Emory Upton
| Emory Upton | |
|---|---|
Major General Emory Upton, c. 1865
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|
| Born |
August 27, 1839 near Batavia, New York |
| Died | March 15, 1881 (aged 41) San Francisco, California |
| Place of burial | Fort Hill Cemetery, Auburn, New York |
| Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
| Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1881 |
| Rank | |
| Commands held | |
| Battles/wars | American Civil War |
Emory Upton (August 27, 1839 – March 15, 1881) was a United States Army General and military strategist, prominent for his role in leading infantry to attack entrenched positions successfully at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House during the American Civil War, but he also excelled at artillery and cavalry assignments. His work, The Military Policy of the United States, which analyzed American military policies and practices and presented the first systematic examination of the nation's military history, had a tremendous effect on the U.S. Army when it was published posthumously in 1904.
Upton was born on a farm near Batavia, New York, the tenth child and sixth son of Daniel and Electra Randall Upton. He would become the brother-in-law of Andrew J. Alexander and of Frank P. Blair, Jr. He studied under famous evangelist Charles G. Finney at Oberlin College for two years before being admitted to the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1856. While at West Point Upton fought a duel with fellow Cadet Wade Hampton Gibbes of South Carolina over some offensive remarks about Upton's alleged relationships with African-American girls at Oberlin College. The two men fought with swords in a darkened room of the cadet barracks. Upton suffered a cut on his face. He graduated eighth in his class of 45 cadets on May 6, 1861, just in time for the outbreak of the Civil War.
Upton was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 4th U.S. Artillery, transferring to the 5th U.S. Artillery as a first lieutenant on May 14, assigned to Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell's Army of Northeastern Virginia, as an aide-de-camp to Brig. Gen. Daniel Tyler. In the First Battle of Bull Run, July 21, 1861, he was wounded in the arm and left side during the action at Blackburn's Ford, although he did not leave the field. He commanded his battery in the VI Corps Artillery Reserve through the 1862 Peninsula Campaign and the Seven Days Battles. In the Maryland Campaign, including the battles at Crampton's Gap at South Mountain and the Battle of Antietam, he commanded the artillery brigade for the 1st Division, VI Corps.
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