Lieut. Gen. Philip Sheridan
Born: March 6, 1831
Albany, New York
Died: August 5, 1888
Nonquitt, Massachusetts
1853: West Point Graduate
1853: Brevet 2nd Lieutenant
March 1861: 1st Lieutenant
May 1861: Captain
May 27, 1862: Colonel
July 1, 1862: Brigadier Genral
December 31, 1862: Major General
1969: Lieutenant General
June 1, 1888: Full General
Maj. Gen. Philip Sheridan
by Mathew Brady or Levin C. Handy
1848: Obtained appointment to West Point
3rd Year was suspended for a year for fighting with a classmate
1853: West Point Graduate 34th out of 52
1853: Commissioned a Brevet 2nd Lieutenant and assigned to 1st U.S. Infantry Regiment at Fort Duncan, Texas
Then to 4th U.S. Infantry at Fort Reading, California and spent most of his time in Pacific Northwest with a topographical survey mission to the Willamette Valley in 1855
Became involved with the Yakima War and Rogue River Wars being wounded when a bullet grazed his nose on March 28, 1857
Fall 1861: Traveled to Jefferson Barracks near St. Louis
Upon arriving at new post, made a courtesy call to Maj. Gen. Halleck, who commandeered his services to audit the financial records of Maj. Gen. Fremont who was tainted with charges of wasteful expenditures and fraud leaving 12 million in debt
Halleck was impressed and kept Sheridan for a staff officer and was appointed Chief Commissary officer of the Army of Southwest Missouri
January 1862: Reported for duty to Maj. Gen. Samuel Curtis
March 7-8, 1862: Battle of Pea Ridge
Discovered officers were engaged in profiteering and refused to pay for stolen property. When ordered to pay, Sheridan refused and was arrested for insubordination, but Halleck's influence seems to have ended the formal proceedings
April 29-June 10, 1862: Siege of Corinth
May 27, 1862: Appointed Colonel of 2nd Michigan Cavalry
July 1, 1862: Battle of Booneville - Held back several regiments of Brig. Gen. Chalmer's cavalry
and reported critical intelligence about enemy dispositions
Impressed the division commanders, including Brig. Gen. Rosecrans, they recommended his promotion to Brigadier General. Promotion was approved in September, but dated July 1st.
October 8, 1862: Battle of Perryville
December 31, 1862-January 3, 1863: Battle of Stone's River
June 23-30, 1863: Tullahoma Campaign
September 20, 1863: Battle of Chicamauga
November 25, 1863: Battle of Chattanooga
May 5-6, 1864: Battle of the Wilderness
May 11, 1864: Battle of Yellow Tavern, which mortally wounded Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart
May 28, 1864: Battle at Haw's Shop
June 1-12, 1864: Battle of Cold Harbor
June 11-12, 1864: Battle of Trevilian Station
June 24, 1864: Battle of Samaria (St. Mary's) Church
Valley Campaign of 1864
Army of the Shenandoah
August 7, 1864: Harper's Ferry
September 19, 1864: Battle of 3rd Winchester
September 22, 1864: Battle of Fisher's Hill
October 19, 1864: Battle of Cedar Creek
November 4, 1864: Major General in Regular Army - 4th Ranking general in U.S. Army
March 1865: Moved to rejoin the Army of the Potomac at Petersburg
March 2, 1865: Battle of Waynesboro
April 1, 1865: Cut off Gen. Lee's lines of support at Five Forks forcing Gen. Lee to evacuate Petersburg
April 9, 1865: Blocked Gen. Lee's escape, forcing the surrender at Appomattox
May 17, 1865: Grant appoint Sheridan as commander of the Military District of the Southwest with orders to defeat Gen. Kirby Smith. He was to restore Texas and Louisiana to Union control. However, Smith surrendered before Sheridan reached New Orleans
Grant gave permission to Sheridan to assemble a force of 50,000 in three Corps and quickly occupied the Texas coastal cities and along the Texas/Mexico border
March 1867: Appointed military governor of 5th Military District (Texas and Louisiana)
President Johnson removed Sheridan from his post stating to Gen. Grant, "His rule has, in fact, been one of absolute tyranny, without references to the principles of our government or the nature of our free institutions.
While Sheridan was assigned duty in the West, he was sent to Louisiana on two occasions to deal with problems lingering from Reconstruction
With the Sioux and Cheyenne conducting raids on mail coaches, burned the stations, and killed the employees, Grant turned to Sheridan
September 1866: Sheridan arrived at the former Fort Martin Scott near Fredericksburg, Texas where he spent three months subduing Indians in Texas Hill Country
August 1867: Grant appointed Sheridan to head Department of Missouri to pacify the Plains
Winter 1868-1869: Winter Campaign in which he attacked the Cheyenne, Kiowa and Comanche tribes in their winter quarters, taking their supplies, livestock and killing those who resisted
After Grant's election to president, Sheridan was promoted to General of the Army and appointed to command the Military Division of the Missouri
Sheridan applauded the buffalo hunters: "Let them kill, skin and sell until the buffalo is exterminated."
Sheridan's department conducted the Red River War, the Ute War and the Great Sioux war of 1876-1877 which resulted in the death of Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer
November 1, 1883: Sheridan succeeded General Sherman as Commanding General of the U.S. Army and held the position till his death
Boatner, Mark M. III. The Civil War Dictionary. New York: New York: David McKay, 1967. p 747-748
Philip Sheridan. 18 September 2020. web. 21 September 2020.
Philip Sheridan - Union General. 2020. web. 22 September 2020
Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Blue Lives of the Union Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State, 1964. p 437-439
Wheelan, Joseph. Terrible Swift Sword The Life of General Philip H. Sheridan. Philadelphia: Da Capo Press, 2012.