Charles Belden White
Charles Belden White was born on September 12, 1837, in New York City to Frances Taylor and Dr. Ambrose Lipscomb White. Charles was baptized the following year on October 16. His father was born in 1804 and attended Columbian College in Washington, D.C., where he studied to become a physician in the early 1820s. Ambrose grew up in D.C. in a home valued at $5,000, with about 16 family members in the dwelling. His studies propelled him to a prominent position as a notable surgeon in New York City, where he helped found the New York Academy of Medicine. Ambrose married Frances Taylor in Wilton, Connecticut, on April 17, 1828.
Following in his father’s footsteps, Charles studied to become a doctor at the New York College of Medicine, and he graduated in 1859. On May 28, 1861, he received a commission as an assistant surgeon in the Regular Army. He was captured at Malvern Hill in June 1862. By August 1862, Union officials assigned him to the Army of the Potomac’s Horse Artillery Brigade. He took part in the Antietam campaign.
He served as chief surgeon of the Army of the Potomac’s Artillery Reserve until March 1863 and then oversaw hospitals in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, until June. Army officials relocated him to the headquarters of the 13th Army Corps in Tennessee until November of 1863. Afterward, White became the medical director of United States forces in Texas until April of 1864, remaining with the 1st United States Infantry until August. In March 1865, the doctor was honored with brevets to captain and major for his war service. His father died soon afterward, on June 29, 1865.
He married Mary Ann Davenport in 1869, and they had three children: Katherine, Edith, and Winifred. He remained in the Regular Army and received a promotion to major and surgeon on October 1, 1875. He died in Wilton, Connecticut, on August 10, 1881, and was buried at Saint Matthew’s Parish Cemetery in Wilton. He left his wife a total of $29,122.30 in land and other material resources.
2839
DATABASE CONTENT
(2839)White , Charles Belden1837-09-121881-08-10
  • Conflict Side: Union
  • Role: Soldier
  • Rank in: Assistant Surgeon
  • Rank out: Medical Director
  • Rank highest: Medical Director
  • Gender: Male
  • Race: White

Documents - Records: 1

  • (7867) [recipient] ~ Napoleon J. T. Dana to Charles B. White, 25 January 1864

Places - Records: 2

  • (78) [birth] ~ New York City, New York
  • (3350) [death] ~ Wilton, Fairfield County, Connecticut

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SOURCES

New York and Vicinity, United Methodist Church Records, 1775-1949, available from Ancestry.com; U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1700s-Current, available from Ancestry.com; Connecticut, Hale Cemetery Inscriptions, 1675-1934, available from Ancestry.com; Connecticut, U.s., Hale Collection of Cemetery Inscriptions and Newspaper Notices, 1629-1934, available from Ancestry.com; New York, State Census, 1855, available from Ancestry.com; 1870 United States Federal Census, available from Ancestry.com; 1880 United States Federal Census, available from Ancestry.com; North America, family Histories, 1500-2000 (pg. 303), available from Ancestry.com; Connecticut, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1609-1999, available from Ancestry.com; https://antietam.aotw.org/officers.php?officer_id=21896