John T. Croxton
Encyclopedia
John Thomas Croxton was an attorney, a general in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
, and a postbellum U.S. diplomat.
, in rural Bourbon County
. He was the oldest son among the twelve children of a Virginia-born wealthy plantation
owner and slave owner. In 1857, he graduated with honors from Yale University
, where he was a member of the Skull and Bones
secret society. He subsequently studied law under prominent attorney James Robinson and eventually joined the Freemasonry
movement.
Croxton was admitted to the bar and taught law courses at a school in Mississippi
in 1858. He returned to Kentucky the following year and established a profitable law practice in Paris, as well as owning a small farm outside of town. He married Catherine Rogers (1833–1882) and raised three daughters. His ardent support for the emancipation
of slaves alienated him from much of his family.
Cold War
In October 1861, as the Civil War escalated, President
Abraham Lincoln
appointed Croxton as the lieutenant colonel
of the 4th Kentucky Mounted Infantry. He saw his first significant fighting in the Battle of Mill Springs
. He later rose to its colonel
in early 1862, and fought at Perryville
. On September 19, 1863, his infantry
brigade
tangled with Confederate
cavalry
under Nathan Bedford Forrest
, touching off the Battle of Chickamauga
. Croxton was wounded during the fighting. He suffered a leg wound at the Battle of Nashville
.
In 1864, he was promoted to brigadier general
at the age of 27, leading a cavalry brigade in the Army of the Cumberland
during the Atlanta Campaign
. His cavalry was active in Alabama during the final months of the war. On April 4, 1865, his force of 1,500 men seized Tuscaloosa
, strengthening the Union army's grip on central Alabama and eliminating one of the Confederacy's last major supply and munitions centers. In the process, they burned most of the University of Alabama
's buildings, as well as much of the town's industry and warehouses. On April 23, 1865, Croxton's troopers fought the Battle of Munford
near Talladega, Alabama, defeating several hundred Confederate troops under General Benjamin Jefferson Hill. This is said to have been the last battle of the Civil War, east of the Mississippi.
as a major general
. He was then appointed to command the District of Southwest Georgia as provincial governor until he resigned on December 26, 1865.
After his resignation from the army, Croxton returned to his Kentucky law practice and became a staunch supporter of the Republican Party
. In 1872, he was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant
as the U.S. Minister to Bolivia
and moved his family to La Paz
. He died there in office in 1874, suffering from consumption
. His remains were shipped home and buried in Paris Cemetery in Paris, Kentucky.
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...
, and a postbellum U.S. diplomat.
Early life and career
Croxton was born near Paris, KentuckyParis, Kentucky
As of the census of 2000, there were 9,183 people, 3,857 households, and 2,487 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 4,222 housing units at an average density of . The racial makeup of the city was 84.23% White, 12.71% African American, 0.16% Native American, 0.16%...
, in rural Bourbon County
Bourbon County, Kentucky
Bourbon County is a county located in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It is the remnant of what was previously a much larger Bourbon County, established as part of Virginia in 1785, and comprising what are now thirty-four modern Kentucky counties...
. He was the oldest son among the twelve children of a Virginia-born wealthy plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
owner and slave owner. In 1857, he graduated with honors from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
, where he was a member of the Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones
Skull and Bones is an undergraduate senior or secret society at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. It is a traditional peer society to Scroll and Key and Wolf's Head, as the three senior class 'landed societies' at Yale....
secret society. He subsequently studied law under prominent attorney James Robinson and eventually joined the Freemasonry
Freemasonry
Freemasonry is a fraternal organisation that arose from obscure origins in the late 16th to early 17th century. Freemasonry now exists in various forms all over the world, with a membership estimated at around six million, including approximately 150,000 under the jurisdictions of the Grand Lodge...
movement.
Croxton was admitted to the bar and taught law courses at a school in Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
in 1858. He returned to Kentucky the following year and established a profitable law practice in Paris, as well as owning a small farm outside of town. He married Catherine Rogers (1833–1882) and raised three daughters. His ardent support for the emancipation
Abolitionism
Abolitionism is a movement to end slavery.In western Europe and the Americas abolitionism was a movement to end the slave trade and set slaves free. At the behest of Dominican priest Bartolomé de las Casas who was shocked at the treatment of natives in the New World, Spain enacted the first...
of slaves alienated him from much of his family.
Cold War
In October 1861, as the Civil War escalated, President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
appointed Croxton as the lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Air Force, and United States Marine Corps, a lieutenant colonel is a field grade military officer rank just above the rank of major and just below the rank of colonel. It is equivalent to the naval rank of commander in the other uniformed services.The pay...
of the 4th Kentucky Mounted Infantry. He saw his first significant fighting in the Battle of Mill Springs
Battle of Mill Springs
The Battle of Mill Springs, also known as the Battle of Fishing Creek in Confederate terminology, and the Battle of Logan's Cross Roads in Union terminology, was fought in Wayne and Pulaski counties, near current Nancy, Kentucky, on January 19, 1862, as part of the American Civil War. It...
. He later rose to its 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...
in early 1862, and fought at Perryville
Battle of Perryville
The Battle of Perryville, also known as the Battle of Chaplin Hills, was fought on October 8, 1862, in the Chaplin Hills west of Perryville, Kentucky, as the culmination of the Confederate Heartland Offensive during the American Civil War. Confederate Gen. Braxton Bragg's Army of Mississippi won a...
. On September 19, 1863, his infantry
Infantry
Infantrymen are soldiers who are specifically trained for the role of fighting on foot to engage the enemy face to face and have historically borne the brunt of the casualties of combat in wars. As the oldest branch of combat arms, they are the backbone of armies...
brigade
Brigade
A brigade is a major tactical military formation that is typically composed of two to five battalions, plus supporting elements depending on the era and nationality of a given army and could be perceived as an enlarged/reinforced regiment...
tangled with Confederate
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...
cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
under Nathan Bedford Forrest
Nathan Bedford Forrest
Nathan Bedford Forrest was a lieutenant general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War. He is remembered both as a self-educated, innovative cavalry leader during the war and as a leading southern advocate in the postwar years...
, touching off the Battle of Chickamauga
Battle of Chickamauga
The Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19–20, 1863, marked the end of a Union offensive in southeastern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia called the Chickamauga Campaign...
. Croxton was wounded during the fighting. He suffered a leg wound at the Battle of Nashville
Battle of Nashville
The Battle of Nashville was a two-day battle in the Franklin-Nashville Campaign that represented the end of large-scale fighting in the Western Theater of the American Civil War. It was fought at Nashville, Tennessee, on December 15–16, 1864, between the Confederate Army of Tennessee under...
.
In 1864, he was promoted to brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
at the age of 27, leading a cavalry brigade in the Army of the Cumberland
Army of the Cumberland
The Army of the Cumberland was one of the principal Union armies in the Western Theater during the American Civil War. It was originally known as the Army of the Ohio.-History:...
during the Atlanta Campaign
Atlanta Campaign
The Atlanta Campaign was a series of battles fought in the Western Theater of the American Civil War throughout northwest Georgia and the area around Atlanta during the summer of 1864. Union Maj. Gen. William T. Sherman invaded Georgia from the vicinity of Chattanooga, Tennessee, beginning in May...
. His cavalry was active in Alabama during the final months of the war. On April 4, 1865, his force of 1,500 men seized Tuscaloosa
Tuscaloosa, Alabama
Tuscaloosa is a city in and the seat of Tuscaloosa County in west central Alabama . Located on the Black Warrior River, it is the fifth-largest city in Alabama, with a population of 90,468 in 2010...
, strengthening the Union army's grip on central Alabama and eliminating one of the Confederacy's last major supply and munitions centers. In the process, they burned most of the University of Alabama
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama is a public coeducational university located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, United States....
's buildings, as well as much of the town's industry and warehouses. On April 23, 1865, Croxton's troopers fought the Battle of Munford
Battle of Munford
The Battle of Munford, Alabama has been said to be the last battle of the American Civil War to take place east of the Mississippi. The battle took place on Sunday, April 23, 1865 during the raid through Alabama by 1500 Union cavalry under General John T. Croxton...
near Talladega, Alabama, defeating several hundred Confederate troops under General Benjamin Jefferson Hill. This is said to have been the last battle of the Civil War, east of the Mississippi.
Postbellum career
In the omnibus promotions following the cessation of hostilities, Croxton was brevettedBrevet (military)
In many of the world's military establishments, brevet referred to a warrant authorizing a commissioned officer to hold a higher rank temporarily, but usually without receiving the pay of that higher rank except when actually serving in that role. An officer so promoted may be referred to as being...
as a major general
Major general (United States)
In the United States Army, United States Marine Corps, and United States Air Force, major general is a two-star general-officer rank, with the pay grade of O-8. Major general ranks above brigadier general and below lieutenant general...
. He was then appointed to command the District of Southwest Georgia as provincial governor until he resigned on December 26, 1865.
After his resignation from the army, Croxton returned to his Kentucky law practice and became a staunch supporter of the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. In 1872, he was appointed by 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...
as the U.S. Minister to Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
and moved his family to La Paz
La Paz
Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra...
. He died there in office in 1874, suffering from consumption
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis, MTB, or TB is a common, and in many cases lethal, infectious disease caused by various strains of mycobacteria, usually Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Tuberculosis usually attacks the lungs but can also affect other parts of the body...
. His remains were shipped home and buried in Paris Cemetery in Paris, Kentucky.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals
Further reading
- Miller, Rex, Croxton's Raid. Fort Collins, Colorado: Old Army Press, 1979. ISBN 0883422441 .