John W. Dun

By: Megan Chessnoe

John W. Dun was born around the time of 1840 and died on June 9th 1863. According to his census he was living his life in the town of Orange VA. This is also the place he would be taken in by a new family and raised here for all his time until war. During this time he was living with his family that took him, family number 738. His new family consisted of Ben Walker (61), Lucy F. Walker (42), Sally A. Walker (29), Ella R Walker (3), John himself, whom at the time of battle was (20) and his sister Mary S. Dun (18).When John died on June 9, 1863 at the battle of Brandy Station , John was part of the 6th Cavalry. He was a private,(both when going in, and during the actual battle) and part of the Confederacy. Because he was part of the 6th cavalry in 1860, this meant that all his battles took part in various parts of Virginia, some of these locations were: Loudoun, Rappahannock, Clarke, Rockingham, Pittsylvania, Fairfax, Halifax, Fauquier, and Orange counties of Virginia. When you got chosen to fight in this battle, the team you were put on for the confederate side, was Robertson's, W.E. Jones', Lomax's, and Payne's Brigade, Army of Northern Virginia. When John went into battle he was 20 years old. And his other family member joined in at the age of 18. Her record is found in the 1860’s census. Most of the time when John was in battle he was home sick. From his records it shows he was sent home various times, about every 3 months for a sickness. The one founded on record showed he was written up for being home sick on September 2nd 1861 and one in October 1861. The major battle he was part of was the Battle of Brandy Station. The battle of Brandy Station was fought on Fleetwood Hill. At the outset of the Gettysburg Campaign, Robert E. Lee thought it would be best to keep his advance hidden from the Union army. With his this in mind and his men helping, he stationed at Culpeper, Virginia near the north side of the Shenandoah Valley, Lee ordered his Maj. Gen. J.E.B. Stuart to launch the cavalry attack on June 9, 1863. The Union cavalry commander Maj. Gen. Alfred Pleasonton anticipated the riot and attacked Stuart’s men in camp at Brandy Station. Because of this surprise, the battle ended in a defeat for Pleasanton's forces. J.E.B. Stuart was harshly criticized for his unpreparedness and failures for his actions. During this battle this is where John was shot and killed. After he was killed, and news was brought to his family, the family was able to take in all his inherits from what he had before and after the war. The founding from the war (for his share) was given to his family and the family that took him in.

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"The Battle of Brandy Station Summary & Facts | Civilwar.org." Civil War Trust: Saving America's Civil War Battlefields. N.p., n.d. Web. 6 June 2016.