History of Coosa County: W. D. Walden, merchant, legislator and captain
1942 · George E. Brewer, "History of Coosa County, Alabama," The Alabama Historical Quarterly, vol. 4, nos. 1–2 (Montgomery, Alabama, Spring and Summer 1942)
Citation: George E. Brewer, "History of Coosa County, Alabama," The Alabama Historical Quarterly 4, nos. 1–2 (Spring and Summer 1942): 233, with mentions at 109, 115, 148 and 175; Internet Archive item histcoosacobrew, scans n473, n223, n235, n301 and n357, https://archive.org/details/histcoosacobrew/page/n473/mode/1up?q=Walden.
Transcription
Page 233 (archive.org text layer):
W. D. Walden, who was a member of the House in 1859, was a merchant at Nixburg for a number of years, and then transferred his business to Rockford where he continued until his death. His first wife was a daughter of Solomon Robbins, by whom he had one son, Walker, still a citizen of Coosa. His second wife was Miss Eliza Moore, of Rockford, by whom he had three children, and who went to Texas soon after the war. Walden was a good merchant, and made a good property. He made no public speeches, his talent being for business, not oratory. He led a company to the war in June 1862, joining Hilliard's Legion. His company was afterward in the 59th Ala. Regt. He was killed at the Battle of Chickamauga, just as he mounted the enemy's works, in a gallant charge of the regiment at Snodgrass Hill.
Page 148, "Fifty-Ninth Alabama Regiment" (formed from the Second and Fourth Battalions of Hilliard's Legion):
Company K. was from Coosa with Wesley D. Walden, captain; Wesley G. Delaney, 1st Lt.; John Burrough, 2nd Lt.; Thomas Hull, 3rd Lt.; […] There were 87 privates on the first roll, most of them farmers. […] Captain Walder [sic] was killed at Chicamauga just as he mounted the works of the enemy in a gallant charge by which they were taken. Robert H. Gullege then became captain and commanded through the remainder of the war.
Page 175, the election of 1859: "Alexander Smith, Calvin Humphries, and Wesley D. Walden were nominated for the House." Page 115, list of Coosa's members of the House: "A. H. Smith, Calvin Humphries and W. D. Walden." Page 109: "W. D. Walden" among those who came "a little later" to Rockford.
What it says, against the tree
| Person | Fact | Document says | Tree says | Assessment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Westley D Walden | Name | W. D. Walden; Wesley D. Walden | Westley D Walden | agrees |
| Westley D Walden | Occupation, residence | Merchant at Nixburg, later at Rockford until his death | Residence Coosa 1850, 1860 | new |
| Westley D Walden | Office | Member of the Alabama House, elected 1859 | — | new |
| Westley D Walden | First marriage | A daughter of Solomon Robbins; one son, Walker | Eliza Robbins; son William Walker Walden | agrees |
| Westley D Walden | Second marriage | Eliza Moore of Rockford; three children; she went to Texas after the war | Elizabeth Moore (1836–1874); three children | agrees |
| Westley D Walden | Military | Raised a company June 1862, Hilliard's Legion; captain, Company K, 59th Alabama | Captain, Company B, 60th Alabama Infantry (Hilliard's Legion, 2nd Battalion), 1862 | conflicts (company and regiment) |
| Westley D Walden | Death | Killed at the Battle of Chickamauga (19–20 Sept 1863), in the charge at Snodgrass Hill | 10 October 1863, Marietta, Cobb, Georgia | conflicts |
| William Walker Walden | Residence | "Walker, still a citizen of Coosa" | Lived in Coosa; died Birmingham 1920 | agrees |