Gratz Cohen

Gratz Cohen (November 3, 1844 – March 19, 1865) was a Confederate Army captain during the American Civil War. He fought in the Battle of Averasborough and the Battle of Bentonville. He was killed in the latter, aged 20.

Life and career Cohen was born in 1844, in Savannah, Georgia, to Solomon Cohen Jr. and Miriam Gratz Moses.

In 1847, noted author Rebecca Gratz, his maternal great-aunt, met Cohen when his mother brought he and his sister, Miriam, to visit her in Philadelphia. His father did not share his son's opinion, but he did acquiesce to his wishes to convert from Orthodox Judaism to Reform. It was during his time at college that he wrote about his homosexuality. He had just taken a report to his general when he was killed by a bullet to his head. He was initially buried near Bentonville Battlefield by comrade Frank O'Driscoll, but in February 1866 O'Driscoll, who had married Gratz's sister Belle shortly beforehand, retrieved his remains and he was re-interred in Savannah's Laurel Grove Cemetery, alongside his parents. His headstone reads "To our only and beloved son."