Daniel Weisiger Adams (May 1, 1821 – June 13, 1872) was a noted lawyer and a brigadier general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War.

Early life and career

Adams was born in Lynchburg, Virginia, to George Adams and Anna Weisiger Adams. His brother was William Wirt Adams, another future Civil War general. He was educated at the University of Virginia, passed the bar exam, and began to practice law in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 1842. He became prominent in local political and social circles, and his practice became one of the city's largest.

Civil War

With the secession of Louisiana following the 1860 election of Abraham Lincoln, Adams was appointed in early 1861 as a member of the military board created to prepare the state for war. He was later appointed a lieutenant colonel in the Confederate Army, advancing to the rank of brigadier general in 1862. He commanded the 1st Louisiana Regulars and fought in multiple major battles, principally the battles of Shiloh, Perryville, Stones River, and Chickamauga. He was wounded several times, losing his right eye at Shiloh, and was captured at Chickamauga.

He commanded a cavalry brigade, and was subsequently made the commander of the District of Central Alabama in 1864, and the commander of the State of Alabama, North of Gulf Department in 1865. He took part in the Battle of Selma in 1865, and the battle of Columbus, Georgia, that same year.

Postbellum career

After the war ended, Adams resumed the practice of law in New Orleans until his death in 1872. He is buried at Greenwood Cemetery in Jackson, Mississippi.

Notes

The photograph labeled as "D.W. Adams" in Francis Miller's Photograph History of the Civil War Volume X (which also appears in Find A Grave) are incorrect; it is that of his brother W.W. Adams. The only known photograph {above} of D.W. Adams appears in Warner's "Generals In Gray" & also on http://www.generalsandbrevets.com/sa/sa.htm.

See also

• List of American Civil War generals

References

• Warner, Ezra J., Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders, Louisiana State University Press, 1959, ISBN 0-8071-0823-5.
• Who Was Who in America, Historical Volume 1607-1896. Chicago: Marquis Who's Who, 1963.
• Retrieved on 2008-01-03