Memorials › PVT William Allen Gentry

PVT William Allen Gentry

18 Dec 1841 – 20 Oct 1927

Birth18 Dec 1841
Death20 Oct 1927
CemeteryPleasant Grove Cemetery #01
Decatur , Wise County , Texas , USA
Added byD. Stewart on 08 Dec 2012
FaGhttps://www.findagrave.com/memorial/11455341

Bio

Parents Simon Stonewall Jackson Gentry and Elisabeth E. Bates, married to Sarah Margaret Moore on 12-17-1867 ∼ Private William Allen Gentry Blackland Gideonites Tishomingo Rebels Pvt. William Allen Gentry was born on 18th of December 1841 in Tishomingo County, Mississippi. William Allen Gentry was known as "Will" by family, friends, and especially by the men of the 23rd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, Company F "The Backland Gideonites". His unit was mustered into The Confederate States Army on 8th of June 1861 in Tishomingo County, Mississippi, with Will mustered in as a private. In August 1861, Will joined the 32nd Mississippi Infantry Regiment, known as the "Tishomingo Rebels" again in the rank of private. Will would be wounded three times in the service to the Confederate States Army. William Allen Gentry is named after his grandfather, Allen Gentry, born 1780 in Edgefield County, South Carolina. His grandfather was known to friends and family as Al. Will is one of 12 children born to Simon Stonewall Jackson Gentry and Elizabeth E. "Bates" Gentry. The remainder of this Bio will be told In the words of William Allen Gentry himself, in April of 1924 while living in Hobart County, Oklahoma. Will wrote down his Civil War experiences for his grandson and I quote: "The following is some of the things that I took part in during the war between the states and that came under my observation as I recollect. I volunteered in August of 1861, joined a company that was made up of a little place called Blackland, (once known as Tishomingo County ) Prentiss County, Mississippi. Our company went from there to Iuka, on the Memphis and Charleston R.R. We stayed there a few months and trained and went from there to Bowling Green, Kentucky, and from there to Hopkinsville and stayed there until about the middle of February 1862. When we went from there to Fort Donaldson, where after some fighting our army surrendered. February 15, 1862. I was wounded and was not sent to prison with my command. I stayed there seven weeks and went home. At that time I father lived about 20 miles south of Corinth, Mississippi. I stayed at home a week and I went to Corinth where our army was at the time, and joined the 32nd Mississippi Regiment, Company C, and served in that Regiment throughout the balance of the war. We did not stay at Karen but a few days after I went there. The Army Retreated down the Mobile R.R. to Tupelo, and stayed there a while, and then went to Mobile and crossed the bay, and went from there to Montgomery, Alabama by rail, and from there to Chattanooga, Tennessee and across the Tennessee River and started on Braggs famous March through Kentucky. There is a great deal that happened that I have forgotten. The first thing of interest that happened on that March was a surrender of Fort Munfordsville on September 14, 1862 to Braggs Army. The next thing that happened of any consequence was the battle of Perryville, Kentucky, on October 8, 1862. My wife's brother Bester Moore was killed in the battle, though I was not married at the time. From there we made our way through Kentucky out by Cumberland gap to Knoxville, Tennessee. Got to Knoxville on October 13, 1862 and from there we went back to Chattanooga, Tennessee. There was many things happening about this time that I have forgotten. While we were around Chattanooga there was a fight that my Regiment was not in. The next great battle was the battle of Chickamauga, which takings its name from the Creek of that name. This battle was fought on the 19th and 20th of September 1863. In this engagement we forced the enemy back into Chattanooga and Them there for some time. They finally reinforce their Army until they were able to force us back, and then commenced Johnson's famous retreat from Chattanooga to Atlanta. We had several engages with the enemy on this retreat. One at a place called Ringold gap that I was in, one at Maclemore Cove that I was in. The only fighting here was on artillery. The greatest battle fought on this retreat was at Resaca except the one Atlanta. I was not in the one at Resaca, I was in the one at Atlanta. That was one of the bloodiest battles. I was in. This battle at Atlanta fought on the 22nd day of July 1864. After this battle Hood gave up Atlanta and went back through Alabama into Tennessee. Across the Tennessee River near Decatur, Alabama on a pontoon bridge and went to Franklin, where we had one of our bloodiest if not the bloodiest battles of the war. This battle was fought on November 30, 1864. I was wounded twice in this battle. I was put in a hospital in Franklin and the Army followed the enemy to Nashville and was defeated and fell back through Franklin, but they could not take it wounded. So I fell into the hands of the enemy, and was sent to prison at Columbus, Ohio. The name of the prison was Chase. So I remained in prison until the war ended. Lee surrendered in April 1865, and I got to go home about 25 June 1865. I wasn't six regular battles, besides some skirmishes. The battles were Fort Donaldson, February 15, 1862, then Perryville, Kentucky, October 8, 1862, then Chickamauga, September 19 and 20th 1863, next was Ringold Gap Georgia, I don't remember what month but it was 1863. Next was Atlanta, Georgia, July 22, 1864, then pregnant Tennessee. November 30, 1864." After being paroled from Camp Chase Prison and pledging allegiance to United States of America, Will returned home to Tishomingo County, Mississippi. A little more than a year later William Allen Gentry married Sarah Margaret Moore in Corinth, Adams County, Mississippi on the 12th of December 1866. In the latter part of 1870, along with fellow Mississippians, Will and Sarah Gentry headed west to Texas and were shown in the 1880 Census to be living in Wise County, Texas, where they were later laid to rest in the Pleasant Grove Cemetery #1.

Photos

Family

Parents

Spouse

Siblings

Children

Export GEDCOM

This person only · Entire connected family