William Farquhar Barry (August 18 1818 –
July 18 1879) was a career officer in the United States Army, serving as an artillery commander during the
Mexican-American War and Civil War.
Born in New York City, Barry graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1838, 17th in his class of 45 cadets. He was
commissioned a brevet second lieutenant in
the 4th U.S. Artillery, transferring to the 2nd U.S. Artillery a few weeks later. He was stationed near the Canadian border, then
later took part in the Mexican-American, Seminole, and the Kansas-Missouri Border Wars.
He was the co-author of Instruction for Field Artillery (1860), along with William
H. French and Henry J. Hunt.
Promoted to major of artillery shortly after the start of hostilities between the Union and the Confederacy, Barry
served as Brig. Gen. Irvin McDowell's chief of
artillery during the First Battle of Bull Run, where his position was overrun
after mistaking advancing Confederates for retreating Union forces. Barry was promoted to brigadier general on August 20, 1861.
As chief of artillery under Maj. Gen.
George B. McClellan, Barry organized ordnance for the Army of the Potomac and, during the Peninsula Campaign,
later took part in the battles of Yorktown, Mechanicsville, Gaines' Mill,
White Oak Swamp, and Malvern
Hill.
After later supervising forts and ordnance surrounding Washington, D.C., Barry
became chief of artillery under Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman, serving with him
in Tennessee, the March to the
Sea, and the Carolinas Campaign. As part of the omnibus promotions granted
near the end of the war, on March 13, 1865, Barry was promoted to
brevet major general in the Regular Army for his service in the Atlanta Campaign.
On December 11, 1865, Barry was appointed colonel in the
2nd U.S. Artillery, and was in command of the northern frontier during the Fenian raids of
1866. He served there until September 1867, and then commanded the artillery school of practice at Fort Monroe until March 1877, when he was appointed to the command at Fort
McHenry, Baltimore, Maryland. During the labor riots of 1877 he rendered
valuable service at Camden Station.
Barry died at Fort McHenry and is buried at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, New
York.
References
- This article incorporates text from the public domain Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography.
- Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., Civil War High Commands, Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN
978-0-8047-3641-1.
- Linedecker, Clifford L., ed., Civil War, A-Z: The Complete Handbook of America's Bloodiest Conflict, New York:
Ballantine Books, 2002, ISBN 0-89141-878-4
External links
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