In 1856, Lane enrolled in the University of Virginia, where he studied natural science and mathematics, leaving in 1857 to pursue a career in education.
Gallery of James Lane
319 Letcher Ave, Lexington, VA 24450, United States
James Henry Lane graduated from the Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in 1854.
In 1856, Lane enrolled in the University of Virginia, where he studied natural science and mathematics, leaving in 1857 to pursue a career in education.
James Henry Lane was a Virginia native and Confederate general during the Civil War. He was also a noted educator.
Background
James Henry Lane was born July 28, 1833, at Mathews Courthouse, Virginia, to Walter Gardner and Mary Ann Henry Barkwell Lane. Both sides of Lane's family were long-time and distinguished residents of Tidewater Virginia. His great-grandfather Ezekiel Lane was instrumental in the establishment of Mathews County in 1790. Lane's grandfather William Lane served in the Virginia militia in America's first two military conflicts, the American Revolution and the War of 1812. His father, Walter Gardner Lane, was a merchant, justice of the peace, member of the Virginia Legislature, and colonel in the Virginia militia. Walter Lane was well respected in his community as honest and hard-working, traits that marked James Henry Lane's character throughout his life.
Education
Lane's education began in a small school with a basic curriculum. Teachers practiced corporal punishment, and Lane quickly learned to maintain a disciplined demeanor there and at home. Later, a tutor prepared him for entrance into the Virginia Military Institute at Lexington, Virginia. There, Lane studied under Maj. Thomas Jonathan Jackson, later known as "Stonewall," one of the most highly regarded generals of the Confederate Army. Lane graduated second in his class in 1854.
In 1856, Lane enrolled in the University of Virginia, where he received a degree in science in 1857.
James Henry Lane returned to the Virginia Military Institute as a professor of mathematics, then in 1858 moved to Virginia's Upperville Academy (present-day Middleburg Academy), where he served as principal. In 1859, he became chair of the Department of Mathematics and Military Tactics at the State Seminary West of the Suwannee River in Tallahassee, Florida (present-day Florida State University). In 1860, at the recommendation of Jackson, Lane was appointed as professor of natural philosophy and instructor in military tactics at the North Carolina Military Institute in Charlotte.
Lane was not a supporter of secession, but when news of the war reached the North Carolina Military Institute in 1861, professors Lane, Daniel H. Hill, and Charles C. Lee, as well as most of the cadets, volunteered for service to the Confederate States of America. During the war, Lane was involved in almost every major battle fought by the Army of Northern Virginia and rose to the rank of brigadier general. He was wounded three times and had a number of horses shot out from under him, but perhaps his worst experience was at the Battle of Chancellorsville, where both his brother and now-Gen. Thomas "Stonewall" Jackson was killed. In a tragedy that would haunt Lane for the remainder of his life, Jackson was shot and wounded accidentally by Lane's own troops. On April 9, 1865, Lane was with General Robert E. Lee when he surrendered to Union General Ulysses S. Grant at Appomattox Courthouse, Virginia. After his parole, Lane traveled back to his parents' home in Mathews Courthouse. In the years that followed, Lane attempted to re-establish his education career and founded schools in Concord, North Carolina, and Richmond, Virginia.
In 1872, Lane resumed his college teaching career, accepting a position as professor of natural philosophy, chemistry, and military tactics at the Virginia Agricultural and Mechanical College (now Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University) in Blacksburg. During his eight-year tenure there, Lane wrote a handbook on military tactics and imposed strict discipline on the Corps of Cadets. In 1880, Lane and the college president were involved in an argument that turned violent, and both men were forced to resign. Despite this, the Cadet Barracks was later named in Lane's honor, and Lane's Handbook of Military Tactics continued to be used by the cadets.
In 1881-1882 Lane was back in teaching as a professor of mathematics at the Missouri School of Mines and Metallurgy (present-day Missouri University of Science and Technology), and the following year he accepted a position as professor of civil engineering and commandant at the Alabama Agricultural and Mechanical College. Later he became a professor of engineering and drawing at the same school, then called Alabama Polytechnic Institute (later Auburn University), where he taught for twenty-five years and became professor emeritus in June 1907.
Achievements
Views
Quotations:
"Young man, I'll have you know I followed General Lee, and I'll have no upstart freshman calling me Professor. I am General Lane and don't you forget it."
Personality
As a professor, James Henry Lane was admired and respected just as he had been as a soldier.
Quotes from others about the person
"Endeared to me as he is by his service to the South... I admit that I feel a warm interest in his success, not for himself alone, but also as a good example for the youth of the State I love so well." - Jefferson Davis
Connections
On September 13, 1869, James Henry Lane married Charlotte Lotte Randolph Meade, with whom he would have four daughters: Lidie Hardaway Lane, Mary Barkwell Lane Petrie, Kate Meade Lane, Lottie Everard Lane Sloan.