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Logan Wildcats

The Logan Wildcats was the unofficial name of Company D 36th Virginia Infantry of the Confederate Army during the Civil War. The company was created at Logan Courthouse on June 3, 1861, and consisted of about 85 men led by officers Henry M. Beckley, Astynax McDonald, Mont Lawson, James Nighbert, Dick Ferrell, and James Dingess.

Mustered into the Southern army under Lt. Col. John McCausland in Charleston, the company saw its first action in the Battle of Scary Creek in Putnam County. It was then reorganized and joined Gen. John B. Floyd near Little Sewell Mountain in August 1861. The company was in the battle of Carnifex Ferry on September 10, 1861. Then the unit was sent west and was present at the Union siege of Fort Donelson, Tennessee. During the campaigns of 1862 through 1865, Company D was used as a rear guard unit during several campaigns. The Wildcats were present at the Battle of Cloyd’s Mountain, where Gen. A. G. Jenkins was wounded, later dying. The company was active in the May 1864 action around Christiansburg. It also was active in the Shenandoah Valley campaigns of late 1864 and early 1865. The 36th Virginia Infantry disbanded on April 12, 1865.

Another unit termed the Logan Wildcats was a band of armed irregulars led by Anderson ‘‘Devil Anse’’ Hatfield that was active in Logan and Wyoming County late in the war. In recent times the sports teams of Logan High School have been called the Logan Wildcats.

Written by Robert Y. Spence