Winnie Davis Camp No. 108 UCV Records from Membership Register   Moses Waddel McKnight Commander and Adjutant during Camp's first years Ent State serv June 1861 Pvt Co C Tenn Cav, 2nd Battn; ent Conf Serv Nov 1861 Sgt Major; Capt by election at reorganization May 1862; Colonel Oct. 1864; present at Sylo, Winston's Lane, Corinth, Iuka, Brice Crossroads, Oakalona, Pontotoc, Tupelo, Harrisburg, Paduca, Franklin and many skirmishes by day and night - perhaps one hundred too numerous to mention;  wounded severely 3 times; paroled May 10, 186 [?] McKnight was born June 22, 1833 Benson Co. Tenn. married Miss May A. Fore, dau. of Maj. J. L. Fore Sept. 24, 1855. She died Sept. 25, 1894. Two children: Sallie A. (Mrs. Defore C. Williams) and Alex J. McKnight. Never deserted a principal or foresook a friend in time of need. Dec. 8, 1901 - at this late date there are but few soldiers who were in the army east of the Mississippi River who can tell all the battles in which he was engaged and especially one who was with Gen. Forrest as he was during the last years of the Confederacy.  On original form: "Died July 30, 1909." Obituary [Source: Confederate Veteran, Vol. XVIII, No. 1, Jan. 1910 contributed by Ruth Walsh] Col. M. W. McKnight, distinguished as an officer of Forrest's Cavalry, was born in Cannon County, Tenn. June 22, 1833, son of Alexander and Anna P. McKnight and great-grandson of Moses Waddell, the famous educator, founder and President of North Caroline University. Comrade McKnight was graduated in 1853 from Irving College near the Cumberland Mountains.  He  married Mary A. Fare in 1855; taught school and read law with Maj. J. L. Fare and Charles Ready, gaining admission to the Bar at Woodbury, Tenn. in 1858.   He practiced law until after the formation of the Confederacy.  Being of old Whig stock, he opposed secession, and on the night before the election which decided the withdrawal of Tennessee, he made the last Union speech in the city of Nashville, in which he stated  that whatever the result might be he would go with the State, enlist in her army and fight to the end. He enlisted as a private in Capt. T. M. Allison's company, 1st Battalion, Tennessee Cavalry June 28, 1861 and was soon elected sergeant major of the battalion.  HIs company re-enlisted at Jacinto, Miss. May 14, 1962 for three years or during [sic] the war, and he was elected captain.  His battalion and the 7th were consolidated, his company becoming C of the 2nd Regiment Tennessee cavalry under Col. C. R. Barteau and was a part of Bell's Brigade under Nathan B. Forrest, distinguished in many famous victories. Captain McKnight gallantly led the regiment as its temporary commander in the battle of Okolona, Miss. in Feb. 1864 and was badly wounded in the left breast late in the afternoon, but did not leave the field .  In the fight at Paducah, Ky. March 25, 1864, he again commanded the regiment and received a severe injury when his head was fearfully crushed by a falling chimney which had been hit by a shell.  Though he still suffered from the injury, he participated in the great victory at Brice's Crossroads June 10, 1864, and the exciting pursuit of the enemy back to Memphis.  On July 13, the day before the battle of Harrisburg, he was again wounded when the bones of his left leg were shattered between knee and angle [sic].  He was sent to the home of Col. J. D. MacAlister, near Aberdeen, Miss., and while there, received notice of his promotion to colonel of cavalry by General Forrest.  He could not accept the position and was again in the field.  When Gen. Forrest surrendered his command in May 1865, he sent Col. McKnight his parole in care of Gen. Bell. McKnight returned to Tennessee and was elected President of Woodbury College, a position he held for three years, at the same time continuing to practice law.  In 1870 he was elected Attorney General of the Seventh Judicial Circuit of Tennessee, and filled the office most ably until 1878.  In 1880 he moved to Waxahachie, Tex. and began the practice of law.  He was an elder in the Presbyterian church, a high Mason and a Democrat.  His wife, a loving and devoted companion and mother, died in Chicago, Ill. Sept. 25, 1894, and was buried at Lebanon, Tenn.  There are two children living: Sarah a., wife of Dixon C. Williams, of Chicago, and Alex J., of Commerce, Tex. Colonel McKnight was a faithful and devoted member of Camp Winnie Davis and we, the members of the Camp, do hereby express our deep sorrow in the loss of our beloved comrade, friend and associate, a man of honor, veracity and integrity and much loved.  /s/Thomas B. Criddle, W. J. F. Ross and Thomas Yates, Committee [Comment by submitter: The CSA units referred to above are now known as Barteau's 22nd Tennessee Cavalry.]   Copyright © 2002-2016, Ellis County TXGenWeb. All Rights Reserved. This page was last modified: Thursday, 01-Jul-2021 13:19:08 MDT