May 17 

 

          On this day in 1862, Benjamin Franklin Albritton (1841-1925) of the 3rd North Carolina Infantry was discharged from Confederate service due to a disabling accident in camp. Born in 1841, Albritton was orphaned young and raised by his maternal uncle. He inherited land and eleven enslaved people from his parents’ estate, allowing him a comfortable life in Greene County. At 19, likely driven by patriotic zeal and a sense of adventure, Benjamin enlisted in the “Greene County Riflemen” at Snow Hill on April 23, 1861. The unit was ordered to Virginia in the late summer and spent the winter at Aquia Creek near Fredericksburg. Albritton’s visions of martial glory were cut short on January 25, 1862, when a fellow soldier’s rifle discharged accidentally, striking Albritton in the right ankle while he was on Provost guard duty. After nearly four months of recovery, the regimental surgeon determined that ankylosis (fusion of bones resulting in joint stiffness) rendered Albritton unfit for military duty. He was discharged on this day and returned home to North Carolina. He married Leora Sugg in November 1863 and together they raised six children. He died in 1925, a venerated resident of Greene County whose obituary overstated his military career when it declared he was “a Confederate veteran with a record for valorous services.” He only served eight months of active duty and never saw combat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

​​

​

​

​

Sources: 

Louis H. Manarin, comp., North Carolina Troops, 1861-1865: A Roster, 3:490; Benjamin F. Albritton, Compiled Military Service Record; 1860 U.S. Census: Greene County, NC; Raleigh News and Observer, April 11, 1925

​

​

​