H. W. (Henry Wager) Halleck

Best remembered as a senior Union commander in the American Civil War, Henry Wager Halleck was born in 1815 and graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1839. He served in the Corps of Engineers and gained an early reputation as a skilled officer and serious student of military theory.

Halleck's career reached beyond the army. He was active in California during and after the Mexican-American War, helped shape public life there in the early statehood period, and also worked successfully as a lawyer. His writing on military subjects earned him the nickname "Old Brains," reflecting the intellectual reputation that followed him into the war years.

During the Civil War, he held some of the Union's highest military posts, including general-in-chief and later chief of staff to Ulysses S. Grant. Although historians often debate his effectiveness as a field commander, he remains an important figure for understanding how the Union army was organized, supplied, and directed at the highest level.