Llewellyn Garrish Estes

Llewellyn Garrish Estes
Born	(1843-12-27)December 27, 1843 Old Town, Maine, U.S.
Died	February 21, 1905(1905-02-21) (aged 61) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Buried	Arlington National Cemetery
Allegiance	United States of America
Service / branch	United States Army Union Army
Years of service	1861–1865
Rank	E-08First Sergeant O-03Captain and Adjutant O-07Bvt. Brigadier General
Unit	1st Maine Volunteer Cavalry Regiment
Awards	Medal of Honor
Signature

Llewellyn Garrish Estes (December 27, 1843 – February 21, 1905) was an American soldier who fought in the American Civil War. Estes received the country's highest award for bravery during combat, the Medal of Honor, for his action at Flint River in Georgia on August 30, 1864. He was honored with the award on August 29, 1894.

Biography

Estes was born in Old Town, Maine on December 27, 1843. He joined the 1st Maine Volunteer Cavalry Regiment as a first sergeant in October 1861, and was commissioned as first lieutenant in March 1862. In May 1863 while serving on the staff of Maj. Gen. H. J. Kilpatrick, he was captured carrying a message to General Joseph Hooker. While part of a group of prisoners being escorted to Richmond, Virginia, they managed to overpower their captors during the night and instead returned with their Confederate prisoners to the Union lines.

Estes was promoted to captain in August 1863, and was appointed as assistant adjutant general the next month. Assigned with Kilpatrick's cavalry to Sherman's March to the Sea, he was commended by Generals Sherman and Kilpatrick for his skill in leading small raiding parties in Georgia. Part of the advance party that reached the Atlantic coast, Estes was the first to contact the Union naval forces waiting offshore. By the time he mustered out in September 1865 at the age of 21, he was a major, and had received a brevet promotion to brigadier general.

After contracting pneumonia, he died from heart failure at his home in Washington, D.C. on February 21, 1905, and his remains are interred at the Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.

Medal of Honor citation

Grave at Arlington National Cemetery

His Medal of Honor action occurred while serving with the 92nd Illinois Volunteer Infantry.

The President of the United States of America, in the name of Congress, takes pleasure in presenting the Medal of Honor to Captain & Assistant Adjutant General Llewellyn Garrish Estes, United States Army, for extraordinary heroism on 30 August 1864, while serving with U.S. Volunteers, in action at Flint River, Georgia. Captain Estes voluntarily led troops in a charge over a burning bridge.

See also

• List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: A–F

Sources

• Dyer, Frederick Henry (1908). A Compendium of the War of the Rebellion (PDF). Des Moines, IA: Dyer Pub. Co. pp. 1254–1255. ASIN B01BUFJ76Q. Retrieved August 8, 2015. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
• Federal Publishing Company (1908). Military Affairs and Regimental Histories of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, And Delaware (PDF). The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States, 1861–65 – Records of the Regiments in the Union army – Cyclopedia of battles – Memoirs of Commanders and Soldiers. Vol. I. Madison, WI: Federal Publishing Company. p. 555. OCLC 694018100. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
• Hodsdon, John L (1867). Annual report of the Adjutant General of the State of Maine, 1861–1866 (PDF). Augusta, ME: Stevens & Sayward. p. 1346. OCLC 866320784. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
• Merrill, Samuel Hill (1866). The Campaigns of the First Maine and First District of Columbia Cavalry (PDF). Portland, ME: Bailey & Noyes. p. 436. OCLC 1041622265. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
• Tobie, Edward Parsons Jr (1887). History of the First Maine Cavalry 1861–1865 (PDF). Boston, MA: The First Maine Cavalry Association. p. 735. OCLC 02013163. Retrieved August 2, 2018. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
• History, U.S. Army Center of Military (2013). "Civil War (A-F) Medal of Honor Recipients". history.army.mil. Archived from the original on September 17, 2013. Retrieved November 17, 2013.
• "Lewellyn Estes". Military Medals Database. 2005. Retrieved August 30, 2016.
• "Died: Estes". The Evening Star. Washington, D.C. February 22, 1905. p. 5. Retrieved August 26, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.