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MEMORIAL 
 
 THOMAS M. HALL 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 (privately printed.) 
 1865. 
 
MEMORIAL 
 
 THOMAS M. HALL 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 
 (privately printed.) 
 1865. 
 
OBITUARY NOTICE, 
 
 THE PRESS" OF NOVEMBER 9th, 1864 
 
LIEUTENANT-COLONEL HALL. 
 
 It is with the sincerest sorrow that we record 
 the death of Thomas M. Hall, late Lieutenant- 
 Colonel commanding the 121st Pennsylvania Vo- 
 lunteers, who died in this city on Sunday morning 
 last, in the thirtieth year of his age. Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Hall was the eldest son of the Rev. Dr. 
 John Hall, of Trenton, New Jersey, and was born 
 in Philadelphia, June 2d, 1835. He graduated at 
 Princeton College, and soon after commenced the 
 study of the law in the office of his uncle, the 
 Hon. William M. Meredith, and was admitted to 
 the Bar in October, 1856. 
 
 At the breaking out of the present war, in 1861, 
 he actively identified himself with the well-known 
 artillery company of Colonel Chapman Biddle, and, 
 in August, 1862, when the 121st Regiment was 
 raised for three years' service, although not at 
 all in robust health, he determined to give himself 
 to the service of his' country in the field, and 
 accompanied the regiment as its adjutant. His 
 
regiment was in hard service from the time it first 
 went out from Philadelphia. At Fredericksburg 
 it formed a part of General Meade's division, which 
 broke through the rebel lines. At that battle the 
 regiment lost severely. Adjutant Hall behaved 
 with conspicuous bravery. His horse was shot 
 under him. At the subsequent battles of Chancel- 
 lorsville and Gettysburg he displayed soldierly 
 qualities of a high order. In the steady, never- 
 ending routine of official business, with its innu- 
 merable vexations, he was ever untiring in his 
 faithfulness. Never absent from his post, he was 
 foremost in every fight, and foremost in every good 
 work that tended to improve his regiment. For 
 more than a year , after his health was seriously 
 impaired he persisted in going through the severest 
 labors and exposure without a murmur. 
 
 Though not in the regular line of promotion, 
 Adjutant Hall was, in the spring of 1864, at the 
 request of his brother officers, appointed major of 
 the regiment, and was subsequently made lieuten- 
 ant-colonel. Soon after this his health, which had 
 been for a long time failing, gave way entirely, 
 and he was obliged to resign the service, in order 
 to prolong for a few short months a life which had 
 already, as it were, been freely given to his country. 
 Pennsylvania has never mourned a truer soldier, or 
 
one of more unselfish purity of life. He knew not 
 self; his constant thought was for the comfort of 
 others. With the highest order of courage he 
 combined a gentleness of disposition almost femi- 
 nine. Respect was too cold a word to express the 
 feeling of his regiment for him, who asked none to 
 follow where he dare not lead. Of the many ex- 
 cellencies of his private life we cannot trust our- 
 selves to speak. Alas ! that such a precious life — 
 one abounding in every social and domestic 
 virtue — could not have been spared for further 
 years of usefulness. 
 
±- 
 
 PROCEEDINGS 
 
 THE PHILADELPHIA BAR, 
 
PROCEEDINGS. 
 
 At a meeting of the Bar of Philadelphia, held in 
 the Supreme Court room, on Thursday, November 
 10th, 1864, in reference to the death of Lieutenant- 
 Colonel Thomas M. Hall, on motion of Horace 
 Binney, Jr. Esq., the Honorable William Strong 
 was called to the chair, and George M. Conarroe, 
 Esq., was appointed secretary. 
 
 The object of the meeting was stated in a few 
 appropriate remarks by the Chairman, who was 
 followed by Colonel Chapman Biddle. Colonel 
 Biddle spoke as follows : 
 
 It is customary, Mr. Chairman, on the death of 
 a member of this bar, for his surviving associates 
 to meet to give utterance to their feelings of sorrow ; 
 and, though doubtless it may occasionally happen 
 that this outward mark of respect to the memory 
 of a departed brother is not well merited, yet I 
 hazard nothing in the present instance by saying 
 that it affords to each one here a melancholy 
 
12 
 
 satisfaction to be able to testify by his presence the 
 sincere and affectionate regard in which he holds 
 in remembrance his late friend Thomas M. Hall. 
 
 Colonel Hall died in this city on the 6th day of 
 November, instant, in the 30th year of his age, of 
 disease accelerated, if not contracted, by severe 
 service in the Army of the Potomac during the 
 greater portion of the campaigns commencing 
 shortly prior to the first battle of Fredericksburg. 
 In the summer of 1862, when, from the disastrous 
 issue of the Peninsular campaign, it became 
 evident that large reinforcements for the army 
 were indispensably necessary, not merely to pre- 
 serve the integrity of the nation, but to repel 
 anticipated invasion, Colonel Hall, though far from 
 being in robust health, after duly estimating the 
 pecidiar sacrifice involved in his case, became 
 convinced that duty required him to take up arms 
 in defence of his country and government. His 
 resolution once taken, action quickly followed, and 
 entering the military service of the United States 
 as adjutant of the 121st Regiment of Pennsylvania 
 Volunteers, he continued with that regiment until 
 ultimately he became its lieutenant-colonel and 
 commanding officer. The fatigues and exposure 
 incident to his new mode of life unfortunately 
 proved too much for his delicate constitution, and 
 
 -J 
 
13 
 
 before the lapse of many months the effects of the 
 violent and continued strain upon his system be- 
 came manifest. His unselfish and uncomplaining 
 nature was reluctant to the last, however, to make 
 known even to his most intimate companions the 
 firm hold which disease had taken of him. 
 
 To heroism in the field were united fidelity, 
 zeal, and intelligence in the discharge of his 
 arduous and constantly recurring duties; and 
 without exaggeration it may be added that no 
 more conscientious soldier has done service during 
 the present rebellion. The close relations which 
 of necessity exist among officers serving together, 
 afford the most favorable opportunities for obtain- 
 ing insight into character, and I speak the com- 
 mon sentiment of his fellow-officers when I say 
 that his has borne successfully the scrutiny to 
 which it was subjected. 
 
 The study of the law, to which the years of 
 his manhood had been devoted, had thoroughly 
 grounded Colonel Hall in its principles. Endowed 
 by nature with a quick and logical mind, and one 
 that had been largely improved by liberal educa- 
 tion, he was entitled, and woidd have received a 
 position high among the leading members of the 
 profession. Honorable in his dealings with all 
 men, he was especially regardful of his obligations 
 
14 
 
 to the court whilst advocating the interests of his 
 clients. 
 
 In politics he entertained decided opinions, but 
 nevertheless he cheerfully accorded to those who 
 differed with him full ciiedit for the sincerity 
 of their convictions, and by his cordial and win- 
 ning manners gained for himself the esteem and 
 friendship of his opponents. 
 
 Deeply religious, though unobstrusive in his 
 piety, he was ever, in judging the actions of men, 
 abounding in that charity which distinguishes the 
 true Christian. 
 
 Sorrowing friends may well mourn the loss of a 
 beloved companion whose career of usefulness 
 has been terminated in the prime of manhood; 
 but the example of his well-spent life is, however, 
 left them for their improvement and imitation. 
 
 J. G. Rosengarten, Esq., after a short reference 
 to his intimate association with Colonel Hall, as 
 an officer of the same regiment, offered the follow- 
 ing resolutions : 
 
 Resolved, That the Bar of Philadelphia have 
 learned, with unfeigned regret and sorrow, of the 
 death of their late associate, Colonel Hall, who, 
 during his brief career at the Bar and in the courts 
 
15 
 
 of this city, manifested such learning and integrity, 
 such gentleness of character and earnestness of 
 purpose, as to secure the respect of his associates, 
 the confidence of the judges before whom he 
 practiced, and the hearty friendship of all who 
 knew him ; while, by his patriotism and self-sacri- 
 ficing devotion to the cause of his country, he 
 closed, with distinguished honor, the record of a 
 short but well-spent life. Earnestly convinced of 
 the justice of the war in which the country is en- 
 gaged, he joined the army, and took an active part 
 in its Virginia campaigns. At Fredericksburg, at 
 Chancellorsville, and at Gettysburg, he was dis- 
 tinguished for his coolness, his gallantry, and his 
 example to the men of his own regiment and of 
 his brigade. In spite of failing health, he re- 
 mained constantly in the field, fulfilling all the 
 laborious duties of his post, regardless of his own 
 comfort, careful and thoughtful of the interests 
 of his comrades, and at last received well-deserved 
 promotion and the command of his regiment. 
 Broken in health, he returned home to spend a 
 short time with his friends and his family, and 
 to die. 
 
 Resolved, That this meeting desires to place' upon 
 record its sense of his manly virtues, of his 
 promise of success at the bar, of his unselfish 
 
. m 
 
 16 
 
 sacrifice of home and its sacred and tender ties for 
 the service of his country; of his untiring zeal in 
 the field, of his gallantry in action, and of the 
 patient and persistent endurance of the discomforts 
 and hardships of the campaigns in which he 
 participated ; of the noble fortitude with which he 
 bore himself in the face of a relentless disease, and 
 of the Christian resignation with which he met his 
 death. 
 
 Resolved, That a committee of five, together 
 with the officers of this meeting, be appointed to 
 transmit to the family of Colonel Hall a copy 
 of these resolutions and of the proceedings of 
 the meeting, as an expression of sympathy of the 
 Bar of Philadelphia. 
 
 The resolutions were seconded by Wm. Henry 
 Hawle, Esq. Mr. Rawle said : 
 
 Mr. Chairman: — 
 
 It was not my good fortune to know Colonel 
 Hall as intimately as the two gentlemen who 
 have just spoken of him so feelingly, but I had 
 looked forward to the time when he should come 
 among his professional brothers and I should 
 know him well. Instead of this, I find myself 
 standing beside his grave. Those of us who 
 
•a- 
 
 17 
 
 have attained middle life and see, one by one, 
 our seniors taken from us, feel that we too must 
 soon follow them, and not unnaturally acquire a 
 habit of watching those who, younger than our- 
 selves, may reasonably be presumed to fill our 
 places when they shall become vacant. I had thus 
 watched Mr. Hall for several years, and even 
 before I had known him. We were first thrown 
 together by being members of the same military 
 organization, and then it was that the more I 
 saw of him the more I felt how much sterling 
 worth he possessed. For he was so gentle and 
 yet so firm; so modest and yet so self-dependent; 
 so tolerant of the opinions of others, and yet so 
 fixed in his own ideas of what was right, that 
 he impressed all who met him. And then he 
 was so essentially a gentleman. True, he was 
 born and bred one, and it was shown in his 
 appearance, in his speech and in his daily life; 
 and although it might be said that he could not 
 help being a gentleman, there are many who, 
 possessing the same advantages, have yet missed 
 this end. This quality in him produced that 
 unselfishness, that anxiety not to wound the feel- 
 ings, or even offend the prejudices of others, 
 which all who knew him saw in him day 
 by day. 
 
18 
 
 When he entered the army, and news would 
 come up from his regiment, (that regiment in 
 which were so many whom we all knew so 
 well,) it was pleasant to hear about him. How 
 hard-working he was; how conscientious; how 
 careful of others; how comparatively careless of 
 himself; how uncomplaining — in a word, how 
 thorough — such were the accounts in which all 
 who spoke of him or wrote of him concurred. 
 As he entered the army from the strictest feel- 
 ings of duty, so, while in it, he bore himself as 
 became his high character, and it may be truly 
 said, that he was his country's and his God's 
 "faithful soldier and servant unto his life's end." 
 
 To those of us who had looked forward to his 
 return to his home and his profession, there is 
 something inexpressibly sad at finding ourselves 
 here gathered to pay this tribute to his memory. 
 When we thus meet after the death of one of our 
 number who lias gone down to his grave full of 
 years and of honors, and surrounded by all that 
 should accompany old age, no clement of bitter- 
 ness mingles with our sorrow. It seems meet 
 and right that all should have been thus, and 
 that he too should have been added to " the 
 good examples of those who, having finished 
 their course in faith, do now rest from their 
 
19 
 
 labors." But with us now, it is different. For 
 with him who is dead, all that was past seemed 
 but the promise of all that was to come; and 
 as we think of this future unfulfilled — unfulfilled 
 to himself and unfulfilled to others — it is hard 
 to repress the train of thought which at times 
 sweeps through the lines of " In Memoriam," and 
 which challenges "our dearest faith, our ghast- 
 liest doubt." But when time shall have some- 
 what lessened the sharpness of our sorrow, there 
 will follow sweet and pleasant memories of all 
 those scenes in which he had a part, and as we 
 thus dwell upon the past, will come the hope 
 that in the future our end may be like his, and 
 that at the last — 
 
 " He that died in Holy land 
 Would reach us out the shining hand, 
 And take us as a single soul." 
 
 W. Eotch Wister, Esq., also spoke as fol- 
 lows : — 
 
 Mr. Chairman : — 
 
 I concur with every word in the resolutions. 
 I concur with every sentiment that has been 
 expressed by those who have preceded me. 
 
 I knew Colonel Hall well — and had known 
 
20 
 
 him, man and boy, for nearly twenty years. He 
 was some years my junior, and I remember him 
 first as an intelligent, high-minded, open-hearted, 
 generous boy. What was promised by his boy- 
 hood was more than fulfilled by his manhood, 
 for he was an intelligent, upright, generous man. 
 Though I did not see him in the army, I had 
 good opportmiities of knowing what he did and 
 what he was whilst there, and I, therefore, gladly 
 agree to what has been so well said by those 
 who were his fellow-officers. 
 
 Colonel Hall's education and talents entitled 
 him to a high consideration at this bar and in 
 the community; and had health and life been 
 spared him, he was as certain of success in fife 
 as any of his cotemporaries. My intercourse with 
 him, however, was of another character; it was 
 in his pleasures and amusements that I saw him 
 — in the social circle — at the family hearth. He 
 endeared himself to all with whom he was thrown 
 into close connection. 
 
 Firm in his convictions, stedfast in his opinions, 
 determined to do what lie thought right ; he was, 
 at the same time, amiable to a great degree, and 
 generous to his opponents. His friends will long 
 remember him. I have said, Mr. Chairman, that 
 
21 
 
 Colonel Hall was an intelligent, high-minded, up- 
 right man. Can higher praise be awarded to any 7 ? 
 
 Feeling reference was also made to the charac- 
 ter of the deceased by Lewis D. Vail, Richard L. 
 Ashhurst, and E. Spencer Miller, Esquires, after 
 which the resolutions were unanimously adopted. 
 
 The chairman appointed as the committee of 
 five, under the third resolution, the following 
 gentlemen, viz. : Chapman Biddle, Horace Bin- 
 ney, Jr., William Henry Eawle, William Rotch 
 Wister, and Joseph G. Rosengarten. 
 
 On motion of Henry C. Townsend, Esq., the 
 proceedings of the meeting were ordered to be 
 published. 
 
 On motion, the meeting then adjourned. 
 
 •I h 
 
A *. 
 
 PROCEEDINGS 
 
 OFFICERS OF THE 121st REGIMENT 
 
 PENNSYLVANIA VOLUNTEERS. 
 
25 
 
 PROCEEDINGS, ETC. 
 
 At a meeting of the officers present with the 
 121st Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, held at 
 the head-quarters of the regiment, near Peters- 
 burg, Virginia, November 15, 1864, the following 
 preamble and resolutions were adopted: — 
 
 Whereas, It is with deep sorrow and regret 
 that we learn of the death of our late beloved 
 commander and esteemed friend, Lieutenant-colonel 
 Thomas M. Hall, 
 
 Resolved, First, That we deem it a duty we 
 owe to the memory of a brave officer to join in 
 this testimonial of our high regard. 
 
 Resolved, Second, That in him we were accus- 
 tomed to recognize those traits of character com- 
 bining the true gentleman and soldier that tend 
 to endear the commander to his subordinates. 
 
 Resolved, Third, That on the battle-fields of 
 Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville and Gettysburg, 
 he evinced bravery of a superior order, and, by 
 his undaunted and fearless example, inspired the 
 men with confidence and enthusiasm. 
 
26 
 
 Resolved, Fourth, That as regimental adjutant 
 he always discharged his duties promptly and 
 faithfully, and was unanimously called upon by 
 the officers present with the regiment to fill the 
 vacancy caused by the promotion of Major Biddle, 
 and was soon after promoted to he lieutenant- 
 colonel. But he was not permitted to remain 
 long with us. His health, which for more than 
 six months had been visibly declining, now be- 
 came so delicate that lie was obliged to be sent 
 home, where, after continuing for a short time, it 
 has been our unspeakable misfortune to learn of 
 his death. 
 
 Resolved, Fifth, That we tender to the family 
 and friends of the deceased our heartfelt sympa- 
 thy in this their deep affliction, and hope they 
 may he sustained in the severe ordeal through 
 which they are called upon to pass. 
 
 Resolved, Sixth, That these resolutions he sent 
 to the family of the deceased, and copies to the 
 Philadelphia Inquirer and Sunday Dispatch for 
 publication. 
 
 ('has. L. Atlee, 
 
 Commanding Regiment, President. 
 
 P. II. Gray, 
 
 Lb1 Lieut, and R. Q. M., V. President. 
 
 F. F. Davis, 
 
 Assistant Burgeon. Secretary. 
 
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