James Camp Tappan - Maple Hill Cemetery - Helena, AR - Grave of a Famous Person on Waymarking.com

Description: An interpretive sign stands at his gravesite, featuring several insets with photos of General Tappan, his epaulets, his cane, a lithograph of the Battle of Shiloh, and his home (today, the Tappan-Pillow House) in Helena, AR. The sign gives some background on the General's life: James Camp Tappan 1825-1906 A Successful Lawyer Born in Tennessee, James Camp Tappan was educated at Exeter and Yale in New England. He spent a year reading law in Vicksburg before moving to Helena in 1848, where he married Mary Elizabeth Anderson and began his political career. Tappan was a Democrat and despite his parents' New England ancestry, he supported the Confederacy. An Aggressive Commander Tappan became the colonel of the 13th Arkansas Infantry and fought against General Ulysses S. Grant at Belmont, Missouri. He led repeated charges against Union soldiers under General Benjamin Prentiss in the Hornets' Nest of the Battle of Shiloh, Tennessee. Ironically, Prentiss would hold Helena against a Confederate attack in July 1863. Tappan's regiment became part of General Patrick Cleburne's Division during the 1862 Confederate invasion of Kentucky, fighting at Richmond and Perryville along with another Helena friend, Lucius Polk. Tappan's promotion to general in November 1862 came with a transfer to the Trans-Mississippi -- an army department that included Arkansas, Missouri, Texas, Louisiana and the Indian Territories. Tappan spent the rest of the war in that theater, leading his men at Jenkins' Ferry, Arkansas, at Mansfield and Pleasant Hill, Louisiana, and other battles. Family Man and Respected Politician After the war, Tappan returned to Helena and resumed the practice of law. He reentered politics, serving as "Speaker of the House" in the Arkansas House of Representatives during his long and successful career. His only child, Mary, was born in Helena in 1871. She never married and lived in the family home until her death in 1944. Support for Civil War Helena generously provided by Southern Bancorp, Department of Arkansas Heritage Delta Cultural Center, and Helena-West Helena Advertising and Promotion Commission. Date of birth: 09/09/1825 Date of death: 03/19/1906 Area of notoriety: Military Marker Type: Headstone Setting: Outdoor Visiting Hours/Restrictions: Daylight hours, gates close at 5 PM Fee required?: No Web site: [Web Link]

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Date Logged Log   01/10/2015 walkingwildly visited it