Gilmer, Jeremy Francis, 1818-1883

Jeremy Francis Gilmer was born in 1818 and died in 1883 in Savannah, Georgia. He graduated from West Point and was an engineer in the United States Army. Gilmer married Louise Frederika Alexander of Savannah in 1850. In 1861, he was appointed colonel in the Confederate States Army and Chief Engineer to Major General Albert Sidney Johnston. Gilmer was later appointed Major General, Chief Engineer of the Department of Northern Virginia and Chief Engineer of the War Department. He assisted in setting up defenses of Charleston, South Carolina and Atlanta, Georgia. From 1867 until his death, he was president of Savannah Gas Light Company.

From the description of Jeremy Francis Gilmer letter, 1855. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 38478010

Jeremy Francis Gilmer was born in Guilford County, N.C., on 23 February 1818. He entered the United States Army as a Second Lieutenant of Engineers in July 1839 after graduating from the United States Military Academy. He continued as an United States Army Engineer, constructing fortifications and conducting surveys until 1861, when he resigned in support of the southern cause. In September 1861, Gilmer was appointed Major of Engineers in the Confederate States of America Army and served as Chief Engineer of the staff of General A. S. Johnston until the general's death at the battle of Shiloh on 6 April 1862, where Gilmer was also severely wounded.

After his recovery, Gilmer served for a short time with the Army of Northern Virginia. On 9 August 1862, he was assigned to the Office of Chief of Engineer Bureau in Richmond, Va., and promoted to the rank of Colonel of Engineers. Promoted to Major General on 20 August 1863, Gilmer was ordered to Charleston, S.C., to direct the defense of the city. He returned to Richmond in June 1864, where he directed the Engineer Bureau until the end of the War. In the fall of 1865, Gilmer was elected a director of the Georgia Central Railroad and later served as president pro tem. In 1866, he was elected president of the Savannah Gas-Light Company, an office he held along with director, Georgia Central Railroad, until his death on 1 December 1883.

From the guide to the Jeremy Francis Gilmer Papers, 1839-1894, (Southern Historical Collection)