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Thomas Jonathan Jackson was born on January 21, 1824 in western Virginia (now West Virginia) to Jonathan Jackson (1790-1826) and Judith “Julia” Beckwith Neale (1798-1831). Jackson was orphaned at a young age and he was raised by extended members of his father’s family, mainly his uncle Cummins Jackson.
In June 1846 Jackson graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, and subsequently served in the United States Army, during which time he fought in the Mexican War. He resigned his commission in 1851 and was appointed as a Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy at Virginia Military Institute (VMI).
In April 1861, Jackson left VMI to fight in the Civil War. Following the first Battle of Manassas (Virginia) he became widely known by the nickname "Stonewall" and earned lasting fame for his leadership of Confederate forces, especially during the Valley Campaign of 1862.
Jackson died on May 10, 1863 as a result of complications from wounds received at Chancellorsville, Virginia along with pneumonia. His body was brought back to Lexington, Virginia for burial in the cemetery on the South edge of town.
For Jackson Family genealogical information, see the following resources:
Explore the timeline below to learn about different periods of Stonewall Jackson’s life. View additional photos related to Jackson here.
1824 January 21: Thomas Jonathan Jackson was born on January 21, 1824 in western Virginia (now West Virginia) to Jonathan Jackson (1790-1826) and Judith “Julia” Beckwith Neale (1798-1831). The couple had four children: Elizabeth (1819-1826), Warren (1821-1841), Thomas “Stonewall” (1824-1862), and Laura Ann (1826-1911).
1826 March: Jackson's sister Elizabeth and his father died of typhoid fever. Widowed at age 28, Julia Jackson (Neale) was left with extensive debts and the family was impoverished.
1830-1841: Julia Jackson (Neale) married Blake Baker Woodson (1783-1833). A short time after the marriage, Thomas and Laura Ann were sent to live with relatives in Jackson's Mill, [West] Virginia while Warren was sent to Neale relatives. Julia Jackson (Neale) died on December 4, 1831 during childbirth. She left behind the three Jackson siblings and a newborn son William Wirt Woodson (1831-1875). Jackson and Laura Ann spent the remaining years of childhood with their paternal uncles. Jackson's brother Warren died of tuberculosis in 1841.
Read Jackson’s correspondence during his time at West Point here and his correspondence during the Mexican War here.
1842-1846: Jackson attended the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York. He was not the first choice for his congressional district's appointment, but the top applicant withdrew from the academy after only one day. He graduated in June 1846, standing 17th out of 59 graduates. Jackson then began his United States Army career as a 2nd Lieutenant, First Artillery Regiment.
1844: Jackson's beloved sister, Laura Ann, married Jonathan Arnold.
1846-1848: Jackson served in the Mexican War from 1846-1848. He was stationed at Carlisle Barracks (Pennsylvania), Fort Hamilton (New York), and Fort Meade (Florida).
Read Jackson’s correspondence from this period here.
1851: Jackson was offered and accepted the appointment to teach at Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington, Virginia. He taught natural and experimental philosophy, which is related to modern day physics.
1853 August 4: Jackson married is first wife Elinor “Ellie” Junkin (1824-1854) on August 4, 1853, and she died shortly after giving birth to a stillborn son in 1854.
1856-1858: Jackson toured Europe, visiting Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland, England and Scotland. On July 16, 1857, Jackson married his second wife Mary Anna Morrison (1831-1915). On April 30, 1858, Mary Anna gave birth to a daughter, Mary Graham, who died less than a month later on May 25.
1859 November: Jackson accompanied a contingent of VMI cadets to Harper's Ferry, West Virginia, where they stood guard at the John Brown Execution.
Read Jackson’s correspondence from this period here.
1861 April 21: Jackson was placed in command of the Corps of Cadets who were ordered to Richmond, Virginia to serve as drillmasters for new army recruits.
1861 April 27: Virginia Governor John Letcher ordered Jackson to take command at Harper's Ferry, West Virginia, where he organized the troops that would soon comprise the famous "Stonewall Brigade." These troops included the 2nd, 4th, 5th, 27th and 33rd Virginia Infantry Regiments and the Rockbridge Artillery.
1861 July: Jackson was promoted to Brigadier General. He participated in the Battle of 1st Manassas, Virginia, where he acquired the legendary nickname “Stonewall.” The nickname refers to Jackson's steadfastness in the face of the enemy. His demeanor inspired Bee (a friend from Jackson's years at West Point) to shout to his troops "Look, men, there is Jackson standing like a stone wall! Let us determine to die here, and we will conquer!" Jackson's troops also referred to him as "Old Jack."
1861 October: Jackson was promoted to Major General and placed in command of the Valley of Virginia (i.e., the Shenandoah Valley).
1862 May-June: Jackson's Shenandoah Valley Campaign saw victories in Virginia, including at Front Royal, Winchester, Cross Keys, and Port Republic. Jackson was then ordered to join General Robert E. Lee in the eastern Virginia.
1862 June 15-July 1: Jackson displayed ineffective leadership in the Seven Days Battles near Richmond, Virginia. The reasons for this uncharacteristic military failure are still debated among Jackson scholars.
1862 June-September: Jackson participates in multiple battles, including Cedar Mountain (Virginia), Clark's Mountain (Virginia), 2nd Manassas (Virginia), and Antietam (Maryland).
1862 October: Lee reorganized his army into two corps. Jackson was promoted to Lieutenant General and given command of the new Second Corps. Jackson was now in charge of half of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.
1862 November: Jackson's daughter Julia Laura was born.
1862 December 13: Jackson participates in the Battle of Fredericksburg, Virginia.
May 1: The Battle of Chancellorsville, Virginia begins.
May 2: Jackson was accidentally fired upon by his own troops, the 18th North Carolina Infantry Regiment, while reconnoitering with members of his staff. He was taken to a field hospital near the battlefield where his left arm was amputated.
May 4: Jackson was moved to a field hospital at the home of Thomas and Mary Chandler near Guiney Station, Virginia, approximately 30 miles from the battlefield.
May 10: Jackson died at 3:15 p.m. His last words were "Let us cross over the river and rest under the shade of the trees."
May 15: Jackson's funeral took place in Lexington, Virginia.
Mary Anna Jackson (Morrison) did not remarry after Jackson’s death. She was known as the "Widow of the Confederacy" and devoted much of her time to the United Daughters of the Confederacy organization. She died on March 24, 1915 in Charlotte, North Carolina, and her remains were taken to Lexington, Virginia.
The close relationship between Jackson and his sister, Laura Ann, was destroyed during the Civil War. Laura was an outspoken Unionist who became estranged from her brother and other members of her family. Federal troops occupied her hometown of Beverly, West Virginia during most of the War, and her home was used to care for wounded troops. See the Johnson Family Papers for a letter mentioning Laura's wartime reputation.
Primary resources related to Jackson’s death and funeral include:
Cadet Samuel B. Hannah, VMI Class of 1863, wrote the following letter on May 17, 1863 about Jackson’s death and funeral:
“VMI Institute
May 17, 1863
I was Officer of the Day when the body of Gen. Jackson was brought in Barracks; no military escort accompanied him from Richmond only a few citizens, among them the Gov. His body was said to be embalmed, but of no avail. Decomposition had already taken place, in consequence of which his face was not exposed to view as the features were said not to be natural. The coffin was a perfect flower bed and under, that which was presented to his wife by the President, the first new Confederate flag ever made. His body was placed in his old Section room which will remain draped for six months.
Gen. Smith then requested that none of the flowers should be removed from the coffin which was an impossibility although I had a Sentinel posted over the remains. Still the Sentinels would remove things for themselves and of course they were afraid to inform on others for fear of being caught at it themselves. I did not think in right to take what others had placed there as a memorial of their love and esteem for our beloved Jackson, although I would prize a trophy like that the highest imaginable. Still as it had been entrusted to me to see that all was kept right, so long as his body was under my charge I couldn't conscientiously take any of the flowers when I knew that every cadet was afraid to let me see him take or touch the body.
He only remained in Barracks one day and night. He was buried on Friday the 15th of May. Dr White preached his funeral, the old Gentleman seemed and I know he was deeply afflicted, for from all accounts the Gen. took quite an active part in the church and was the founder of the Colored Sunday School and the main stay of it as long as he was in Lexington.”
From 1851 until the outbreak of Civil War, Stonewall Jackson served as Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy and Instructor of Artillery Tactics at Virginia Military Institute (VMI). Natural philosophy is related to modern day physics, and was a difficult part of the mid-nineteenth century curriculum. Many cadets found it almost impossible to master the subject under the best of circumstances (see Cadet Thomas Barksdale’s notes taken in Jackson’s class).
Unfortunately, Major Jackson, as he was known at VMI, was a mediocre teacher. Although highly intelligent, he could not convey the concepts to cadets. Francis H. Smith, VMI's Superintendent during Jackson's era, wrote the following in his History of VMI:
"As Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy, Major Jackson was not a success. He had not the qualifications needed for so important a chair. He was no teacher, and he lacked the tact required in getting along with his classes....His genius was in the Science and Art of War. He found a field for the display of this genius when the war opened in 1861."
In the spring of 1856, members of the VMI Society of Alumni responded to mounting criticism of Jackson's teaching skills. They presented to the VMI Board of Visitors a petition to have Jackson removed from office, which the Board promptly tabled without discussion.
To look objectively at the controversy, Smith contacted James T. Murfee, a respected graduate who stood first in his class in 1853 and had studied under Jackson. Murfee wrote to Smith in support of Jackson.
Jackson was the subject of many cadet pranks during his years at VMI. Cadets delighted in drawing caricatures on the blackboard in Jackson's classroom, often a sketch depicting an officer with enormous feet (his exceptionally large shoe size inspired the nickname "Square Box"). Other incidents included throwing spitballs in class, making noises when his back was turned, dropping a brick as he passed underneath a barracks window, and pulling linchpins from cannon wheels during artillery drill.
Jackson wrote the following about one of these pranks in the 1853 VMI Court Martial Book:
“Charge – Disrespectful conduct to superior officers.
Specification – In this, that he the said Cadet Thomas Blackburn having by the aid of one or more cadets, fastened cadet J. E. Towson of the Virginia Mil Institute to a chair by cords or straps, did place him when thus fastened on the stoop of the Cadet Barracks immediately in front of the door of the quarters occupied jointly by Major T. J. Jackson Prof. of Nat. Philosophy VMI and Lt. Thos. A. Harris Asst. Prof of Languages VMI, in such a manner that it was impossible for him the said Cadet Towson to extricate himself, and after placing him in this position did violently knock or caused to be knocked the door of the quarters...all of which was disrespectful conduct to his superior officers--this at the Va. Mil. Institute on or about the 23 day of Jany 1853.”
In May 1852, a classroom confrontation between Jackson and Cadet James A. Walker led to the expulsion of Walker and him issuing Jackson a challenge to a duel. The confrontation was related to Walker's behavior while solving a problem in Jackson's Natural Philosophy class. VMI convened a court martial where Walker stood accused of disobeying an order and conduct disrespectful to his superior officer.
The following is an excerpt from Jackson’s testimony:
“Major T. J. Jackson, a witness on the part of the prosecution was called, duly sworn & deposed as follows:
On or about the 4 May 1852 while the accused was attending recitation in the Department of Nat. Phil. at the Virginia Military Institute, I sent him to the board to find the hour angle of the sun. His result was not obtained in a manner satisfactory to me. I sent him to his seat, he asked me in what his error consisted. I considered his manner disrespectful. I sent Mr. Blankenship to the board and gave him the explanation of finding the time of day. Having examined the new edition I saw that I could not reasonably expect from the accused the demonstration given in the old edition which I had studied. Some time after I saw my error I sent the accused to the board & gave him the same proposition as before and during his recitation gave him the explanation for finding the time of day. He appeared to object to the investigation & wished to know whether such explanation was reqd. of him. I told him he was not expected to understand the subject but that it was my duty to explain it to him. I said this in what I considered a conciliatory tone. I considered his conduct disrespectful. Previously to the section's leaving the recitation room he said to me that my conduct must change or his must. I believe he asked permission to speak before this. He wished to continue talking, but I did not wish him to do so & told him so. I told him that all I required of him was that he should behave himself.
The next day he returned to the Section room in the Department of Nat. Philosophy. Mr. Whitney, a member of his section, asked me to give an explanation of the method of finding the time of day. I did so, and then sent several members to the board and called on Mr. Blankenship to give that method. Subsequently I called on Mr. Walker to do the same. He stated that he did not know how to do it & being informed by me that I had explained the method to him the previous day, he said that I had attempted to do so. I told him that I did explain it but that he might not have understood it. I said this in what I considered a conciliating tone. He again stated that I had attempted to explain it, and that I did not ask him whether he understood it or not. I considered his manner improper. I considered it insolent. I called his attention to his manner being improper & as he continued to talk, I ordered him to stop---he disobeyed the order saying he would stop talking if I would stop, or words to that effect. I again ordered him to stop, saying Silence, Mr. Walker, or words to that effect, in an imperative & authoritative tone. He again disobeyed the order & said he would stop talking if I would stop, or words to that effect. After I had given the last order I sent him to his seat. I subsequently reminded him of his assertion of the previous day--that his conduct must change or that mine must. I told him that mine would not change. In reply I understood him to say that he had said that he did not intend to change his. After some reflection I ordered him to his quarters under arrest.”
The following is an excerpt from Walker’s testimony:
“Major Jackson is a stranger amongst us & brings from the field of his late brilliant achievements many singular and eccentric notions. With a rigidity of adherence to the letter of his instructions known only to the veteran, he unites a mind suspicious by nature, a temper made irritable by sickness and suffering; and a tone imperative by long habit of commanding. He is one too who is very likely to misconstrue the motive and conduct of those with whom he has to deal....It has been these peculiarities of his nature combined with his acknowledged rule of conforming his treatment to the conduct of the cadet which has led to the present unhappy misunderstanding with myself.
First he entirely misconstrued my conduct; then all my expressions of the most polite deference instead of convincing him of his error only served as new fuel to the flame. Next he conformed his manner to his misconstruction of mine & his language becomes angry, imperative & harsh if not insulting.”
Walker, a first classman just a few weeks short of graduation, was found guilty of disrespect. He was dismissed and refused his right to appeal. While under confinement, Walker asked another cadet to deliver a note to Jackson demanding a duel. Of course, no duel took place. Jackson maintained his usual routine and Walker was sent home.
Superintendent Francis H. Smith wrote the following to Walker's father on May 17, 1852:
"It is my unpleasant duty to inform you that in consequence of the insubordinate conduct of your son to the Professor of Natural Philosophy, it was necessary to bring his case before a Court Martial, and the result of their action has been his dismissal....This morning he called at my office and in terms in the highest degree disrespectful and insulting to the Supt., declined to take any appeal....I would advise you to come up at once and take him home as I have reason to believe he may involve himself in serious difficulty."
After the Civil War, Walker was granted an honorary degree by the VMI Board of Visitors.