Orlando Bolivar Willcox

Encyclopedia : O : OR : ORL : Orlando Bolivar Willcox

Orlando Bolivar Willcox was a general in the Union army during the American Civil War.

Willcox was born in Detroit, Michigan on April 16, 1823. He entered the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York in 1843 and graduated in 1847. Following graduation he was commissioned Second Lieutenant in the Fourth Artillery.

Willcox served in the Mexican-American War, fought on the frontier, and in the Seminole War. Following the latter conflict he resigned from the US Army in 1857.

When the American Civil War began Orlando was practicing law in Detroit. He soon quit and was appointed Colonel of the First Michigan Regiment. In the Battle of Manassas Willcox was severely wounded and taken prisoner. Upon being exchanged he was promoted to Brigadier General of Volunteers.

During the draft riots the officer commanded the District of Indiana and Michigan. In 1864 he was given a promotion to Major General of Volunteers. During the Richmond, Virginia campaign Orlando led the first regiment to enter Petersburg, Virginia. Near the armistice Willcox was in action in North Carolina.

Later he was breveted Major General in the regular army. He put down the raids of Apache Indians as Commander of the Department of Arizona. For his service in the West he was awarded a vote of thanks by the Arizona Legislature. General Willcox retired in 1886.

Brigadier General Willcox died in Coburg, Ontario. He was 85 years of age.

Reference

New York Times, Brig. Gen. Willcox Dead, He Was a Veteran of the Mexican and Civil Wars and Indian Campaigns'', May 11, 1907, Page 7.

From Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia. Original article here. Support Wikipedia by contributing or donating.
All text is available under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License See Wikipedia Copyrights for details.