{{Short description|United States Army officer}} {{Infobox officeholder |name= Absalom Baird |image=Absalom Baird, probably by the Webster Brothers.jpg |office=[[List of Inspectors General of the United States Army|Inspector General of the U.S. Army]] |term_start=September 20, 1885 |term_end=August 20, 1888 |nominator=[[Grover Cleveland]] |predecessor=[[Nelson H. Davis]] |successor=[[Roger Jones (Inspector General)|Roger Jones]] |birth_date= {{Birth date|1824|8|20}} |death_date= {{Death date and age|1905|6|14|1824|8|20}} |birth_place= [[Washington, Pennsylvania]], US |death_place= [[Relay, Maryland]], US |resting_place= [[Arlington National Cemetery]] |allegiance= United States<br />[[Union (American Civil War)|Union]] |branch= [[United States Army]]<br />[[Union Army]] |service_years= 1849–1888 |rank= [[File:Union Army brigadier general rank insignia.svg|border|35px]] [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brigadier General]]<br>[[File:Union Army major general rank insignia.svg|35px]] [[Brevet (military)|Brevet]] [[Major general (United States)|Major General]] |commands=27th Brigade, 7th Division<br/>3rd Division, [[Army of Kentucky]]<br/> 1st Division, [[XIV Corps (Union Army)|XIV Corps]]<br/>[[List of Inspectors General of the U.S. Army|Inspector General of the Army]] |battles={{Tree list}} * [[American Civil War]] ** [[First Battle of Bull Run]] ** [[Siege of Yorktown (1862)|Siege of Yorktown]] ** [[Battle of the Cumberland Gap (1862)|Battle of the Cumberland Gap]] ** [[Battle of Thompson's Station]] ** [[Battle of Franklin (1863)|Battle of Franklin]] ** [[Battle of Chickamauga]] ** [[Chattanooga campaign]] ** [[Atlanta campaign]] *** [[Battle of Jonesborough]] ** [[Sherman's March to the Sea]] ** [[Campaign of the Carolinas]] *** [[Battle of Bentonville]] {{Tree list/end}} |awards= [[Medal of Honor]] |laterwork= }} '''Absalom Baird''' (August 20, 1824 – June 14, 1905) was a career [[United States Army]] officer who distinguished himself as a [[Union Army]] general in the [[American Civil War]]. Baird received the [[Medal of Honor]] for his military actions.
==Early life== {{unreferenced section|date=July 2025}} Baird was born in [[Washington, Pennsylvania]]. He graduated from the preparatory department of Washington College (now [[Washington & Jefferson College]]) in 1841. He enrolled in the [[United States Military Academy]] and graduated in 1849, ranked ninth in a class of 43. From 1852 to 1859, he was a mathematics instructor at West Point, where one of his students was [[James McNeill Whistler]]. From 1859 to 1861, he served in [[Texas]] and [[Virginia]].
==Civil War== When the Civil War broke out in 1861, Baird was promoted to [[Brevet (military)|brevet]] [[Captain (United States O-3)|captain]]. He fought at the [[First Battle of Bull Run]] under [[Brigadier general (United States)|Brig. Gen.]] [[Daniel Tyler]]. On November 12, 1861, Baird was promoted to [[Major (United States)|major]] in the [[Regular Army]] while serving as an assistant inspector general. He became chief of staff to [[Major general (United States)|Maj. Gen.]] [[Erasmus D. Keyes]] during the first part of the [[Siege of Yorktown (1862)|Siege of Yorktown]], where his service earned him a further promotion to brigadier general of [[U.S. Volunteers]] on April 30, 1862, to rank from April 28, 1862.<ref>Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]], ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|0-8047-3641-3}}. p. 718</ref> [[File:Genl Biard (sic) LCCN2004661280.jpg|thumb|Gen. Baird]] In April 1862, Baird took command of the 27th Brigade, 7th Division in the [[Army of the Ohio]] under Maj. Gen. [[Don Carlos Buell]]. Baird helped [[Battle of the Cumberland Gap (June 1862)|secure the Cumberland Gap]] in June 1862 under [[George W. Morgan]]. He commanded the 3rd Division, [[Army of Kentucky]] where his troops fared poorly in the [[Battle of Thompson's Station]] in March 1863, though Baird was not personally involved. His troops were present at the [[Battle of Franklin (1863)|First Battle of Franklin (Harpeth River)]] in April, before being assimilated into the [[Army of the Cumberland]].
Baird's division became the 1st Division of Maj. Gen. [[George Henry Thomas]]'s [[XIV Corps (Union Army)|XIV Corps]]. It was in this post that he won fame for his heroic efforts at the [[Battle of Chickamauga]] and the [[Chattanooga campaign]]. Baird won a brevet promotion to [[Colonel (United States)|colonel]] in Regular Army for Chattanooga. In the [[Atlanta campaign]], Baird led a brigade charge in the [[Battle of Jonesborough]] which earned him the [[Medal of Honor]]. He led his division in Maj. Gen. [[William T. Sherman]]'s [[Sherman's March to the Sea|March to the Sea]] and [[Carolinas campaign]]. Baird led his division in the [[Battle of Bentonville]] in the latter campaign. On January 23, 1865, [[President of the United States|President]] [[Abraham Lincoln]] nominated Baird for appointment to the brevet grade of major general of volunteers, to rank from September 1, 1864, and the [[U.S. Congress]] confirmed the award on February 14, 1865.<ref>Eicher, 2001, p. 710</ref> On April 10, 1866, President [[Andrew Johnson]] nominated Baird for appointment as brevet brigadier general in the [[Regular Army]], to rank from March 13, 1865, and the U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment on May 4, 1866.<ref>Eicher, 2001, p. 732</ref> On July 17, 1866, President Andrew Johnson nominated Baird for appointment as brevet major general in the regular U.S. Army, to rank from March 13, 1865, and the U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment on July 23, 1866.<ref>Eicher, 2001, p. 706</ref> Baird was mustered out of the volunteer service on September 1, 1866.<ref name="Eicher112">Eicher, 2001, pp. 112–113</ref>
==Postbellum life== <!-- Deleted image removed: [[File:Absalom Baird in old age.jpg|thumb|Absalom Baird in old age]] --> Following the war, Baird served as commander of the department of [[Louisiana]]. He was appointed an assistant inspector general with the grade of [[Lieutenant colonel (United States)|lieutenant colonel]] on June 17, 1867.<ref name="Eicher112"/> He was appointed [[Inspector General]] of the Army on March 11, 1885, and was promoted to a full grade brigadier general on September 22, 1885.<ref name="Eicher112"/> In 1887, he traveled to [[France]] to observe military maneuvers, and was named a Commander of the [[Légion d'honneur]].<ref>Colonial families of the United States of America: in which is ..., Volume 6 By Nelson Osgood Rhoades</ref> Baird retired from the Army on August 20, 1888, having reached the mandatory retirement age of 64.<ref name="Eicher112"/>
On April 22, 1896, Baird was awarded the [[Medal of Honor]] for leading "an assault upon the enemy's works" at the [[Battle of Jonesborough]] on September 1, 1864.<ref name="Eicher112"/> He was also a veteran companion of the [[Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States]] and a member of the [[General Society of Colonial Wars]]. [[File:Absalom-Baird-marker.jpg|thumb|Absalom Baird's grave marker]] He died at [[Relay, Maryland]]<ref name="Eicher112"/> near [[Baltimore, Maryland]], and is buried in section 1, lot 55, at [[Arlington National Cemetery]], [[Arlington, Virginia]].<ref>[https://www.arlingtoncemetery.mil/CivilWarMoH Arlington National Cemetery – Civil War Medal of Honor Recipients], official ANC website</ref>
==Medal of Honor citation== [[File:Absalom Baird.jpg|thumb|Another image of Baird]]
* Rank and organization: Brigadier General, U.S. Volunteers. * Place and date: At [[Jonesboro, Georgia]], September 1, 1864. * Entered service at: [[Washington, Pennsylvania]]. * Birth: [[Washington, Pennsylvania]]. * Date of issue: April 22, 1896.
'''Citation:'''
<blockquote>Voluntarily led a detached brigade in an assault upon the enemy's works.<ref name=AMOHW>{{Cite web |access-date=December 8, 2007 |url = http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwaral.html |title = Absalom Baird, Medal of Honor recipient |work = American Civil War (A–M) |publisher= [[United States Army Center of Military History]] |date = June 8, 2009| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071214025428/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwaral.html| archive-date= 14 December 2007 | url-status= dead}}</ref></blockquote>
==See also== {{Portal|Biography|American Civil War}} * [[List of Medal of Honor recipients]] * [[List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F#B|List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F]] * [[List of American Civil War generals (Union)]]
==Notes== {{Reflist}}
===References=== * Eicher, John H., and [[David J. Eicher]], ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. {{ISBN|0-8047-3641-3}}. * {{Cite web |access-date=December 8, 2007 |url = http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwaral.html |title = Absalom Baird, Medal of Honor recipient |work = American Civil War (A–L) |publisher= [[United States Army Center of Military History]] |date = June 8, 2009| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20071214025428/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/civwaral.html| archive-date= 14 December 2007 | url-status= dead}} * [[American National Biography]], vol. 1, pp. 906–907. * {{Cite web |access-date=September 24, 2010 |url=http://www.generalsandbrevets.com/ngb/baird.htm |title=Photographs of Absalom Baird |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080208215607/http://www.generalsandbrevets.com/ngb/baird.htm |archive-date = February 8, 2008}} * {{Cite news |access-date=September 24, 2010 |url=https://select.nytimes.com/mem/archive/pdf?res=F60E17F7355913738DDDAC0994DE405B858CF1D3 |title=New York Times obituary |date=June 15, 1905 |work=The New York Times}}{{Subscription required}}
==External links== {{commons category}} * [https://ancexplorer.army.mil/publicwmv/#/arlington-national/search/results/1/CgViYWlyZBIHYWJzYWxvbQ--/ ANC Explorer] * {{cite BDA1906 |wstitle= Baird, Absalom |volume= 1 |pages=187-188 |short=1}}
{{S-start}} {{S-mil}} {{Succession box|title=[[List of Inspectors General of the U.S. Army|Inspector General of the U. S. Army]]|before=[[Nelson H. Davis]] |after=[[Roger Jones (Inspector General)|Roger Jones]]|years=September 20, 1885-August 20, 1888}} {{S-end}} {{Inspectors General of the United States Army}}{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baird, Absalom}} [[Category:1824 births]] [[Category:1905 deaths]] [[Category:People from Washington, Pennsylvania]] [[Category:Burials at Arlington National Cemetery]] [[Category:United States Military Academy alumni]] [[Category:Union army generals]] [[Category:United States Army Medal of Honor recipients]] [[Category:Washington & Jefferson College alumni]] [[Category:Commanders of the Legion of Honour]] [[Category:Inspectors general of the United States Army]] [[Category:American Civil War recipients of the Medal of Honor]] [[Category:General Society of Colonial Wars]] [[Category:Military personnel from Pennsylvania]] [[Category:People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War]]