John Houston Savage (October 9, 1815 – April 5, 1904) was an American politician and a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

for the 4th congressional district of

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

Biography

Savage was born in

McMinnville, Tennessee McMinnville is the largest city in and the county seat of Warren County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 13,605 at the 2010 census. It was named for Governor Joseph McMinn. Geography McMinnville is located at (35.686708, -85.779309) ...

on October 9, 1815, son of George and Elizabeth Kenner Savage. He attended the

common schools A common school was a public school in the United States during the 19th century. Horace Mann (1796–1859) was a strong advocate for public education and the common school. In 1837, the state of Massachusetts appointed Mann as the first secretary ...

and served as a private in the

Seminole War The Seminole Wars (also known as the Florida Wars) were three related military conflicts in Florida between the United States and the Seminole, citizens of a Native American nation which formed in the region during the early 1700s. Hostilities ...

. He studied law, was admitted to the

bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...

, and commenced practice in

Smithville, Tennessee Smithville is a city in DeKalb County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 5,004 at the 2020 census, up from 3,994 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of DeKalb County. Smithville is home to the Smithville Fiddler's Jamboree, whic ...

Career

After serving as a

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 o ...

of the state militia, Savage was the Attorney General of the fourth district of Tennessee from 1841 to 1847. He was commissioned as major of the 14th US Infantry in March 1847, and he was subsequently promoted to lieutenant colonel of the 1847-1848

11th Infantry Regiment (United States) The 11th Infantry Regiment is a regiment in the United States Army. In 2007, the 11th Infantry was reflagged as the 199th Infantry Brigade, as part of the "Transformation of the US Army" effort. Today, the 11th Infantry Regiment is part of the ...

in September of the same year. Savage was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

to the Thirty-first and Thirty-second Congresses, but he declined to be a candidate for re-election. He served from March 4, 1849 to March 3, 1853. He was again elected to the Thirty-fourth and the

Thirty-fifth United States Congress The 35th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1857 ...

, serving from March 4, 1855 to March 3, 1859. Serving as a colonel of the Sixteenth Regiment Tennessee Infantry in the Confederate Army during the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, Savage was wounded at Perryville and again at Stones River in 1862. In February 1863 Savage resigned his commission in anger over his failure to advance in the ranks. Savage was a member of the Tennessee House of Representatives from 1877 to 1879 and from 1887 to 1891. He served in the

Tennessee Senate The Tennessee Senate is the upper house of the U.S. state of Tennessee's state legislature, which is known formally as the Tennessee General Assembly. The Tennessee Senate has the power to pass resolutions concerning essentially any issue rega ...

from 1879 to 1881.

Death

Savage died in McMinnville, Tennessee on April 5, 1904 (age 88 years, 179 days), and is

interred Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

at Riverside Cemetery. Savage never married. In 1903 he published his memoirs, The Life of John H. Savage. His papers are available at the Tennessee State Library and Archives.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Savage, John Houston 1815 births 1904 deaths People from McMinnville, Tennessee Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Tennessee Democratic Party members of the Tennessee House of Representatives Democratic Party Tennessee state senators 19th-century American politicians Confederate States Army officers Military personnel from Tennessee People of Tennessee in the American Civil War