James Adam Williamson (1829–1906)

Confederate colonel James Adam Williamson, a prominent lawyer and plantation owner of Hempstead County, Arkansas, served during the Civil War as regimental commander of the Second Arkansas Mounted Rifles. Williamson led his regiment through six major battles before being severely wounded during the early battles of the Atlanta Campaign on May 14, 1864, at Resaca, Georgia, resulting in amputation of his leg.  

James A. Williamson was born in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina, in March 1829 to the Reverand Samuel Williamson and Jane Caroline Adams Williamson. He grew up near Charlotte and graduated in 1845 with a law degree from Davidson College, where his father served as president. In 1851, he relocated to Chester County, South Carolina, and established his law practice. In 1857, he moved to Arkansas, settling in Hempstead County, where he practiced law and established a plantation.  

In 1861, he served as delegate to the Arkansas Secession Convention and, upon secession, enlisted as first lieutenant of Company H, Second Arkansas Mounted Rifles. By September, he had been promoted to captain, commanding his company. He led his troops in the Battles of Oak Hills, Missouri, in August 1861 and Pea Ridge, Arkansas, on March 7–8, 1862. Afterward, his regiment, as part of Major General Earl Van Dorn’s Army of the West, moved across the Mississippi River to the vicinity of Corinth, Mississippi, where they were dismounted to serve as infantry for the remainder of the war. 

At the reorganization of Confederate forces in May, he was elected lieutenant colonel of his regiment. After participating in the Siege of Corinth from April 29 to May 30, 1862, the Second Mounted Rifles were transferred to forces of General E. Kirby Smith and participated in the Kentucky Campaign, seeing action at the Battle of Richmond, Kentucky, on August 30, 1862. 

Returning to the forces under General Braxton Bragg that fall, Williamson was elevated to regimental command in November when Colonel Harris Flanagin was elected governor of Arkansas. Williamson led his regiment at the December 31, 1862, Battle of Murfreesboro, Tennessee, experiencing heavy fighting on the left flank of Confederate forces in John Porter McCown’s Division. He was then given a furlough to Arkansas for recruiting. While home, he married Carrie Muldrow on March 26, 1863. 

After his return, he fought in the siege and Battle of Jackson, Mississippi, in June 1863, during Confederate attempts to relieve Confederate forces surrounded at Vicksburg, Mississippi. Returning to the Army of Tennessee, he led his men in heavy fighting at the Battle of Chickamauga, Georgia, September 19–20, 1863. Later, his Second Mounted Rifles participated in the battles of the Meridian, Mississippi, Expedition in February 1864 before the heavy fighting of the 1864 Atlanta Campaign. After combat at Dug Gap, Georgia, on May 8, 1864, Williamson was severely wounded in the leg at the Battle of Resaca, Georgia, resulting in amputation and ending his military service. He received a medical discharge and returned to Arkansas. 

Williamson was elected to two terms in the Arkansas House of Representatives in the postwar elections. His wife Carrie died in 1865. In 1873, he married Annie Jane Johnson; they had three children: Annie, Samuel, and Mary. Williamson was later elected to the Arkansas House of Representatives, serving from 1877 to 1878. In 1890, he was president of the Hope Female Institute, and he was elected again to the Arkansas House of Representatives, serving from 1893 to 1894. 

Williamson’s remaining years were spent in Hempstead County, when he died on November 25, 1906. He is buried in Mounds Cemetery at Columbus (Hempstead County). 

For additional information:
Colonel James A. Williamson letters, transcribed. Stones River National Battlefield. National Park Service. https://www.nps.gov/stri/learn/historyculture/upload/JA_Williamson_Ltrs_Transcription_508.pdf (accessed March 27, 2025). 

“J. A. Williams Died at Columbus.” Arkansas Gazette, November 26, 1906, p. 1. 

Leeper, Wesley Thurman. Rebels Valiant: Second Arkansas Mounted Rifles, Dismounted. Little Rock: Pioneer Press, 1964.  

Willis, James. Arkansas Confederates in the Western Theater. Dayton, OH: Morningside Press, 1998.  

Anthony Rushing
Benton, Arkansas