Birth name Edwin Francis Jemison Name Edwin Jemison | Years of service 1861 – 1862 Buried at Memory Hill Cemetery | |
 | ||
Battles and wars Peninsula Campaign, Battle of Malvern Hill Similar John Clem, Jefferson Davis, Robert E Lee | ||
The grave of Edwin Francis Jemison
Edwin Francis Jemison (December 1, 1844 – July 1, 1862) was a Private in the Confederate States Army during American Civil War, who served in the 2nd Louisiana Volunteer Infantry Regiment. Jemison enlisted on May 11, 1861 and was among the war's early volunteers. He participated in the Peninsula Campaign under John B. Magruder. Jemison was killed in action on July 1, 1862 at the Battle of Malvern Hill reportedly by a direct hit from a cannonball, which decapitated him (this account was given many years later by veteran of the war). Jemison's death by cannon fire is corroborated by the 1887 obituary of his younger brother, but incorrectly identifies the battle as First Manassas.
Jemison's photograph (previously identified as Jennison of the Georgia Regiment) has become one of the most famous and iconic portraits of the young soldiers of both the Confederate and Union Armies. A monument to Jemison was erected at the Memory Hill Cemetery in Georgia, where he may be buried. Most believe that he was buried on or near the battlefield in Virginia in an unmarked grave. It is thought that his parents erected the monument to him at Memory Hill Cemetery in Georgia.
