James Clay Rice
Encyclopedia
James Clay Rice was a lawyer from Massachusetts, who became a brigadier general of volunteers
in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
.
on December 27, 1828 to William Rice and Welthea (Cottrell) Rice. He was self educated for most of his early life and eventually graduated from Yale University
. He became a teacher in Natchez, Mississippi
, and worked for a newspaper. During this time he began studying law and was admitted to the bar in New York City where he began his practice.
. Rice was mustered out of the 39th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
on 12 Sep 1861. The next day Rice became lieutenant colonel of the newly formed 44th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
(also known as People's Ellsworth Regiment). He fought in the Peninsula Campaign
and on July 4, 1862, became the colonel of the regiment. At the Second Battle of Bull Run
, Colonel Rice took command of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps when its commander, Daniel Butterfield
took command of the consolidated 1st and 2nd Brigades and other ranking officers were wounded on the second day of battle. Rice returned to command of the 44th New York and led it at the battles of Fredericksburg
and Chancellorsville
. At the Battle of Gettysburg
Rice and his regiment were sent to the defense of Little Round Top
. During the fighting, brigade commander Colonel Strong Vincent
was mortally wounded and Rice once again assumed command of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps and led it for the remainder of the battle. For his service at Gettysburg, Rice was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers on August 17, 1863. In March, 1864 General Rice was in command of the 2nd Brigade, 4th Division, V Corps which he led into action at the Battle of the Wilderness
. Rice was mortally wounded at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House
. As he lay dying he muttered the words "turn me over that I may die with my face to the enemy." He died on the Spotsylvania battlefield on May 10, 1864. He was buried at Albany Rural Cemetery, Menands, New York
, in section 42, plot 11.
, an English immigrant to Massachusetts Bay Colony
, as follows:
In the film Gettysburg, Colonel Rice was portrayed by Joshua D. Maurer and is briefly seen congratulating Col. Joshua L. Chamberlain following the fighting on Little Round Top, informing him of the name of that place.
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
in the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Early life
Rice was born in Worthington, MassachusettsWorthington, Massachusetts
Worthington is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,270 at the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area.-Geography:...
on December 27, 1828 to William Rice and Welthea (Cottrell) Rice. He was self educated for most of his early life and eventually graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
. He became a teacher in Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez, Mississippi
Natchez is the county seat of Adams County, Mississippi, United States. With a total population of 18,464 , it is the largest community and the only incorporated municipality within Adams County...
, and worked for a newspaper. During this time he began studying law and was admitted to the bar in New York City where he began his practice.
Civil War
When the Civil War began Rice enlisted on 28 May 1861 in the 39th New York Infantry Regiment quickly becoming a captain of Company B and engaging at the First Battle of Bull RunFirst Battle of Bull Run
First Battle of Bull Run, also known as First Manassas , was fought on July 21, 1861, in Prince William County, Virginia, near the City of Manassas...
. Rice was mustered out of the 39th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
39th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 39th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment, the "Garibaldi Guard", was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War.-Service:...
on 12 Sep 1861. The next day Rice became lieutenant colonel of the newly formed 44th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
44th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment
The 44th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment was a regiment of the Union Army during the American Civil War which was formed up in mid-1861, and mustered in on August 30, 1861.-Service:The regiment was first mustered by Stephen W...
(also known as People's Ellsworth Regiment). He fought in the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
and on July 4, 1862, became the colonel of the regiment. At the Second Battle of Bull Run
Second Battle of Bull Run
The Second Battle of Bull Run or Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of an offensive campaign waged by Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia against Union Maj. Gen...
, Colonel Rice took command of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps when its commander, Daniel Butterfield
Daniel Butterfield
Daniel Adams Butterfield was a New York businessman, a Union General in the American Civil War, and Assistant U.S. Treasurer in New York. He is credited with composing the bugle call Taps and was involved in the Black Friday gold scandal in the Grant administration...
took command of the consolidated 1st and 2nd Brigades and other ranking officers were wounded on the second day of battle. Rice returned to command of the 44th New York and led it at the battles of Fredericksburg
Battle of Fredericksburg
The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, between General Robert E. Lee's Confederate Army of Northern Virginia and the Union Army of the Potomac, commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose E. Burnside...
and Chancellorsville
Battle of Chancellorsville
The Battle of Chancellorsville was a major battle of the American Civil War, and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville Campaign. It was fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, near the village of Chancellorsville. Two related battles were fought nearby on...
. At the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
Rice and his regiment were sent to the defense of Little Round Top
Little Round Top
Little Round Top is the smaller of two rocky hills south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It was the site of an unsuccessful assault by Confederate troops against the Union left flank on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg....
. During the fighting, brigade commander Colonel Strong Vincent
Strong Vincent
Strong Vincent was a lawyer who became famous as a U.S. Army officer during the fighting on Little Round Top at the American Civil War Battle of Gettysburg, where he was mortally wounded.-Early life:...
was mortally wounded and Rice once again assumed command of the 3rd Brigade, 1st Division, V Corps and led it for the remainder of the battle. For his service at Gettysburg, Rice was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers on August 17, 1863. In March, 1864 General Rice was in command of the 2nd Brigade, 4th Division, V Corps which he led into action at the Battle of the Wilderness
Battle of the Wilderness
The Battle of the Wilderness, fought May 5–7, 1864, was the first battle of Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign against Gen. Robert E. Lee and the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia. Both armies suffered heavy casualties, a harbinger of a bloody war of attrition by...
. Rice was mortally wounded at the Battle of Spotsylvania Court House
Battle of Spotsylvania Court House
The Battle of Spotsylvania Court House, sometimes simply referred to as the Battle of Spotsylvania , was the second major battle in Lt. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant's 1864 Overland Campaign of the American Civil War. Following the bloody but inconclusive Battle of the Wilderness, Grant's army disengaged...
. As he lay dying he muttered the words "turn me over that I may die with my face to the enemy." He died on the Spotsylvania battlefield on May 10, 1864. He was buried at Albany Rural Cemetery, Menands, New York
Menands, New York
Menands is a village in Albany County, New York, United States. The population was 3,990 at the 2010 census. The village is named after Louis Menand...
, in section 42, plot 11.
Genealogy
James Clay Rice was a direct descendant of Edmund RiceEdmund Rice (1638)
Edmund Rice , was an early immigrant to Massachusetts Bay Colony who was born in Suffolk, England, and lived in Stanstead, Suffolk and Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire prior to sailing with his family to America. He arrived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in summer or fall of 1638, presumed to be first...
, an English immigrant to Massachusetts Bay Colony
Massachusetts Bay Colony
The Massachusetts Bay Colony was an English settlement on the east coast of North America in the 17th century, in New England, situated around the present-day cities of Salem and Boston. The territory administered by the colony included much of present-day central New England, including portions...
, as follows:
- James Clay Rice, son of
- William Rice (1778 – ?), son of
- Joseph Rice (1745–1826), son of
- Ebenezer Rice (1709–1793), son of
-
-
- Ebenezer Rice (1671–1724), son of
- Benjamin Rice (1640–1713), son of
-
- Edmund RiceEdmund Rice (1638)Edmund Rice , was an early immigrant to Massachusetts Bay Colony who was born in Suffolk, England, and lived in Stanstead, Suffolk and Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire prior to sailing with his family to America. He arrived in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in summer or fall of 1638, presumed to be first...
(1594–1663)
- Edmund Rice
-
Legacy
An impressive monument to the 12th New York and Rice's own 44th New York Volunteer Infantry Regiment was constructed on the Gettysburg battlefield.In the film Gettysburg, Colonel Rice was portrayed by Joshua D. Maurer and is briefly seen congratulating Col. Joshua L. Chamberlain following the fighting on Little Round Top, informing him of the name of that place.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals
- Little Round TopLittle Round TopLittle Round Top is the smaller of two rocky hills south of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. It was the site of an unsuccessful assault by Confederate troops against the Union left flank on July 2, 1863, the second day of the Battle of Gettysburg....