John James Peck (January 4, 1821 – April 21, 1878) was a United States soldier who fought in the
Mexican–American War
The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...
and
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
Peck was born on January 4, 1821, in
Manlius, New York
Manlius is a town in Onondaga County, east of the city of Syracuse, New York, United States. The population was 33,712 at the 2020 census, making it the third largest suburb in metropolitan Syracuse. In 2005, the town was ranked 98th on CNN's ...
. His father, John W. Peck, who had served in the
War of 1812
The War of 1812 (18 June 1812 – 17 February 1815) was fought by the United States of America and its indigenous allies against the United Kingdom and its allies in British North America, with limited participation by Spain in Florida. It bega ...
, was among the earliest and most active settlers of Onondaga County. The family home was at 312 Seneca Street, Manlius and is one of the oldest residences in Manlius village, having been built by Finley McLaren prior to 1807. Today the home is marked by a New York State Education Department historic marker commemorating it as the birthplace of Gen. John J. Peck. His mother was Phebe Peck.
Peck entered the
United States Military Academy
The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...
at age 18 and graduated eighth from a class of 39 on July 1, 1843, along with
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant ; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was an American military officer and politician who served as the 18th president of the United States from 1869 to 1877. As Commanding General, he led the Union Ar ...
and many other soon to be famous military officers. He served in the artillery as a second lieutenant and was stationed in New York until 1845.
Mexican–American War
In 1846 he was promoted second lieutenant and fought in
Zachary Taylor
Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military leader who served as the 12th president of the United States from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States Army, rising to th ...
's
Army of Occupation during the battles of
Palo Alto,
Resaca de la Palma
The Battle of Resaca de la Palma was one of the early engagements of the Mexican–American War, where the United States Army under General Zachary Taylor engaged the retreating forces of the Mexican ''Ejército del Norte'' ("Army of the North ...
and
Monterrey
Monterrey ( , ) is the capital and largest city of the northeastern state of Nuevo León, Mexico, and the third largest city in Mexico behind Guadalajara and Mexico City. Located at the foothills of the Sierra Madre Oriental, the city is anchor ...
. He then joined
Winfield Scott
Winfield Scott (June 13, 1786May 29, 1866) was an American military commander and political candidate. He served as a general in the United States Army from 1814 to 1861, taking part in the War of 1812, the Mexican–American War, the early s ...
's army and landed at
Vera Cruz Veracruz is a state in Mexico. Veracruz or Vera Cruz (literally "True Cross") may also refer to:
People
* María González Veracruz (born 1979), Spanish politician
* Philip Vera Cruz (1904–1994), Filipino American labor leader
* Tomé Vera Cruz ...
and fought in all the battles of Scott's campaign culminating in the
fall of Mexico City. He was brevetted captain for gallantry and meritorious conduct in the battles of
Contreras and
Churubusco
Churubusco is a neighbourhood of Mexico City. Under the current territorial division of the Mexican Federal District, it is a part of the borough ''(delegación)'' of Coyoacán. It is centred on the former Franciscan monastery ''(ex convento de C ...
and again brevetted to major for his services at the
battle of Molino del Rey
The Battle of Molino del Rey (8 September 1847) was one of the bloodiest engagements of the Mexican–American War as part of the Battle for Mexico City. It was fought in September 1847 between Mexican forces under General Antonio León against ...
and received the praise of his division commander,
William J. Worth
William Jenkins Worth (March 1, 1794 – May 7, 1849) was an American officer during the War of 1812, the Second Seminole War, and the Mexican–American War.
Early military career
Worth was commissioned as a first lieutenant in March 1813, ...
. Prior to the outbreak of the Civil War he was said to have been an intimate friend of Generals
Robert E. Lee
Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a Confederate general during the American Civil War, towards the end of which he was appointed the overall commander of the Confederate States Army. He led the Army of Nort ...
,
Joseph E. Johnston and
P. G. T. Beauregard
Pierre Gustave Toutant-Beauregard (May 28, 1818 - February 20, 1893) was a Confederate general officer of Louisiana Creole descent who started the American Civil War by leading the attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861. Today, he is commonly ...
.
[''Syracuse Daily Courier and Union'', August 21, 1861, p. 2.]
Returning to the U.S. after the war he served in the quartermasters department and against the
Apache
The Apache () are a group of culturally related Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, which include the Chiricahua, Jicarilla, Lipan, Mescalero, Mimbreño, Ndendahe (Bedonkohe or Mogollon and Nednhi or Carrizaleño an ...
Indians on the frontier. Peck resigned from the army on March 1, 1853, and became the treasurer of a railroad project from New York to
Syracuse, New York
Syracuse ( ) is a City (New York), city in and the county seat of Onondaga County, New York, Onondaga County, New York, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in the state of New York following New York City, Buffalo, New York, Buffa ...
. In 1856 he stood as the Democratic candidate for Congress in the
Onondaga Onondaga may refer to:
Native American/First Nations
* Onondaga people, a Native American/First Nations people and one of the five founding nations of the Iroquois League
* Onondaga (village), Onondaga settlement and traditional Iroquois capita ...
district. At the time of Peck's reenlistment and appointment as
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 ...
he held the position of cashier at the Burnett Bank of Syracuse of which he was one of the founding members.
Peck also served as president of the Syracuse board of education, which position he continued to hold while on active service and only resigned in 1862.
Civil War
The Peninsula Campaign
The outbreak of 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 ...
brought Peck back into the army. He accepted a commission as brigadier general of volunteers on August 9, 1861. He was given command of a brigade defending Chain Bridge and the Northern defenses of Washington at
Tennallytown and soon after joined
George B. McClellan's
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 ...
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 ...
. He commanded the 3rd Brigade, (
55th NY,
62d NY, 93d Pa, 98th Pa & 102Pa)
Couch's 1st Division,
Keyes'
IV Corps during the
Peninsula Campaign. He served in the
siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown, the surrender at Yorktown, or the German battle (from the presence of Germans in all three armies), beginning on September 28, 1781, and ending on October 19, 1781, at Yorktown, Virgi ...
, and distinguished himself in the battles of
Williamsburg
Williamsburg may refer to:
Places
*Colonial Williamsburg, a living-history museum and private foundation in Virginia
*Williamsburg, Brooklyn, neighborhood in New York City
*Williamsburg, former name of Kernville (former town), California
*Williams ...
and
Fair Oaks. He was placed in command of the 2nd Division, IV Corps during the
Seven Days Battles where he again distinguished himself. On July 25, 1862, he was promoted 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 ...
of volunteers to rank from July 4, 1862, for his services in 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 ...
.
[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: Stanford University Press, 2001. . p. 704.
Suffolk
When McClellan's forces began evacuating the peninsula, Peck was left in command of a Union garrison stationed at Yorktown. In September he was given command of all Union troops in Virginia south of the
James River
The James River is a river in the U.S. state of Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed April 1, 2011 to Chesapea ...
. In 1863 during
James Longstreet
James Longstreet (January 8, 1821January 2, 1904) was one of the foremost Confederate generals of the American Civil War and the principal subordinate to General Robert E. Lee, who called him his "Old War Horse". He served under Lee as a corps ...
's Tidewater Campaign the attention of both armies in southern Virginia turned to the city of
Suffolk
Suffolk () is a ceremonial county of England in East Anglia. It borders Norfolk to the north, Cambridgeshire to the west and Essex to the south; the North Sea lies to the east. The county town is Ipswich; other important towns include Lowes ...
. Suffolk guarded the western land approaches to the naval yards at
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
and
Norfolk
Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...
which were in Union control. Peck took command of a force designated the Suffolk Detachment,
VII Corps 7th Corps, Seventh Corps, or VII Corps may refer to:
* VII Corps (Grande Armée), a corps of the Imperial French army during the Napoleonic Wars
* VII Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I
* VII R ...
. Peck and his staff maintained Union Army staff headquarters at the
Riddick House.
This force would eventually amount to three divisions commanded by
Michael Corcoran
Michael Corcoran (September 21, 1827 – December 22, 1863) was an Irish-American general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and a close confidant of President Abraham Lincoln. As its colonel, he led the 69th New York Regiment to ...
,
George W. Getty
George Washington Getty (October 2, 1819 – October 1, 1901) was a career military officer in the United States Army, most noted for his role as a division commander in the Army of the Potomac during the final full year of the American Civil War ...
and
George H. Gordon
George Henry Gordon (July 19, 1823 – August 30, 1886) was an American lawyer and a Union general in the American Civil War.
Early life
Gordon was born in Charlestown, Massachusetts. He moved to Framingham, Massachusetts, at the age of five ...
. Peck received a captured message informing him of the Confederate intentions against Suffolk with enough time to take appropriate measures. Longstreet's besiegers gained some initial advantages during the
siege of Suffolk at the
battle of Norfleet House cutting off the Union supply route. Yet Peck mounted a counter offensive and retook the lost positions in the
battle of Hill's Point. The Confederates lifted the siege, and Longstreet's corps returned to northern Virginia for the upcoming Gettysburg campaign. Peck received the praise of his superior, General
John A. Dix for his competent defense of Suffolk.
In the summer following the siege of Suffolk, Peck was transferred to command the District of North Carolina where he was involved in little action. Due to health reasons he went on sick leave. At the request of General Dix, he returned to command the Canadian frontier for the remainder of the war. His Chief of Staff was Colonel
John Watts de Peyster Jr.
John Watts De Peyster Jr. (December 2, 1841 – April 12, 1873) was a Union Army officer during the American Civil War and a member of the famous de Peyster family of New York. His father was Brevet Major General John Watts De Peyster of the New Yo ...
, son of a prominent New York family.
Post-war career
After the close of the war, Peck returned to Syracuse where he became president of the
New York State Life Insurance Company. His health deteriorating, he died on April 21, 1878, at his home in Syracuse.
See also
*
List of American Civil War generals (Union)
Union generals
__NOTOC__
The following lists show the names, substantive ranks, and brevet ranks (if applicable) of all general officers who served in the United States Army during the Civil War, in addition to a small selection of lower-ranke ...
References
Bibliography Notes
* 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: Stanford University Press, 2001. .
John J. Peck*
External links
*
John J. Peck Papers. Yale Collection of Western Americana, Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library.
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peck, John J.
1821 births
1878 deaths
Union Army generals
Military personnel from Syracuse, New York
People of New York (state) in the American Civil War
American military personnel of the Mexican–American War
United States Military Academy alumni
People from Manlius, New York
Burials at Oakwood Cemetery (Syracuse, New York)