Edward L. Molineux

Edward Leslie Molineux was born in London on October 12, 1833, a son of William Molineux and Maria (Leslie) Molineux. The Molineux family immigrated to the United States when Molineux was two, and they settled in Manhattan. In June 1854, Molineux began his military career when he joined the Brooklyn City Guard, which became part of the New York Militia as its 13th Regiment. Beginning as a private in Company G, he remained with this unit until April 1861, the start of the American Civil War. Molineux was the main recruiter of the brigade's 23rd Regiment, for which its members elected him lieutenant colonel and second-in-command. Family In July 1861, Molineux married Harriet Davis Clark of East Hartford, Connecticut. They were married until her 1914 death, and were the parents of sons Leslie, Roland, and Cecil. ==Continued career==

In August 1862, Molineux assisted in raising the 159th New York Infantry Regiment. He was initially assigned as lieutenant colonel and second in command; when the unit's first commander, Homer Augustus Nelson, resigned, Molineux was promoted to colonel and assigned as regimental commander. The 159th New York served under Nathaniel P. Banks, commander of the Department of the Gulf, and Molineux took part in battles including the Siege of Port Hudson, Red River campaign, and Battle of Irish Bend. He also acted as commander of 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, XIX Corps, and was wounded in the jaw at Irish Bend in April 1863. While convalescing, he took part in the Union response to the New York City draft riots. After recovering from his wounds, he returned to duty as assistant inspector general of the Department of the Mississippi. He subsequently served as the department's provost marshal and commissioner for prisoner exchanges. Molineux was next appointed to command Louisiana's Lafourche Military District, where his duties included organizing pro-Union state troops and guarding the construction site during the building of Bailey's Dam near Alexandria, Louisiana in April and May 1864. He was later ordered to Virginia, where he took part in the Siege of Petersburg and organized a provisional division of the XIX Corps. Molineux took part in the Valley campaigns of 1864, and he earned brevet promotion to brigadier general for his superior performance of duty at the September 1864 Battle of Fisher's Hill and Third Battle of Winchester, and the October 1864 Battle of Cedar Creek. He was then assigned to Georgia, where he participated in Sherman's March to the Sea during November and December 1864. In early 1865, he was assigned to command the Military District of Northern Georgia, including the coastal defenses of Savannah, Fort Pulaski and Tybee Island. While in this position, Molineux directed the March 1865 rescue of S.S. Lawrence, a cargo ship that had become grounded. Military members and civilian volunteers succeeded at saving the ship and its cargo of cotton, and New York City underwriters presented Molineux with a silver service as a token of their appreciation. Molineux also seized Confederate stores and infrastructure in Savannah, including gold bullion and cotton worth over $10 million ($210 million in 2025), as well as factories, warehouses, and government buildings, all of which he turned over to the U.S. government for final disposition. Molineux received brevet promotion to major general in recognition of his accomplishments while serving in Georgia. ==Later career==

After the war, Molineux resided in Brooklyn, continued his career in paint manufacturing, and became the manager of the Devoe & Raynolds Company's Brooklyn factory. He was an organizer and officer of both the New York Paint, Oil and Varnish Club and the National Paint, Oil and Varnish Association. In June 1879, he was assigned to command the state's 11th Brigade with the rank of brigadier general. Molineux's additional memberships included the Army and Navy Club of New York, the Oxford Club of Brooklyn, and the Masonic Veterans Association of Brooklyn. Molineux died in Manhattan on June 10, 1915. He was buried at Saint James the Less Episcopal Church Cemetery in Scarsdale, New York. ==References==