 Abt 1832 - 1862 (30 years)
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| Name |
Thomas Newton Crumpler |
| Suffix |
Jr. |
| Birth |
Abt 22 Feb 1832 |
North Carolina  [1] |
| Gender |
Male |
| Death |
11 Jul 1862 |
Willis Church, near Richmond, Virginia [1, 3] |
| Burial |
Rockford Baptist Church Cemetery, Rockford, Surry County, North Carolina [4, 5] |
| Notes |
- From Garth Matthews, History of American Crumplers (his ref J5.0-B1.1):
1850 [US Census] Listed as living with Parents/siblings at/near Rockford, Surry County
1850 [June] Entered the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he studied for 2 years.
1854 Having received his law licence, he opened a practice in Jefferson, the county seat of Ashe County. By then he was involved in politics as a Whig.
1854[Nov.27] He was elected county attorney .
1860[ Aug] He was elected to the NC House of Commons , leading his Democratic opponent , Quincy Neal , by a vote of 866 to 317. Ashe County Representation in the North Carolina General Assembly shows: Joseph Dobson Thomas N Crumpler
1861 [Jan 10] delivered famous speech to the North Carolina House of Commons, entitled "Federal Relations"
1861 With war looming, Crumpler headed back to Ashe.
1861 [ 16th May] Thomas N Crumpler, together with the Ashe cavalry company which he had raised, enlisted in the C.S.A..,1st. Regiment NC Cavalry. The Ashe cavalry company eventually became Company A in the 1st Regiment. Initially served as a Captain, having been elected.
1861 [ Aug 3rd] The Raleigh Register heaped praise on Thomas Newton Crumpler's Company in its issue of that date.
1861 Onwards Overview of 1st Regiment, North Carolina Cavalry
1862 [1st. March] promoted to the rank of Major and transferred to the regimental staff.
1862 [Extract from "The Peninsular Campaign , VA Chapter XXIII Page 988"
Garth lists Thomas Crumpler with 2 marriages and does not say which wife/husband was this child's other parent; placed with Elizabeth J Parks.
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| Person ID |
I602085642 |
Walsh - Wilson Family Tree |
| Last Modified |
15 Nov 2026 |
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| Event Map |
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 | Burial - - Rockford Baptist Church Cemetery, Rockford, Surry County, North Carolina |
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| Documents
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 | Major Crumpler reported captured - Weekly Standard, Raleigh, 2 Jul 1862
The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, North Carolina), Wednesday 2 July 1862, page 2. Written during the Seven Days battles before Richmond, while the outcome was still unknown: the paper had heard a rumour that the enemy had trapped the First North Carolina Cavalry and that Major Crumpler and 30 privates were captured. He had in fact been mortally wounded leading a charge at Willis Church on 29 June. (Image from Newspapers.com.) |
 | Death of Major T. N. Crumpler - Weekly Standard, Raleigh, 30 Jul 1862
The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, North Carolina), Wednesday 30 July 1862, page 1. The paper's notice of his death from a minie ball through the lungs, received in the charge below Richmond. The editor had spoken with him a few days before the battle and recalled his stand in the House of Commons: he had opposed the dissolution of the Union until Lincoln's proclamation, but promised that if the South were coerced he and his friends would be found as far in front as those most anxious for war. "Most nobly has he redeemed his pledge." (Image from Newspapers.com.) |
 | Crumpler Monument Unveiled - People's Press, Winston-Salem, 7 Jul 1887
The People's Press (Winston-Salem, North Carolina), Thursday 7 July 1887, page 3, reprinted from the Mount Airy News. The monument to Maj. Thomas N. Crumpler was unveiled at Rockford on 29 June 1887, the 25th anniversary of the charge in which he fell, before a crowd of nearly 1,500. It is North Carolina granite, cut at Kernersville, about fifteen feet high. His comrade in arms, Hon. Wm. H. Cowles, gave the address. (Image from Newspapers.com.) |
| Headstones |
 | Monument to Maj. Thomas N. Crumpler, Rockford Baptist Church Cemetery
The granite obelisk to Major Thomas Newton Crumpler, 1st North Carolina Cavalry, at Rockford Baptist Church Cemetery, Surry County. It was cut at Kernersville from North Carolina granite, stands about fifteen feet high, and was unveiled on 29 June 1887, the 25th anniversary of the charge at Willis Church in which he fell, before a crowd of nearly 1,500. The panel reads: "THOS N. CRUMPLER / MAJ. 1st CAVALRY / BORN FEB. 22. 1831. / Fell mortally wounded at the head of his regiment in cavalry charge at Willis church below Richmond, VA / JUNE. 29. 1862." Photograph by Kathy Merris Mills, Find a Grave volunteer, 2013 (memorial 102904432); perspective corrected and sharpened. |
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| Sources |
- [S90946] Garth Matthews, Matthews, History of American Crumplers, (Unpublished manuscript, sent to Craig Walsh 14 Nov 2026), Ref J5.0-B1.1, Chapter 4: the J5 Benjamin line.
- [S90947] The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, North Carolina), (Newspapers.com), 2 Jul 1862, Weekly Standard, 2 Jul 1862, p. 2. Newspapers.com clipping: https://www.newspapers.com/article/210340017/ (Reliability: 3).
During the Seven Days battles before Richmond: "It is rumored that the enemy entrapped the First N. C. Cavalry, Col. Baker, on Sunday morning, and we regret to hear that Major Crumpler and 30 privates were captured. We hope it is not so."
- [S90947] The Weekly Standard (Raleigh, North Carolina), (Newspapers.com), 30 Jul 1862, Weekly Standard, 30 Jul 1862, p. 1. Newspapers.com clipping: https://www.newspapers.com/article/210340078/ (Reliability: 3).
"Death of Major T. N. Crumpler." He died "a few days since" of a wound received in a conflict below Richmond; a minie ball passed through his lungs and came out near his shoulder blade. He entered service as a captain in Col. Baker's (formerly Ransom's) cavalry, was promoted major, and "was among the foremost in the charge in which he lost his life." The editor, who had talked with him days before, recalled that he "opposed the dissolution of the Union up to Lincoln's proclamation" but had pledged that if the South were coerced he and his friends would be found as far in front as anyone: "Most nobly has he redeemed his pledge."
- [S90948] The People's Press (Winston-Salem, North Carolina), (Newspapers.com), 7 Jul 1887, People's Press, 7 Jul 1887, p. 3. Newspapers.com clipping: https://www.newspapers.com/article/210340106/ (Reliability: 3).
"Crumpler Monument Unveiled" (from the Mount Airy News): the monument to Maj. Thomas N. Crumpler, 1st North Carolina Cavalry, killed in a charge at Willis' Church during the Seven Days battles, was unveiled at Rockford on Wednesday 29 June 1887. A crowd of nearly 1,500 attended. The monument is North Carolina granite, cut at Kernersville, about fifteen feet high. Hon. Wm. H. Cowles, his comrade in arms, gave the address.
- [S4945] Find A Grave Website, (www.findagrave.com), Find a Grave memorial 102904432, Rockford Baptist Church Cemetery: https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/102904432/thomas-newton-crumpler (Reliability: 3).
Inscription: "THOS N. CRUMPLER / MAJ. 1st CAVALRY / BORN FEB. 22. 1831. / Fell mortally wounded at the head of his regiment in cavalry charge at Willis church below Richmond, VA / JUNE. 29. 1862." The date on the stone is the day he fell. An eyewitness diary quoted in B. J. Alderman, Ambush at Willis Church, pp. 43-47, says he was still conscious the next day and died in a Richmond hospital on 11 July 1862. A second Find a Grave memorial places him at Oakwood Cemetery, Richmond.
- [S90946] Garth Matthews, Matthews, History of American Crumplers, (Unpublished manuscript, sent to Craig Walsh 14 Nov 2026), Ref J5.0-B1, Chapter 4: the J5 Benjamin line.
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