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Civil War Soldiers - Kane

Kane, Thomas L., brigadier-general, U.S. Army, was born in Philadelphia, Pa., Jan. 27, 1822. He was educated in Paris, France, and on his return to America studied law, was admitted to the bar, and was a clerk in the United States district court until the passage of the fugitive slave law, when he resigned. He visited the Mormon settlement near Commerce, Ill., in 1847, and during the migration to Utah so won the confidence of the Mormon leaders that, when the territory was declared in a state of rebellion in 1858, he went there at his own expense with letters from President Buchanan and arranged an amicable settlement that was afterwards concluded by the peace commissioners. He founded and laid out the town of Kane, in the northwestern part of Pennsylvania, where he raised, in 1861, a regiment called the "Bucktails," which became famous for valor and endurance. He led the advance at Dranesburg, where he was wounded, and at Harrisonburg was sent to rescue a regiment that had fallen into an ambuscade, and was again wounded and taken prisoner. He was paroled, and, on being exchanged was brevetted brigadier-general of volunteers, Sept. 1, 1862. Although absent on sick leave at the time the battle of Gettysburg opened, he hastened to Washington for orders and carried to Gen. Meade the information that the Confederates were in possession of the national cipher code. He joined his brigade on the morning of the second day of the battle and held an important position on the extreme right. He was discharged, Nov. 7, 1863, being disabled by wounds and exposure, and on March 13, 1865, was brevetted major-general of volunteers for his services at Gettysburg. He died in Philadelphia, Pa., Dec. 26, 1883.

Source: The Union Army: A History of Military Affairs in the Loyal States 1861-1865, Volume 8 Biographical, 1908
 


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