "JEB" Stuart - Grave of a Famous Person on Waymarking.com

Jeb Stuart was born at Laurel Hill in Patrick County, Virginia on February 6, 1833. He graduated from West Point in 1854 and served in the Mounted Rifles until he joined the Confederacy in 1861. As a cavalry officer, he gained fame and respect as a subordinate of Gen. Robert E. Lee. In 1862, Stuart took command of Lee's mounted units. In May of 1863, Stuart served as a temporary but extremely competent replacement for Stonewall Jackson, who had been wounded. During the Battle of Gettysburg while taking advantage of ambiguous orders, Stuart embarked on a controversial raid on the Union Army, causing him to arrive after the battle was nearly over. On May 11, 1864, at Yellow Tavern near Richmond, Virginia, Stuart was wounded himself. He died May 12, 1864 and is buried in Richmond’s Hollywood Cemetery.

Description: Perhaps the most accomplished cavalry leader of the American Civil War, James Ewell Brown Stuart was a Virginia graduate of West Point of the class of 1854. Known as Jeb by friends and acquaintances, he was already a veteran of Indian fighting on the great plains of the mid-western United States by the onset of the Civil War. He accompanied R. E. Lee in 1859 on his mission to end John Brown’s seizure of the Harper’s Ferry Arsenal. There he went forward and read the note calling on Brown and his followers to surrender, and signaled for the assault which recaptured the building when those terms of surrender were refused. Stuart resigned his captain’s commission in the U.S. Army in May of 1861 and traveled to Richmond where he was made a lieutenant colonel of Virginia infantry. He was appointed captain of Confederate States cavalry on May 24th of that same year. He saw early service in the Shenandoah Valley and led his cavalry regiment at 1st Bull Run, where he participated in the pursuit of the defeated Federal forces. He directed the army’s outposts in the area following the battle until given command of the newly formed cavalry brigade. Stuart came to prominence throughout the South following his famous ride around McClellan’s Army of the Potomac during the Peninsula campaign. Although the raid caused little real material damage, it severely embarrassed the Federal commander and confirmed to Lee, now in command of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, that McClellan’s right flank was poorly guarded. Stuart’s report, which was subsequently published in the Richmond newspapers, made him a hero to the southern cause. He continued his good service throughout the balance of the Seven Days campaign, confirming McClellan’s “change of base” to Harrison’s landing. He was in command of the cavalry after Chancellorsville, and he participated in the largest cavalry battle ever to take place in North America, at Brandy Station in June of 1863. The battle was a draw. The quality of Federal cavalry had improved to the point that the Confederates could not always automatically be assured of victory when facing it in battle. During the Gettysburg Campaign, Stuart led another raid around the rear of the Federal army. Much controversy surrounds this ride, and the interpretation that he made of Lee’s orders to him regarding his proposed role in the campaign. Regardless of whether he felt himself justified in cutting himself loose from the Army of Northern Virginia, his presence with the army, directing and interpreting the scouting effort was greatly missed. Lee’s army moved blindly into Pennsylvania, and was drawn into an unplanned general engagement, against the initial wishes of its commander, at Gettysburg. Stuart arrived with his command at the end of the second day and was unable to effect the outcome of the battle, which ended as a major Confederate defeat. Continuing in command of the Confederate cavalry with the Army of Northern Virginia following the Gettysburg debacle, he was present for much of the fighting which comprised the early stages of Grant’s overland campaign the following year. He was mortally wounded while trying to fend off a thrust toward Richmond by Union cavalry under Phil Sheridan on May 11, 1864 at Yellow Tavern, Virginia. He died the next day in Richmond, at age thirty-seven. R. E. Lee himself probably paid Stuart the finest compliment a cavalryman can receive when he said of him, “He never brought me a piece of false information.” Upon hearing of his death he was moved to say, “I can scarcely think of him without weeping.” General J.E.B. Stuart is buried in historic Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond, Virginia. Source: http://www.swcivilwar.com/stuart.html Date of birth: 02/06/1833 Date of death: 05/12/1864 Area of notoriety: Historical Figure Marker Type: Monument Setting: Indoor Visiting Hours/Restrictions: Gates open daily 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. (until 6:00 p.m. April-October) Fee required?: No Web site: [Web Link]

Visit Instructions:
To post a visit log for waymarks in this category, you must have personally visited the waymark location. When logging your visit, please provide a note describing your visit experience, along with any additional information about the waymark or the surrounding area that you think others may find interesting.

We especially encourage you to include any pictures that you took during your visit to the waymark. However, only respectful photographs are allowed. Logs which include photographs representing any form of disrespectful behavior (including those showing personal items placed on or near the grave location) will be subject to deletion.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   02/28/2015 ehatch visited it 11/25/2011 79scouts visited it 12/15/2006 skree visited it 08/16/2006 climbstuff visited it

View all visits/logs