“Extra Billy” Smith Amuses the Troops
As the rattle of musketry echoed through the woods and a heavy rain fell on the troops of Early’s Brigade, Colonel William Smith made an amusing contribution here to the lore of the Confederate army.
Former Virginia governor, “Extra Billy” Smith, was known for his contempt of West Point officers and his disdain for military dress. He had carried his blue cotton umbrella into this battle and topped his uniform coat with a tall beaver “stovepipe” hat. When the rains came, Colonel Smith opened his umbrella and raised it high over his tall hat as he commanded his 49th Virginia regiment. Then, as the musketry in front died away, he casually rode amongst the other troops of the brigade, not the slightest bit concerned about his unmilitary appearance.
Author, Douglas Southall Freeman, described the soldiers’ reaction this way: “Perhaps his own regiment, from respect or long acquaintance, restrained its mirth; but the other troops saw in the Colonel’s appearance a variant of the oldest, most persistent joke of the Army. ‘Come out of that umbrella,’ the soldier cried, ‘I see your legs; come out of that hat, I want it to boil the beans in!’ They had shouted the same thing a thousand times of course, to dignified visitors to the camps, but the joke seemed new and sharp of point when the Colonel of one of “Old Jube” Early’s fighting regiments appeared in battle with a blue cotton umbrella and a beaver hat.”
Born in 1797, William Smith opened a law practice in Culpeper in 1818. He then began a mail-coach service (1827) and by 1834 had expanded his mail deliveries from Washington, D.C. to as far as Milledgeville, Ga. He got his nickname “Extra Billy” because of the extra payments he received from the Post Office as his mail route added additional mileage.
Between 1836 and 1861, Smith served five years in the Virginia Senate, five terms in Congress and one term as governor of Virginia. While commanding the 49th Virginia, Smith was elected to the Confederate Congress and attended sessions in between campaigns. On January 1, 1864, Smith was again inaugurated governor of Virginia. In the postwar years, he farmed his land near Warrenton and at 80 years of age, was elected to the Virginia House of Delegates, serving one term. He died in 1887 and is buried in Hollywood Cemetery, Richmond.