John Doby Kennedy
Encyclopedia
John Doby Kennedy was a general in the Confederate States Army
during the American Civil War
, as well as a post-war planter, attorney, politician, and Lieutenant Governor
of South Carolina
.
. His father was an emigrant from Scotland
who had settled in Kershaw County about 1830 and married a local woman. Kennedy served as a lieutenant
in a Camden pre-war militia
unit. He studied at South Carolina College from 1855–57. On October 28, 1857, he married Elizabeth Cunningham (1842–1876), and they eventually had 7 children. Kennedy read law and was admitted to the bar in January 1861. However, South Carolina's secession
and the subsequent outbreak of the Civil War delayed his plans to establish a law practice.
and badly wounded. Recovering, he was promoted to colonel
when Kershaw was promoted to brigadier general. Kennedy's first action in command of a regiment
occurred at a skirmish on the Nine-Mile Road near Richmond, Virginia
, in June 1862 during the Peninsula Campaign
. After fighting at the Battle of Savage's Station
, he was disabled for several weeks by fever. He returned to his regiment in time for the Maryland Campaign
. During Stonewall Jackson
's investment of Harpers Ferry
, Kennedy was with Kershaw's brigade in the capture of the important Maryland Heights. He led his regiment in Kershaw's counterattack
during the Battle of Sharpsburg
, driving a part of the Union
II Corps
before him. However, he fell painfully wounded in the first charge, struck in the instep and Achilles tendon
while crossing a wooden fence along the Hagerstown Pike. Once again recovering in time for a major battle, Kennedy led the 2nd and 8th South Carolina to the support of Gen. Howell Cobb
at Marye's Heights, the focus of the hottest fighting.
In 1863, Kennedy efficiently led his regiment during the battles of Chancellorsville
and Gettysburg
. During 1864, when not disabled, he was either in command of his regiment or of Kershaw's old brigade during the Richmond and Shenandoah Valley campaigns. In December, he was promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general and assigned command of a brigade in Lafayette McLaws
' division of Hardee
's corps. He took part in the Carolinas Campaign
against William T. Sherman, including the Battle of Bentonville
, and surrendered with Johnston's
army at Greensboro
.
Kennedy survived six wounds during his service to the Confederacy, and was hit fifteen times by spent balls.
in 1865, Kennedy declined to take the "ironclad" oath of allegiance
demanded and did not take his seat. After his first wife died in 1876, Kennedy married Harriet A. Boykin and had an additional child. In 1878–79, he represented Kershaw County in the state legislature. He was elected Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina in 1880 and served until 1882, when he unsuccessfully ran for Governor. Kennedy became Grand Master of South Carolina Masons in 1881–83. In 1884, he was a presidential elector-at-large on the Democratic
ticket. In 1886, President Grover Cleveland
appointed him as consul general at Shanghai
, China
. Returning from that post in 1889, Kennedy continued the practice of law at Camden until his death from a stroke
. He was buried in Camden's Quaker Cemetery.
A United Daughters of the Confederacy
chapter was named for him. In 1911, Camden officials erected the Confederate Memorial Fountain, a six-sided structure with tablets on each column commemorating Kennedy and five other generals born in Kershaw County.
Confederate States Army
The Confederate States Army was the army of the Confederate States of America while the Confederacy existed during the American Civil War. On February 8, 1861, delegates from the seven Deep South states which had already declared their secession from the United States of America adopted the...
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...
, as well as a post-war planter, attorney, politician, and Lieutenant Governor
Lieutenant governor
A lieutenant governor or lieutenant-governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction, but is often the deputy or lieutenant to or ranking under a governor — a "second-in-command"...
of South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
.
Early life and career
Kennedy was born in Camden, South CarolinaCamden, South Carolina
Camden is the fourth oldest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina and is also the county seat of Kershaw County, South Carolina, United States. The population was an estimated 7,103 in 2009...
. His father was an emigrant from Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
who had settled in Kershaw County about 1830 and married a local woman. Kennedy served as a lieutenant
Lieutenant
A lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer in many nations' armed forces. Typically, the rank of lieutenant in naval usage, while still a junior officer rank, is senior to the army rank...
in a Camden pre-war militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
unit. He studied at South Carolina College from 1855–57. On October 28, 1857, he married Elizabeth Cunningham (1842–1876), and they eventually had 7 children. Kennedy read law and was admitted to the bar in January 1861. However, South Carolina's secession
Secession
Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...
and the subsequent outbreak of the Civil War delayed his plans to establish a law practice.
Civil War
Enlisting in the Confederate Army in April 1861, Kennedy became captain of Company E, 2nd South Carolina Infantry, under fellow Camden resident Col. Joseph Brevard Kershaw. At the First Battle of Manassas, he was struck by a Minie ballMinié ball
The Minié ball is a type of muzzle-loading spin-stabilising rifle bullet named after its co-developer, Claude-Étienne Minié, inventor of the Minié rifle...
and badly wounded. Recovering, he was promoted to colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
when Kershaw was promoted to brigadier general. Kennedy's first action in command of a regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
occurred at a skirmish on the Nine-Mile Road near Richmond, Virginia
Richmond, Virginia
Richmond is the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia, in the United States. It is an independent city and not part of any county. Richmond is the center of the Richmond Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Greater Richmond area...
, in June 1862 during the Peninsula Campaign
Peninsula Campaign
The Peninsula Campaign of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March through July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The operation, commanded by Maj. Gen. George B...
. After fighting at the Battle of Savage's Station
Battle of Savage's Station
The Battle of Savage's Station took place on June 29, 1862, in Henrico County, Virginia, as fourth of the Seven Days Battles of the American Civil War. The main body of the Union Army of the Potomac began a general withdrawal toward the James River. Confederate Brig. Gen. John B. Magruder pursued...
, he was disabled for several weeks by fever. He returned to his regiment in time for the Maryland Campaign
Maryland Campaign
The Maryland Campaign, or the Antietam Campaign is widely considered one of the major turning points of the American Civil War. Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the North was repulsed by Maj. Gen. George B...
. During Stonewall Jackson
Stonewall Jackson
ຄຽשת״ׇׂׂׂׂ֣|birth_place= Clarksburg, Virginia |death_place=Guinea Station, Virginia|placeofburial=Stonewall Jackson Memorial CemeteryLexington, Virginia|placeofburial_label= Place of burial|image=...
's investment of Harpers Ferry
Battle of Harpers Ferry
The Battle of Harpers Ferry was fought September 12–15, 1862, as part of the Maryland Campaign of the American Civil War. As Gen. Robert E. Lee's Confederate army invaded Maryland, a portion of his army under Maj. Gen. Thomas J...
, Kennedy was with Kershaw's brigade in the capture of the important Maryland Heights. He led his regiment in Kershaw's counterattack
Counterattack
A counterattack is a tactic used in response against an attack. The term originates in military strategy. The general objective is to negate or thwart the advantage gained by the enemy in attack and the specific objectives are usually to regain lost ground or to destroy attacking enemy units.It is...
during the Battle of Sharpsburg
Battle of Antietam
The Battle of Antietam , fought on September 17, 1862, near Sharpsburg, Maryland, and Antietam Creek, as part of the Maryland Campaign, was the first major battle in the American Civil War to take place on Northern soil. It was the bloodiest single-day battle in American history, with about 23,000...
, driving a part of the Union
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...
II Corps
II Corps (ACW)
There were five corps in the Union Army designated as II Corps during the American Civil War.* Army of the Cumberland, II Corps commanded by Thomas L. Crittenden , later renumbered XX Corps...
before him. However, he fell painfully wounded in the first charge, struck in the instep and Achilles tendon
Achilles tendon
The Achilles tendon , also known as the calcaneal tendon or the tendo calcaneus, is a tendon of the posterior leg. It serves to attach the plantaris, gastrocnemius and soleus muscles to the calcaneus bone.- Anatomy :The Achilles is the tendonous extension of 3 muscles in the lower leg:...
while crossing a wooden fence along the Hagerstown Pike. Once again recovering in time for a major battle, Kennedy led the 2nd and 8th South Carolina to the support of Gen. Howell Cobb
Howell Cobb
Howell Cobb was an American political figure. A Southern Democrat, Cobb was a five-term member of the United States House of Representatives and Speaker of the House from 1849 to 1851...
at Marye's Heights, the focus of the hottest fighting.
In 1863, Kennedy efficiently led his regiment during the battles of Chancellorsville
Battle of Chancellorsville
The Battle of Chancellorsville was a major battle of the American Civil War, and the principal engagement of the Chancellorsville Campaign. It was fought from April 30 to May 6, 1863, in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, near the village of Chancellorsville. Two related battles were fought nearby on...
and Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
. During 1864, when not disabled, he was either in command of his regiment or of Kershaw's old brigade during the Richmond and Shenandoah Valley campaigns. In December, he was promoted to the temporary rank of brigadier general and assigned command of a brigade in Lafayette McLaws
Lafayette McLaws
Lafayette McLaws was a United States Army officer and a Confederate general in the American Civil War.-Early life:...
' division of Hardee
William J. Hardee
William Joseph Hardee was a career U.S. Army officer, serving during the Second Seminole War and fighting in the Mexican-American War...
's corps. He took part in the Carolinas Campaign
Carolinas Campaign
The Carolinas Campaign was the final campaign in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. In January 1865, Union Maj. Gen. William Tecumseh Sherman advanced north from Savannah, Georgia, through the Carolinas, with the intention of linking up with Union forces in Virginia. The defeat of ...
against William T. Sherman, including the Battle of Bentonville
Battle of Bentonville
At 3 p.m., Confederate infantry from the Army of Tennessee launched an attack and drove the Union left flank back in confusion, nearly capturing Carlin in the process and overrunning the XIV Corps field hospital. Confederates under Maj. Gen. D.H. Hill filled the vacuum left by the retreating...
, and surrendered with Johnston's
Joseph E. Johnston
Joseph Eggleston Johnston was a career U.S. Army officer, serving with distinction in the Mexican-American War and Seminole Wars, and was also one of the most senior general officers in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War...
army at Greensboro
Greensboro, North Carolina
Greensboro is a city in the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the third-largest city by population in North Carolina and the largest city in Guilford County and the surrounding Piedmont Triad metropolitan region. According to the 2010 U.S...
.
Kennedy survived six wounds during his service to the Confederacy, and was hit fifteen times by spent balls.
Postbellum activities
After the close of hostilities, Kennedy was mainly engaged in planting until 1877, when he finally established a law practice. He was an active member of the Kershaw Lodge #29 of the Freemasons in Camden. Elected to CongressUnited 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....
in 1865, Kennedy declined to take the "ironclad" oath of allegiance
Oath of allegiance
An oath of allegiance is an oath whereby a subject or citizen acknowledges a duty of allegiance and swears loyalty to monarch or country. In republics, modern oaths specify allegiance to the country's constitution. For example, officials in the United States, a republic, take an oath of office that...
demanded and did not take his seat. After his first wife died in 1876, Kennedy married Harriet A. Boykin and had an additional child. In 1878–79, he represented Kershaw County in the state legislature. He was elected Lieutenant Governor of South Carolina in 1880 and served until 1882, when he unsuccessfully ran for Governor. Kennedy became Grand Master of South Carolina Masons in 1881–83. In 1884, he was a presidential elector-at-large on the Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
ticket. In 1886, President Grover Cleveland
Grover Cleveland
Stephen Grover Cleveland was the 22nd and 24th president of the United States. Cleveland is the only president to serve two non-consecutive terms and therefore is the only individual to be counted twice in the numbering of the presidents...
appointed him as consul general at Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Returning from that post in 1889, Kennedy continued the practice of law at Camden until his death from a stroke
Stroke
A stroke, previously known medically as a cerebrovascular accident , is the rapidly developing loss of brain function due to disturbance in the blood supply to the brain. This can be due to ischemia caused by blockage , or a hemorrhage...
. He was buried in Camden's Quaker Cemetery.
A United Daughters of the Confederacy
United Daughters of the Confederacy
The United Daughters of the Confederacy is a women's heritage association dedicated to honoring the memory of those who served in the military and died in service to the Confederate States of America . UDC began as the National Association of the Daughters of the Confederacy, organized in 1894 by...
chapter was named for him. In 1911, Camden officials erected the Confederate Memorial Fountain, a six-sided structure with tablets on each column commemorating Kennedy and five other generals born in Kershaw County.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals