Joseph C Mayo, Jr.

Referred to as Junior after his grandfather, rather than his father, he graduated from the Virginia Military Institute in 1852. He was appointed Major of the 3rd Virginia Infantry on 3 May 1861, Lieutenant Colonel on 6 November, and Colonel on 27 April 1862.

He was wounded in action at Sharpsburg on 17 September.

He returned to command of the Regiment in action again at Fredericksburg in December 1862, and was again wounded at Gettysburg in July 1863, where he led the remnants of the Brigade back from Pickett's Charge. He remained with the Regiment to Appomattox Court House in April 1865 where he briefly commanded Terry's Brigade.

A lawyer and editor in Richmond and Petersburg, he had been a member of VMI's Board of Visitors in 1860-61 and 1873-74. He was State Treasurer of Virginia (c. 1871-74) and a member of the State Senate. A snippet from the Shepherdstown Register of 18 April 1874 (Editorial Brevities) found online noted "Col. Joseph Mayo, State Treasurer of Virginia, has been adjudged a lunatic and sent to an asylum for treatment." No other references to this event found.

Basic biographical information from the VMI Archives and brief obituary in the Fredericksburg Daily Star of 15 April 1898.

See his account of Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg from the Southern Historical Society Papers courtesy of the Gettysburg Discussion Group.

02/05/1834; Westmoreland County, VA

04/11/1898; Westmoreland County, VA; burial in Yeocomico Churchyard, Westmoreland Co., VA