Charlotte center city in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina — The American South (South Atlantic)
The Charlotte Grays
First at Bethel
Photographed by Tracy Marsteller, November 11, 2023
1. The Charlotte Grays Marker
Charlotte remembers with honor her gallant sons in the Charlotte Grays, Company C, 1st Regiment N.C. Volunteers, who fought in the first battle of the War of Secession. The Charlotte Grays, under command of the 18-year-old boy Captain Egbert A. Ross, a former cadet at the N.C. Military Institute located at Morehead St. and South Blvd., where a 1994 monument commemorates the cadets, were organized shortly after Fort Sumter in April 1861. This was a month prior to North Carolinas secession ordinance, May 20, 1861. At Bethel VA, along the Back River west of Hampton, 800 men of the 1st N.C. Regt and 600 from VA regiments met 4,400 Unionist invaders, defeating them soundly the morning of 10 June 1861. Col Daniel Harvey Hill and his 1st N.C. Regt assisted by NC Military Institute cadets were primarily responsible for the victory. When the first volunteers mustered out in the fall of 61, many in the Charlotte Grays including Captain Ross enlisted in the 11th N.C. Regt Infantry and fought for Robert E. Lee in the Army of Northern Virginia. Major Ross was killed by grapeshot on McPherson's Ridge, Gettysburg, PA July 1 1863 in
this page online
Erected to the sacred memory of the Confederate soldiers who rest here and all across Dixie by the Maj Egbert A. Ross Camp 1423, Sons of Confederate Veterans, Charlotte April 1999
Erected 1999 by Maj. Egbert A. Ross Camp 1423, Sons of Confederate Veterans.
Topics and series. This memorial is listed in this topic list: War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Sons of Confederate Veterans/United Confederate Veterans series list.
Location. 35° 14.116′ N, 80° 50.791′ W. Memorial is in Charlotte, North Carolina, in Mecklenburg County. It is in Charlotte center city. It can be reached from West 6th Street 0.2 miles west of North Graham Street, on the right when traveling west. Marker is in the Confederate section of Elmwood
Histories of the Several Regiments and Battalions from North Carolina, Walter Clark, ed. (Public Domain), 1901
2. Maj. Egbert A. Ross (1842-1863)
He was shot and killed at Gettysburg on July 1, 1863. He was 20 years old.
Regionally, this memorial is in North Carolina’s Piedmont. It is also in the American South and specifically in the Upper South. Globally, it is in the North Atlantic Region, North America, the Western Hemisphere, the Western World, and the Anglosphere. Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture, one of the original Thirteen Colonies, one of the Confederate States of America, and the Antebellum South.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: Confederate Navy Yard Charlotte (here, next to this marker); Charlotte Confederate Cemetery (a few steps from this marker); Rev. Alexander Craighead (a few steps from this marker); North Carolina Military Institute / Gen. D.H. Hill School (a few steps from this marker); Mecklenburg Beauregards (a few steps from this marker); Mecklenburg County Confederate Monument (a few steps from this marker); Mecklenburg County Confederate Soldiers Monument (a few steps from this marker); Ranaleburg Riflemen (within shouting distance of this marker). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Charlotte.
Also see . . . 11th Infantry. In the spring of 1861 Egbert A. Ross of Mecklenburg County (born September 9, 1842) was a student at Hillsborough Military Academy. However, he returned to Charlotte and joined a volunteer militia company called the Charlotte Grays. (Greg Mast and Fred Taylor, Tar Heel Faces project) (Submitted on December 9, 2023, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Credits. This page was last revised on November 20, 2024. It was originally submitted on December 9, 2023. This page has been viewed 457 times since then and 64 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on December 9, 2023.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. Wide shot of memorial and surrounding area in context • Can you help?
