Thomas Atkinson Pelham (1847-1912)
The youngest surviving son of Atkinson and Martha McGehee Pelham, Thomas Atkinson Pelham was born in 1847. In 1861, when his elder brothers went off to war, Tom was only fourteen years old. He visited his older brothers in camp just before the battle of Chickamauga in September 1863. Thomas observed this battle from a distance, having been urged to take his leave before hostilities began. This only served to convince him he must enlist. In April 1864, he enlisted in Company C of the 51st Alabama Cavalry in Oxford, Al abama. He had just turned sixteen. He served in the early part of the Atlanta Campaign.
On June 24, 1864, the records show that Private Pelham was admitted to the Madison Hospital in Montgomery, Alabama for fever and debility. He was granted a 30-day furlough. At the end of the war, Tom was in Tennessee and he was fortunate enough to capture some Yankee booty. His horse was loaded down with the booty and Tom walked beside his horse for the 200-mile trip home.
After the war, Tom married Tirza Morris of nearby Morrisville. The couple had five children -- Samuel Clay Pelham, Morris Pelham, Anne, Louise and Caroline. Tom remained in Alabama, settling on a home he built in 1883 at a railroad stop called "Mahlep" (which is Pelham spelled backwards). This home was recently destroyed by arson.
Tom Pelham was noted for his love of fun and pranks. He also liked his whiskey a little too much. Despite this, he was a man generous to a fault. Twice every dollar of his estate was tied up in debts he did not owe; as a result, he had to sell off several Pelham tracts of land. He died in his sleep at the age of 65 on July 29, 1912 and was buried in his Confederate uniform.
This article first appeared in Volume 4, No. 1 of The Cannoneer.
Source:
"Thomas Pelham Found Dead In Bed," The Anniston Evening Star,
July 29, 1912.
Letter of Robert A. Cason, Alabama Department of Archives and History, to
Charles H. Hooper, March 26, 1982.
Letters of J. Douglas Pelham to Peggy Vogtsberger, March 16, 1985; March 27,
1985; and February 18, 1985.
