George Archibald McCall (March 16, 1802 – February 25, 1868) was a
United States Army
The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...
officer who became a
brigadier general and
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 ...
during 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 ...
. He was also a naturalist.
Biography
McCall was born in
Philadelphia
Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
, Pennsylvania, to Archibald McCall (1767–1843), a descendant of the
Schuyler family
The Schuyler family (Help:IPA/English, /ˈskaɪlər/; Dutch pronunciation: Help:IPA/Dutch, xœylər was a prominent Dutch family in New York and New Jersey in the 18th and 19th centuries, whose descendants played a critical role in the forma ...
and the Van Cortlandt family through his ancestors
Stephanus Van Cortlandt and Gertrude Schuyler, and Elizabeth Cadwalader.
He was appointed from Pennsylvania to 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 ...
at
West Point
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 ...
, graduating in 1822, 26th in his class of 40. His service took him to Florida, especially the Pensacola area. He enjoyed his time in Pensacola, writing frequently of his life there as a 2nd Lieutenant. He was promoted to 1st Lieutenant after seven years and, in 1846, to the rank of captain. He was assigned to the
1st U.S. Infantry
The 1st Infantry Regiment is a regiment of the United States Army that draws its lineage from a line of post American Revolutionary War units and is decorated with thirty-nine campaign streamers. The 1st Battalion, 1st Infantry is assigned as ...
then the
4th U.S. Infantry before serving as
aide-de-camp to Gen.
Edmund P. Gaines into the beginning of the
Second Seminole War
The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups of people collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Muscogee, Creek and Black Seminoles as well as oth ...
. He distinguished himself during 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, ...
under
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...
, receiving
brevet promotions to
major
Major most commonly refers to:
* Major (rank), a military rank
* Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits
* People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames
* Major and minor in musi ...
for gallantry at
Palo Alto
Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto.
Th ...
and to
lieutenant colonel for
Resaca de la Palma. Appreciative leading Philadelphians presented him a sword upon his return to the city in 1847. On August 30, 1851, at the age of 49, he was married to Elizabeth McMurtrie. The marriage was a happy one, and at least two sons and one daughter were born to the couple. He retired with 31 years service as
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
Inspector General of the Army in 1853.
He was elected as a member of the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS) is an American scholarly organization and learned society founded in 1743 in Philadelphia that promotes knowledge in the humanities and natural sciences through research, professional meetings, publicat ...
in 1854.
At the beginning of the Civil War, McCall helped organize
Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...
volunteers as
major general of the state
militia
A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...
and was commissioned brigadier general of volunteers in May 1861. He helped organize and led the famous
Pennsylvania Reserves Division, which served as the 2nd Division,
I Corps,
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the primary field army of the Union army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the Battle of ...
, and 3rd Division,
V Corps. He was one of the oldest West Point graduates to serve in the war.
McCall served 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 ...
and was wounded and captured at
Frayser's Farm,
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 ...
, in June 1862. While trying to ascertain his position without his staff officers, he instead met the 47th Virginia, part of General
James Longstreet
James Longstreet (January 8, 1821January 2, 1904) was a General officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War and was the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Ho ...
's command. Longstreet had served as a brevet Second Lieutenant under Mccall in the
4th U.S. Infantry. He was imprisoned in
Libby Prison
Libby Prison was a Confederate States of America, Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army, taking in numbers from the nearby Seven Days battl ...
in
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. ...
. Previous illness was aggravated by his confinement in prison, and after his exchange (for
Simon Bolivar Buckner
Simon Bolivar Buckner ( ; April 1, 1823 – January 8, 1914) was an American soldier, Confederate military officer, and politician. He fought in the United States Army in the Mexican–American War. He later fought in the Confederate State ...
) in August, McCall resigned due to poor health in March 1863.
In retirement, McCall farmed in Pennsylvania. He died at his "Belair" estate in
West Chester, Pennsylvania
West Chester is a borough (Pennsylvania), borough and the county seat of Chester County, Pennsylvania, United States. Located in the Delaware Valley, Philadelphia metropolitan area, the borough had a population of 18,671 at the 2020 census. West ...
, on February 25, 1868, and is buried in the
Christ Church Burial Ground
Christ Church Burial Ground in Philadelphia is an important early-American cemetery. It is the final resting place of Benjamin Franklin and his wife, Deborah. Four other signers of the Declaration of Independence are buried here, Benjamin Rush ...
in his native Philadelphia.
McCall School in
Society Hill,
Center City, Philadelphia
Center City includes the central business district and central neighborhoods of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It comprises the area that made up the City of Philadelphia prior to the Act of Consolidation, 1854, which extended the ci ...
is named after him.
McCall is commemorated in the scientific name of a species of lizard, ''
Phrynosoma mcallii''.
[Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael; Grayson, Michael (2011). ''The Eponym Dictionary of Reptiles''. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press. xiii + 296 pp. . ("McCall", p. 172).]
Family tree
See also
*
List of American Civil War generals (Union)
References
*Boatner, Mark M. III, ''The Civil War Dictionary: Revised Edition'', David McKay Company, Inc., 1984.
* Eicher, John H., and
Eicher, David J., ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, .
* McCall, George Archibald, "Letters from the Frontiers", Applewood Books, Bedford Mass, www.awb.com, 1868, 538 p.,
* Warner, Ezra J., ''Generals in Blue: Lives of the Union Commanders'', Louisiana State University Press, 1964, .
External links
* Th
McCall Family Papers including correspondence, accounts, papers and other printed materials belonging to George A. McCall, are available for research use at the
Historical Society of Pennsylvania
The Historical Society of Pennsylvania is a historic research facility headquartered on Locust Street in Center City Philadelphia. It is a repository for millions of historic items ranging across rare books, scholarly monographs, family chron ...
.
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCall, George A.
1802 births
1868 deaths
Cadwalader family
Schuyler family
American people of Dutch descent
Military personnel from West Chester, Pennsylvania
Military personnel from Philadelphia
Union army generals
American military personnel of the Mexican–American War
United States Military Academy alumni
People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War
American Civil War prisoners of war
Pennsylvania Reserves
Farmers from Pennsylvania
Burials at Christ Church, Philadelphia
Members of the American Philosophical Society