Isaac Munroe St. John (November 19, 1827 – April 7, 1880) was a

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army, also called the Confederate Army or the Southern Army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fighting ...

brigadier general Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

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 ...

. He was a lawyer, newspaper editor and civil engineer before the Civil War and a civil engineer after the Civil War. As a civil engineer, he worked for the

Baltimore and Ohio Railroad The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad was the first common carrier railroad and the oldest railroad in the United States, with its first section opening in 1830. Merchants from Baltimore, which had benefited to some extent from the construction of ...

Company (mainly in

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It shares borders with Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware and the Atlantic Ocean to ...

) and the Blue Ridge Railroad Company in

South Carolina )''Animis opibusque parati'' ( for, , Latin, Prepared in mind and resources, links=no) , anthem = " Carolina";" South Carolina On My Mind" , Former = Province of South Carolina , seat = Columbia , LargestCity = Charleston , LargestMetro = ...

before the Civil War. After the war, he worked for the

Louisville, Cincinnati and Lexington Railroad The Louisville, Cincinnati and Lexington Railroad was a 19th-century railway company in the U.S. state of Kentucky. It operated from 1869, when it was created from the merger of the Louisville and Frankfort and Lexington and Frankfort railroads, ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

; the city of

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

; and the

Chesapeake and Ohio Railway The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway was a Class I railroad formed in 1869 in Virginia from several smaller Virginia railroads begun in the 19th century. Led by industrialist Collis P. Huntington, it reached from Virginia's capital city of Richmond t ...

Company (mainly in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

and

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

Early life

Isaac M. St. John was born on November 19, 1827 in

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navig ...

.Eicher, John H., and

David J. Eicher David John Eicher (born August 7, 1961) is an American editor, writer, and popularizer of astronomy and space. He has been editor-in-chief of ''Astronomy'' magazine since 2002. He is author, coauthor, or editor of 23 books on science and American ...

. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. . p. 512Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. . pp. 267-268 He moved to

New York, New York New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Uni ...

with his parents, Isaac Richards St. John and Abigail Richardson Munroe St. John,Heidler, David S. and Jeanne T. Heidler. "St. John, Issac Munroe." In ''Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: A Political, Social, and Military History'', edited by David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2000. . pp. 1846–1847. and attended Poughkeepsie Collegiate School. He graduated from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

in 1845 and became a lawyer.Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary''. New York: McKay, 1988. . First published New York, McKay, 1959. pp. 716-717 says he practiced law in New York City. In 1847, St. John became the editor of the ''Baltimore Patriot.'' He was a civil engineer with the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad Company between 1848 and 1855. He then moved to South Carolina where he became a civil engineer and chief of construction for the Blue Ridge Railroad Company between 1855 and 1861.Hall, James O. "St. John, Isaac Munroe" in ''Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War'', edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. . p. 651

American Civil War service

Isaac M. St. John began the Civil War as a private in the Fort Hill Guards of South Carolina in April 1861.Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. . p. 566 By October 3, 1861, he was an engineer in the

Army of the Peninsula The Army of the Peninsula or Magruder's Army Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary.'' page 501 was a Confederate army early in the American Civil War. In May 1861, Colonel John B. Magruder was assigned to command operations on the ...

. By April 1862, he was

Brigadier General Brigadier general or Brigade general is a military rank used in many countries. It is the lowest ranking general officer in some countries. The rank is usually above a colonel, and below a major general or divisional general. When appointed ...

John B. Magruder's chief engineer at

Yorktown, Virginia Yorktown is a census-designated place (CDP) in York County, Virginia. It is the county seat of York County, one of the eight original shires formed in colonial Virginia in 1682. Yorktown's population was 195 as of the 2010 census, while York Cou ...

in the Peninsula Campaign with the rank of captain. On April 18, 1862, St. John became the Chief of the Bureau of Nitre and Mining, an assignment which he held until February 16, 1865. In this position, he produced crucial ordnance supplies, including gunpowder and metals, for the Confederate Army, even as the

Union blockade The Union blockade in the American Civil War was a naval strategy by the United States to prevent the Confederacy from trading. The blockade was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln in April 1861, and required the monitoring of of Atlantic ...

of Southern ports became increasingly effective. Among other things, he found limestone caves containing

saltpeter Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with the chemical formula . This alkali metal nitrate salt is also known as Indian saltpetre (large deposits of which were historically mined in India). It is an ionic salt of potassium ions K+ and nitrat ...

in the southern

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

. He was appointed major, CSA artillery, September 26, 1862 and lieutenant colonel, CSA, Nitre and Mining Corps, May 28, 1863. St. John resigned from the

Nitre and Mining Bureau The Confederate Nitre and Mining Bureau was a civilian government bureau to provide the Confederate States of America with needed materials such as copper, iron, lead, saltpeter, sulfur, zinc, and other metals. The Bureau oversaw civilian contracts ...

on January 31, 1864 because the

Confederate Senate The Confederate States Congress was both the Provisional government, provisional and permanent Legislature, legislative assembly of the Confederate States of America that existed from 1861 to 1865. Its actions were for the most part concerned w ...

accused him of protecting

draft dodgers Draft evasion is any successful attempt to elude a government-imposed obligation to serve in the military forces of one's nation. Sometimes draft evasion involves refusing to comply with the military draft laws of one's nation. Illegal draft ev ...

. His resignation was refused and the charge was proven untrue. He was promoted to

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 ...

on June 15, 1864. On February 16, 1865, by special act of the Confederate Congress, St. John was promoted to brigadier general and was appointed commissary general of subsistence because of his procurement skills. He relieved some supply problems through direct acquisitions but his innovations came too late in the war to make a significant impact. St. John was paroled at

Thomasville, Georgia Thomasville is the county seat of Thomas County, Georgia, United States. The population was 18,413 at the 2010 United States Census, making it the second largest city in southwest Georgia after Albany, Georgia, Albany. The city deems itself the "C ...

about June 1, 1865 and was promptly pardoned on June 19, 1865, after having taken the oath of amnesty on June 18.Heidler, 2000, p. 1847 says that he was captured with the fall of

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

, and briefly incarcerated but Eicher, 2001, p. 512, Warner, 1959, p. 267, and Hall, 1988, p. 651 say he was captured at Thomasville after accompanying

Confederate President The president of the Confederate States was the head of state and head of government of the Confederate States. The president was the chief executive of the federal government and was the commander-in-chief of the Confederate Army and the Confe ...

Jefferson Davis's party after the evacuation of Richmond on April 2, 1865.

Aftermath

After the war, St. John was chief engineer for the

from 1866 to 1869. Then, he was city engineer for two years with city of Louisville, Kentucky. He became a civil engineer for the

and ultimately the head of its Mining and Engineering Department. Isaac Munroe St. John died April 7, 1880 at

The Greenbrier The Greenbrier is a luxury resort located in the Allegheny Mountains near White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County, West Virginia, in the United States. Since 1778, visitors have traveled to this part of the state to "take the waters" of the ...

White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia White Sulphur Springs is a city in Greenbrier County in southeastern West Virginia, United States. The population was 2,231 at the 2020 census. The city emblem consists of five dandelion flowers and the citizens celebrate spring with an annual Dan ...

. He is buried at Hollywood Cemetery, Richmond, Virginia.

Notes

References

* Boatner, Mark Mayo, III. ''The Civil War Dictionary.'' New York: McKay, 1988. . First published 1959 by McKay. * Eicher, John H., and

, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . * Hall, James O. "St. John, Isaac Munroe" in ''Historical Times Illustrated History of the Civil War'', edited by Patricia L. Faust. New York: Harper & Row, 1986. . * Heidler, David S. and Jeanne T. Heidler. "St. John, Issac Munroe." In ''Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: A Political, Social, and Military History'', edited by David S. Heidler and Jeanne T. Heidler. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 2000. . pp. 1846–1847. * McPherson, James M. '' Battle Cry of Freedom: The Civil War Era''. Oxford History of the United States. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. . * Sifakis, Stewart. ''Who Was Who in the Civil War.'' New York: Facts On File, 1988. . * Thomas, Emory M. ''The Confederate Nation, 1861–1865''. New York: Harper & Row, 1979. .. * Warner, Ezra J. ''Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders.'' Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. . {{DEFAULTSORT:St. John, Isaac M. 1827 births 1880 deaths Confederate States Army brigadier generals People of South Carolina in the American Civil War

Early life

American Civil War service

Aftermath

See also

Notes

References