USA > Alabama > Memorial record of Alabama. A concise account of the state's political, military, professional and industrial progress, together with the personal memoirs of many of its people. Volume I > Part 18
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On the 16th of April, Gen Lagrange, who had been sent to reinforce Croxton, reached the vicinity of West Point, with 3,000 men. A defense called Fort Tyler, manned by about 104 youths and convalescents. had been erected on the edge of Chambers county, and charged the enemy. It was in command of Gen. Tyler, who was resolved to defend it to the bitter end. The whole force of the enemy was directed against the puny fort- ress. Its gallant commander was killed, his successor, Capt. Gonzalez, was mortally wounded, and then the command fell on Capt. Parhan, who dis- played the same invincible courage; but at last the overpowering number of the enemy enabled them to scale the wall and throng into the defense, which was then captured and the Confedrate flag was torn from its last stronghold in the south. This was the last conflict of the war, with the exception of the attack on Columbus, Ga., of the same date. On the 24th Croxton dispatched the Eighth Iowa cavalry to Jackonsville, but the remnant of Hill's forces having retired from that town, the Federal cav- alry retunred to the brigade, and on the next day moved out on the road leading to Newnan. Ga. On the 26th, while they were crossing the Chattahoochee, a white flag appeared on the opposite bank, where the
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news awaited them of the fall of Richmond, the surrender of Lee and the assassination of Lincoln.
Among the noble young heroes who laid down their lives for the cause of the south during the great conflict, there are none whose names shine with more luster on the rolls of fame or are cherished with more tender affection by their fellow-countrymen than those of John Pelham and John Herbert Kelly.
The "gallant Pelham" was a native of Calhoun county, where he was born September 7, 1838. He entered West Point. and was within a few days of graduating, as he would have received his commission on May 6, when, late in April, 1861, he crossed the line at Louisville, and re- pairing at once to Montgomery he reported for duty. He was commis- sioned by the Confederate government as first lieutenant of artillery. and was ordered to take charge of the ordnance at Lynchburg, Va. A few days later he was assigned as drill master to Albertus' battery at Win- chester. He handled these guns with such skill and daring as to attract the attention of his superiors. He was entrusted by Gen. E. B. Stuart with the organization of a battery of six pieces of horse artillery, which he raised in the states of Alabama, Virginia and Maryland. Forty of these were from Talladega county, under Lieut. William McGregor, a gallant officer. At Williamsburg he was conspicuous for his valor and skill. At first Cold Harbor, he engaged three heavy batteries with a Napoleon, fighting all day with such persevering valor as to merit the warm com- mendation of Stonewall Jackson. At the second battle of Manassas he again received Jackson's thanks for his heroic conduct. At Sharpsburg, at Shepherdstown, from Aldie to Markham's, everywhere could be heard the thunder of his guns; but at Fredericksburg he reached the climax of his fame, and by his splendid daring elicited from Gen. Lee the remark: "It is glorious to see such courage in one so young." In Gen. Lee's official report of the battle, "the gallant Pelham" was the only one men- tioned below the rank of major-general. His commission as lieutenant- colonel was issued soon after and was waiting confirmation by the senate when his death occurred at Kelly's ford, March 17, 1863, while leading a wavering regiment, as he said. "forward to victory and glory." In person, Maj. Pelham was above medium height, of light but sinewy build. He was a good scholar and was considered the best athlete at West Point, and was a splendid horseman. He was modest and unassuming, of a religious turn of mind. courteous in manner and refined in language; and, though gentle as a girl in the social circle, he was as brave as a lion in the field; nothing ever seemed to disturb the equanimity of his calm and reckless courage. He was quite young, and he appeared much more youthful than he really was, so that strangers meeting him gazed with astonishment upon the boy whose fame had spread thorughout the length and breadth of the country as the hero of so many battles. Gen. Stuart announced his death as an "irreparable loss" to the division, and con-
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cluded as follows: "His many virtues, his noble nature and purity of character, are enshrined as a sacred legacy in the hearts of all who knew him. His record has been bright and spotless; his career brilliant and successful. He fell-the noblest of sacrifices-on the altar of his country, to whose glorious service he had dedicated his life from the beginning of the war."
No officer of the Confederate army deserves higher commendation than Gen. John Herbert Kelly. He was the son of John Harrison Kelly, a lawyer of Pickens county, Ala. His mother was Miss Herbert. At seventeen he was appointed to West Point by Hon. W. W. Boyce of South Carolina, and Hon. Philip T. Herbert of California. Although two years younger, he was a classmate and friend of Pelham. He, too, was within a short time of graduating when his state seceded and he at once repaired to Montgomery and offered his services. Appointed second lieutenant, he was sent to Fort Morgan. Shortly after. he went with Gen. Hardie into Missouri, was commissioned major, and placed in command of an Arkansas battalion. He fought with great bravery at Shiloh and was made colonel of the Eighth Arkansas regiment. He fought gallantly at Perry- ville and was severely wounded at Murfreesboro. He was furloughed for three weeks, but such was his devotion to duty, that he returned at the end of two weeks. He commanded a brigade at Chickamauga, and won great commendations on account of his skill and valor. Gen. Cle- burne, in recommending his promotion, said: "I know no better officer of his grade in the army." Gens. Preston and Lidell also praised him very highly. After the successful termination of the Sequatchee valley raid in October, 1863, Gen. Wheeler was authorized to select four officers for promotion to the rank of brigadier-general. The gallant Kelly was then without a command, and Gen. Wheeler designated him as one in every way worthy of promotion. He was killed while leading a charge at Franklin, Tenn., August 20, 1864. His untimely death was deeply re- gretted by his comrades in arms, who loved and admired him for his many noble qualities, and by the whole south, to whose service he had de- voted the best years of his young manhood. Another brave young officer, a native of Lawrence county, Ala., but serving during the war from his adopted state, Texas, was John Gregg, who entered the army as lieu- tenant-colonel of the Seventh Texas. He was captured at Fort Donelson, and when exchanged was assigned to a brigade. He was soon promoted to the rank of brigadier-general, and was conspicuous for his courage and ability as a leader. He was killed while leading Field's division in the desperate assault on Fort Harrison, near Richmond, October 7, 1864. Professor Tutwiler, the distinguished teacher of whom Alabama has cause to be proud, said of him: "Of the many noble young men who perished in our cause, none gave greater promise of distinction and use- fulness to his country than John Gregg."
A very distinguished Alabamian, and one who won for himself an
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unique record during the civil war, was Admiral Raphael Semmes of Mo- bile. He was born in Maryland, educated in the United States Naval academy, reading law with his brother during the time of a furlough. He became a resident of Alabama in 1842, and during the war with Mex- ico was flag lieutenant of Commodore Conner's flag-ship. He was placed in command of the Somers, employed in blockading Vera Cruz. He resigned his commission as commander in the navy when Alabama seceded, and was at once commissoned with the same rank by the Con- federate government, and sent to New York to purchase stores of war. For six months he cruised with a small vessel called the Sumter, cap- turing during that time seventeen merchant vessels, but being blockaded at Gibraltar and unable to get coal, he returned on an English vessel. He was then put in command of the Alabama and began his second famous cruise. He sailed around the Azores and between New York and the West Indies, fought and sunk the Federal steamer Hatteras, taking her crew to Jamaica, where they were paroled, and is said to have taken fifty merchant vessels and spread the terror of his name to the Pacific ocean. Having dropped anchor in the port of Cherbourg, France. he was blockaded by the Kearsage, which he challenged. The action, June 19, 1864, lasted one hour and ended by the sinking of the Alabama, just after she had struck her colors. Forty of the crew, including Semmes, were rescued by an English gentleman and carried to England, where a numn- ber of British officers presented him with a sword to replace the one he had thrown into the sea. Returning to America, he reached Richmond, January 16, 1865, and was assigned to the command of the James river fleet, consisting of three iron-clads and five wooden steamers, with which he guarded the water approach to Richmond. On the evacuation of that city, he blew up his vessels and organized his marines into a brigade, which proceeded to join the Confederate forces at Greensboro. Return- ing quietly to Mobile after Johnston surrendered, he was seized by order of the secretary of the Federal navy, taken to Washington and impris- oned for four months, when he was released by the president's procla- mation.
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CHAPTER III. THE PROGRESS OF EDUCATION. BY WILLIS G. CLARK, MOBILE.
COLONIAL AND TERRITORIAL PERIODS - UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA - AD- MINISTRATION OF DR. BASIL MANLY - DR. GARLAND - RECONSTRUC- TION PERIOD - REHABILITATION OF THE UNIVERSITY - AGRICULTURAL AND MECHANICAL COLLEGE - MEDICAL COLLEGE OF ALABAMA - IN- STITUTES FOR DEAF, DUMB AND BLIND - HOSPITAL FOR THE INSANE - PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM - NORMAL SCHOOLS -CITY AND TOWN SCHOOLS - PRIVATE AND DENOMINATIONAL SCHOOLS.
HE school-house and church antedated the organization of the state of Alabama, and even the era of the precedent territorial government. The first record of a school, in the section of country known as Alabama, dates back to the year 1810. This school was established by a native of New England, named John Pierce, at the boat yard on the Tensas river, and was celebrated for the character and subsequent renown of many of the pupils. Among the well known family names, patronizing the school, we find McGillivray, Tait, Weatherford, Durant, Linders, and Mims. The sec- ond school of record was Washington academy, established in 1811 at St. Stephens on the Tombigbee river. The next year Green academy was incorporated at Huntsville. This school had a useful existence for fifty years, and until the buildings were burned by the Federal troops during the war between the states. The first appropriation from the public treasury of the territory in aid of schools was made in 1814, when the sum of $1,000 was divided between the Washington and Green acade- mies. In February, 1818, another academy was established at St. Stephens, which was then a place of considerable importance, but both academies disappeared in the decadence of the town and have only left the brief record of their existence. The enabling act for the admission of Ala- bama as a state into the union provided that the sixteenth section of every township, or, where these lands had been legally taken up, other lands substituted therefor should be set apart for the use of schools, and that thirty-six sections, or an entire township, should be reserved for a sem- inary of learning. These, added to the thirty-six sections before set apart in the organization of the territory, made seventy-two sections to
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be donated to the maintenance of a state institution of learning. Such were the munificent gifts wherewith to provide a system of public edu- cation which graced, the entrance of Alabama into the sisterhood of states.
With these prefatory remarks and commencing with the organization of the state it is proposed to sketch the several institutions drawing sup- port. in whole or in part, from the common treasury, including the public Schools; next the denominational, schools, and lastly, noted schools estab- lished and maintained by private teachers for personal benefit. It should be stated at the outset that, in the preparation of this chapter, much use has been made of the monograph entitled, "History of Education in Ala- bama," prepared by the writer of these pages for the national bureau of education, and published in 1889 by authority of the department of the interior. In considering state institutions for the promotion of knowl- edge, the first in natural order, in age and standing, is the
UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA.
The first general assembly of the state of Alabama convened in Octo- ber, 1819. As early as December 17th, 1819, an act was passed authorizing commissioners to lease the lands set apart for the "seminary of learning" until January, 1821. In December, 1820, the university of Alabama was chartered, and in December, 1821, an act was passed providing that the governor ex-officio, together with twelve trustees, two from each judicial circuit, to be elected by a joint ballot of the two houses of the general assembly, should constitute a board of trustees for the government of the proposed university. In December, 1822, the legislature provided for the sale of lands at auction, and appropriated fifty thousand dollars from the receipts of such sales for the erection of necessary buildings and. directing the investment of the surplus for the benefit of the university. The lands for the most part, had been judiciously selected and embraced some of the most fertile tracts in the state. By the autumn of 1823, a considerable quantity of the lands had been sold, some of them bringing the large price $50 to $60 per acre. By an act of the general assembly approved December 20. 1823, the bank of the state of Alabama was estab- lished and the proceeds of the sale of the university lands were by law made part of the capital of this bank. At first the amount of university land funds to be absorbed by the bank was limited to $100,000, but in January, 1827, this restriction was removed and the president of the board of trustees was required to invest in the stock of the bank the money then in the state treasury arising from "rents, interest and sale of university lands." The fiat of the legislature thus improperly, as it must be conceded, disposing of a sacred trust, proved in its results dis- astrous both to the university and to the state.
The first meeting of the trustees was held at Tuscaloosa on the 6th of April, 1822. There were present Governor Israel Pickens, ex-officio presi-
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dent, George W. Owen, Henry Hitchcock. George Phillips, Jack Shackle- ford, Hume R. Field. Nicholas Davis, John McKinly, Thomas Fearn, Henry Miner, Clements C. Billingslea and Robert W. Carter. On the 29th December, '1827, the general assembly selected Tuscaloosa as the general site for the university, and authorized the trusteest o erect the necessary buildings within fifteen miles of the town. On the 22d of March, 1828, the trustees met and selected a level plateau, a part of the original grant of congress, about a mile and a quarter from the court-house in Tusca- loosa, as a site for the buildings and grounds of the university.
The erection of the buildings was begun soon afterward and by 1831 they were ready for use. The Rev. Alva Woods, D. D., then president of the Transylvania university of Lexington, Ky., was publicly inaugu- rated president on Tuesday, April 12, 1831, and on April 17th the univer- sity was formally opened with the following faculty: Rev. Alva Woods, D. D., president and professor of mental and moral philosophy; Gurdon Saltonstall, M. A., professor of mathematics and natural philosophy ; John F. Wallis, M. A., professor of chemistry and natural history; Henry Tutwiler, M. A., professor of ancient languages; Calvin B. Jones, B. A., tutor. Fifty-two students matriculated the first day, and the number increased during the term to ninety-four. Many of these earliest students became distinguished citizens of Alabama and of other states. Two of that class, Hon. William R. Smith of Washington city, and Dr. John B. Read of Tuscaloosa, are at this writing still among the living.
The buildings at the opening were the rotunda-a circular edifice sev- enty feet in diameter and seventy feet high, surmounted by a dome and surrounded by a lofty peristyle of the Ionic order of architecture; Wash- ington college on the west side of the campus; Jefferson college on the east side; the lyceum and steward's hall and four commodious residences for the professors. The administration of Dr. Woods extended over a period of seven years, during which time several acts of insubordination occurred-not chargeable to any neglect of duty by the president or fac- ulty but, in large degree, to the environment and the unformed civiliza- tion of the state which had scarcely as yet been redeemed from the wilderness. Indian tribes yet held possession of a large portion of her territory, the people were still pioneers and their sons were naturally restive under the restrictions of college government. The culmination of these disorders was reached in 1837, when the entire senior class and many other students were suspended or dismissed. The president and all the members of the faculty, save one, Professor Brumby, resigned, and on December 6th, 1837, Dr. Woods delivered his valedictory address. The average yearly attendance of students during his administration was 109 5-7, the total number of graduates, 138. The financial status of the university on November 1, 1836, was shown by the roport of Commis- sioner Porter, who made the nominal assets $495,051.21, of which $144, - 239.18 were considered unavailable and likely to be a total loss. The
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amount realized from the sale of university lands from 1823 to that date was $368,051.18, of which $281,966.33 had been invested in six per cent. state stock.
Dr. Woods was born in Shoreham, Vt., on the 13th of August, 1794, was fitted for college at the celebrated Phillips academy, was graduated with honor from Harvard university in 1819, and ordained a minister of the gospel, October 28. 1831. After some time spent in London and at the universities of Oxford, Cambridge, Edinburg and Glasgow he was, September 1, 1824, elected professor of mathematics and natural philos- ophy in Brown's university, which position he held until 1828, when he became president of Transylvania university, where he continued until 1831, when he became president of the university of Alabama. After retiring from this position he resided in Providence, R. I., until his death. September 6, 1887. at the advanced age of ninety-three years. Dr. Woods was noted for his piety and learning. Some of his baccalaureate addresses were models of thought and pure English. One of the halls of the university, built since the war, was named "Alva Woods hall" in honor of this excellent and now lamented scholar and christian gentleman.
ADMINISTRATION OF DR. BASIL MANLY.
The faculty of the university was reorganized in December, 1837, by the election of Rev. Basil Manly, D. D., president and professor of mental and moral philosophy; Richard T. Brumby, M. A., professor of chem- istry, mineralogy and geology; Samuel M. Stafford, M. A., professor of ancient languages; Frederick A. P. Barnard. M. A., professor of mathe- matics and natural philosophy; Rev. Horace Pratt, M. A., tutor of mathe- matics; Jacob Pearson, B. A., tutor of ancient languages. Following the insubordination and severe discipline of 1837, the attendance in 1838 was only thirty-eight in all, but these young men were of high character, of elevated feelings and tractable dispositions, forming a good substratum on which to rebuild the university. Another reason for the small number of students was the incompleteness of the preparatory schools in the state, many applicants having been rejected because they were unpre- pared to enter the classes to which they aspired. In the fall of 1839, a uniform dress was adopted in which all the students were required to appear by January, 1840. In 1841, a handsome edifice of brick, with trimmings of sandstone, was erected for the occupancy of the president and has ever since been called the "President's Mansion." In 1842, pro- vision was made for the admission, without payment of tuition or con- tingent charges, of one student from each county in the state. At this time. the library contained 4,000 volumes and the departments of natural philosophy, astronomy, chemistry and engineering were well supplied with valuable apparatus. The university possessed, beside, large and well selected cabinets in mineralogy, geology and conchology. The astro-
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nomical observatory was completed in the summer of 1844, and was well equipped.
The building was erected and the instruments purchased and mounted under the supervision of the accomplished head of the department, Dr. F. A. P. Barnard. It may be remarked here, that this building with its contents was the only one of the public edifices of the university which escaped destruction in the Compton raid in 1865, to which more particular reference will be made hereafter.
The year 1847 was memorable in university annals by the accession of two gentlemen to the faculty, Professors Michael Toumey and Landon C. Garland, both of whom proved valuable acquisitions and subsequently became distinguished in science and letters. On the 21st of February, 1848, an act was passed by the general assembly to liquidate and settle accounts, which had become badly muddled, between the university and the state. This act arbitrarily fixed the indebtedness of the state to the university at $250.000, on which an annual interest of six per cent. per annum was pledged. The trustees protested against this one sided set- tlement, but subsequently yielded to superior power and acquiesced in the terms proposed. At this date a treasurer, Mr. Henry Snow of Tuscaloosa, was elected-the university fund having theretofore been kept in the state treasury, the head of that bureau acting as treasurer ex-officio of the uni- versity. On the 8th of July, 1850, the Alabama historical society was organized under the auspices of the authorities of the university. Its regu- lar meetings are held in connection with the commencement exercises and its treasures of books and manuscripts are deposited for safe-keeping in the library of the university.
In the winter of 1851, the legislature of Alabama-the capital having been removed from Tuscaloosa to Montgomery-made a gift to the uni- versity of the old state house, together with its furniture and fixtures .. The furniture, including a massive mahogany chair, which is occupied by the governor at the annual commencements, was removed to the univer- sity, but the great chair referred to, and the desks and chairs of the sen- ate chamber are all that was left from the destruction of the university by fire. The state house was leased by the trustees to the Baptist Female college on condition that it shall be continuously occupied as a seminary for young ladies. In the year 1853, an epidemic of typhoid pneumonia prevailed among the students, which caused a panic for a month. practic- ally suspending the work of the university. In May, 1854, Professor Toumey, having been appointed state geologist, left the university and began the work of the survey of the state, which he continued with zeal and success until he was cut down, untimely, in the height of his profes- sional renown and usefulness. The university suffered another serious loss this year in the retirement of Professor Garland, who resigned to accept the presidency of a railroad, and in the resignation of Professor Barnard, who had been called to the chair of physics and astronomy in
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the university of Mississippi. Professor Garland subsequently returned to the university. Professor Barnard, after serving two years as profes- sor, was chosen president of the university of Mississippi, where he remained until the breaking out of the war in 1861. In 1865, he became president of the Columbia college, New York, which high office he filled with eminent success and ability until his death, April 27, 1889, lacking only eight days of attaining four score years. His name and fame belong to his country and to mankind. He needs no eulogy here.
The university year of 1854-5 was notable in the accession to the faculty of Dr. John W. Mallet, who took the chair of chemistry ; of Robert K. Har- grove (now a bishop of the Methodist Episcopal church) as instructor in mathematics, and of W. S. Wyman as instructor in ancient languages (in place of Professor Stafford. who was disabled by serious illness), and, last not least, by the retirement of Dr. Manly from the presidency. The "resignation" of Dr. Manly was written in April, 1855, to take effect on the first day of October. During his administration, extending through eighteen years, the university attained a high state of prosperity and use- fulness. The number of students during his last year was 112; graduates during his official term, 250. The standard of scholarship was high and the examinations for admission were so strict that numbers were required, every year, to withdraw for the lack of the requisite preparation.
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