Allison Nelson

Allison Nelson
Mayor of Atlanta
In office January 1855 – July 1855
Preceded by	William Butt
Succeeded by	John Glen
Personal details
Born	March 11, 1822 Fulton County, Georgia
Died	October 7, 1862 Austin, Arkansas
Resting place	Little Rock, Arkansas
Nationality	United States
Political party	Democratic
Profession	Lawyer
Military service
Allegiance	Confederate States
Service/branch	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861-1862
Rank	Brigadier General (CSA)

Allison Nelson (March 11, 1822 – October 7, 1862) was the ninth mayor of Atlanta, Georgia, as well as a brigadier general in the Confederate army during the American Civil War.

His father, John B. Nelson, was an early DeKalb County settler who operated Nelson's Ferry across the Chattahoochee River until murdered by John W. Davis in 1825.

During the Mexican-American War, Nelson served as a captain in the Kennesaw Rangers with another future mayor, Cicero C. Hammock, as well as the father of mayor John B. Goodwin – Private Williamson H. Goodwin. Nelson later served as a brigadier general under General Narciso López, in a failed attempt to free Cuba from Spain.

In a close election for mayor, Nelson, running as a Democrat, defeated the Know Nothing candidate, Ira O. McDaniel, but resigned in July when the city council reduced a fine he had levied on two young men for destroying city property, thus leaving John Glen as acting mayor.

Nelson left for Kansas during the border disputes, then moved to Meridian, Texas, where he was involved with Indian affairs, serving under Lawrence Sullivan Ross and in 1860 was elected to the state legislature. During the American Civil War he served as a brigadier general in the Confederate army until he contracted typhus in September 1862 and died a month later. He was buried in Little Rock, Arkansas.

Namesake

Camp Nelson Confederate Cemetery in Cabot, Arkansas is named in his honor.

See also

• [[List of American Civil War generals (Confederate}]]

References

• Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, Civil War High Commands. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1.
• Sifakis, Stewart. Who Was Who in the Civil War. New York: Facts On File, 1988. ISBN 978-0-8160-1055-4.
• Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. ISBN 978-0-8071-0823-9.
• Allison Nelson from the Handbook of Texas Online
• Camp Nelson Cemetery
• TDGH - March 11

External links

• Encyclopedia of Arkansas History & Culture entry
• Find A Grave Memorial

Preceded by William M. Butt

Mayor of Atlanta January,1855 – July 6, 1855

Succeeded by John Glen (acting)