Robert M. Mitchell, namesake of Mitchell, Georgia, graduated from Lynchburg Military College and joined the Confederate Army as a lieutenant on April 22, 1861, at age 16, serving in the Army of Northern Virginia, Langhorne’s Corps, Pickett’s Division, Longstreet’s Brigade, 11th Virginia Regiment, Company A. He fought in 15 battles and was wounded four times, including at 1st Manassas on July 21, 1861; Yorktown on April 5, 1862; Williamsburg on May 5, 1862; Drury’s Bluff on May 15, 1862; Seven Pines on May 31, 1862; Harrison’s Landing on July 1, 1862; 2nd Manassas on August 28, 1862; Antietam on September 17, 1862; Fredericksburg on December 11, 1862; Gettysburg on July 1, 1863; Boonsboro on July 8, 1863; Plymouth on April 17, 1864; and Five Forks on April 1, 1865. He later served as president of the Augusta-Gibson-Sandersville Railroad, which later became the Augusta Southern Railroad, and was buried at Westview Cemetery in Atlanta, Georgia.