Ulysses Grant

Grant was born on April 27th, 1822 in Point Pleasant, Ohio. He was the son of an Ohio tanner. He attended West Point, although against his will, and graduated in the middle of his class. At the outbreak of the Civil War, he was working in his father’s leather store in Galanea, Illinois. After his efforts in the Mexican War, he was appointed by the Governor to command an unruly volunteer regiment. Grant quickly got this regiment under control, and by September 1861, he had risen to the rank of brigadier general of volunteers.

Grant sought to win control of the Mississippi Valley, attacking Fort Henry and Fort Donelson in February 1862. When the Confederate commander asked for terms, Grant replied, “No terms except an unconditional and immediate surrender can be accepted”. The battle at Fort Henry occurred on February 6th, 1862. Grant was the principal commander, along with Brigad...