As Longstreet grew older, he developed a keen interest in fishing, hunting, and other outdoor activities. Encouraged by his father, he also dreamed of someday building a career for himself in the military. "From my early boyhood [my father] conceived that he would send me to West Point [Military Academy] for army service," Longstreet remembered. "But in my twelfth year he passed away [from cholera]." Longstreet's mother then moved her family to northern Alabama. A few years later, one of Longstreet's relatives helped him gain admittance to West Point.
West Point and Mexico
Longstreet entered West Point in 1838. He struggled in some of his classes, but his athletic abilities and his outgoing personality helped him to get by. Longstreet's many friends from this period of his life included Ulysses S. Grant 1822–1885; see entry), a boy from Ohio who would later take command of the Union Army during the Civil War.
After graduating from the academy in 1842, Longstreet entered the U.S. Army. He was first stationed to a military outpost in St. Louis, Missouri. During Longstreet's stay in St. Louis he met Louise Garland, the daughter of his regimental commander.
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