Birkett Davenport Fry (June 24, 1822 – January 21, 1891) was an adventurer, soldier, lawyer, cotton manufacturer, and a Confederate brigadier general in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

. A survivor of four battle wounds, he commanded one of the lead

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

s during

Pickett's Charge Pickett's Charge was an infantry assault on July 3, 1863, during the Battle of Gettysburg. It was ordered by Confederate General Robert E. Lee as part of his plan to break through Union lines and achieve a decisive victory in the North. T ...

at the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was a three-day battle in the American Civil War, which was fought between the Union and Confederate armies between July 1 and July 3, 1863, in and around Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle, won by the Union, ...

Early life

Fry was born in Kanawha County, Virginia (now

West Virginia West Virginia is a mountainous U.S. state, state in the Southern United States, Southern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.The United States Census Bureau, Census Bureau and the Association of American ...

) on June 24, 1822. Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders''. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. . p. 95 He received his education at

Virginia Military Institute The Virginia Military Institute (VMI) is a public senior military college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1839 as America's first state military college and is the oldest public senior military college in the U.S. In k ...

in Lexington, and attended the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

, but did not graduate with the Class of 1846, having failed mathematics and been subsequently dismissed. He then returned to his native Virginia to study law. He resumed his interest in the military with the outbreak of the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, serving as a

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

voltigeurs The Voltigeurs were French military skirmish units created in 1804 by Emperor of the French, Emperor Napoleon I of France, Napoleon I. They replaced the second company of fusiliers in each existing infantry battalion. The voltigeurs moniker lat ...

(skirmishers). Following the war, Fry moved to

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

as a "Forty-Niner." Fry practiced law in Sacramento City and was elected Justice of the Peace, Fourth Ward in 1852. In October 1856, he accompanied the filibusterer, William Walker, during his expedition to Nicaragua as a

colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

(and later general) in Walker's

mercenary A mercenary is a private individual who joins an armed conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather t ...

army. Fry returned to California, living there until 1859 when he moved to

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

and engaged in cotton manufacturing. Fry had married Martha MiCou, whose family were among the owners of the cotton mills in

Tallassee, Alabama Tallassee (pronounced ) is a city on the Tallapoosa River, located in both Elmore County, Alabama, Elmore and Tallapoosa County, Alabama, Tallapoosa counties in the U.S. state of Alabama. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the popul ...

.Golden, Virginia Noble, ''A History of Tallassee'', Tallassee Mills of Mount Vernon-Woodberry Mills, 1949, LC Control No.: 50034427. p. 27.

Civil War

With Alabama's

secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...

from the Union, Fry enlisted in the Confederate army and was appointed

of the 13th Alabama Infantry. The

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

was transported to

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

and as part of Brig. Gen. James J. Archer's Brigade (which belonged to A. P. Hill's famous Light Division) fought in the

Peninsula Campaign The Peninsula campaign (also known as the Peninsular campaign) of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March to July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The oper ...

. Colonel Fry was wounded in action at the Battle of Seven Pines. He recovered in time to command his regiment during the Second Manassas Campaign and thereafter in Maryland in the fighting at Antietam, where he was again wounded, suffering a shattered arm. Fry rejoined his regiment and led it in Archer's Brigade during the 1863

Battle of Chancellorsville The Battle of Chancellorsville, April 30 – May 6, 1863, was a major battle of the American Civil War (1861–1865), and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville campaign. Confederate General Robert E. Lee's risky decision to divide h ...

, where he suffered a third wound. During the subsequent Gettysburg Campaign, Archer's Brigade (with Fry's 13th Alabama) was among the first Confederate units to deploy into battleline and engage the Union

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

John Buford John Buford Jr. (March 4, 1826 – December 16, 1863) was a United States Army cavalry officer. He fought for the Union Army, Union during the American Civil War, rising to the rank of brigadier general. Buford is best known for his actions in th ...

at the opening of the

on July 1, 1863. The brigade was hit hard and Fry's men suffered considerable casualties after being driven off McPherson's Ridge by the arrival of the Federal

Iron Brigade The Iron Brigade, also known as The Black Hats, Black Hat Brigade, Iron Brigade of the West, and originally King's Wisconsin Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. Although it fought ent ...

. General Archer was captured in the action (the first general to be taken prisoner from Lee's Army of Northern Virginia). Fry as the senior colonel assumed command of the brigade of Tennesseans and Alabamians. The shattered command was in reserve on July 2. For reasons that remain unsatisfactory and unclear, Fry's new command was tasked with a key part of the July 3 attack that became famous as

. He suffered yet another wound that would cost him his leg near the Union lines. Fry was treated in a local

field hospital A field hospital is a temporary hospital or mobile medical unit that takes care of casualties on-site before they can be safely transported to more permanent facilities. This term was initially used in military medicine (such as the Mobile ...

then held as a

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

Fort McHenry Fort McHenry is a historical American Coastal defense and fortification, coastal bastion fort, pentagonal bastion fort on Locust Point, Baltimore, Locust Point, now a neighborhood of Baltimore, Maryland. It is best known for its role in the War ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, There, rumors circulated that Fry had been involved in the August 1862 murder of Union general Robert L. McCook in Alabama. Fry's West Point classmate, John Gibbon, who ironically commanded the troops that had shot Fry at Gettysburg, vouched for his character and the matter was forgotten. Exchanged in the spring of 1864, Fry was briefly assigned to Robert Ransom's Department of Richmond at the beginning of the Bermuda Hundred Campaign, where he was assigned command of Seth Barton's brigade of Virginians, following that general's dismissal after the Battle of Chester Station. Fry was immediately ordered to move this brigade to Richmond to defend the capital against Philip Sheridan's Federal cavalry, which was thwarted at the Battle of Meadow Bridge on May 12. Fry's brigade then returned to Ransom at Drewry's Bluff, who had in the meantime been reinforced by P.G.T. Beauregard's army arriving from North Carolina. Fry's brigade then fought at the Battle of Proctor's Creek. Fry subsequently rejoined Lee's

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...

and was assigned command of Archer's former brigade in

Henry Heth Henry Heth ( not ) (December 16, 1825 – September 27, 1899) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Eastern theater of the American Civil War, Eastern Theater of the American ...

's division of A.P. Hill's Third Corps for the

Battle of Cold Harbor The Battle of Cold Harbor was fought during the American Civil War near Mechanicsville, Virginia, from May 31 to June 12, 1864, with the most significant fighting occurring on June 3. It was one of the final battles of Union Lt. Gen. Ulysses ...

. Fry served during the

Siege of Petersburg The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the siege of Petersburg, it was not a c ...

.Warner, 1959, p. 96. During the final months of the war, Fry was placed in command of a military district in

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

and

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

Postbellum

After surrendering in Augusta, Fry emigrated to

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

at the close of hostilities, lodging in

Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Jubal A. Early Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was an American lawyer, politician and military officer who served in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War, Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, ...

, John C. Breckinridge, Robert A. Toombs, and John B. Magruder, among others.Pérez, Louis A., Jr., ''Cuba and the United States: Ties of Singular Intimacy'', Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2003. . p. 19. He did not return to the United States until 1868, when he returned to

, as a businessman. He resided at No. 1, King Street, in a house built for Confederate Officers in charge of the Tallassee Armory. His home is still standing and after renovations now serves as the law offices of The Segrest Law Firm. Fry later expanded his business career in Florida, and, in 1881, moved to

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

, where he was president of a cotton mill for a decade. Fry died in Richmond on January 21, 1891, and was buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Montgomery, Alabama.

Notes

References

*Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . *Hess, Earl J., ''Pickett's Charge: The Last Attack at Gettysburg'', Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001. . *Pérez, Louis A., Jr., ''Cuba and the United States: Ties of Singular Intimacy'', Athens: University of Georgia Press, 2003. . *Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. . * Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. . *Golden, Virginia Noble, ''A History of Tallassee'', Tallassee Mills of Mount Vernon-Woodberry Mills, 1949, LC Control No.: 50034427. {{DEFAULTSORT:Fry, Birkett D. 1822 births 1891 deaths People from Kanawha County, West Virginia Confederate States Army brigadier generals United States Army officers American military personnel of the Mexican–American War People of Alabama in the American Civil War American Civil War prisoners of war United States Military Academy alumni American filibusters (military)

Early life

Civil War

Postbellum

See also

Notes

References