Daniel Bissell (1768 – December 14, 1833) was an American soldier and administrator.
/ref> He was a

fifer A fifer is a non-combatant military occupation of a foot soldier who originally played the fife during combat. The practice was instituted during the period of Early Modern warfare to sound signals during changes in formation, such as the line ...

in the

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

militia during the American Revolutionary War.

Early life

Daniel Bissell was born in Connecticut. He was the younger brother of

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

General

Russell Bissell Russell may refer to: People * Russell (given name) * Russell (surname) * Lady Russell (disambiguation) * Lord Russell (disambiguation) Places Australia *Russell, Australian Capital Territory *Russell Island, Queensland (disambiguation) **Ru ...

Military career

Daniel Bissell began his military career in the

Connecticut State Militia The Connecticut State Militia are the Armed Forces of the State of Connecticut under the authority of the Governor and the Adjutant General of the state. Classes of Militia The Connecticut State Militia is divided into two classes: the National ...

as a fifer during the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

. Following the American Revolutionary War Bissell became an officer in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

when he was commissioned an ensign in the 1st Infantry Regiment on April 11, 1792. Daniel Bissell was promoted to lieutenant on January 3, 1794, and to captain in January 1799. In 1802, Daniel Bissell was assigned the command of

Fort Massac Fort Massac (or Fort Massiac) was a French colonial and early National-era fort on the Ohio River in Massac County, Illinois, United States. Its site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971. History The Spanish explorer ...

, on the

Ohio River The Ohio River is a long river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing southwesterly from western Pennsylvania to its mouth on the Mississippi River at the southern tip of Illino ...

. With the expansion of the Army in 1808 Daniel Bissell was promoted to lieutenant colonel of the 1st Infantry Regiment on August 18, 1808. On May 20, 1809, he took command of

Fort Belle Fontaine Fort Belle Fontaine (formerly known as Cantonment Belle Fontaine) is a former U.S. military base located in St. Louis County, Missouri, across the Mississippi and Missouri rivers from Alton, Illinois. The fort was the first U.S. military install ...

, the first military fort west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it f ...

. On August 15, 1812, Daniel Bissell was appointed to command the 5th Infantry Regiment with the rank of colonel. Daniel Bissell served with distinction during the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...

and was promoted to brigadier general on March 9, 1814. He commanded U.S. forces at the

Battle of Cook's Mills The Battle of Cook's Mills was the last engagement between U.S. and British armies in the Niagara, and the penultimate engagement (followed by the Battle of Malcolm's Mills) on Canadian soil during the War of 1812. After about a half-hour, Ameri ...

on October 19, 1814. This minor battle was one of the few American land victories of the war. After the war, there were large reductions in the strength of the Army. As a result, Daniel Bissell was reverted to the rank of colonel and assigned to command of the 1st Infantry Regiment. In recognition of his wartime service he was given a brevet (honorary promotion) to the rank of brigadier general. Bissell was honorably discharged from the Army on June 1, 1821, after 29 years of continuous military service.

Death

General Daniel Bissell died December 14, 1833, in St. Louis, Missouri from

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

and was buried in

Bellefontaine Cemetery Bellefontaine Cemetery is a nonprofit, non-denominational cemetery and arboretum in St. Louis, Missouri. Founded in 1849 as a rural cemetery, Bellefontaine is home to a number of architecturally significant monuments and mausoleums such as the ...

Daniel Bissell House

The Gen. Daniel Bissell House is now owned by the St. Louis County, Missouri Parks and is open to the public as an historical attraction.Gen. Daniel Bissell House
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References

United States Army generals Military personnel from Connecticut 1768 births 1833 deaths Continental Army soldiers Connecticut militiamen in the American Revolution Burials at Bellefontaine Cemetery People of colonial Connecticut {{US-army-bio-stub