Credit: Courtesy of the Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, Virginia
A well-educated farmer in Loudon County, Virginia, before the war, Colonel Elijah V. White raised and commanded a fierce unit of rangers that became known as White's "Comanches" when General Tom Rosser witnessed a vicious charge by the screaming riders. Once traveling 700 miles in 21 days and destroying 16 bridges along the way, the Comanches earned a savage reputation within both armies. White survived four years of this life-threatening vocation to return safely to his farm. In his post-war years he served as a sheriff, banker, and preacher.
