Samuel Zenas Ammen (1843–1929) was an American

Confederate A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a political union of sovereign states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

veteran and journalist. He is known as the 'Practical Founder' of the

Kappa Alpha Order Kappa Alpha Order (), commonly known as Kappa Alpha, KA, or simply The Order, is an American social fraternity founded in 1865 at Washington and Lee University in Lexington, Virginia. Along with Alpha Tau Omega and Sigma Nu, the order constitu ...

. He was the literary editor of ''

The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local, regional, national, and international news. Founded in 1837, the newspaper was owned by Tribune Publi ...

'' and author of three books.

Early life

Samuel Zenas Ammen was born on October 23, 1843, in

Fincastle, Virginia Fincastle is a town in Botetourt County, Virginia, United States. The population was 755 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Botetourt County. It is part of the Roanoke metropolitan area. History The town of Fincastle was originally ...

.Kappa Alpha Order: Samuel Zenas Ammen
/ref>J. William Austin, II and Rebecca R. H. Austin, ''Related Families of Botetourt County, Virginia'',Genealogical Publishing Com, 2009, p. 4

/ref> Benjamin Ammen was his father and Naomi (Cross) Ammen was his mother. 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 ...

of 1861–1865, Ammen served 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 ...

. He enlisted in Company D ("Finchester Rifles") of the

11th Virginia Infantry The 11th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia. The 11th Virginia was organized at ...

on August 31, 1861, for one year of service and was discharged May 15, 1863, or May 18, 1862. He then served with Captain William Andrew McCue's Fincastle Cavalry Company, Burks' Regiment Virginia Local Defense to do cavalry service with the

Confederate Home Guard The Home Guard of the several states of the Confederacy during the American Civil War included all able-bodied white males between the ages of 18 and 50 who were exempt from Confederate service, excepting only the governor and other officials. ...

in Botetourt County. Following the war, Ammen attended

Washington College Washington College is a private liberal arts college in Chestertown, Maryland. Maryland granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" name ...

Lexington, Virginia Lexington is an Independent city (United States)#Virginia, independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 7,320. It is the county seat of Rockbridge County, Virg ...

, where Confederate General

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

was President.Clarence L. Mohr, Charles Reagan Wilson, ''The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture'', Volume 17: Education, Chapel Hill, North Carolina: University of North Carolina Press Books, 201

/ref> While there, he founded the

. He designed its ritual, accolade and prayer. He served as its second Knight Commander after John Francis Rogers for six terms. During his tenure, he helped establish twenty-two active chapters and four alumni chapters.

Career

Ammen became the literary editor of ''

'' from 1881 to 1911. He was also the author of three books.

Death

Ammen died on January 5, 1929, in

Daytona Beach, Florida Daytona Beach is a coastal Resort town, resort city in Volusia County, Florida, United States. Located on the East Coast of the United States, its population was 72,647 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is part of the Deltona� ...

. He was buried at the Oak Grove Cemetery in Lexington, Virginia.

Publications

* * *''History of Maryland Commands in the Confederate Service''.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ammen, Samuel Zenas 1843 births 1929 deaths Editors of Maryland newspapers People from Fincastle, Virginia People from Daytona Beach, Florida Washington and Lee University alumni Confederate States Army soldiers American male journalists People of Virginia in the American Civil War The Baltimore Sun people Kappa Alpha Order College fraternity founders Journalists from Virginia

Early life

Career

Death

Publications

Further reading

References