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G.L.P Wren
(1836 - 1901)
Home State: Louisiana
Education: Emory College, Class of 1859
Branch of Service: Infantry
Unit: 8th Louisiana Infantry
Before Sharpsburg
An unmarried teacher and law student in Claiborne Parish, he enlisted in the Minden Blues in about April 1861. They arrived in New Orleans on 14 June and enlisted as Company G, 8th Louisiana Infantry on 23 June 1861 at Camp Moore, LA. He was commissioned Junior 2nd Lieutenant on 24 April 1862 and was captured at Port Republic, VA on 9 June. He was a prisoner at Fort Delaware and exchanged at Aiken's Landing, VA on 5 August. He was promoted to Senior 2nd Lieutenant on 24 August.
On the Campaign
He was wounded in action at Sharpsburg on 17 September 1862. Of his Company he later wrote:
... we marched into Maryland, crossing the Potomac at Leesburg. Re-crossing at Williamsport we took Harper's Ferry on the 15th of September; and then crossing for the third time, we fought the destructive battle of Sharpsburg on the 17th. We carried only 18 men into this fight, many having been left behind on the forced march to reach this point in time, and when the wounded were borne from the field, only three of the company were left standing.
The rest of the War
He was on furlough for his wound into February 1863 and returned to duty, but was again wounded, on 4 May 1863, place not given. He was captured at Spotsylvania, VA on 12 May 1864 and returned to Fort Delaware. He took the oath of allegiance on 16 June 1865 and was released.
After the War
Known as Lovick Wren, he was a teacher and successful planter in Webster Parish. He was elected to 6 terms in the State Legislature; 4 in the House (1884-92) and 2 in the Senate (1892-96).
References & notes
Service information from Booth,1 as George L.P. Wren. Details from family genealogists and his obituary in the Webster Signal of 15 February 1901. His gravesite is on Findagrave. His picture here from a photograph posted to the FB Louisiana Confederate Images page.
He married Ellen Carr (1846-1941) in 1869 and they had at least 7 children.
More on the Web
His brief History of the Minden Blues, source of the quote above, is in The History of Claiborne Parish, Louisiana (1886) in online thanks to the Internet Archive.
A collection of 3 of his diaries (1858-59, 1861-62, 1863-65) are in the collection of the Stuart A. Rose Library, Emory University, Atlanta [finding aid], as is a copy of a photograph of him in uniform.
Birth
01/10/1836; Oxford, Putnam County, GA
Death
02/09/1901; Minden, LA; burial in Pine Grove Cemetery, Minden, LA
1 Booth, Andrew B., Records of Louisiana Confederate Soldiers and Louisiana Confederate Commands, 3 Volumes, New Orleans: State of Louisiana, 1920, Vol. 3, Book 2, Part 2, pg. 1166 [AotW citation 22343]