Life
- Born
- September 9, 1834
- Died
- February 11, 1882
Career
- Superintendent — Western & Atlantic Railroad
Biography
William MacRae (September 9, 1834–February 11, 1882) was a civil engineer, Confederate general, and railroad executive who served as superintendent of Georgia’s Western & Atlantic Railroad.
A native of Wilmington, North Carolina, MacRae was trained as a civil engineer before earning distinction as a brigadier general in the Confederate Army during the Civil War. After the war, he turned to railroad management, serving as general superintendent of the Wilmington & Manchester Railroad in South Carolina and later the Macon & Brunswick Railroad in Georgia. He subsequently became superintendent of the state-owned Western & Atlantic Railroad.
MacRae was widely regarded as an able railroad manager whose engineering background helped him navigate the challenges of rebuilding and operating Southern railroads during the Reconstruction era. He died of pneumonia in Augusta, Georgia, on February 11, 1882, and was buried in Oakdale Cemetery in Wilmington.