John Houston Thorpe

John Houston Thorpe was captain of Company A of the Forty-Seventh North Carolina during the American Civil War. He survived the war, attained the rank of general, and retired. In the 1920s, he began gathering historical documentation of his old regiment.

John Houston Thorpe in The Guns of the South
John Houston Thorpe commanded his company on Robert E. Lee's 1864 campaign against the Army of the Potomac, the campaign in which the Army of Northern Virginia took Washington, DC. His Company A was something of a rival to Company D of the 47th North Carolina.

John Houston Thorpe in "The Last Reunion"
After some reticence, John Houston Thorpe decided to attend a reunion of Civil War veterans in Richmond in 1932. He generally enjoyed himself, but was painfully aware of his age.

One night, after an evening of dancing, Thorpe died in his sleep. His ghost joined those of the men who died in battle during the Civil War, reenacting various battles in a far more congenial manner.