Background
Henry was born on March 7, 1827, in Pulaski County, Georgia, United States. He was the son of the farmer and Georgia legislator Nelson Clayton and his wife Sara Carruthers.
2260 Vineville Ave, Macon, GA 31204, United States
Henry attended Vineville Academy near Macon.
30461 Garnand Dr, Emory, VA 24327, United States
Henry graduated from Emory and Henry College in 1848.
2260 Vineville Ave, Macon, GA 31204, United States
Henry attended Vineville Academy near Macon.
30461 Garnand Dr, Emory, VA 24327, United States
Henry graduated from Emory and Henry College in 1848.
judge attorney lawyer military politician
Henry was born on March 7, 1827, in Pulaski County, Georgia, United States. He was the son of the farmer and Georgia legislator Nelson Clayton and his wife Sara Carruthers.
Henry attended Vineville Academy near Macon and graduated from Emory and Henry College in 1848. Clayton studied law under John Shorter in Eufaula, Alabama.
Clayton was admitted to the Clayton, Alabama, bar in 1849. He was elected to the state legislature in 1857 and again in 1859. At the beginning of the war, Clayton enlisted as a private in the Clayton Guards and went to Pensacola.
He later was a colonel in the 1st Alabama Regiment. Wounded at the battle of Murfreesboro in 1862, he was promoted to brigadier general on April 22, 1863, and fought at the battle of Chickamauga. On July 7, 1864, he was promoted to major general.
Henry took over Alexander P. Stewart's Division of the Army of Tennessee, which played a prominent part in the action around Atlanta and Jonesboro, Georgia, and which formed the rear guard of the Confederate Army as it retreated from Nashville late in 1864. He subsequently saw service with Joseph Johnston in North Carolina and surrendered there in April 1865. After the war, Clayton farmed and practiced law near Clayton, Alabama. He was elected judge of the Third Circuit Court of Alabama and served almost continuously from 1866 until he resigned in 1886 to become president of the University of Alabama.
Henry DeLamar Clayton is known for his help to organize and train the First Alabama Infantry and the Thirty-ninth Alabama and commanded these and several other Alabama regiments. He rose to brigade command and then to the rank of major general and divisional command in the Army of Tennessee. He also served as a post-war circuit court judge and was president of the University of Alabama.
In 1850 Henry married Victoria Virginia Hunter. They had seven children.
1832-1908
1852-1928
1855-1856
1857-1929
1862-1918
1869-1941
1874-1946
