Hazard Stevens
Encyclopedia
Hazard Stevens was an American military officer, mountaineer, politician and writer. He received the Medal of Honor
for his service in the Union army
during the American Civil War
at the Battle of Fort Huger. Stevens and P. B. Van Trump
made the first documented successful climb of Mount Rainier
on August 17, 1870.
on June 9, 1842, the son of Isaac I. Stevens and Margaret Hazard Stevens. In 1854, his father became the first governor of the new Washington Territory
and the Stevens family moved to Olympia, Washington
. Both father and son volunteered in the Union army during the Civil War and served in the 79th Highlanders of the New York Volunteers
. Hazard was wounded and his father, by then a general, was killed in the Battle of Chantilly
on September 1, 1862. Hazard recovered and became the youngest brigadier general of volunteers in the Union army in the Third Division of the 9th Corps under Getty
. For his contribution to the capture of Fort Huger, Virginia
, on April 19, 1863, Stevens received the Medal of Honor.
and then as a federal revenue collector in 1868. He then met P. B. Van Trump, who was working as the private secretary to Marshall F. Moore
, the seventh governor of the territory. Both men were interested in climbing Mount Rainier and on August 17, 1870 they completed the first documented ascent of the mountain.
The Stevens Van Trump Historic Monument along the Skyline Trail in Mount Rainier National Park
was erected to commemorate the historic first ascent of the mountain. Nearby is the Stevens Canyon and Stevens Ridge, both named after him.
Stevens joined the bar
in 1871, representing the Northern Pacific Railroad Company in their prosecution of lumber theft cases. In 1874, Stevens investigated British clams on the San Juan Islands
at the request of President Ulysses S. Grant
.
near Boston. He the entered the Massachusetts state legislature as a reformer in 1885. He successfully lobbied for the preservation of Boston's Old State House
. He was unsuccessful in a run for the United States Congress
.
Stevens climbed Mount Rainier a second time in 1905 on a trip organized by The Mazamas
, an Oregon mountaineering club.
Stevens established the Cloverfields Dairy Farm
in Olympia
, Washington in 1916. Now on the National Historic Register, the former farm is the site of the present Olympia High School.
Later in life, Stevens wrote "The Life of Isaac Ingalls Stevens", a noted biography of his father in addition to many papers on the Civil War. He died unmarried in 1918 and is interred at Island Cemetery
in Newport, Rhode Island
Plot: Lots 650-653.
Rank and Organization:
Citation:
Gallantly led a party that assaulted and captured the fort.
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor is the highest military decoration awarded by the United States government. It is bestowed by the President, in the name of Congress, upon members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves through "conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his or her...
for his service in the Union army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
at the Battle of Fort Huger. Stevens and P. B. Van Trump
P. B. Van Trump
Philemon Beecher Van Trump , also known as P. B. Van Trump, was an American pioneering mountaineer and writer who lived in the state of Washington. He is best known for the first ascent of Mount Rainier in 1870....
made the first documented successful climb of Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier is a massive stratovolcano located southeast of Seattle in the state of Washington, United States. It is the most topographically prominent mountain in the contiguous United States and the Cascade Volcanic Arc, with a summit elevation of . Mt. Rainier is considered one of the most...
on August 17, 1870.
Early life and the Civil War
Stevens was born in Newport, Rhode IslandNewport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
on June 9, 1842, the son of Isaac I. Stevens and Margaret Hazard Stevens. In 1854, his father became the first governor of the new Washington Territory
Washington Territory
The Territory of Washington was an organized incorporated territory of the United States that existed from February 8, 1853, until November 11, 1889, when the final extent of the territory was admitted to the Union as the State of Washington....
and the Stevens family moved to Olympia, Washington
Olympia, Washington
Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat of Thurston County. It was incorporated on January 28, 1859. The population was 46,478 at the 2010 census...
. Both father and son volunteered in the Union army during the Civil War and served in the 79th Highlanders of the New York Volunteers
79th New York Volunteer Infantry
The 79th New York Volunteer Infantry was a military regiment organized on June 20, 1859 in the state of New York. Prior to the American Civil War it was one of the three regiments which formed the Fourth Brigade of the First Division of the New York State Militia. The Fourth Brigade included the...
. Hazard was wounded and his father, by then a general, was killed in the Battle of Chantilly
Battle of Chantilly
The Battle of Chantilly took place on September 1, 1862, in Fairfax County, Virginia, as the concluding battle of the Northern Virginia Campaign of the American Civil War. Thomas J...
on September 1, 1862. Hazard recovered and became the youngest brigadier general of volunteers in the Union army in the Third Division of the 9th Corps under Getty
George W. Getty
George Washington Getty was a career military officer in the United States Army, most noted for his role as a division commander in the Army of the Potomac during the final full year of the American Civil War....
. For his contribution to the capture of Fort Huger, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, on April 19, 1863, Stevens received the Medal of Honor.
After the war and the ascent of Mount Rainier
After the war, Stevens returned to Washington to care for his widowed mother, working initially for the Oregon Steam Navigation CompanyOregon Steam Navigation Company
The Oregon Steam Navigation Company was an American company incorporated in 1860 in Washington with partners J. S. Ruckle, Henry Olmstead, and J. O. Van Bergen...
and then as a federal revenue collector in 1868. He then met P. B. Van Trump, who was working as the private secretary to Marshall F. Moore
Marshall F. Moore
Marshall F. Moore was the 7th Governor of Washington Territory.He served during the Civil War under George McClellan in Virginia and under Sherman. He was at Rich Mountain, Shiloh, Chickamauga, Jonesboro and Missionary Ridge. He rose to the rank of breveted major general on March 13, 1865. He...
, the seventh governor of the territory. Both men were interested in climbing Mount Rainier and on August 17, 1870 they completed the first documented ascent of the mountain.
The Stevens Van Trump Historic Monument along the Skyline Trail in Mount Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier National Park
Mount Rainier National Park is a United States National Park located in southeast Pierce County and northeast Lewis County in Washington state. It was one of the US's earliest National Parks, having been established on March 2, 1899 as the fifth national park in the United States. The park contains...
was erected to commemorate the historic first ascent of the mountain. Nearby is the Stevens Canyon and Stevens Ridge, both named after him.
Stevens joined the bar
Admission to the bar in the United States
In the United States, admission to the bar is the granting of permission by a particular court system to a lawyer to practice law in that system. Each U.S. state and similar jurisdiction has its own court system and sets its own rules for bar admission , which can lead to different admission...
in 1871, representing the Northern Pacific Railroad Company in their prosecution of lumber theft cases. In 1874, Stevens investigated British clams on the San Juan Islands
San Juan Islands
The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the northwest corner of the contiguous United States between the US mainland and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of the U.S...
at the request of President Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
.
Later life
In 1874, Stevens moved to Dorchester, MassachusettsDorchester, Massachusetts
Dorchester is a dissolved municipality and current neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. It is named after the town of Dorchester in the English county of Dorset, from which Puritans emigrated and is today endearingly nicknamed "Dot" by its residents. Dorchester, including a large...
near Boston. He the entered the Massachusetts state legislature as a reformer in 1885. He successfully lobbied for the preservation of Boston's Old State House
Old State House (Boston)
The Old State House is a historic government building located at the intersection of Washington and State Streets in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Built in 1713, it is the oldest surviving public building in Boston, and the seat of the state's legislature until 1798. It is now a history museum...
. He was unsuccessful in a run for the United States Congress
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the bicameral legislature of the federal government of the United States, consisting of the Senate and the House of Representatives. The Congress meets in the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C....
.
Stevens climbed Mount Rainier a second time in 1905 on a trip organized by The Mazamas
The Mazamas
The Mazamas is a mountaineering club based in Portland, Oregon, United States, founded in 1894.-Name:The name Mazamas means mountain goat, from Nahuatl mazatl, deer. for etymology...
, an Oregon mountaineering club.
Stevens established the Cloverfields Dairy Farm
Cloverfields
Cloverfields Dairy Farm was a model dairy farm located in Olympia, Washington. Built by former Washington State pioneer Hazard Stevens after he returned to Olympia in 1914, today the farmhouse is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.-About:...
in Olympia
Olympia, Washington
Olympia is the capital city of the U.S. state of Washington and the county seat of Thurston County. It was incorporated on January 28, 1859. The population was 46,478 at the 2010 census...
, Washington in 1916. Now on the National Historic Register, the former farm is the site of the present Olympia High School.
Later in life, Stevens wrote "The Life of Isaac Ingalls Stevens", a noted biography of his father in addition to many papers on the Civil War. He died unmarried in 1918 and is interred at Island Cemetery
Common Burying Ground and Island Cemetery
Common Burying Ground and Island Cemetery are a pair of separate cemeteries on Farewell and Warner Street in Newport, Rhode Island. Together they contain over 5,000 graves, including a colonial era slave cemetery and Jewish graves. The pair of cemeteries was added to the National Register of...
in Newport, Rhode Island
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...
Plot: Lots 650-653.
Medal of Honor citation
- Captain and Assistant Adjutant General, U.S. Volunteers. Place and Date: At Fort Huger, Va., April 19, 1863. Entered service at: Olympia, Washington Territory. Born: June 9, 1842, Newport, R.I. Date of issue: June 13, 1894.
Citation:
Gallantly led a party that assaulted and captured the fort.
See also
- List of Medal of Honor recipients
- List of American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients: Q–S
- History of Olympia