Night Sky Photography -- 03-29/30-2023 -- Venus & Uranus An Hour After Sunset

Good evening fellow stargazers!

Well, I can't think of any better way to end this month out than with some photographs that I was able to take over the course of two days about an hour after sunset showing the bright planet Venus in conjunction with the dim gas giant planet Uranus in the western sky dome. I was truly blessed with cloudless skies on both nights in order to bring y'all this night sky photographic offering.

I took two photos each evening of the two planets. One a wide shot as it appears in the western sky, and the other a close-up of the two planets together. As you can see, Uranus was just above and to the left of Venus on Wednesday the 29th, and the next evening on Thursday the 30th, Venus had moved just above and to the right of Uranus.

The planet Venus is the brightest object in the night sky after our own Moon and the second planet in our Solar System is nearly as big around as our Earth at about 7,520 miles (or 12,104 kilometers) across, compared to our planet which is about 7,926 miles (or 12,756 kilometers) wide. Venus is about 67 million miles (or 180 million km) from the Sun -- roughly 0.7 astronomical units (AUs). Due to its proximity to the Sun, it only takes Venus approximately 225 of our Earth days to circle our star.

Though it appears much smaller and very much dimmer to the naked eye, the gas giant planet Uranus -- the seventh planet in our Solar System -- is actually much bigger with a radius of 15,759.2 miles (or 25,362 kilometers), making Uranus about four times wider than our Earth. Uranus is much farther away from the Sun with an average distance of 1.8 billion miles (or 2.9 billion kilometers) making Uranus about 19.8 AUs away from the Sun. Because of its greater distance, Uranus takes about 84 Earth years to travel once around the sun.

I hope y'all enjoyed my planetary photographs and as always have a wonderful Dixie Day and be sure to keep your eyes to the evening skies, y'all hear.

Night Sky Photography -- 03-28-2023 -- How To Use The Constellation Orion As An Astronomical Signpost

Good Evening, fellow stargazers!

One of the coolest things about certain star constellations and asterisms that make up our evening sky dome is that they can be used to locate other nearby constellations and asterisms.

For example, in a previous post, I showed how one can use the Big Dipper to locate two of the major stars in the Spring Triangle and the Great Diamond asterisms.

This evening I took a few great photos of the major stars of the Constellation Orion the Hunter and his two dogs -- the constellations Canis Major The Greater Dog and Canis Minor The Lesser Dog.

Three of the major stars of these three separate constellations -- Betelgeuse in Orion, Procyon in Canis Minor, and Sirius in Canis Major -- form an equilateral triangle asterism in the evening sky called the Winter Triangle.

The Constellation Orion is the key to locating not only two dogs, but also the constellations Taurus The Bull and Gemini The Twins; as well as the Pleiades Star Cluster by following a series of lines using Orion as a starting point.

When you locate the asterism "Orion's Belt" in the sky dome, picture Orion The Hunter standing upright, with the stars Betelgeuse and Bellatrix marking out Orion's left and right shoulders, and Saiph and Rigel marking out his left and right feet.

Follow the three stars of Orion’s Belt down and to the left and draw line to find the bright star Sirius --The Dog Star -- in the Constellation Canis Major The Greater Dog.

Draw a line from Betelgeuse -- Orion's left shoulder -- and keep going to find a solitary bright star, Procyon in the Constellation Canis Minor The Lesser Dog. This line also serves as one of the three triangular lines of The Winter Triangle.

Draw a line from Rigel -- Orion's right foot -- up past Betelgeuse and keep going until you reach the two bright stars Castor and Pollux in the Constellation Gemini The Twins.

Going back to Orion’s Belt, your next target lies up and to the right, following the line of the belt to the bright reddish star Aldebaran in the Constellation Taurus the Bull. If you keep on following this line past Aldebaran, a short distance later you’ll reach the Pleiades Star Cluster (also known as the "Seven Sisters").

If you remember these easy steps, then finding all the major constellations and asterisms near Orion in the evening sky is simple.

Be sure to try it out and please let me know what y'all thought of this little presentation in the comments section below. As always have a wonderful evening and be sure to keep your eyes to the night skies, y'all hear.

Night Sky Photography -- 03-25-2023 -- Luna & The Seven Sisters Meet In The West

Greetings and Salutations fellow stargazers!

I was a bit worried that I wouldn't be able to present this evening's night sky photographic presentation because of the frequent spring showers and cloudy skies that bless South Carolina this time of year.

In fact, it did rain earlier in the day, but thankfully cleared up by mid-afternoon and giving us some blessedly clear evening skies so that I was able to capture a few beautiful shots of our lovely Luna in her Crescent Moon form sharing the heavens with the equally stunning "Seven Sisters" of the Pleiades Star Cluster.

The Pleiades Star Cluster (also known as the "Seven Sisters" or Messier 45) is an open star cluster containing middle-aged, hot B-type blue-white stars to the north-west of the constellation Taurus. The beautiful stars of the Pleiades are among the nearest star clusters to Earth located at a distance of about 444 light-years (or 136.1 parsecs) from our Sun.

Night Sky Photography -- 03-20-2023 -- The March Equinox & Locating The Spring Triangle & Great Diamond Constellations

Happy Spring Equinox, Y'all!

Today is the first official day of spring equinox 2023 here in the Northern Hemisphere. Goodbye to those long, cold winter nights and hello to longer daytime hours and warmer weather.

The equinox refers to the moment when Earth's rotation axis is directly perpendicular to the Sun, or from our perspective here on Earth when the Sun travels just over the Earth's equator. This occurs twice a year in March and September when the axis of the Earth tilts and turns one hemisphere of the Earth towards the sun in our orbit.

In the Northern Hemisphere this is referred to as the March Vernal Equinox (or spring equinox). In the Southern Hemisphere below the equator this is actually the first day of autumn.

For us amateur stargazers, it also means that the constellations of the Winter Circle (Winter Hexagon) will be setting in the west earlier after dark and new constellations will begin to appear in our evening sky dome.

The first day of spring and the next few months will be the perfect opportunity to see the amazing stars of the Spring Triangle asterism and its spring time constellations in the evening sky.

The Spring Triangle connects three major stars: Arcturus, Spica, and Regulus -- as well as their constellations: Bootes The Heardsman, Virgo The Virgin, and Leo The Lion  -- into a sort of isosceles triangle. A smaller and more equilateral Spring Triangle can also be formed using the star Denebola which is also a part of the Constellation Leo.

The following photos were taken in the late evening after midnight on Monday, March 20th and in the late evening before midnight of the same day of the Spring Triangle stars and their respective constellations.

The first star in the Spring Triangle is the large, orange-colored red giant star, Arcturus (or Alpha Bootes), the third-brightest star in the night sky visible in the Northern Hemisphere, and the brightest star in the Constellation Bootes The Heardsman. Arcturus is relatively the closest to us at about 36.7 light-years (or 11.2 parsecs) from the Sun.

The next is the binary star Spica (or Alpha Virginis) the brightest star in the Constellation Virgo The Virgin (or Virgo The Maiden). The brightest of these binaries is a blue giant star located about 261 light-years (or 80 parsecs) from the Sun. Spica is the 16th brightest star in the night sky.

The third star in the Spring Triangle is Regulus (or Alpha Leonis) the brightest star in the Constellation Leo The Lion, which is in reality a quadruple star system composed of four stars that are organized into two pairs. This system lies approximately 79 light-years (or 24.2 parsecs) from the Sun. Regulus is also known as the "Heart of the Lion" and is the 21st brightest star in the night sky.

The fourth star which comprises the smaller triangle is Denebola (or Beta Leonis), a A-type main sequence dwarf star and the second brightest star in Leo. The star is located at a distance of 36 light-years (or 11 parsecs) from the Sun -- also pretty close to us astronomically speaking.

Locating each of the Spring Triangle stars and their respective constellations is actually not all that hard even for those starting out learning about astronomy. In fact, its quite easy if you can locate the Big Dipper asterism in the evening sky.

The Big Dipper (or Plough) is an asterism of seven bright stars in the larger Constellation Ursa Major The Great Bear and its located near the Spring Triangle stars.

Using the Big Dipper as a guide to the Spring Triangle, you just need to remember three classical mnemonic phrases to navigate your way to their location:

(1) Using the bottom of the Big Dipper below the handle, draw a straight line in the sky using the two stars as a guide to "Make A Reach To Regulus."

(2) Use the end of the handle of the Big Dipper and draw another straight line to "Make An Arc To Arcturus." 
 
(3) Finally, make another straight line using Arcturus to "Drive A Spike To Spica." 

The smaller Spring Triangle stars are also included by a fourth star Cor Caroli in the small Constellation Canes Venatici to form yet another asterism known as the Great Diamond of Virgo -- Or Great Diamond. The Great Diamond connects four constellations and is slightly large than the nearby Big Dipper itself.

That is my presentation and photographic offerings for the beginning of the 2023 spring season. More will be coming soon. Until then, have a wonderful Dixie Day and keep your eyes to the night skies, y'all hear!

A Southern Soldier's Prayer

 A SOUTHERN SOLDIERS PRAYER

I asked God for strength, that I might achieve;
I was made weak, that I might learn to humbly obey.
I asked for health, that I might do greater things;
I was given infirmity, that I might do better things.

I asked for riches, that I might be happy;
I was given poverty, that I might be wise.

I asked for power, that I might have the praise of men;
I was given weakness, that I might feel the need of God.

I asked for all things that I might enjoy life;
I was given life, that I might enjoy all things.

I got nothing I asked for but everything I had hoped for.
Almost despite myself, my unspoken prayers were answered.

I am, among men, most richly blessed.

Discovered on a folded sheet of paper in the coat pocket of a fallen Confederate Soldier after battle sometime in the spring of 1864 before his burial -- the author known but to God.

Happy March 15th!

The Life And Death Of Brigadier General States Rights Gist C.S.A. (1831 - 1864)

Brigadier General States Rights Gist.
(September 3, 1831 - November 30, 1864)

 

States Rights Gist was born on Saturday, September 3, 1831 at the family home, Wyoming Plantation, near the town of Jonesville in Union County, South Carolina, the sixth of seven children to Mr. Nathaniel Gist (1776-1861) and Elizabeth Lewis McDaniel Gist (1796-1859).

He was distantly related to Mordecai Gist (1743-1792), a Maryland-born Brigadier General in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). States was the great-grandson of William Gist Sr. (1711-1794), Mordecai Gist's uncle. 

Known to his parents and siblings as "States" his name was based on the Southern states’ rights political doctrine of nullification politics of his father. Nathaniel Gist, a lawyer and noted disciple of United States Senator and Vice President of the United States, John Caldwell Calhoun, chose his son's unique name to reflect his own political sentiments.

Schooled at Mount Zion Institute in Winnsboro, South Carolina, States was admitted to South Carolina College, now the University of South Carolina, as a sophomore in 1847, graduating in 1850. He returned home and began to read law. The following year in 1851, he attended Harvard Law School (HLS) in Cambridge, Massachusetts although he didn't formally graduate. After leaving Harvard, States moved home to Union, read the law with a local established firm and passed the South Carolina Bar in 1853. He set up a law practice becoming a local attorney.

Soon after his return to South Carolina in 1853, Gist served in the South Carolina State Militia as captain of a local volunteer company the Johnson Rifles. He became aide-de-camp with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel to South Carolina Governor James Hopkins Adams from 1854 to 1856 when he was then appointed a Brigadier General commanding the SC State Militia at age 24. One of his many roles was to train fellow militia members for war.

Later in 1863, States Rights Gist would marry Governor Adams' daughter, Jane Margaret "Janie" Adams (1841-1911). Sadly, the couple would only be married a year and have no children before States would be killed during the War Between The States (American Civil War 1861-1865).

In April of 1860, Gist was appointed aide-de-camp and military advisor to Governor William Henry Gist (1807-1874) -- his older cousin. Knowing that war was on the horizon, he prepared South Carolina for war. In October of 1860, Governor Gist sent States to six other governors of Southern states to seek their support for possible secession due to the likely election of Abraham Lincoln as the next President of the United States.

States Gist was then appointed State Adjutant and Inspector General by Governor Francis Pickens after South Carolina seceded from the United States on Thursday, December 20, 1860. In that role he acquired military arms for the newly independent State of South Carolina and later, along with Confederate General P.G.T. Beauregard, oversaw the bombardment of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor on Friday, April 12, 1861, which formally began the War.

Gist went to Virginia and served as a volunteer aide on the staff of Brigadier General Bernard Elliott Bee.

At the Battle of First Manassas (Bull Run Creek) on Sunday, July 21, 1861, Bee was mortally wounded and Gist was given temporary command of the remnants of Bee's Brigade defending Henry House Hill. He too was wounded in the battle, but only lightly. Gist recovered and soon returned to South Carolina to resume his duties as Adjutant and Inspector General to prepare state forces to defend Port Royal in the fall of 1861 and to be absorbed into the Confederate Army in the early months of 1862.

States Rights Gist received his formal appointment as a Confederate Brigadier General on Thursday, March 20, 1862 at the age of 30. He was assigned to the Charleston area and was sent to oversee state coastal defenses commanded at the time by Major General John C. Pemberton.

With the exception of a brief assignment in North Carolina, General Gist served in the defense of the city commanding the James Island military district and a brigade in the coastal defenses between May of 1862 through May of 1863.

During that time he took part in the Battle of Secessionville (First Battle of James Island) on Monday, June 16, 1862 and commanded Confederate troops sent to successfully oppose a landing by raiding Union forces at Pocotaligo, South Carolina in October of 1862. General Gist led a small division of reinforcements in North Carolina between December of 1862 and January of 1863, and was also present during the major Union naval attack on the city of Charleston on Tuesday, April 7, 1863.

In May 1863, Gist was transferred to the western theater and given command of an infantry brigade along with Brigadier General William H. T. Walker also leading a brigade to reinforce Confederate forces under General Joseph E. Johnston. They were trying to relieve Confederate forces under attack at Vicksburg by Union Army forces commanded by Major General Ulysses S. Grant in a push to take the fortress city to gain control of the Mississippi River. Walker was promoted to major general and Gist's brigade was placed in Walker's division.
 

Just before leaving for Mississippi, States married Janie Adams (as previously mentioned) and he spent just two days with his new wife before heading west.

General Gist saw limited action in the Vicksburg campaign, notibly at the Battle of Jackson, Mississippi on Thursday, May 14, 1863 before the surrender of Vicksburg's defenses on Saturday, July 4, 1863. 

In August 1863 Walker's division was sent to Chattanooga, Tennessee to reinforce General Braxton Bragg's Confederate Army of Tennessee in northern Georgia. Gist's brigade was first stationed at Rome, Georgia, but on Thursday, September 17, 1863, Gist was ordered to return with his brigade to Walker's division and took part in the second day of the Battle of Chickamauga on Sunday, September 20, 1863.

During the battle, Gist had to take command of Walker's division because Walker was put in temporary command of a corps. Gist's brigade alone lost 170 men in 45 minutes as they tried to plug a hole in the line of Major General John C. Breckinridge.

Gist would again command Walker's division during the disastrous  Chattanooga Campaign in November of 1863. The division served as the rear guard for the retreat of Breckinridge's corps from Missionary Ridge on Wednesday, November 25, 1863.

At the battles of Chickamauga and Chattanooga, and throughout the subsequent Atlanta Campaign, despite having no formal military training prior to the war, Gist proved a reliably competent and respected commander.

During the Battle of Atlanta on Wednesday, July 22, 1864, General Walker was killed and Gist was wounded in a hand. On Friday, July 24, 1864, Walker's division was broken up and Gist's brigade was assigned to the division of Major General Benjamin F. Cheatham. Gist returned to duty a month later after going home on leave and recuperating from his wound.

Following the evacuation and fall of Atlanta on Friday, September 2, 1864, the Army of Tennessee, now under the command of Lieutenant General John Bell Hood, advanced north into Tennessee in November of 1864 to being the ill-fated Franklin and Nashville Campaign.

He commanded a brigade in Major General John C. Brown's division during the terrible Battle of Franklin on Wednesday, November 30, 1864 where the Confederate assault of six infantry divisions containing eighteen brigades with 100 regiments numbering almost 20,000 men (sometimes called the "Pickett's Charge of the West") resulted in devastating losses to the men and the leadership of the Army of Tennessee with 55 regimental commanders made casualties along with fourteen Confederate generals -- five killed during the battle, one mortally wounded who would die a week later, seven wounded, and one captured.

Brigadier General States Rights Gist was killed while leading his brigade in the charge against the Union center. He was shot twice: once in the thigh and then in the chest near his heart. He was carried off the battlefield and died in a field hospital sometime after 8 PM CST. He was 33 years old.

The body of General Gist was returned to South Carolina by his personal servant, a free man of color named Willie Howard, and was originally buried in a family cemetery. In 1866, his coffin was interred and reburied permanently in the historic Trinity Episcopal Cathedral cemetery in downtown Columbia, South Carolina across from the South Carolina State Capitol Building.

The grave of Brigadier General States Rights Gist at the historic
Trinity Episcopal Cathedral Cemetery in downtown Columbia, SC.

 

Sources for this article include:

​

States Rights Gist: A South Carolina General of the Civil War by Walter Brian Cisco. Ragged Edge Press; 1st edition (1991) ISBN-13: ‎ 978-0942597288.
The South Carolina Department of Archives and History. 
The members of the States Rights Gist Camp #1451 (Union County, South Carolina) Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV).  

​

Night Sky Photography -- 03-07-2023 -- The Full Worm Moon, The Hunter & His Dogs

This evening, I was blessed with clear skies and was able to capture some good shots of the March 2023 Full Moon -- or Full Worm Moon in North America -- in the evening just after 9 PM EST.

The title shot is the full moon with the foreground of the branches of the blossoming tree in my backyard. A nice little reminder that winter here in South Carolina is almost over (at least officially) and the spring equinox will be here in just two short weeks.

Here is a more clear shot of the full moon without any obstructions.

Now looking more towards the southern sky over the tree tops we can see three important winter constellations all connected by the Winter Triangle asterism: Orion The Hunter and his two dogs: "The Greater Dog" Canis Major and "The Lesser Dog" Canis Minor.

The Constellation Orion is easy to spot with the three stars of "Orion's Belt"  -- Alnitak, Alnilam, and Mintaka -- forming the most easily recognizable asterism in the night sky. The Constellation Canis Major is probably the easiest to find because of the bright white star, Sirius -- the Dog Star -- shining brightly nearby.

Sirius and the star, Betelgeuse, that makes up Orion's shoulder, when joined by the other nearby bright star, Procyon, in the small Constellation Canis Minor, form a nearly perfect triangle-shaped asterism known as the Winter Triangle.

The Third Confederate National Flag Adopted March 4, 1865

March 4th is Confederate Flag Day in most Southern States in the United States of America.

It was on this day in Southern history, Saturday, March 4, 1865, the Third (and final) Confederate National Flag was adopted on this day by the Confederate Congress in Richmond, Virginia.

"The Congress of the Confederate States of America do enact, That the flag of the Confederate States shall be as follows: The width two-thirds of its length, with the union (now used as the battle flag) to be in width three-fifths of the width of the flag, and so proportioned as to leave the length of the field on the side of the union twice the width of the field below it; to have the ground red and a broad blue saltier thereon, bordered with white and emblazoned with mullets or five pointed stars, corresponding in number to that of the Confederate States; the field to be white, except the outer half from the union to be a red bar extending the width of the flag."  -- Flag Act of 1865

This flag -- informally referred to by Confederate heritage promoters today as the "Blood Stained Banner" -- served as the national flag of the Confederate States of America until the government of that nation was formally dissolved by President Jefferson Davis and his cabinet on Friday, May 5, 1865 in Washington, Georgia -- only 63 days, making it the shortest serving flag of an American nation.

Few historical copies of this banner remain in existence today in museums and private collections.

The Life And Death of Brigadier General Micah Jenkins C.S.A. (1835 - 1864)

Confederate Brigadier General Micah Jenkins
(December 1, 1835 - May 6, 1864).

 

Micah John Jenkins was born on Tuesday, December 1, 1835 the third son (and fourth of five children) of Captain John Jenkins (1794-1854) and his wife Elizabeth Clark Jenkins (1803-1864), on Edisto Island, Charleston County, South Carolina. The Jenkinses belonged to an ancient Welsh family, claiming descent from Prince Llewelyn ap Gruffudd (1223-1282).

Micah Jenkins came from a long and proud line of American military servicemen from the State of South Carolina. His Grandfather, Joseph Jenkins (1762-1828), was a Patriot veteran of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) and served in the 20th Regiment South Carolina Militia during the War of 1812 (1812-1815). His father, Captain John Jenkins, served as an officer in the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). His uncle, Joseph Evan Jenkins (1793-1874), also served in the War of 1812 but never saw any combat action and would later be a Signer of the South Carolina Ordinance of Secession in December of 1860. 

At the age of 15, Micah Jenkins entered the South Carolina Military Academy -- later name The Citadel -- near Charleston in 1851, later graduating in 1854 top of his class at the age of 19.

It was at the military academy that Jenkins met his classmate and life-long friend, Asbury Coward from York County, South Carolina. Later Jenkins and Coward would become the co-founders of the Kings Mountain Military Academy in Yorkville (York, South Carolina) in January of 1855.

It was during his time as a cadet at The Citadel in 1853 that Micah Jenkins met his future wife, then 16 year old Caroline "Carrie" Harper Jamison (1837-1902) of Orangeburg, South Carolina. Caroline was the daughter of General David Flavel Jamison (1810-1864), one of the founders of The Citadel and later president of South Carolina's Secession Convention in December of 1860.

Micah and Carrie would marry on Thursday, July 3, 1856 and move to York where they would raise their family. The couple would have five male children: Micah John Jr. (1857-1912), Robert Flavel (1858-1936), William Edward (1860-1930), Whitemarsh LaRoush (1861-1863), and John Murray (1863-1958); all born in York County. 

In 1855 at the age 20, Micah Jenkins was confirmed at the York Episcopal Church. He was a devout Protestant Christian and remained so for his whole life.

Colonel Micah Jenkins just before the war
as Colonel of the 5th South Carolina
Volunteer Infantry Regiment.
Photo courtesy of the Library of Congress.

Shortly before the war, in 1859 following the aftermath of John Brown's failed raid on Harpers Ferry, Micah Jenkins raised a volunteer militia company at Yorkville -- the Jasper Guards or Jasper Rifle Guards -- and was elected company Captain. In 1860 they were to become the Jasper Light Infantry, or Company I of the 5th South Carolina Volunteer Infantry, a regiment raised largely from the upper Piedmont districts of York, Union and Spartanburg Counties. Jenkins was elected the first Colonel of the regiment on Saturday, April 13, 1861 -- the day before the War Between The States began.

Though a strict drill master from his years as founder of the Kings Mountain Military Academy, Jenkins was generally well liked by the men under his command. With his experience and their trust in him, they formed a superb unit.

Not long after they were sent north to Virginia, the 5th South Carolina Infantry saw its first action during the Battle of First Manassas on Sunday, July 21, 1861. They were not engaged on the main field of battle, but rather in a separate action to the east at McLean's Ford.

Serving as a part of Brigadier General David R. Jones' brigade, the 5th South Carolina along with the 17th and 18th Mississippi Infantry Regiments were sent across McLean's Ford at noon during the battle in order to silence an eight-gun Federal artillery battery. The battery was positioned on a hill just across the ford and was supported by four New York regiments. In the advance up the slope, the two Mississippi regiments halted and began to withdraw, leaving Jenkins and his Carolinians unsupported. Despite this, Jenkins managed to drive back the artillerymen and their infantry supports, holding his position for nearly an hour. He then sent three messages back to Jones requesting for further orders but, according to his report, received no reply and, being outnumbered and unsupported, eventually decided to unwillingly withdraw. Jones himself states that he sent Jenkins three orders to withdraw, the 5th South Carolina eventually retiring "well formed and in good order from the field."

The 5th South Carolina suffered 3 killed and 23 wounded during the battle. They had fought well for their first battle. As General Jones later wrote in his official report, "Too much cannot be said in praise of the gallantry displayed by Colonel Jenkins and his regiment of South Carolinians."

Later that fall, the 5th South Carolina was placed in a division under Major General James Longstreet. Longstreet's aide, Major Thomas J. Goree, would write in a letter home that the general thought Jenkins was the best Colonel in the army and that the 5th South Carolina Infantry was "one of the finest, if not the finest, regiments in the army." Colonel Jenkins and the 5th South Carolina Infantry was put in a brigade under General Richard H. Anderson.

In a review of Longstreet's division at Centreville, Virginia, on Thursday, November 28,  1861, General P.G.T. Beauregard presented each regiment with the first patterns of the new Confederate Battle Flag made of silk for the army. 

As reported by the hometown newspaper, the Yorkville (S.C.) Inquirer on Thursday, December 12, 1861, upon receiving his, Jenkins gave a short speech:

"As Colonel of the 5th S.C. Regiment, I accept this as our battle-flag. Our native soil is now oppressed with the footsteps of the fell invader; his beacon fires are lighted upon our headlands. To us a battle flag can only be one under which we must conquer or die. As such, I accept this."

Upon the expiration of its one-year term of service, the 5th South Carolina regiment was then reorganized in April 1862 from re-enlistees and new recruits. Jenkins retained his command as Colonel of the regiment. Five companies of the 5th South Carolina were detached to form part of Micah Jenkins' newly organized regiment, the Palmetto Sharpshooters, which also consisted of companies from the 4th and 9th South Carolina Infantry Regiments. The Palmetto Sharpshooters would be placed under the command of Colonel John R. R. Giles from Union County.

A man of great Christian faith in God, Jenkins always took his Bible and prayer book with him, and at any quite moments on the battlefield was to be found reading it. By contrast, he was fearlessly brave under fire he was always front and center leading his men into battle, sometimes recklessly so.

At the Battle of Williamsburg (Fort Magurder) on Monday, May 5, 1862, when someone told him he was unnecessarily exposing himself to danger, Jenkins was reported to have (quite prophetically) said, "I feel the (Yankee) bullet has not been molded that is to kill me."

At Williamsburg, General  Anderson was temporarily put in division command while Jenkins, who was still a Colonel, was put in command of his brigade (Jenkins' 5th South Carolina Infantry Regiment, the 6th South Carolina Infantry Regiment, and the Palmetto Sharpshooters), all regiments made up of men from York, Union, Spartanburg, Chester, Fairfield, and Lancaster counties in upstate South Carolina. 

At the Battle of Seven Pines on Saturday, May 31, 1862,  he led Anderson's brigade with distinction in that battle. It was during this action that Colonel Giles of the Palmetto Sharpshooters was unfortunately killed during the battle and would be replaced by Colonel Joseph A. Walker of Spartanburg County, South Carolina.

Captain W. B. Smith, Company G, Palmetto Sharpshooters wrote in his report after Seven Pines:

"After we had driven back four fresh lines of battle General Jenkins drew his lines back a short way and formed a new line, someone said to him 'just look at them coming at the double quick.' Jenkins replied: 'We shall meet them at the double quick.' 'He straightened himself up in his stirrups and gave the command to charge front on twelfth company at the double quick, and I never saw on parade a prettier maneuver, General Jenkins was magic. He could come nearer to making his men work like machinery than any other man I saw. That was the last charge at Seven Pines at which ended the battle. We fought five fresh lines that evening and whipped every one. Jenkins was on his horse all through the battle."

 

In a letter to his sister written not long after the battle, Longstreet's aide, Major Thomas J. Goree, sums up Jenkins' performance rather accurately:

​

"Col. Jenkins carried the brigade into action about 3 O'clock P.M., a little further to the left of where Genl. D.H. Hill was engaged. From this time until night he fought unsupported and alone, and advancing all the time. He fought 5 separate & distinct lines of the enemy, whipping each one. He whipped the whole of Genl. Couch's Division, consisting of 12 or 15 regiments, with a little brigade of 1900 men. He passed over several abattis of felled timber, two lines of breastworks, captured three pieces of artillery, 250 prisoners, & several stands of colors.​

​

He whipped the fifth lines of the enemy about 8 O'clock P.M. At that time he was near two miles in advance of anyone else. His brigade rested that night in a Massachusetts camp, and had every luxury nearly that you can imagine: a plenty of brandy, lemons, & preserved fruits of all sorts, oil clothes, boots and shoes, opera glasses, etc. etc. etc.​

​

The Yankee prisoners were perfectly surprised when they found he had accomplished so much with only one little brigade. They told him that every line he met was composed of fresh troops, and that they thought he was receiving reinforcements all the time.​

​

Genl. Longstreet was very much surprised, too, when Col. Jenkins came in at night, and reported where his brigade was. ​

​

The battle flag of Colonel Jenkins' Palmetto Sharpshooters.
It was reported that during the battle of Seven Pines,
out of 12 men in the color guard 10 were shot down, the flag
was passed to four men, and was pierced by nine musket balls,
but never once touched the ground during the heavy fighting.
Image courtesy South Carolina Confederate Relic Room,
State Museum, Columbia, SC.

This brigade went into action with 1900 men. It lost 700 killed & wounded, & among this number were more than half of its field officers, and near one third of the line officers. But, it never faltered, nor even stopped. It advanced slowly but steadily for more than two miles, all the time in the face of a galling fire, and nearly all the way over felled timber & the enemy's breastworks....

​

A few days previous to the battle, Genl. Longstreet presented to Col. Jenkins' Regt. ("Palmetto Sharpshooters") a battle flag. A noble, manly fellow was the color bearer. In the fight he was shot down; as Col. Jenkins rode by where he was lying he raised himself on his elbow & exclaimed: "For God's sake, Colonel, take care of my flag!" ​

​

This flag has 9 bullet holes in it. It had a guard of 12 men, 10 of them were killed & wounded. This flag, at one time, changed hands 4 times in 3 minutes without falling to the ground. It now has inscribed on it "Williamsburg" & "Seven Pines."
​

Jenkins, though technically still a Colonel, would maintain command of this brigade during the Peninsula Campaign and Seven Days Battles.

At the Battle of Gaines Mill on Friday, June 27, 1862, Colonel Jenkins led the brigade in a sweep around the Federal flank as dusk fell and engaged in heavy fighting with the 16th Michigan Infantry Regiment capturing their regimental colors along with the regiment's Colonel Thomas B.W. Stockton, another officer and 53 of the Union regiment's enlisted men. For this feat Jenkins was given consent by the Confederate Secretary of War, Judah P. Benjamin, to retain the regimental standard of the 16th Michigan for presentation to the Governor of South Carolina.

Major Thomas Goree, this time in a letter to his mother, describes the attack of Colonel Micah Jenkins' brigade at the Battle of Frayser's Farm (White Oak Swamp) on Monday, June 30, 1862:

The So. Ca. Brigade under the gallant Col. Jenkins commenced the attack. Kemper was on the right of Jenkins, Wilcox on the left, & Pickett's, Pryor, & Featherston still to the left. One of A.P. Hill's (Branch's Brigade) was ordered as a support to Kemper & Jenkins.​

​

Kemper's (which used to be Genl. Longstreet's old brigade) charged & took a battery. The enemy then brought up reinforcements and Branch failing to support Kemper, the battery was retaken and many of the old brigade captured with it. Jenkins in the meantime had taken a battery and still kept forward. His advance at this time was the most desperate I ever knew. A few hundred yards to the left of the battery he took was one that Wilcox was trying to take. Just in Jenkins' front was a very large force of the enemy's infantry which he immediately engaged, when this battery on his left commenced on him with grape and canister. Thus he advanced in the face of a terrible musketry fire at the same time enfiladed by artillery. Notwithstanding, he pushed on, charged the enemy and drove them from their position with terrible slaughter. He then brought up Branch's Brigade to hold the position. But as soon as they reached the place and saw how far in advance it was & the number of the enemy a half mile farther on, they turned & fled. Being left so far in advance unsupported, Jenkins fell back from position & went to the assistance of Wilcox. The enemy did not return to the position he left. Wilcox during this time had been fighting desperately. He had taken a battery, but it had been retaken, but when Jenkins came in, they made another charge and held it. . . .​

​

The So. Carolina Brigade (Jenkins') lost more than half & the Ala. Brigade (Wilcox) lost at least one half. The 11th Ala. (Col. Syd Moore's Reg.) out of 10 officers commanding companies lost 8 killed & two wounded. The Palmetto Sharpshooters (Col. Jenkins' Regt.) out of 375 men, lost 44 killed & 210 wounded.​

​

His own escape was almost miraculous. His horse was shot twice. A hole was shot through his saddle blanket, his bridle reins cut in two near his hand. An India rubber overcoat tied on behind his saddle had 15 holes through it made by a musket ball & piece of shell. His sword was shot off at the point, & shot half in two near the hilt, & his sword knob was also shot off. Besides all this he was struck on the shoulder with grape shot (which bruised it severely) and was also struck on the breast & leg with fragments of spent shell.​

​

I met him just as he was coming out of the fight and he was weeping like a child at the destruction of his brave, noble men. He told me at one time when he saw how fast they were falling around him, he stopped and prayed to God to send a bullet through his heart. He says, too, that at times as he would ride up and down the line, his men would turn and give him a look as much as to say, "We can go no further," when he would wave his hand to them and they would again dash forward.​

His brother-in-law, Lieutenant John Wilson Jamison (1839-1886) who served with Jenkins as his Aide-de-Camp, was hit in the chest and nearly killed at Frayser's Farm where Jenkins was wounded. Jamison had also served as a French language teacher at Jenkins' Kings Mountain Military Academy prior to the war.

In addition to his brother-in-law, other members of Micah Jenkins' immediate family also served with him during the war.

His brother, John Jenkins (1824-1905) served in Company I, 3rd South Carolina Cavalry as a Major. His cousin, John Micah Jenkins (1827-1915) also served in the same company as a 2nd Lieutenant.

His other brother, Dr. Edward Ephraim Jenkins (1831-1904) served in the 5th South Carolina Regiment with Micah as a Staff Surgeon and later as the Brigade's Surgeon.

Another brother-in-law, David Rumph Jamison (1834-1908) served as the regimental quartermaster of the Palmetto Sharpshooters.

All of these men would survive the war and be present at Appomattox during the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia in April 1865.

For his gallant actions throughout the campaign, Micah Jenkins was officially promoted to the rank of Brigadier General on Tuesday, July 22, 1862, becoming one of the youngest generals in the American Civil War at the age of 26.

A month after his promotion, General Jenkins would again lead his brigade on the second day of the Battle of 2nd Manassas (Saturday, August 30, 1862) where he would be severely wounded in the left abdomen and would be out of action for the next two months, missing General Lee's first invasion of the North and the ensuing battles.

The 5th South Carolina's officer corps had been left in poor shape after the battles of 1862. There were even thoughts of disbanding the regiment. That fall, Jenkins offered the command of his old regiment to his old friend, Colonel Asbury Coward, who'd previously served on the staff of Brigadier General D. R. Jones. Coward accepted the offer and was approved by the War Department. Coward would serve as the Colonel of the 5th South Carolina Infantry for the remainder of the war.

General Jenkins was back on duty, this time with his new Divisional commander Major General George E. Pickett during the Battle of Fredericksburg on December 11-15, 1862, but Jenkins' Brigade was not engaged during the battle.

In 1863, Pickett's division participated in General James Longstreet's Siege of Suffolk, Virginia (April 16 - May 3, 1863), but Jenkins' Brigade was retained near Richmond, Virginia, under the command of Major General Daniel Harvey Hill, thus missing General Lee's second invasion of the North and the fateful Battle of Gettysburg (July 1-3, 1863) where Pickett's division was smashed during the final day of the battle.

Jenkins' Brigade went with Major General John B. Hood's Division of General Longstreet's First Corps to the war's Western Theater three months later where they participated in the second day's fighting of the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia on Sunday, September 20, 1863.

When Hood was promoted to lead a new army Corps, Jenkins was placed in command of his Division, which would result in a bitter rivalry with another South Carolinian, Brigadier General Evander M. Law, who'd been with the Division longer, but lost out because of Jenkins' seniority in rank. The tensions this caused would severely hinder the efficiency of the Division largely because of Law's resentment. Jenkins' Brigade would be put in the temporary charge of Colonel John Bratton of the 6th South Carolina Infantry.

General Jenkins, now commanding Hood's former Division, led his Confederates at the Battle of Brown's Ferry (Tuesday, October 27, 1863) along the Tennessee River, and again a day later at the Battle of Wauhatchie (October 28-29, 1863).

Sent into combat against superior numbers, General Jenkins was successfully leading the attack when they were attacked in the rear by greatly superior numbers. Even then he succeeded in withdrawing his troops.

Again with Longstreet he went to East Tennessee playing a conspicuous part in the proceedings, commanding the right wing at the Battle of Campbell's Station on November 16, 1863, and finally participated in the Siege of Knoxville (November 19 - December 4, 1863) and all the hardships these battles entailed.

Micah Jenkins went home to York on leave in late 1863 to spend some quality time with his family. While Jenkins had been at Chickamauga months before, his then two-year-old son, Whitemarsh LaRoche Jenkins, had died from a disease while his wife and children were visiting family in Summerville, South Carolina.

So he tried to be involved with his wife, Caroline, and surviving children as much as he could during that time. Right before he departed at the train station, Micah Jenkins looked at his friends and family and declared that he was going to fight his last battle. This would be the last time his wife and children would see him alive.

On Saturday, January 16, 1864, Jenkins led his brigade to victory in the Battle of Dandridge (Kimbrough's Crossroads), Tennessee against Federal cavalry.

When Longstreet's Corps returned to the Eastern Theater and the Army of Northern Virginia in early 1864, the contentious issue of command over Hood's Division command was at last resolved when Brigadier General Charles W. Field, who was senior to both Jenkins and Law, was promoted to Major General and assigned Division command. Jenkins resumed the command of his South Carolina Brigade.

General Jenkins was apparently suffering from ill health and malnutrition by the time the spring campaigning began, but insisted on playing his part in the upcoming second day of the Battle of the Wilderness on Friday, May 6, 1864. He was transported to the battlefield by field ambulance and mounted onto his horse still suffering. According to some accounts early in the morning as the battle began, the sweet notes of the Palmetto Sharpshooters band could be heard playing for their old commanding officer trying to cheer him up.

At around 11 P.M. part of Longstreet's Corps, on the Confederate right, had launched a flank attack from an unused railroad cutting onto Union General Winfield Scott Hancock's Corps. The Federal troops, and their pursuers, proceeded to flee across the front of the remainder of Longstreet's Corps with the resulting disorganization to both sides.

At about 1300 hours having forsaking his ambulance Jenkins was with his Brigade, which had been in reserve until this time, down the Orange Plank Road for it to spearhead the renewed Confederate attack this time upon the Brock Road trenches.

Riding at the head of the column with General Longstreet, and other staff officers, and in discussion with Longstreet when they came opposite the Confederate Brigades which had just made the successful flank attack, specifically that of William Mahone. The 12th Virginia mistook them for Federal troops and opened fire. When they firing stopped there were dead and wounded men and horses in the road.

Among the possible reasons for this friendly fire incident was the fact the Jenkins Brigade were wearing new uniforms of dark gray wool that appeared almost black. Along with the smokey conditions of the battlefield in the dense trees of the Wilderness (some of which was on fire) Mahone's men mistook the oncoming troops as Union soldiers. One of the Brigade was to later say that: "when a staff member, upon Longstreet's order, picked up and unfurled a Union flag that the General spotted on the roadway, approaching Virginians fired upon it."

Among the wounded were Longstreet and Jenkins -- Longstreet would survive the war. Jenkins had been shot in the forehead with the Minne Ball lodged in his brain near his left temple.

Jenkins' best friend, Colonel Asbury Coward, was there when Micah was shot, and desperately trying to comfort him before was sent for Medical attention. While dying, along with delirium as a Minnie Ball lodged in his brain, he was still urging his men onward. Colonel Bratton of the 6th South Carolina Infantry took charge of the Brigade.

Colonel Coward recalls the friendly fire incident at the Wilderness, in which Jenkins was killed and Longstreet wounded in his memoirs:

"After we had marched in line about 100 yards through brush and woods, we came upon a line of men, about two small regiments, lying down or kneeling directly in the path of our march. I had to halt my men and on inquiry found it was General Mahone's Brigade, who had just halted there. Seeing at the time a flag passing along the tunpike, I ran toward it through the intermediate thicket to inquire what troops they were. It was the Second South Carolina, one of the regiments of Jenkins' Brigade. I could not understand why they were marching in columns of fours, while I was marching in line of battle.​

As I turned, I saw that Mahone's men had commenced, on the right, to fire by file. Thinking only of the danger to the Second Regiment, I rushed back to stop the firing by voice and gesture. But not until I reached the line was the firing stopped. At that moment Mahone walked up and inquired why the firing had stopped. I explained why I had stopped it. He then asked me who had started it. I told him the firing had begun in his right company. I went on to say that they might be able to explain how it started there. He went off in the direction of his right company in a very agitated state.​

​

The incident had just taken place when Major R. M. Sims came to me and said: "That firing has wounded both General Longstreet and General Jenkins, one in the throat and the other in the temple... and I fear both are fatally wounded." I ran toward the group of trees that he indicated and found men lifting General Longstreet, litter and all, into an ambulance. Jenkins had just been placed on a litter. General Kershaw, who had remounted his horse, was urging haste; for the enemy's cannon was throwing shells at the cluster of trees. Fortunately, the shots were passing high but were nevertheless dangerous.​

​

I knelt by the friend of my life since I entered The Citadel, my alter ego. Taking his hand in mine, I said 'Jenkins... Mike, do you know me?' I felt a convulsive pressure of my hand. Then I noticed that his features, in fact his whole body, was convulsed. The haste urged by General Kershaw prevented any further stay at his side. He was lifted into an ambulance and carried to the rear. Dazed, I returned to my regiment."

With the musket ball where it was little could be done for Micah Jenkins. Only semi-conscious, and not recognizing those around him, he died about six hours later around sunset.

According to one of his surgeons present, at the moment Micah Jenkins breathed his last, "a bright, happy, trusting smile lit up his face. Those around watched, we thought, we felt he was with his God."

Micah Jenkins was just 28 years old when he was killed. His 26 year old devoted widow, Caroline Jenkins, would never remarry as she was left alone to raise their four remaining boys.

The following excerpt from the article in the Charleston Courier (Charleston, SC) recounts his funeral:

"The remains of the lamented General Micah Jenkins were interred in Summerville in the graveyard of the Episcopal Church of that place where his mother was buried. The body arrived at Summerville a quarter past three o’clock under the escort of the cadets of the Arsenal Academy in Columbia. The coffin with a Confederate flag laid upon it was placed upon a carriage, and a procession was formed from all of the inhabitants of the village and the convalescent solders in the hospital that were able to attend.
Before the procession began the ladies of the village brought in beautiful wreaths and numerous bouquets of flowers and strewed them with profusion upon the coffin.The coffin was followed by several members of the deceased’s family, including his widow, his father in law, General D. F. Jamison, Major John Jenkins and Dr. Edward Jenkins[his brothers].

Upon the arrival of the remains at the village and during the passing of the processions,the church bells were tolled and every expression of grief and sympathy was exhibited by the inhabitants of the village. The ladies present at the interment bedecked the grave with flowers and gave vent to their heartfelt sorrow in the tears which were freely shared of over the mortal remains of the departed hero."

The body of Micah Jenkins was brought back to South Carolina, accompanied by Caroline’s brother, Lieutenant John Jamison. His body first laid in state at the Arsenal Military Academy in Columbia and then was removed to the graveyard of the Episcopal Church in Summerville, South Carolina, where he was buried until 1881 when his body was moved to historic Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston. The Citadel Military Academy erected a grave monument in his honor.  The graves of General Jenkins and his wife, Caroline, are buried beneath the 12 foot monument.

Jenkins Hall at The Citadel is named in his honor.

General James Longstreet wrote of him after the war: "He was one of the most estimable characters of the army. His taste and talent were for military service. He was intelligent, quick, untiring, attentive, zealous in discharge of duty, truly faithful to official obligations, abreast with the foremost in battle, and withal a humble, noble Christian. In a moment of highest earthly hope, he was transported to serenest heavenly joy; to that life beyond that knows no bugle call, beat of drum or clash of steel. May his beautiful spirit, through the mercy of God, rest in peace! Amen!"

Two of General Micah Jenkins' sons would go on to continue the family tradition of American military service.

His oldest son, Micah John Jenkins Jr. (1857-1912) graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York in the Class of 1879 and would serve in the Spanish-American War (1898) where he was enrolled as Captain of Troop K, 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry Regiment "The Rough Riders" under Colonels Leonard Wood and Theodore Roosevelt. Captain Jenkins fought with the Regiment in Cuba and was present during the attack on San Juan Heights near Santiago de Cuba on Friday, July 1, 1898. He was promoted to Major on Thursday, August 11, 1898 and was mustered out of service with the Regiment at Montauck Point, Long Island, New York. He is buried at St. Paul's Episcopal Church Cemetery on Yonges Island, Charleston County, South Carolina.

His youngest son, John Murray Jenkins (1863-1958) also attended West Point and graduated in the Class of 1887. John served as a Colonel of the 30th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division, American Expeditionary Forces (A.E.F.) in France on the European Western Front during World War I (1917-1918) and was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross in 1919. John Jenkins retired a Major General in the United States Army in 1927. He is buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia.

The grave of Brigadier General Micah Jenkins and his wife
at historic Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina.

Sources for this article include:

The Civil War Letters of Major Thomas J. Goree edited by Thomas W. Cutrer (Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 1995), pp. 87, 94-95.
The South Carolinians: Colonel Asbury Coward's Memoirs edited by Natalie Jenkins Bond and Osmun Latrobe Coward (New York: Vantage Press, 1968).
The War of the Rebellion: A Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, Vol. 1 of 2.
Also a special thanks to the people at the South Carolina Confederate Relic Room & Military Museum in Columbia, South Carolina, The South Carolina Division Sons of Confederate Veterans, and the South Carolina Historical Society Archives and Museum.