Albert Rust (April 4, 1870) was an American politician and slaveholder, who served as a delegate from Arkansas to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1862. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the U.S. representative from (1859–1861). He also served as a senior officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Eastern, Western, and Trans-Mississippi theaters of the American Civil War.

Early life and career

Albert Rust was born circa 1818 in Fauquier County, Virginia, to William Rust and his wife Elizabeth; his exact birth date is not known. He was admitted to the bar in 1836 and the following year moved from Virginia to Arkansas, settling in Union County, Arkansas. He bought land and a store near the river in 1837. By 1838, he held the U.S. government contract to survey land in the new state. In 1839, the county seat was moved present day Champagnolle. His storehouse there, the only suitable building, became the courthouse.

Rust showed little interest other than in military matters. He was not renominated; Edward A. Warren succeeded him. After working to regain his political reputation, Rust once again won a seat in the House of Representatives in 1858. His interest in military affairs continued in his second term. A supporter of Stephen A. Douglas in the 1860 Presidential election and strong advocate for Union, Rust shifted his position after Lincoln's call for troops. In May 1861 Arkansas seceded from the Union, and he was named a delegate to the Provisional Congress of the Confederate States. The Third Arkansas would become Arkansas's most celebrated Civil War regiment and the only Arkansas regiment to be permanently assigned to General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia.

On March 4, 1862, Rust was promoted to brigadier-general and transferred back to Arkansas, where he was assigned to Lieutenant-General Earl Van Dorn's Army of the West. A new Congressional Biography reports he is buried in the Oakland and Fraternal Cemetery at Little Rock.

Personal life

Rust married Jane Carrington (1824-1847) of Charlotte County, Virginia, on April 17, 1844, but she soon died, and was buried in Hervey Cemetery in Hempstead County, Arkansas. He then married Anne Bouldin Cabell, and at least three of their children (raised in Virginia during the American Civil War) would survive to adulthood: Julia Rust Tutwiler (1854-1923), Breckenridge Cabell Rust (1855-1892) and author Pauline Carrington Rust Bouve (1860-1928).

See also

  • List of Confederate States Army generals
  • List of people from Fauquier County, Virginia
  • List of speakers of the Arkansas House of Representatives

References

Further reading

  • Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher. Civil War High Commands. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. .
  • Sifakis, Stewart. Who Was Who in the Civil War. New York: Facts On File, 1988. .
  • Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. .

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  • Albert Rust at The Political Graveyard

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