The 4th Virginia Infantry Company "A"

The 4th Virginia Infantry had its origin as a prewar Virginia militia company. Originaly known as the "Wythe Grays". The company was later reorganized and given the new designation of Company A of the 4th Regiment of Virginia Infantry. Brigaded with other companies and regiments from the state's Shenandoah Valley, the men from Wythe County embarked on a military career that would earn them the respect of their peers and an honorable place in history. In 2007 the memory of the "Wythe Grays" was resurrected in the CCWR, a group of Civil War enthusiasts who have joined together to create a living history organization and chose Company A, 4th Virginia Infantry as one of the Confederate Company identities. The regiment numbered slightly more than seven hundred and fifty. This comprised both officers and enlisted men. As most of the regiments of the Confederacy, these were all volunteers.

The "Wythe Grays" were raised in response to radical John Brown's raid on the United States arsenal at Harper's Ferry. Organized in 1859, from the southwest Virginia county of Wythe , the men of the company marched off to Charles Town arriving in time to witness Brown's hanging. In the years following, the company met numerous times to drill and prepare for the impending crisis looming on the nation's horizon. With Virginia 's withdrawal from the Union in 1861, following South Carolina 's firing on Fort Sumter , the men of the "Wythe Grays" were mustered into state service and set off for Richmond , arriving on April 20 with 72 men under the command of Captain John Kent and 1st Lieutenant William Terry. The company's stay in the capitol was short, and it quickly headed off for Harper's Ferry to join other Virginia companies gathering there under the command of former Virginia Military Institute professor Colonel Thomas J. Jackson. In early July, the company was reorganized and given the new designation of Company A of the 4th Regiment of Virginia Infantry. Brigaded with other companies and regiments from the state's Shenandoah Valley, the men from Wythe County embarked on a military career that would earn them the respect of their peers and an honorable place in history.
Photos Of The 4th Virginia

Photos Of The 4th Virginia