William Franklin Quotes
Last Updated September 4, 2010
With quotations by Franklin first followed by others in alphabetical order of the person making the quote
“I think from appearances that we may have a heavy fight to get the pass.”
William Franklin
Sep 14 1862
Franklins reply to McClellan’s dispatch of about 12:30 on Sep 14
Sealed With Their Lives The Battle for Crampton’s Gap by Timothy J. Reese. Baltimore: Butternut and Blue. 1998
Page 59
“The outnumber me two to one”
William Franklin
Sep 14 1862
Franklins report at 11AM to McClellan regarding the confederate position at Crampton’s Gap. O.R. 19/1:47
Sealed With Their Lives The Battle for Crampton’s Gap by Timothy J. Reese. Baltimore: Butternut and Blue. 1998
Page 174
“I do not at all doubt Franklin’s loyalty [to me] now, but his efficiency is very little…so little energy.”
George B. McClellan
McClellan to his wife. McClellan Papers
Sealed With Their Lives The Battle for Crampton’s Gap by Timothy J. Reese. Baltimore: Butternut and Blue. 1998
Page 77
“perhaps a little slow to move & somewhat cautious”
George B. McClellan
McClellan speaking of Franklin
George B McClellan – The Young Napolean by Stephen Sears. New York: Ticknor & Fields, 1988
Page 285
“Franklin was one of the best officers I had ; very powerful. He was a man, not only of excellent judgement, but of a remarkably high order of intellectual ability. He was often badly treated and seldom received the credit he deserved. His moral character was of the highest, and he was in all respects an admirable corps commander; more than that, he would have commanded an army well.”
George B. McClellan
In his memoirs, McClellan’s Own Story 138
From First to Last: the Life of Major General William B. Franklin by Mark A. Snell .New York: Fordham Press, 2002
Page 69
“The more I think of it, the more inclined I am to blame Franklin. It is a sore disappointment to me, for though I could not claim him as a personal friend, I have known him for years through Willliam, and had been led by the opinions of officers who knew him in Mexico to look upon him as one of the most able men we have. He has been spoken of both in the army and in the papers as likely at some time to have command of this army; and I cannot understand why he should have allowed such a grand opportunity to place himself in a position to let it to excape him. It can only be accounted for on the supposition that his natural laziness has become to strong for him to conquer.”
Charles S. Wainwright
Dec 18 1862
Wainwright on the responsibility for the defeat at Fredericksburg
A Diary of Battle The Personal Journals of Colonel Charles S. Wainright 1861-1865 by Charles S. Wainwright edited by Allan Nevins New Foreward by Stephen Sears (New York: De Capo Press 1998)
Page 125
“I went from there to Franklin’s headquarters where I found him, Smith, and their staffs, in quite a comfortable camp; doing nothing to help things on, but grumbling and talking in a manner to do all the harm possible.”
Charles S. Wainwright
Jan 21 1863
Wainwright describing the camp of William Franklin
A Diary of Battle The Personal Journals of Colonel Charles S. Wainright 1861-1865 by Charles S. Wainwright edited by Allan Nevins New Foreward by Stephen Sears (New York: De Capo Press 1998)
Page 154
“I was kept back by Franklin, who moved cautiously and slowly till 12.”
Orlando Willcox
Jul 20, 1861
Orlando Willcox to Marie Willcox
From First to Last: the Life of Major General William B. Franklin by Mark A. Snell .New York: Fordham Press, 2002
Page 61
“a large man with a red nose, a flushed face, a bald forehead, a dull look. Near him, a glass of whiskey, appeared to be on the table en permanence.”
Philippe Regis de Trobriand
de Trobriand’s impressions after visiting French
“It Appeared As Though Mutual Extermination Would Put a Stop to the Awful Carnage Sharpsburg’s Bloody Lane”, by Robert K. Krick. Gallagher, Gary W. ed The Antietam Campaign. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1999.
Page 230
de Trobriand, Regis, Four Years with the Army of the Potomac (Boston: Ticknor and Co., 1889)
Antietam Voices 
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