BG Ellison Capers, CSA
Class of 1857
Hometown: Charleston, SC
- From 1858-1860, Capers was a professor of Mathematics and Rhetoric at The Citadel.
- At the outbreak of the Civil War, Capers joined the Confederate Army with the rank of major and was quickly promoted to Lt Colonel 1st Regiment Rifles, SC. In 1864, he was promoted to Colonel commanding the 24 SC Infantry Regiment, and promoted to brigadier general March 1, 1865, commanding Gist's Brigade.
- During the Civil War, Capers participated in the bombardment of Ft. Sumter, and coastal defenses before his regiment joined the army of General Johnston for the Vicksburg Campaign. Capers distinguished himself in several battles including the Vicksburg Campaign and battles of Jackson, Chickamauga and Franklin.
- Elected South Carolina Secretary of State in 1865.
- Ordained as an Episcopal Priest in 1868, Capers served as minister to Episcopal churches in SC as well as taught at Greenville Military Academy, Greenville Female Academy and Furman University.
- Capers served as Episcopal Bishop of South Carolina from 1894 until his death.
- From 1904-1908, Capers served as Chancellor of Sewanee, The University of the South.
- Capers served on the Board of the John F. Slater Fund for the Education of Freedmen. Established in 1882, the Fund was of great value in educating blacks. The largest beneficiaries were Hampton Normal and Agricultural Institute in Virginia, the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute in Alabama, and Fisk University in Tennessee.
- Capers Hall, which houses the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and the Zucker Family School of Education, is named in honor of Ellison Capers and his brother Francis W. Capers who served as the third Superintendent of The Citadel from 1852-1859.