Carle Augustus Woodruff

Carle Augustus Woodruff
Carle Augustus Woodruff
	First Lieutenant Carle A. Woodruff, September 1863. Library of Congress
Born	August 8, 1841; Buffalo, New York
Died	July 20, 1913 (aged 71); Raleigh, North Carolina
Place of burial	Historic Oakwood Cemetery, Raleigh, North Carolina
Allegiance	United States of America; Union
Service/branch	Union Army
Years of service	1861 - 1903
Rank	Brigadier General
Battles/wars	American Civil War; Battle of Gettysburg; Battle of Trevillian Station; *Battle of Cold Harbor
Awards	Medal of Honor

Carle Augustus Woodruff (August 8, 1841 – July 20, 1913), was a career soldier in the United States Army who rose to the rank of brigadier general. He received the Medal of Honor while serving as an artillery officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.

Early life and Civil War[]

Woodruff was born in Buffalo, New York, the son of Colonel Israel Carle Woodruff (1815-1878). He was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 2nd U.S. Artillery at Washington, D.C. Serving with Combined Batteries B and L, 2nd U.S. Artillery, he was part of the U.S. Horse Artillery Brigade in the Army of the Potomac. As a section chief, he was cited for gallantry during an engagement at Newby's Crossroads, Virginia, on July 24, 1863 and received the Medal of Honor.

Medal of Honor

Woodruff was eventually awarded the Medal of Honor for these actions, on September 1, 1893. He was also awarded brevet promotions for gallantry at the battles of Gettysburg (brevet captain, July 3, 1863) and Trevillian Station (brevet major, June 11, 1864), and for good conduct during the war (lieutenant colonel, March 13, 1865). Serving primarily as a section chief, Woodruff commanded Battery M, 2nd U.S. Artillery, at the Battle of Cold Harbor, June 3, 1864.

Medal of Honor citation[]

Rank and organization: First Lieutenant, 2d U.S. Artillery. Place and date: At Newbys Crossroads, Va., 24 July 1863. Entered service at: Washington, D.C. Born: Buffalo, N.Y. Date of issue: 1 September 1893.

Citation:

While in command of a section of a battery constituting a portion of the rear guard of a division then retiring before the advance of a corps of Infantry was attacked by the enemy and ordered to abandon his guns. Lt. Woodruff disregarded the orders received and aided in repelling the attack and saving the guns.

Postbellum service[]

Woodruff remained in the regular army after the Civil War, and gained his captaincy in 1869. He rose steadily through the officers corps, to major of the 2nd U.S. Artillery (1894), lieutenant colonel of the 7th U.S. Artillery (1899), and colonel of the Corps of Artillery, 1901. By the end of his career, he ranked as a brigadier general.

He died in Raleigh, North Carolina, and was buried there at Oakwood Cemetery. His grave can be found in the Magnolia Hill section, Lot 25.

Namesakes[]

Battery Woodruff at Fort Hughes is named for him. In Raleigh, NC, the Carle A. Woodruff Lodge of the Perfection, Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry is also named for him.

References[]

This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the United States Army Center of Military History.

"American Memory: Selected Civil War Photographs". Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. Prints and Photographs Division. Retrieved September 24, 2010.
Heitman, Francis B., Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, From its Organization, September 29, 1789 to March 2, 1903. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1903.
Simpson, Lt. W. A., "History of the Second Regiment of Artillery". Archived from the original on February 8, 2008. Retrieved October 5, 2010.
U.S. War Department, "The War of the Rebellion: a Compilation of the Official Records of the Union and Confederate Armies, U.S. Government Printing Office, 1880–1901". Retrieved October 5, 2010.
"Medal of Honor recipients". United States Army Center of Military History. August 3, 2009. Retrieved January 6, 2010.

External links[]

"Carle Augustus Woodruff". Claim to Fame: Medal of Honor recipients. Find a Grave. Retrieved 2008-03-13.