David John Nevin
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David John Nevin (born 1830) was an American officer in the
Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...
during the
American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...
.


Early life

Prior to enlisting in the Anderson Zouaves Infantry Regiment of New York (later the Sixty-second New York State Volunteers), Nevin had worked as a coal merchant in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
.


Civil War

Nevin enlisted in the Union Army on April 27, 1861, at New York City as Captain of Company 'D' of the Anderson Zouaves. He received his commission on June 30, 1861. With the resignation of the regiment's
lieutenant colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
William S. Tisdale, Nevin was promoted to lieutenant colonel a position which became effective on October 25, 1861. A muster roll dated October 15, 1861 makes the comment that Nevin's promotion was made ''"…by desire of the
major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
( Oscar Veniah Dayton) and every line officer. Sanctioned by the Brig. General ( John James Peck)"''. Nevin's promotion from captain to lieutenant colonel appears to have been a reward for good service while the regiment was encamped at Tennallytown, DC. Upon arrival at the encampment the colonel, lieutenant colonel and major were found to be absent and the regiment demanded that Nevin take command. Nevin acted in the capacity of senior officer for several weeks before handing in his resignation to Peck who forwarded it to
Major General Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
McClellan with the recommendation that it be rejected. With the death of the regiment's
colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...
,
John Lafayette Riker John Lafayette Riker (August 15, 1824 – May 31, 1862) was an American attorney and an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action at the Battle of Fair Oaks during the Peninsula Campaign. Early life Joh ...
at the Battle of Fair Oaks on May 31, 1862, Nevin assumed command of the regiment a promotion which became effective on June 20, 1862. Nevin received special commendation from General Peck for his gallantry at the Battle of Fair Oaks. At the
Battle of Malvern Hill The Battle of Malvern Hill, also known as the Battle of Poindexter's Farm, was fought on July 1, 1862, between the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia, led by Gen. Robert E. Lee, and the Union Army of the Potomac under Maj. Gen. George B. Mc ...
, Nevin, due to sickness, commanded the regiment from an army ambulance. In late 1862 Nevin was sentenced "to be cashiered," by a
general court-martial A court-martial or court martial (plural ''courts-martial'' or ''courts martial'', as "martial" is a postpositive adjective) is a military court or a trial conducted in such a court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of memb ...
. However, in April 1863 his sentence was disapproved by the Secretary of War,
Edwin M. Stanton Edwin McMasters Stanton (December 19, 1814December 24, 1869) was an American lawyer and politician who served as U.S. Secretary of War under the Lincoln Administration during most of the American Civil War. Stanton's management helped organize t ...
and he was released from arrest, and restored to his command. After the removal of McClellan from command of the
Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the principal Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the surrender of the Confedera ...
a conspiracy against Nevin by his superior officers was discovered, and
Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Seymour was ''"…called upon to see that justice was done to one of whose services the State might well be proud."''Townsend, Thomas Seaman, 1889, ''The Honors of the Empire State in the War of the Rebellion'', New York, p. 201. Nevin was mustered out of the regiment on June 29, 1864 at
Petersburg Petersburg, or Petersburgh, may refer to: Places Australia *Petersburg, former name of Peterborough, South Australia Canada * Petersburg, Ontario Russia *Saint Petersburg, sometimes referred to as Petersburg United States *Peterborg, U.S. Virg ...
, Va. He was succeeded by Lieut. Colonel Theodore B. Hamilton who commanded the regiment until it was mustered out at Fort Schuyler New York on August 30, 1865.


See also


Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nevin, David John 1830 births People of New York (state) in the American Civil War Union Army colonels Year of death missing