Dunovant, John | South Carolina Public Radio

“D” is for Dunovant, John [1825-1864]. Soldier. Dunovant, a sergeant in the Palmetto Regiment, served with distinction in the Mexican War. He later was commissioned as a captain in the U.S. Army. He resigned his commission in 1861 and was appointed a major of South Carolina Volunteers. He was stationed in Charleston where he commanded Fort Moultrie. He was court-martialed for alleged drunkenness in 1862. He was returned to service in 1864 as colonel of the Fifth South Carolina Cavalry. The Fifth was transferred to the Army of Northern Virginia where it saw gritty fighting at Drewry’s Bluff, Cold Harbor, and Trevilian Station. In August 1864, he was elevated to the rank of temporary brigadier general. John Dunovant was killed in action October 1, 1864, during a cavalry charge near Petersburg, Virginia.