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Battleline -> Maine Man: USA Maj. Gen. Hiram Berry (1/28/2009 9:27:55 PM)
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Maj. Gen. Hiram G. Berry (b. 1824, d. 1863) Hiram Gregory Berry wanted to make up for lost time. After missing the Second Manassas Campaign, Berry had ascended to division command and the major general’s grade in November of 1862. Operations near Chancellorsville gave him an opportunity to prove himself in division command. However, Berry’s leadership of Maj. Gen. Joe Hooker’s old III Corps Division was cut short when Berry was killed leading his command against Confederates under Lt. Gen. Thomas Jackson May 3, 1863. Berry came from a military family. His grandfather fought in the Revolution and his father was a veteran of the War of 1812. Berry was born Aug. 27, 1824, in Thomaston (now Rockland), Maine. He grew up and worked as a carpenter and contractor before moving into higher positions. He was a bank president, member of the Maine legislature, mayor of Rockland and captain of a local militia company. When the Civil War came, Berry was commissioned colonel of the 4th Maine Volunteer Infantry June 15, 1861. This regiment was a three-year unit and was sent immediately to the front. It participated in First Bull Run (July 21, 1861) as part of Col. O.O. Howard’s 3rd brigade of Col. Samuel Heintzelman’s 3rd division. The 4th Maine became a core unit in the Army of the Potomac. In March of 1862, Berry was promoted to brigadier general. He led a brigade in the Peninsular Campaign and was mentioned in reports by Philip Kearny, Hooker, Heintzelman and George McClellan after fighting at Yorktown, Williamsburg, Seven Pines and the Seven Days Campaign. He became ill near the end of this campaign (reportedly malaria) and missed the Second Manassas Campaign. He returned in time for the Battle of Fredericksburg with a promotion to major general Nov. 29, 1862. Still leading a brigade, Berry earned praise from Confederate Maj. Gen. A.P. Hill, who commended the brigade’s discipline. Confederate fire pinned Berry’s brigade for two entire days before it could be extracted. In February of 1863, Berry was given Hooker’s former division in III Corps. At Chancellorsville, Berry had hard work trying to reorganize the Federal lines after the shock attack by Jackson’s Confederates. While leading a bayonet charge May 3, around 7 a.m., Berry was shot. He died about a half-hour later. He was buried in Achorn Cemetery in Rockland, Maine.
Note: Wikipedia lists his middle name as “George.” I have decided to stick with Gregory, listed by both Warner in Generals in Blue and Heidler in the Encyclopedia of the American Civil War.
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