Henry Wager Halleck was born in Westernville New York Jan. 16, 1815, Halleck was one of the Union army's most brilliant officers and one of its most unsuccessful generals. A spit-and-polish West Pointer, graduating 3rd in the class of 1839. Halleck was adept at military theory. Hobbled in field by his excessive caution, he was also isolated at headquarters by an aloof, forbidding manner ULYSSES S. GRANT acknowledged his "gigantic intellect" WILLIAM T. SHERMAN praised his "great capacity" and "large acquirements" Others reviled him as a "cold, calculating owl" who "plans nothing, suggests nothing, is good for nothing."

Before the war, Halleck had a brilliant career as a soldier, teacher, writer, and lawyer. He taught at West Point, became an expert on fortifications, published books on legal and military subjects, fought in Mexico served as secretary of state of California, and established himself as the leading lawyer in gold-rush San Francisco. But when war broke out in 1861 the army was still in Halleck's blood. That August he returned from California to accept a commission as major general, to rank from Aug. 19,. in the Union army . In November he succeeded Maj. Gen. John C. Fremont, at St. Louis, as commander of the newly formed Department of the Missouri, where he restored discipline and efficiency to a lax command, earned the nickname "Old Brains," and received overall credit for the battlefield glories of Grant and Maj. Gens. SAMUEL and DON CARLOS BUELL. But his one excursionis to the field- at CORINTH, Miss., May 1862 revealed him to be a plodding tactician and excessively cautious commander.

Named ABRAHAM LINCOLN's general-in-chief July 1862, Halleck displayed great administrative ability, but his grasp of field affairs was poor, and his personality made him many more enemies than friends. In Mar. 1864 Grant was named supreme commander of all Union armies and Halleck was "Kicked upstairs" to the new post of chief of staff, where he remained until the end of the war.

Halleck commanded the Military Division of the James afterGen. ROBERT E. LEE's surrender. In Aug. 1865 he was assigned to the division of the Pacific, and 4 years later was transferred to the Division of the south.

Halleck died in Louisville Kentucky, Jan. 9, 1872