Wallace F. Randolph
| Wallace Fitz Randolph | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born | June 11, 1841 |
| Died | December 9, 1910 (aged 69) |
| Buried | Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington County, Virginia, U.S. |
| Allegiance |
 United States of America
|
| Service/branch |
 United States Army
|
| Years of service | 1861–1904 |
| Rank |
Major General 
|
| Battles/wars | Spanish–American War |
Wallace Fitz Randolph (June 11, 1841 – December 9, 1910) was a United States Army major general who enlisted as a private at the start of the American Civil War, rose in rank to Major General and, after serving in the artillery branch his entire career, became the first U. S. Army Chief of Artillery.
General Randolph was born in Pennsylvania on June 11, 1841, to Dr. Charles Fitz and Margaret Gooch Randolph. His older brother was Edmund Dutilh Randolph, a prominent New York banker and insurance executive.
On April 18, 1861, enlisted as a private in Company F of the 17th Pennsylvania Infantry. He remained in that unit until June 28, 1861 when he was transferred to the newly formed Fifth United States Field Artillery and commissioned as a Second Lieutenant. His cousin Colonel Lorenzo Thomas arranged for his promotion. The unit was formed by proclamation of President Lincoln on May 4, 1861, but not ratified by Congress until mid July. All appointees of the unit, including Randolph, had their ranks dated from May 14, 1861.
His gallantry and display of good judgment in action near Winchester, Virginia, during the Second Battle of Winchester, earned him a brevet to Captain in 1863. It was during this time, Confederate forces captured Lieutenant Randolph's artillery battery and he was wounded. Sent to the infamous Libby prison, a converted brick warehouse in Richmond, Virginia, Randolph worked with others for eight months, standing watch and helping with the digging, eventually escaping the Libby prison. Over the week following, he was able to make his way through the city and into the swamps, avoiding capture until finally making his way to Federal troop positions near Williamsburg, Virginia.
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