John Curtis Caldwell

(1833 - 1912)
Home State: Maine
Command Billet: Brigade Commander
Branch of Service: Infantry
Unit: 1st Brigade, 1st Division, II Corps

see his Battle Report

Before the Antietam Campaign:
In November 1861 he was Colonel of the 11th Maine Regiment and in April 1862 was appointed BGen. of Volunteers and took command of the 1st Brigade/1st Division/II Corps for the Peninsula campaign.

In the Antietam Campaign:
He was in command of the 1st Brigade of the 1st Division/Second (II) Corps. In the attack of the First Division on the Sunken Road on the morning of the 17th, he was probably not at the head of his Brigade. It was reported to the Division commander, MGen Richardson, that Caldwell was somewhere to the rear "hiding behind a haystack", at which time (after some colorful swearing) Richardson took personal command of the Brigade. MGen Richardson was killed in that assault.

The remainder of the War:
He continued in command of the 1st Brigade at Fredericksburg (wounded) Chancellorsville Gettysburg and Mine Run. He was relieved of duty in the Army of the Potomac in March 1864.

After the War:
He was a lawyer, US Consul in Valparaiso, US Minister to Uruguay, and US Consul in Costa Rica. He served in the honor guard in the procession of Lincoln's body from Washington to Springfield.

Birth Date: 4/17/1833    Place of Birth: Lowell, VT
College: Amherst    Graduating Year: 1855
Death Date: 8/31/1912    Death Place: Calais, ME

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