Robert M. Rucker was born on December 3, 1830, in Tennessee to Samuel and Martha Rucker. His father was a farmer and lawyer who owned $27,500 of real estate and $37,000 of personal property by 1860. Rucker grew up and attended school in Rutherford, Tennessee, and he enrolled at the University of Virginia in 1849. He spent two years studying mathematics, natural philosophy, and ancient languages, but he was frequently absent from class. On June 30, 1851, the faculty decided that it “would be inexpedient for [Rucker] to return to the University.” After leaving UVA, Rucker returned to Rutherford County and began working as a farmer. By 1860, he owned $10,000 of real estate.

 

He enlisted in the Confederate army on April 27, 1861, and he mustered in as a private in Company A of the 2^nd Tennessee Infantry. According to his service records, he was 6 feet, 1½ inches tall, with dark hair and blue eyes. The regiment took part in the First Battle of Bull Run, the Battle of Shiloh, the Battle of Perryville, the Battle of Chickamauga, and the Atlanta campaign. He was wounded at Chickamauga in September 1863, but he eventually recovered and rejoined the regiment. Union forces captured him near Goldsboro on March 22, 1865, and imprisoned him at Point Lookout, Maryland. They released him on June 16, 1865, after he swore an oath of allegiance to the Union.

 

He returned to Rutherford County after the war, and he married Anna L. Cowen on July 24, 1867. They had at least five children: Samuel, born around 1868; Barkley, born around 1870; Rosalind, born around 1872; Robert, born around 1876; and Irene, born around 1878. He worked as a farmer, and by 1870, he owned $15,000 of real estate. He died on September 22, 1908.

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