Colonel John C. Hunton (January 18, 1839 - September 4, 1928) was an American Confederate veteran,

pioneer Pioneer commonly refers to a settler who migrates to previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited land. In the United States pioneer commonly refers to an American pioneer, a person in American history who migrated west to join in settling and dev ...

and rancher. He was the founding president of the Wyoming Pioneer Association.

Early life

John C. Hunton was born on January 18, 1839, in

Madison County, Virginia Madison County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 13,837. Its county seat is Madison. History Madison County was established in December 1792, created from Culpeper County. The cou ...

. 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 ...

of 1861–1865, he served in the

7th Virginia Infantry The 7th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia. The 7th Virginia was organized in May, ...

of the

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 ...

. He was also in Pickett's Charge during the

Battle of Gettysburg The Battle of Gettysburg () was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, by Union and Confederate forces during the American Civil War. In the battle, Union Major General George Meade's Army of the Po ...

. Later in life, he became known as "Colonel" Hunton.

Career

After the war, Hunton worked in

freighting Cargo consists of bulk goods conveyed by water, air, or land. In economics, freight is cargo that is transported at a freight rate for commercial gain. ''Cargo'' was originally a shipload but now covers all types of freight, including transp ...

in Missouri and Nebraska until 1867, when he moved to the Wyoming Territory and became a clerk to the post-trader at Fort Laramie. From 1888 to 1890, he took over as the post-trader. Hunton established a ranch along the

Chugwater Creek Chugwater Creek is a tributary of the Laramie River in southeastern Wyoming in the United States. The stream rises northeast of Laramie, Wyoming, Laramie, in the Laramie Mountains in eastern Albany County, Wyoming, Albany County and flows .U.S. Ge ...

in Bordeaux, Wyoming, where he raised cattle. He was the first president of the Wyoming Pioneer Association. He was also "an authority on Indian warfare," and a diarist.

Personal life, death and legacy

Hunton married Blanche Taylor. John C

Hunton died on September 4, 1928, in

Torrington, Wyoming Torrington is a city in, and the county seat of, Goshen County, Wyoming, United States. The population was 6,501 at the 2010 census. It is the home of Eastern Wyoming College, and is the surrounding region's center of commercial activity. With ...

. He was buried in the Lakeview Cemetery in

Cheyenne, Wyoming Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne metropolitan statistical ...

. In 2010, the United Daughters of the Confederacy added a Confederate marker to his grave.

References

1839 births 1928 deaths People from Madison County, Virginia People of Virginia in the American Civil War Confederate States Army personnel Wyoming pioneers Ranchers from Wyoming 19th-century American diarists Writers from Virginia Writers from Wyoming People from Torrington, Wyoming {{US-army-bio-stub

Early life

Career

Personal life, death and legacy

Further reading

References