September 22, 1833 - May 28, 1908
There probably is
not one member of the Sons of Confederate Veterans who has not heard of
Lieutenant General Stephen Dill Lee who on April 25 1906 charged us as
follows:
However, there are probably very few that realize that he, like four other Confederate Generals, adopted Columbus, Mississippi as his home nor that his final resting place is Friendship Cemetery in Columbus.
The youngest
Lieutenant General of the Confederacy, Stephen Dill Lee was born
to Dr. Thomas Lee and Caroline Allison Lee on 22 September 1833 in
Charleston, S.C. He entered West Point at the age of 17 and
graduated in 1854; he served in the U.S. Army in Texas, Florida,
Kansas, and the Dakotas. In 1861, he resigned from the U.S. Army
to enter service in the Confederate Army as a Captain and aide-de-camp
to General Beauregard. and rose in rank from Captain to Lieutenant
General.
By profession an artillerist, he served in the artillery through all the Virginia campaigns until Sharpsburg, and was meantime promoted through grades to Colonel. On November 6, 1862, he was appointed Brigadier General and was assigned to the command of General Pemberton’s artillery at Vicksburg. He was exchanged after the capitulation of the place in July 1863, and was promoted Major General on August 3. He was then placed in command of the cavalry in the Department of Mississippi, Alabama, West Tennessee, and East Louisiana.
Promoted to Lieutenant General on June 23, 1864, he assumed command of Hood’s old corps of the Army of Tennessee, which he led during the Tennessee campaign and in the closing days, until the surrender of General Joseph F. Johnston in North Carolina.
Lee was severely wounded in Nashville, Tenn., in 1864 and surrendered with Johnston in High Point, N.C., on 26 April 1865
Despite his youth and comparative lack of experience, Lee’s prior close acquaintanceship with all three branches of the service --- artillery, cavalry, and infantry --- rendered him one of the most capable corps commanders in the army.
In February 1865, Lee married Regina Harrison, daughter of James Thomas Harrison and Regina Blewett, of Columbus, Miss. They settled in Mississippi after the war and Lee was active as a planter for several years.
In 1878, Lee was elected to the Mississippi Senate. From 1880 to 1899, he served as the first president of the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical College, now Mississippi State University.
He resigned as college president to serve as member of the commission to organize Vicksburg Military Park. Lee was active in the Confederate veterans, wrote several articles on the Civil War, and held the post of Chief of the United Confederate Veterans until his death in Vicksburg on 28 May 1908.
The S. D. Lee Home
| "To you, Sons of Confederate Veterans, we will commit the vindication of the cause for which we fought. To your strength will be given the defense of the Confederate soldier's good name, the guardianship of his history, the emulation of his virtues, the perpetuation of those principles which he loved and which you love also, and those ideals which made him glorious and which you also cherish.” |
However, there are probably very few that realize that he, like four other Confederate Generals, adopted Columbus, Mississippi as his home nor that his final resting place is Friendship Cemetery in Columbus.
The youngest
Lieutenant General of the Confederacy, Stephen Dill Lee was born
to Dr. Thomas Lee and Caroline Allison Lee on 22 September 1833 in
Charleston, S.C. He entered West Point at the age of 17 and
graduated in 1854; he served in the U.S. Army in Texas, Florida,
Kansas, and the Dakotas. In 1861, he resigned from the U.S. Army
to enter service in the Confederate Army as a Captain and aide-de-camp
to General Beauregard. and rose in rank from Captain to Lieutenant
General. By profession an artillerist, he served in the artillery through all the Virginia campaigns until Sharpsburg, and was meantime promoted through grades to Colonel. On November 6, 1862, he was appointed Brigadier General and was assigned to the command of General Pemberton’s artillery at Vicksburg. He was exchanged after the capitulation of the place in July 1863, and was promoted Major General on August 3. He was then placed in command of the cavalry in the Department of Mississippi, Alabama, West Tennessee, and East Louisiana.
Promoted to Lieutenant General on June 23, 1864, he assumed command of Hood’s old corps of the Army of Tennessee, which he led during the Tennessee campaign and in the closing days, until the surrender of General Joseph F. Johnston in North Carolina.
Lee was severely wounded in Nashville, Tenn., in 1864 and surrendered with Johnston in High Point, N.C., on 26 April 1865
Despite his youth and comparative lack of experience, Lee’s prior close acquaintanceship with all three branches of the service --- artillery, cavalry, and infantry --- rendered him one of the most capable corps commanders in the army.
In February 1865, Lee married Regina Harrison, daughter of James Thomas Harrison and Regina Blewett, of Columbus, Miss. They settled in Mississippi after the war and Lee was active as a planter for several years.
In 1878, Lee was elected to the Mississippi Senate. From 1880 to 1899, he served as the first president of the Mississippi Agricultural and Mechanical College, now Mississippi State University.
He resigned as college president to serve as member of the commission to organize Vicksburg Military Park. Lee was active in the Confederate veterans, wrote several articles on the Civil War, and held the post of Chief of the United Confederate Veterans until his death in Vicksburg on 28 May 1908.
The S. D. Lee Home
In
1847, Major Thomas Garton Blewett, prominent early citizen of Columbus,
completed this spacious .Italianate mansion for his family home. The
walls and foundation are of solid brick which was made and laid by
local masons and the wood milled and crafted by local carpenters and
artisans. The original house had a conservatory on the south side which
overlooked formal gardens and a one and a half-story master bedroom wing on the north side. The
present-day kitchen was a hall which led not only to the master bedroom
but a covered out- side walkway leading to a beautifully appointed
Roman bath house and the kitchen.
After the deaths of Major Blewett and his wife, Regina DeGraffenreid, their daughter, Regina Blewett Harrison, inherited the house. At her death the house was left to her two daughters, Mary Harrison, who never married, and Regina Harrison Lee, wife of General Stephen D. Lee. Eventually the house was inherited by their son, Blewett Harrison Lee, a practicing lawyer in Chicago. In 1916, he sold the house and entire block to the City of Columbus for use of the city school system, and the Stephen D. Lee High School was built on the square. The wings of the home and outbuildings were removed and the home converted into the home economics building and school cafeteria.
In December 1959, the school was destroyed by fire and the home severely damaged. On the day following the fire, the Association for the Preservation of Antiquities in Columbus and Lowndes County met with city officials to pre vent the planned demolition of the house and to request permission to restore it. The Association for the Preservation of Antiquities and the Lowndes County Historical Society combined to form the Stephen D. Lee Foundation, a tax exempt nonprofit corporation. This umbrella organization represented pilgrimage home owners and various civic, patriotic and historical groups.
The Lowndes County Historical Society uses two upstairs rooms for a museum, and the Stephen D. Lee Chapter 34 of the United Daughters of the Confederacy furnished the upstairs room on the west side.
Some
of the original furnishings, paintings and memorabilia were returned by
the family, and many handsome gifts have been received from donors,
both Columbians and others. The home now serves the community as an
educational and cultural center.
The Florence McLeod Hazard Museum and UDC Room are filled with a variety of treasured and valuable historical items pertaining to the state and local area.
Through the Historical Society's Docent Program, weekly tours are conducted for visitors, and complimentary school tours are given by appointment. The downstairs is used for meetings, weddings, educational events, and many other special occasions.
The property receives no financial support from the city, county or state and is maintained and operated entirely by private funding and voluntary contributions.
On behalf of both organizations, the Stephen D. Lee Foundation extends a warm welcome to this beloved home and museum, a property now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
After the deaths of Major Blewett and his wife, Regina DeGraffenreid, their daughter, Regina Blewett Harrison, inherited the house. At her death the house was left to her two daughters, Mary Harrison, who never married, and Regina Harrison Lee, wife of General Stephen D. Lee. Eventually the house was inherited by their son, Blewett Harrison Lee, a practicing lawyer in Chicago. In 1916, he sold the house and entire block to the City of Columbus for use of the city school system, and the Stephen D. Lee High School was built on the square. The wings of the home and outbuildings were removed and the home converted into the home economics building and school cafeteria.
In December 1959, the school was destroyed by fire and the home severely damaged. On the day following the fire, the Association for the Preservation of Antiquities in Columbus and Lowndes County met with city officials to pre vent the planned demolition of the house and to request permission to restore it. The Association for the Preservation of Antiquities and the Lowndes County Historical Society combined to form the Stephen D. Lee Foundation, a tax exempt nonprofit corporation. This umbrella organization represented pilgrimage home owners and various civic, patriotic and historical groups.
The Lowndes County Historical Society uses two upstairs rooms for a museum, and the Stephen D. Lee Chapter 34 of the United Daughters of the Confederacy furnished the upstairs room on the west side.
Some
of the original furnishings, paintings and memorabilia were returned by
the family, and many handsome gifts have been received from donors,
both Columbians and others. The home now serves the community as an
educational and cultural center. The Florence McLeod Hazard Museum and UDC Room are filled with a variety of treasured and valuable historical items pertaining to the state and local area.
Through the Historical Society's Docent Program, weekly tours are conducted for visitors, and complimentary school tours are given by appointment. The downstairs is used for meetings, weddings, educational events, and many other special occasions.
The property receives no financial support from the city, county or state and is maintained and operated entirely by private funding and voluntary contributions.
On behalf of both organizations, the Stephen D. Lee Foundation extends a warm welcome to this beloved home and museum, a property now listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The MIDI file of
"Confederate Land.mid" is used by
permission of Benjamin Robert Tubb from his website at Public Domain
Music <http://www.pdmusic.org>.