George Wayne Anderson

Major George Wayne Anderson Jr, (August 5, 1839 – August 10, 1906) was an officer in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. He commanded the Republican Blues and later Fort McAllister near Savannah, Georgia before its capture in 1864. Early life and military career Anderson attended the University of Virginia 1856–1859. He enlisted in the Georgia 2nd Infantry Company (Republican Blues) on 31 May 1861, as a second lieutenant. The Blues were a military company formed in Savannah in 1806, and served during the War of 1812 in Florida. Unlike most Confederate units formed during the Civil War, the Republican Blues had been an existing militia organization for over fifty years before the war started. They recruited from the most prominent families in and around Savannah. The Blues visited New York City in 1860, hosted by their counterparts in the city. There was much goodwill expressed during the visit, as reported in the New York Times. They fought in all the nation's wars after The Civil War as part of the Georgia National Guard, except for the Spanish–American War. Anderson was promoted to command the Blues after his uncle, John Wayne Anderson, retired in 1862. The Blues served under the U.S. flag before taking up arms against it, and after the war they continued their existence in the National Guard of the reunited nation.