Robert Lewis Taggart was born around 1807 in South Carolina. He eventually moved to Alabama, and he married Eleanor Cottrell there on November 23, 1837. They had at least eight children: Mary, born around 1842; Eleanor, born around 1844; Margaret, born around 1846; Robert, born around 1849; Belle, born around 1851; Hugh, born around 1853; Mozella, born around 1856; and Thomas, born around 1859. He worked as a physician in Desoto County, Mississippi, and by 1850, he owned $500 of real estate. He moved to Marshall County, Mississippi, in the 1850s. By 1860, he owned $2,000 of real estate and $5,000 of personal property.

 

In May 1862, he received a commission as an assistant surgeon in the 42^nd Mississippi Infantry. The regiment took part in the Battle of Gettysburg, the Overland Campaign, and the siege of Petersburg. He was promoted to surgeon in May 1864. He surrendered as part of General Richard Taylor’s command on May 4, 1865, and he received a parole on May 19.

 

He settled in Memphis, Tennessee, after the war, and he resumed his work as a physician. A local writer described him as a “fine scholar, a skillful physician and a useful member of society.” He died of cholera on September 30, 1866.

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