Draft:Theodore B. Hamilton

Family and personal life

Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton was the son of Dr. Frank Hastings Hamilton & Mary Van Doren Van Arsdale was born in 1836 in New York, New York. Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton married Helen Margaret Foote, daughter of renowned diplomat and editor Thomas Moses Foote and Margaret St. John. Helen Margaret Foote is also a descendant of Nathaniel Foote.

Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton and Helen Margaret Foote had three children:

• Thomas F. Hamilton (November 12, 1872 – August 16, 1917)
• Frank H. Hamilton (October 18, 1874 – December 29, 1906)
• Helen Margaret Hamilton (February 14, 1876 – May 1, 1961)

Beginning of the Civil War

A month after the fall of Fort Sumter, Theodore B. Hamilton became superintended of the Sixty-Second New York Regiment, helping to enroll 77 people from the city of Buffalo, NY. Once they mustered the correct number of recruits they assigned the following officers: Captain—Theodore B. Hamilton. First Lieutenant—A. E. EUSTAPHEIVE. Second Lieutenant—I. V GERMAIN. A few days later it departed for Elmira, when on May 21, 1861 it became Company G of the 33rd New York Infantry Regiment.

Battle of Gaines' Mill (June 27, 1862)

Main article: Battle of Gaines' Mill

Captain Hamilton was captured at the Battle of Gaines' Mill and later sent to Libby Prison. He was paroled on August 12, 1862 and returned to service. On December 27, 1862 he was discharged from the 33rd and commissioned as the Lt. Colonel of the 62nd New York Volunteer Infantry, also known as Anderson's Zouaves.

Second Battle of Fredericksburg (May 3, 1863)

Main article: Second Battle of Fredericksburg

At the Second Battle of Fredericksburg, also know as the Second Battle of Marye's Heights, Lieutenant Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton was wounded. According to a The New York Times article Lt. Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton distinguished himself when the company was without a Colonel.

Battle of Gettysburg (Jul 1 - 3, 1863)

Monument at Gettysburg

The regiment was commanded by Colonel David J. Nevin, who took over brigade command on July 1st. Lieutenant Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton took temporary command of the “Anderson Zouaves” regiment. A bronze tablet on the regiment’s monument on the J. Weickert farm at Gettysburg states: “On the site of this monument the Regiment under command of Lieut. Col. T. B. Hamilton charged the enemy and recaptured two guns.”

Battle of the Wilderness (May 5–7, 1864)

Main article: Battle of the Wilderness

Theodore B. Hamilton was appointed Colonel for gallant service in The Battle of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania Courthouse.

Battle of Spotsylvania Court House (May 12, 1864)

Main article: Battle of Spotsylvania Court House

Theodore B. Hamilton was wounded on May 12, 1864 at Spotsylvania Courthouse, Virginia. He was appointed Colonel for gallant service in the battle of the Wilderness and Spotsylvania Court House on August 1, 1864.

Appomattox Campaign (March 29 – April 9, 1865)

Main article: Appomattox campaign

Lieutenant Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton continued on to serve in the Sixth Army Corps in the second division during the Appomattox Campaign under Brigadier General George W. Getty and Brigadier General Lewis A. Grant.

End of military service

Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton ended military service on August 30, 1865. In June, 1890 he was listed in the 1890 Veterans Schedule. His sword, which is inscribed with the following message "Presented To Lieut Col T.B. Hamilton by the Non Commissioned Officers & Privates of the 62nd Regt N.Y. Vols. Anderson Zouaves as a token of their regards and esteem. All Honor To The Brave"; was later sold by Heritage Auctions in Dallas, TX.

Death and burial

Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton passed away on November 23, 1893 in Queens County, New York. He is buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, in Westchester County, New York in Section 24, Lot 483.