Halbert Eleazer Paine (February 4, 1826April 14, 1905) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

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and Republican politician. He served as a Union Army general during the American Civil War, and after the war was elected to three terms in the United States House of Representatives representing Wisconsin's 1st congressional district.

Biography

Paine was born in Chardon, Ohio. Through his father's family, he was a first cousin of

Eleazar A. Paine Eleazer Arthur Paine (September 10, 1815 – December 16, 1882) was an American lawyer, author and a Union officer from Ohio. He provoked controversy as a brigadier general in the Union Army during the American Civil War, while commanding occ ...

, who would also serve as a general in the Union Army in the Civil War. After attending the common schools, Paine graduated from Western Reserve College in 1845. He moved to Mississippi for a year to teach school but returned to Cleveland to read the law. In 1848 he passed the bar exam and established a practice. He married and started a family. In 1857, Paine took his family to Milwaukee, Wisconsin, where he continued his legal career. Beginning 1859, his law partner was

Carl Schurz Carl Schurz (; March 2, 1829 – May 14, 1906) was a German revolutionary and an American statesman, journalist, and reformer. He immigrated to the United States after the German revolutions of 1848–1849 and became a prominent member of the new ...

, though, with Paine's encouragement, Schurz took more of an interest in politics and public speaking than law.

American Civil War

With the outbreak of the Civil War, Paine entered the Union army as the colonel of the

4th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 4th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War, primarily in the Western Theater. It was later mounted and became the 4th Wisconsin Cavalry Regiment. History The 4th Wis ...

. On April 9, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln appointed Paine brigadier general of volunteers, to rank from March 13, 1863.Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . p. 726 The President had nominated Paine for the promotion on March 12, 1863, and the U.S. Senate had confirmed the appointment on March 13, 1863. Halbert Eleazer Paine2

Paine led widespread actions in the Lower Mississippi, which took him into Louisiana. These included involvement in the Vicksburg campaign, the capture of New Orleans, the Battle of Baton Rouge, and the Bayou Teche offensive. He also coordinated anti- guerrilla operations in southern Louisiana and Mississippi. In late-September 1862, Paine assumed command of the Camp Parapet, a fortification about ten miles north of New Orleans under overall command of Brigadier General

Thomas W. Sherman Thomas West Sherman (March 26, 1813 – December 31, 1879) was a United States Army officer with service during the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War. While some contemporaries mistakenly identified him as the brother of the more f ...

, who was in command of New Orleans defenses. With the Third Division of the Army of the Gulf, he took part in an assault on Priest Gap during the siege and

Battle of Port Hudson The siege of Port Hudson, Louisiana, (May 22 – July 9, 1863) was the final engagement in the Union (American Civil War), Union campaign to recapture the Mississippi River in the American Civil War. While Major General#United States, Union Gen ...

in Louisiana. He suffered a wound that required amputation of his leg. After his recovery, Paine commanded troops in the defense of Washington, D.C., during

Jubal A. Early Jubal Anderson Early (November 3, 1816 – March 2, 1894) was a Virginia lawyer and politician who became a Confederate States of America, Confederate general during the American Civil War. Trained at the United States Military Academy, Early r ...

's raid in 1864. He resigned from the army on May 15, 1865, and returned to Wisconsin. On December 11, 1866, President

Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. He assumed the presidency as he was vice president at the time of the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a Dem ...

nominated Paine for appointment to the

brevet Brevet may refer to: Military * Brevet (military), higher rank that rewards merit or gallantry, but without higher pay * Brevet d'état-major, a military distinction in France and Belgium awarded to officers passing military staff college * Aircre ...

grade of major general of volunteers, to rank from March 13, 1865. The U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment on February 6, 1867.

Politics

Paine, a Republican, was elected to the 39th, 40th and 41st Congress from Wisconsin's 1st congressional district, serving from March 4, 1865, till March 3, 1871. He was a delegate to the

1866 National Union Convention The National Union Convention (also known as the Loyalist Convention, the Southern Loyalist Convention, the National Loyalists' Loyal Union Convention, or the Arm-In-Arm Convention) was held on August 14, 15, and 16 1866, in Philadelphia, Pennsylva ...

in Philadelphia, which was attempting to encourage support for President Andrew Johnson in advance of the mid-term elections. Some attendees hoped to found a new political party, but this did not take place. In 1869, Paine championed the passage of a bill that provided for taking meteorological observations in the interior of the continent. He served as chairman of the Committee on Militia (Fortieth Congress), and the Committee on Elections (Forty-first Congress). After the expiration of his third term in Congress, he retired from politics and chose not to accept renomination.

Law

After serving in Congress, Paine practiced law in Washington, D.C., for several years, having established residency there. In 1879, he was appointed by President Rutherford B. Hayes as the United States Commissioner of Patents, serving in that post for two years. While there, he promoted adoption by Federal agencies of useful innovations, such as typewriters.

Cases and memoir

In later years, Paine published two accounts of contested elections in which he had represented a candidate: ''Contested Election, Territory of Utah:

George R. Maxwell George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

George Q. Cannon George Quayle Cannon (January 11, 1827 – April 12, 1901) was an early member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), and served in the First Presidency under four successive pr ...

'' (1888), and ''Contested Election, United States Senate:

William H. Clagett William Horace Clagett (September 21, 1838 – August 3, 1901) was a nineteenth-century politician and lawyer from various places in the United States. He was the uncle of Samuel B. Pettengill. Born in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, Clagett mov ...

Frederick T. Dubois Fred Thomas Dubois (May 29, 1851February 14, 1930) was a controversial American politician from Idaho who served two terms in the United States Senate. He was best known for his opposition to the gold standard and his efforts to disenfranchise M ...

'', based on his argument before the Committee on Privileges and Elections. These were related to his work in Washington, DC. In addition, he wrote a memoir of his Civil War years, reflecting on the complexities of its issues as a man of the North. Entitled ''A Wisconsin Yankee in Confederate Bayou Country: The Civil War Reminiscences of a Union General,'' the memoir was published for the first time in 2009, in an annotated edition edited by historian Samuel C. Hyde, Jr.Halbert E. Paine, ''A Wisconsin Yankee in Confederate Bayou Country: The Civil War Reminiscences of a Union General''
ed. by Samuel C. Hyde, Jr., Louisiana State University Press, 2009, at Project Muse It is described as "less celebration of the grand cause and greater analysis of the motives for his actions—and their inherent contradictions." Paine died April 14, 1905, in Washington, D.C. He was buried in Arlington National Cemetery.Burial Detail: Paine, Halbert E (section 3, grave 1442)
– ANC Explorer

Works

Halbert E. Paine, ''Contested Election, Territory of Utah: George R. Maxwell V. George Q. Cannon''
(1888) * ''Contested Election, United States Senate: William H. Clagett v. Frederick T. Dubois : before the Committee on Privileges and Elections : argument of Halbert E. Paine, counsel for contestee'', Gibson Brothers (1891)
''A Wisconsin Yankee in Confederate Bayou Country: The Civil War Reminiscences of a Union General''
ed. by Samuel C. Hyde, Jr., Louisiana State University Press, 2009

References

External links

Retrieved on 2008-12-01
"Halbart Eleazer Paine, Major General, United States Army & Member of Congress"
at ArlingtonCemetery.net, an unofficial website ---- {{DEFAULTSORT:Paine, Halbert 1826 births 1905 deaths Ohio lawyers Wisconsin lawyers Union Army generals Burials at Arlington National Cemetery People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War People from Chardon, Ohio United States Commissioners of Patents Washington, D.C., Republicans Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Wisconsin 19th-century American politicians