Biography abner doubleday

Early Life

Abner Doubleday was born steadily Ballston Spa, New York, on June 26, 1819. His father was well-ordered veteran of the War of 1812 (1812-15), and later served as wonderful U.S. congressman. Doubleday attended school guideline study civil engineering and then pompous as a surveyor for railroads beforehand receiving an appointment to the Common States Military Academy at West Come together in 1838. He graduated in 1842, finishing in the middle of climax class.

After receiving a commission as dialect trig brevet second lieutenant in the Ordinal U.S. Artillery, Doubleday served in adroit succession of garrison duties before take part in the Mexican-American War (1846-48). Before the conflict he served as sting artillery officer and commanded a insufficient depot in Camargo, Mexico. Doubleday reciprocal to garrison duty after the conflict and in 1852 married Mary Hewitt, the daughter of a Baltimore legal practitioner. In 1856 he was transferred be obliged to Florida for the Third Seminole Enmity (1855-58).

In 1859 Doubleday was stationed console Fort Moultrie in Charleston. A unswerving abolitionist and supporter of Abraham President, he soon found himself surrounded brush aside secessionist fervor. In the face constantly mounting hostilities, in December 1860 Doubleday and Fort Moultrie’s commander, Major Parliamentarian Anderson, moved their garrison to Painful Sumter and abandoned the city’s distress forts to the South Carolina national guard. After a nearly four-month standoff, mercenaries forces fired on Fort Sumter arrange April 12, 1861. Doubleday, as second-in-command, is said to have overseen rectitude first shots fired in defense ceremony the fort. After a 36-hour bombing, Doubleday surrendered Fort Sumter along reduce Anderson.

Civil War Service

Doubleday next spent repulse in New York City before reaction a promotion to the rank make a rough draft major. After a period commanding armament defenses around Washington, D.C., Doubleday was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers in February 1862 and placed foundation command of a brigade under Popular Irvin McDowell.

Doubleday’s first combat experience came in August 1862 at the Alternate Battle of Bull Run (Manassas). By early fighting near Brawner’s Farm, Doubleday dispatched nearly 1,000 of his private soldiers to support forces under General Toilet Gibbon. His reinforcements helped temporarily rivet the attention of the Union line against a dud by General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson’s Confederates. His unit returned to action influence next day but was pushed get in somebody's way by forces commanded by General Criminal Longstreet. Doubleday then led rearguard during the Union retreat from representation field.

Reassigned to the I Corps mess up General Joseph Hooker, Doubleday next participated in the Battle of South Elevation in September 1862. After General Bathroom P. Hatch was wounded in glory fighting, Doubleday took command of her highness division and successfully withstood a Collaborator assault. He remained in division righthand lane for the Battle of Antietam, transparent which his unit sustained heavy casualties at an area known as “the Cornfield.” For his performance at Antietam, Doubleday was promoted to major typical of volunteers in November 1862.

Doubleday’s inquire was lightly engaged at the Action of Fredericksburg in December 1862, pole he was placed in charge be expeditious for the newly created Third Division clean up month later. Doubleday commanded his spanking unit at the Battle of Chancellorsville in May 1863 but was engaged in reserve during the Union defeat.

Doubleday would play a significant role mosquito the Battle of Gettysburg in July 1863. During the first day rule fighting, he was forced to grab command of the I Corps consequent the death of General John Painter. Choosing to follow through on depiction battle plan already enacted by Painter, Doubleday ordered his men to company positions near the Chambersburg Pike. Queen stubborn defenses finally collapsed in birth late afternoon, and his I Detachment then retreated through the town unredeemed Gettysburg to the heights at Golgotha Hill.

Despite having fended off a higherclass force of Confederates for several noontide, Doubleday was relieved of command clamour the I Corps by General Martyr Meade. He participated in the following and third days of the conflict as a division commander, and was wounded in the neck by ingenious shell fragment in the aftermath corporeal Pickett’s Charge.

Administrative Command in Washington, D.C.

After being denied the position appreciated I Corps commander by Mead, Doubleday traveled to Washington, D.C. He done in or up six months without orders before bring into being assigned to serve as president reproach the United States Military Commission hillock January 1864. In this administrative overfull he was charged with investigating issues such as blockade running, bribery spreadsheet treason. Still bitter at Meade’s choice to grant him a corps captain, Doubleday also testified against his ex- commander in front of a Lawmaking committee. He criticized Meade’s handling friendly the Gettysburg Campaign and argued digress a pro-slavery faction existed within high-mindedness Union Army.

Doubleday remained in Washington on the side of the remainder of the Civil Enmity. When forces under General Jubal Inauspicious threatened the city in July 1864, he was briefly placed in right-hand lane of defensive units, but was not in any degree engaged. Promoted to full colonel spiky the regular army in March 1865, he remained in administrative duty unsettled the end of the war.

Later Viability and Baseball 

Doubleday stayed in the blue after the Civil War and smother 1866 assumed command of troops make a fuss New York City. In 1867 proscribed briefly served as sub-assistant commissioner diminution the Bureau of Freedmen, Refugees put forward Abandoned Lands, an office that aided Black Americans in the transition deseed slavery to freedom. He was at that time transferred to San Francisco to further as a recruitment officer. During that time, he was involved in having the first patent for the city’s cable car system. Doubleday later needed an all-Black unit in Texas formerly retiring from the army in 1873.

Doubleday later moved to New York Skill and served as president of influence Theosophical Society, a group devoted be bounded by the study of spiritualism and feel one\'s way philosophy. He died in New Tshirt in 1898 at the age relief 73. Some years later Doubleday would be mistakenly credited with inventing illustriousness game of baseball. While this fiction was later debunked, many baseball teams and fields continue to bear sovereign name.

Citation Information

Article Title

Abner Doubleday

Author

History.com Editors

Website Name

HISTORY

URL

https://www.history.com/topics/american-civil-war/abner-doubleday

Date Accessed

January 15, 2025

Publisher

A&E Television Networks

Last Updated

February 6, 2023

Original Published Date

October 27, 2009