Isaac P. Rodman | |
|---|---|
 Rodman, c. 1861-62 | |
| Birth name | Isaac Peace Rodman |
| Born | (1822-08-18)August 18, 1822 |
| Died | September 30, 1862(1862-09-30) (aged 40) |
| Place of burial | Brigadier General Issac P. Rodman Lot, South Kingstown, Rhode Island |
| Allegiance |  United States (Union) |
| Branch | United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1862 |
| Rank |  Brigadier General |
| Unit | 2nd Rhode Island Infantry Regiment |
| Commands | 4th Rhode Island Infantry Regiment 3rd Division,IX Corps |
| Battles / wars | American Civil War -First Battle of Bull Run -Battle of Roanoke Island -Battle of New Bern -Battle of Fort Macon -Battle of South Mountain -Battle of Antietam † |
Isaac Peace Rodman (August 18, 1822 – September 30, 1862) was aRhode Island banker, politician, and aUnion Armybrigadier general in theAmerican Civil War, who was mortally wounded at theBattle of Antietam.
Isaac Peace Rodman was born inSouth Kingstown, Rhode Island the son of Samuel Rodman and Mary Peckham. He was married to Sally Lyman Arnold, daughter ofRhode Island GovernorLemuel Hastings Arnold. His brother-in-law was future Civil War generalRichard Arnold.
He entered into a partnership with his brother Rowland Gibson Rodman and his father Samuel Rodman, under the name S. Rodman & Sons. Isaac Rodman was for many years president of the town council of South Kingstown, a representative for several terms in theRhode Island General Assembly, in theRhode Island Senate. He was also a director in the Wakefield Bank and the Institution for Savings. As well as being a politician, businessman, and banker, Isaac Rodman was a devoted Christian, a teacher of a Bible study class, and a superintendent of a Sunday school.
At the start of the Civil War, Rodman was torn between the precepts of his religion and his loyalty to theUnion, but unhesitatingly raised a group of local residents for the2nd Rhode Island Infantry Regiment and was given the rank ofcaptain.[1] The regiment fought in theFirst Battle of Bull Run in the brigade ofBrigadier GeneralAmbrose Burnside and suffered heavy losses, including the regiment'scolonel. Rodman was appointed as colonel of the new4th Rhode Island Infantry Regiment byRhode Island GovernorWilliam Sprague on October 3, 1861. He fought under Burnside inNorth Carolina in theBattle of Roanoke Island, and then at theBattle of New Bern, where he distinguished himself for his gallantry and was made abrigadier general on April 28, 1862. After theBattle of Fort Macon, he contractedtyphoid fever and returned to South Kingstown.[1]
General Burnside wrote to Rodman, convalescing at home, to inform him of a need for officers for an upcoming battle in theMaryland Campaign, opposingConfederate GeneralRobert E. Lee's first invasion of the North. Still ailing and against the advice of his physician, he returned to the Army after only a few weeks.[1] In theBattle of South Mountain he led the 3rd Division of theIX Corps to takeTurner's Gap. During that assault, IX Corps commander Maj. Gen.Jesse L. Reno was killed and he was replaced byJacob D. Cox. Three days later, in theBattle of Antietam, on September 17, 1862, Burnside's corps was ordered to strike the right flank of the Confederate army, on the heights to the south ofSharpsburg. The corps was held up attempting to cross the single, heavily defended, bridge across Antietam Creek in that sector (now known as Burnside Bridge) and Burnside sent Rodman's 3rd Division downstream to find afording spot and flank the enemy defending the bridge. No one in the army had reconnoitered the proposed ford, two-thirds of a mile south of the bridge, and they found out too late that it was unusable due to its steep banks. Rodman's men spent three hours before finally finding and crossing Snavely's Ford two miles farther downstream at 1 p.m., by which time Burnside Bridge had finally been taken. The corps made good progress from that point in driving west towards Sharpsburg, but at 4:00 p.m.A. P. Hill's Light Division joined the battle, launching a spirited counterattack after a rapid forced march fromHarpers Ferry. Sighting the approaching Confederates, Rodman knew his division, on the Union army's left flank, would take the brunt of their assault. Galloping across a cornfield to warn his brigade commanders, he was shot through the left lung, mortally wounded. He died thirteen days later in a field hospital at Sharpsburg.[1]
In a funeral oration,SenatorHenry B. Anthony said of Rodman:
Isaac Rodman is buried in the Rodman family cemetery,Peace Dale, Rhode Island. Rodman'shouse was listed on theNational Register of Historic Places listings in Washington County, Rhode Island on April 23, 1990.
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