James Edwards Rains (April 10, 1833 – December 31, 1862) was a lawyer and

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 ...

in the

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

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 appointed and nominated as a brigadier general on November 4, 1862, but his appointment was unconfirmed at the date of his death. He was killed while leading his brigade at the

Battle of Stones River The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the American Ci ...

(Murfreesboro) on December 31, 1862, before the

Confederate States Senate The Confederate States Congress was both the provisional and permanent legislative assembly/legislature of the Confederate States of America that existed from February 1861 to April/June 1865, during the American Civil War. Its actions were, ...

acted on his nomination.

Early life

Rains was born on April 10, 1833, in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...

, Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. . pp. 250–251. the son of

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a Protestant Christianity, Christian Christian tradition, tradition whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's brother ...

minister Rev. John and Lucinda Cartwright Rains. He spent his youth making tack in his father's small

saddlery Tack is equipment or accessories equipped on horses and other equines in the course of their use as domesticated animals. This equipment includes such items as saddles, stirrups, bridles, halters, reins, bits, and harnesses. Equipping a horse is ...

. A benefactor lent him $400 to attend

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

, where he graduated second in the Class of 1854 at Yale Law School.Eicher, John H., and

David J. Eicher David John Eicher (born August 7, 1961) is an American editor, writer, and popularizer of astronomy and space. He has been editor-in-chief of ''Astronomy'' magazine since 2002. He is author, coauthor, or editor of 23 books on science and American ...

, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . p. 608. While at Yale, he was a member of the Linonian Society, and won first prize for his speech, "Is the maxim, 'Our Country Right or Wrong' worthy of our support?" https://archive.org/stream/firstprizespeech00yale#page/n1/mode/2up First Prize Speeches delivered in the Linonian and Brothers' Societies, of Yale College, for the Year 1854, (Pgs. 5-12) He served as headmaster at the Millwood Institute in newly formed

Cheatham County Cheatham County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 41,072. Its county seat is Ashland City. Cheatham County is located in Middle Tennessee, and is part of the Nashville-Davidson� ...

. He was associate editor of the ''Daily Republican Banner,'' serving under a future fellow Confederate general,

Felix Zollicoffer Felix Kirk Zollicoffer (May 19, 1812 – January 19, 1862) was an American newspaperman, slave owner, politician, and soldier. A three-term US Representative from Tennessee, an officer in the United States Army, and a Confederate brigadier g ...

. Rains was an active member of the Whig Party, and was initially opposed to

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 ...

. He was elected the Nashville city attorney in 1858. He married Ida Yeatman later that year, and their only child, a daughter named Laura, was born in 1859. Rains was

attorney general In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

for his judicial district of Davidson, Williamson and Sumner Counties in 1860.

Civil War

When the Civil War began, despite his personal objections to the concept of secession, Rains enlisted in April 1861 in the Confederate army as a

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

in the "Hermitage Guards", a local company.Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. . p. 528. He was quickly elected

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 ...

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

and finally appointed

of the 11th Tennessee Infantry, succeeding George E. Maney. He was commissioned May 10, 1861. The greater part of his military service was in eastern Tennessee. During the winter of 1861–62, he commanded the garrison at the

Cumberland Gap The Cumberland Gap is a Mountain pass, pass in the Eastern United States, eastern United States through the long ridge of the Cumberland Mountains, within the Appalachian Mountains and near the tripoint of Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. At&n ...

and successfully repulsed numerous attempts by Union forces to seize the critical gap. It did not fall until June 1862 when Federals finally outflanked his position. His defense of the gap proved vital, as east Tennessee would have been completely lost to the Confederates much earlier in 1862. But the forces that Maj. Gen.

Edmund Kirby Smith Edmund Kirby Smith (May 16, 1824March 28, 1893) was a General officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate States Army Four-star rank, general, who oversaw the Trans-Mississippi Department (comprising Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, western L ...

had gathered about Knoxville, in addition to those in the neighborhood of Cumberland Gap, made the Union occupation of that post almost a barren victory. In August, Smith advanced into

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, leaving Maj. Gen. Carter L. Stevenson with a strong division to operate against the Union general Morgan, who was holding the gap with about 9,000 men. Col. Rains commanded a

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 ...

in Stevenson's division. Kirby Smith's success in the

Kentucky Campaign The Confederate Heartland Offensive (August 14 – October 10, 1862), also known as the Kentucky Campaign, was an American Civil War campaign conducted by the Confederate States Army in Tennessee and Kentucky where Generals Braxton Bragg and ...

eventually forced the Union forces to abandon Cumberland Gap and retreat through eastern Kentucky to the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

. Rains was rewarded for his contribution at Cumberland Gap by being appointed to and nominated for the rank of brigadier general on November 4, 1862. When Gen.

Braxton Bragg Braxton Bragg (March 22, 1817 – September 27, 1876) was an American army Officer (armed forces), officer during the Second Seminole War and Mexican–American War and Confederate General officers in the Confederate States Army, general in th ...

was concentrating his army at

Murfreesboro, Tennessee Murfreesboro is a city in Rutherford County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Its population was 165,430 according to the 2023 census estimate, up from 108,755 residents certified in 2010 United States census, 2010. Murfreesboro i ...

, that same month, Rains's

of troops from

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

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 Tennessee traveled to Murfreesboro and was assigned to the division of Maj. Gen.

John P. McCown John Porter McCown (August 19, 1815 – January 22, 1879) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War and a career U.S. Army officer who saw fighting in the Mexican–American War and in the Seminole Wars. Early life and career Jo ...

in Hardee's Corps. At the

on December 31, 1862, Rains was shot through the heart and killed instantly while leading his brigade forward in an attack against Union

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

. His last words were "Forward my brave boys, forward!" The Confederate States Senate had not acted to confirm Rains's nomination as brigadier general on the date of his death. Rains was initially buried on the battlefield, but Rains's father, wife, Ida, and 3-year-old daughter, met with Union Maj. Gen.

William Rosecrans William Starke Rosecrans (September 6, 1819March 11, 1898) was an American inventor, coal-oil company executive, diplomat, politician, and U.S. Army officer. He gained fame for his role as a Union general during the American Civil War. He was ...

and formally requested General Rains's body. It was transferred through Federal lines and reburied in the Nashville City Cemetery. In 1888, Rains was reinterred in the Confederate section of Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville.

Honors

After the war, surviving members of the 11th Tennessee from

Dickson County Dickson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 54,315. Its county seat is Charlotte. Dickson County is part of the Nashville-Davidson–Murfreesboro–Franklin, TN Metrop ...

named their camp of the veterans group, the

Association of Confederate Soldiers The Association of Confederate Soldiers (Tennessee Division) was an organization formed by veterans of the American Civil War in 1887, and helped to form the United Confederate Veterans in 1889. Dr. Joseph Jones served as the association's surgeo ...

Tennessee Division, in honor of James E. Rains.

Notes

References

* Eicher, John H., and

, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . * Evans, Clement A., ''Confederate Military History'', 1899. * 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. .
11th Tennessee website

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rains, James Edwards 1833 births 1862 deaths Military personnel from Nashville, Tennessee Lawyers from Nashville, Tennessee Confederate States of America military personnel killed in the American Civil War Confederate States Army brigadier generals People of Tennessee in the American Civil War Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Nashville)