James B. McPherson

James Birdseye McPherson was a West Point-trained engineer and Union general who rose rapidly under Ulysses S. Grant and William Tecumseh Sherman. He played an important role in the Vicksburg campaign and in 1864 took command of the Army of the Tennessee during Sherman’s advance toward Atlanta.

During the Battle of Atlanta on 22 July 1864, McPherson rode into a gap between Union formations while assessing the Confederate attack and was shot and killed. His death made him one of the highest-ranking Union officers killed in battle and was deeply felt by both Grant and Sherman.