Civil War Confederate Army Officer. The pre-war Mayor of Franklinton, North Carolina, he enlisted as a Captain in the 13th North Carolina Infantry regiment after the outbreak of the Civil War. He fought with the unit, which was re-designated as the 23rd North Carolina Infantry regiment, in its participation in the campaigns in Virginia, and was captured at the May 1863 Battle of Chancellorsville. After his exchange he was promoted to Major in time for the unit's participation in the July 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. There, on the First Day of the Battle, he was with his unit as it made an ill-conceived charge on Federal positions that was repulsed with severe losses. Every field officer in the 23rd North Carolina was killed or wounded, except one. Colonel Daniel H. Christie was mortally wounded, and Major Blacknall was shot through the mouth and neck. Captured by Federal forces once again, he remained in their captivity while recovering from his grievous wound, and was eventually exchanged again. After rejoining his regiment, he was promoted to Colonel and commander to replace Colonel Christie. At the Third Battle of Winchester on September 19, 1864, he was wounded in the foot, and prevented Confederate surgeons from amputating it, reputedly saying "I'll live yet to dance on that foot". Hobbled by the wound, he still led his men in engagements at Auburn and Morton's Gap, Virginia in October 1864. His wound would prove mortal though, and he died on November 6, 1864 a few weeks after the crushing Confederate defeat at the October 19, 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek. His story was chronicled in the 2000 work "Confederate Courage on Other Fields: Four Lesser Known Accounts of the War Between the States" by Mark J. Crawford.
Civil War Confederate Army Officer. The pre-war Mayor of Franklinton, North Carolina, he enlisted as a Captain in the 13th North Carolina Infantry regiment after the outbreak of the Civil War. He fought with the unit, which was re-designated as the 23rd North Carolina Infantry regiment, in its participation in the campaigns in Virginia, and was captured at the May 1863 Battle of Chancellorsville. After his exchange he was promoted to Major in time for the unit's participation in the July 1863 Battle of Gettysburg. There, on the First Day of the Battle, he was with his unit as it made an ill-conceived charge on Federal positions that was repulsed with severe losses. Every field officer in the 23rd North Carolina was killed or wounded, except one. Colonel Daniel H. Christie was mortally wounded, and Major Blacknall was shot through the mouth and neck. Captured by Federal forces once again, he remained in their captivity while recovering from his grievous wound, and was eventually exchanged again. After rejoining his regiment, he was promoted to Colonel and commander to replace Colonel Christie. At the Third Battle of Winchester on September 19, 1864, he was wounded in the foot, and prevented Confederate surgeons from amputating it, reputedly saying "I'll live yet to dance on that foot". Hobbled by the wound, he still led his men in engagements at Auburn and Morton's Gap, Virginia in October 1864. His wound would prove mortal though, and he died on November 6, 1864 a few weeks after the crushing Confederate defeat at the October 19, 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek. His story was chronicled in the 2000 work "Confederate Courage on Other Fields: Four Lesser Known Accounts of the War Between the States" by Mark J. Crawford.
Bio by: RPD2
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