Roger Atkinson Pryor

Pryor, Roger Atkinson (1828-1919) Confederate army officer, born in Virginia. Pryor briefly practiced law, then switched to journalism for health reasons. His editorial stance was pro-Southern and staunchly Democratic. In 1859 he was elected to Congress, where he continued his attacks on the North and blamed Unionists for the tension between the North and the South. He resigned his seat in 1861 to protest Abraham Lincoln's election as president. After Virginia's secession, he was appointed to lead the 3rd Virginia Regiment and fought in the Peninsular campaign (1862), for which he was cited for gallantry. Dissatisfied with his assigned role, he resigned his commission and joined the 3rd Virginia Cavalry as a private, in which position he served primarily as a courier. In this capacity, he was captured in 1864 and imprisoned. After the war, he worked for the New York Daily News, a Democratic organ, while obtaining admission to the New York bar (1865).

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