Page:Confederate Military History - 1899 - Volume 3.djvu/1242

1164 Lieutenant Samuel G. Sheffield, for many years a prosperous merchant of Henry county, did faithful service during the Confederate war as an officer of the Twenty-fourth regiment, Virginia infantry, and later was in the cavalry service. He was born in Henry county, April 16, 1836, and was there reared and educated. In May, 1861, he entered the Confederate service as orderly-sergeant of Company H, Twenty-fourth Virginia regiment, under Colonel Early, and participated in the first year's service of the regiment, fighting at Blackburn's Ford and First Manassas, and in February, 1862, moving with his regiment and Early's brigade to the peninsula, to encounter the army of McClellan. During this movement he was taken sick, and was left at Richmond, where he was given a furlough to go to his home and regain health. His gallant service meanwhile had gained for him promotion to the rank of second lieutenant. When he returned to the army before Richmond he was transferred to Robinson's battalion of cavalry, with which he took part in many skirmishes and the battle of Cold Harbor in 1864. In the latter battle he was captured, and being taken to Point Lookout, was held at that military prison for eight or nine months. His health failed during this long confinement and he was at last released on account of his sickness. But recovering after he reached his home he returned to duty, and with his cavalry command took part in several skirmishes on the Petersburg lines and an important fight near Amelia Court House, during the retreat. Proceeding to Appomattox he made his way through the Federal lines with his comrades, and after the surrender returned home by way of Lynchburg. He soon found employment as a clerk and later embarked in mercantile pursuits as proprietor of a store at Martinsville, which he conducted until, a few years since, he retired from business after an active and successful career. He served as supervisor at Martinsville for ten years. In 1880 he was married to Miss L. H. H. Martin, who died a few years later; and Mr. Sheffield died at Martinsville, Va., June 9, 1898.

John M. Shepherd, of Suffolk, Va., a gallant veteran of the Sixteenth Virginia infantry regiment, was born at Suffolk in 1843, the son of James M. Shepherd, a contractor of that city. He left a clerkship in a Suffolk store in April, 1861, to enlist as a private in the Marion Rangers, afterward Company A of the Sixteenth regiment. With this command he led a rather quiet life in an entrenched camp near Norfolk, until the evacuation in May, 1862, when after going as far as Gordonsville under orders to reinforce Jackson in the valley, the regiment was called back to Richmond, and joining Mahone's brigade, took an active part in the Seven Days' campaign and Malvern Hill. Subsequently in Longstreet's corps he fought at Second Manassas, and marched into Maryland. At Crampton's Gap, where Mahone's brigade and Munford's cavalry held back a Federal army corps, all of Company A were captured save Private Shepherd and a few others, who made their escape by way of Harper's Ferry and took part in the battle of Sharpsburg. Returning to Virginia on the night of December 12, 1862, he lay down to sleep with a warm pair of green moccasins at his side, and when awakened in the morning by the sound of the drum, found the moccasins frozen hard, and orders to immediately fall in for a march to Fredericksburg. He will never forget that march of three miles through the snow, at double-quick, barefooted, and