Name Meaning
Greek: Lover of horses
Vital Stats
Birthday: March 6, 1831
Birth Name: Philip Henry Sheridan
Birthplace: Disputed *
Date of Death: August 5th, 1888
Cause: Heart attack
Place of Death: Nonquitt, MA
Height: 5′ 5″ **
Nationality: American
Ancestry: Irish
Occupation before Civil War:
Store clerk, officer in U.S. Army
Occupation during Civil War:
Officer in Union Army, rising from
1st Lieutenant to Major General
Occupation after Civil War:
General in U.S. Army;
was Commanding General
of U.S. Army 1883-1888
Major Battles:
Corinth, Perryville, Stones RIver,
Chickamauga, Missionary Ridge,
Overland Campaign, Third Winchester,
Fisher’s Hill, Cedar Creek, Five Forks,
Sayler’s Creek, Appomatox Court House
Relatives
Father: John Sheridan (1801-75)
Mother: Mary Minah Sheridan (1801-88)
Brother: Patrick H. Sheridan (1828-51)
Sister: Rosa Sheridan (1829-31)
Sister: Mary Sheridan Wilson (1834-68)
Brother: John L. Sheridan (1837-98)
Brother: Michael Sheridan (1840-1918)
Romance
Married: Irene Rucker Sheridan 6/3/1875
(1853-1939)
Children
Mary Sheridan (1876-1959)
Louise Sheridan (twin, 1877-1969)
Irene Sheridan (twin, 1877-1964)
Philip H. Sheridan Jr. (1880-1918)
* Sheridan claimed he was born in Albany, but he may have been born in
County Cavan, Ireland; Somerset, Ohio (where he grew up); Boston, Mass.;
or on board ship when the family emigrated from Ireland.
** Sheridan was nicknamed “Little Phil” because of his short stature and weight.
He was also called “Fightin’ Phil” because of his battle exhortations: “Smash ‘em up.”
The Language of the Civil War:
Resources
- Personal Memoirs Of P. H. Sheridan
by Philip Sheridan
- Phil Sheridan and His Army
by Paul Andrew Hutton
- Sheridan: The Life And Wars Of General Phil Sheridan
by Roy Morris, Jr.
Tags: general, philip sheridan, stats
