Samuel Benton

Samuel Benton (October 18, 1820– July 28, 1864) was an American attorney, newspaper publisher and politician. He served as a colonel in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He was promoted to brigadier general, but died of wounds received in the Battle of Atlanta before the notification of his promotion reached him.

Early life Samuel Benton was born on October 18, 1820, in Williamson County, Tennessee. He was a nephew of Thomas Hart Benton, a US Senator from Missouri. Samuel Benton studied law and became a prominent lawyer in Holly Springs, Mississippi. He was also the publisher of a newspaper there, The Mississippi Times, first published in April 1853.

In politics, Benton was a Whig, and he served one term in the state House of Representatives in 1852. He was a delegate to the Mississippi Secession Convention of January 1861, where he voted in favor of leaving the Union.

Civil War During the American Civil War, Benton enlisted for Mississippi state service in early 1861. He was elected captain in the "Old" 9th Mississippi Infantry, a 12 month regiment.

Benton and the 34th Mississippi Infantry accompanied General Braxton Bragg's army to Tennessee and fought at the Battle of Perryville, where the 34th suffered heavy losses.

Samuel Benton was buried at Griffin, Georgia, and reinterred after the war in Hillcrest Cemetery in Holly Springs, Mississippi. He was survived by his wife, the former Rowena Knox, and two children.

Benton County, Mississippi, established in 1870, was named for Samuel Benton.