Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 3.djvu/1189

Rh United States. On the day of the passage of the ordinance of secession he was appointed by Governor Letcher paymaster in the Virginia State navy, and stationed at the Gosport navy yard in charge of that department of the naval organization. He continued in this duty until Virginia had united with the Confederacy, when he was succeeded by the paymaster of the Confederate States navy, and commissioned by the governor to report upon the value of the public property taken possession of by Virginia, including the navy yard, hospital, etc. Upon his discharge of this duty he was appointed by President Davis to the office of naval storekeeper in the Confederate States service, in which capacity he remained at the navy yard until the evacuation of Norfolk in May, 1862. He had previously removed much of the naval stores to Charlotte, N. C., where he now took charge of the depot, and remained there in supervision, distributing the stores to Richmond, Charleston, Savannah and other points as needed, until September, 1863. At the latter date he was entrusted with new and important duties. The sale and shipment to foreign lands of the South's great staple, cotton, were essential to the welfare and financial success of the Confederate States, and to this department of work Mr. Peters, whose integrity and business acumen had been tested in other capacities, was now called. He was appointed agent for the purchase and shipment of cotton through the blockade by way of Nassau and Bermuda to Europe. For this work he made his headquarters at Wilmington, where he remained actively engaged until that port fell into the hands of the United States troops. Soon afterward the armies were surrendered and Mr. Peters returned to his home at Portsmouth, and resumed mercantile pursuits. In these he continued with marked success until 1890, when he retired from active business. Meanwhile, in 1879, he had been chosen president of the Citizens' bank of Norfolk, a well-known financial institution which has met with great success under his control. This position he still holds. In 1885 he was appointed by the United States treasury department receiver for the Exchange National bank of Virginia, one of the most prominent banks of the South before its failure, and he gave to the settlement of its affairs the benefit of his financial skill and experience, with satisfactory results. Mr. Peters also holds the position of president of the Norfolk quarantine commission, and has served the public in various other capacities. Notwithstanding his advanced age he retains the clear intellect, shrewd judgment and capacity for prompt and decisive action which have characterized his life as a financier and public official. His long and honorable life has made him a conspicuous figure in southeastern Virginia. Mr. Peters was married in 1838 to Mary A., daughter of James Reed, and they have five children living: Karie V., wife of Dr. J. B. Williams, of Oxford, N. C.; Mattie W., wife of Judge L. R. Watts; Mary A., wife of Paul C. Trugis, of the Portsmouth Star; William R. and Frank.

Alonzo Lafayette Phillips, of Richmond, served with honorable distinction in the army of Northern Virginia, and since the war has been conspicuous in the military service of the State, rising to the rank of brigadier-general. He is a native of Henrico county, born June 27, 1842. In his youth, during the peaceful years which