Thaddeus Oliver

Thaddeus Oliver (1826-1864), believed to be the author of “All Quiet Along the Potomac Tonight,” and his wife, Sarah Penelope Lawson Oliver, are buried here in the old family cemetery of the Hugh Lawson plantation. Thaddeus Oliver, son of William Oliver and Dorcas Harrison Oliver, was born in Twiggs County on Dec. 25, 1826. He moved to Marion County in 1850 and taught for two years at Buena Vista Academy. Oliver was admitted to the bar in 1852 and joined the Confederate Army in 1861 while serving as Solicitor General of the Chattahoochee Circuit. His first service in Virginia was with the Buena Vista Guards, Company I, of the 2nd Regiment of the Georgia Infantry. Some believe that Thaddeus Oliver wrote the famous poem while stationed at Aquia Creek, Virginia, in August 1861. A relative claimed that the line in the poem “the two in the low trundle bed” referred to Oliver’s sons. Later, he was credited with the organization of Company E of the 63d Regiment in Marion County and was then elected captain. He served in the Army of Tennessee (CS) until he was mortally wounded in Virginia, in August 1864.