Lloyd Tilghman, a graduate of West Point who joined the confederacy at the outbreak of the #CivilWar, died #OTD in 1863. After graduating near the bottom of the Class of 1836, he served only three months before resigning to become a railroad engineer.🧵
He settled in Paducah, KY, and was still living there at the outbreak of the war. His familiarity with the area and engineering background led to his appointment to construct Fort Henry and @FortDonelsonNPS along the Tennessee River.
The site for Fort Henry was poorly selected, placed in a flood plain. Tilghman did not notice this until it was too late to change the location. The rising river waters led directly to the loss of the fort, as they flooded the powder magazine, disabling many of the fort’s guns.
Tilghman surrendered with his men, and was held as a U.S. prisoner for several months at Fort Warren in Boston. He was exchanged for General John Reynolds in August, 1862, and was given command of a brigade in Earl Van Dorn’s Army of the West.
The following Spring, during Ulysses Grant’s @VicksburgNPS Campaign, Tilghman was killed at The Battle of Champion Hill when he was struck in the chest by a shell. He is buried in @WoodlawnCemNY in the Bronx.
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