Joseph White Latimer

(1843 - 1863)
Home State: Virginia
Command Billet: Battery Commander
Branch of Service: Artillery
Unit: Courtney (VA) Artillery

Before the Antietam Campaign:
He was at VMI, in the Class of 1863, and was one of the students chosen to serve as a drill instructor at the Camp of Instruction in Richmond after the war broke out. In July 1861 when the training camps disbanded he returned home. Just after his 18th birthday later that year he was appointed Lieutenant in Captain A. R. CourtneyÌs Hampden Artillery. This was one of the batteries he had instructed and Courtney was his cousin. In September he was elected the senior second Lieutenant of the battery.

In the Antietam Campaign:
He was in command of the Battery, as Maj Courtney had been promoted to command of the Battalion.

The remainder of the War:
Promoted to Major in May 1863, he was mortally wounded at Gettysburg on July 2, 1863, just 19 years old.

More on the Web:
There's a portrait of him at the Preston Library, VMI, Lexington, Va.

Place of Birth: Oak Ridge, VA
College: Virginia Military Institute (VMI)
Death Date: 8/1/1863    Death Place: Harrisonburg, VA    Burial Place: Woodbine Cemetery, Harrisonburg, VA

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