James William Reilly | |
---|---|
Born |
Akron, Ohio |
May 20, 1828
Died | November 6, 1905 Wellsville, Ohio |
(aged 77)
Place of burial | St. Elizabeth's Cemetery, Wellsville, Ohio |
Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
Years of service | 1861–1865 |
Rank | Brigadier General |
Unit | Army of the Ohio |
Commands held |
104th Ohio Infantry |
Battles/wars | |
Other work | Lawyer, state legislator |
104th Ohio Infantry
1st Brigade, 3rd Division, XXIII Corps
James William Reilly (May 20, 1828 – November 6, 1905) was a lawyer, politician, and soldier from the state of Ohio who served as a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He commanded a brigade and then a division in the Army of the Ohio in several campaigns in the Western Theater of operations.
Reilly was born May 20, 1828, in Akron, Ohio. He was educated at Mount St. Mary's College in Emmitsburg, Maryland, and later studied law. He passed his bar exam and established a successful practice in Wellsville, Ohio, in Columbiana County. In 1858, he entered politics, and was elected as a Republican to the Ohio House of Representatives, where he eventually supported the policies of President Abraham Lincoln.
In August 1862, Reilly joined the military, accepting an appointment as the colonel of the 104th Ohio Infantry. After training at Camp Massillon, he and his men were assigned to various garrisons and posts in Kentucky, where they operated against Edmund Kirby Smith and John Hunt Morgan. Reilly and the regiment moved to Covington, Kentucky, on September 1, 1862, in preparation for the Defense of Cincinnati against a threatened Confederate invasion by troops under Kirby Smith. Reilly was then involved in the subsequent Skirmish at Fort Mitchell in northern Kentucky.