Nathaniel W. Watkins (January 28, 1796 – March 20, 1876) was a Kentucky-born soldier, lawyer, and Missouri politician who was also a half-brother to prominent nineteenth-century Kentucky politician

Henry Clay Henry Clay Sr. (April 12, 1777June 29, 1852) was an American attorney and statesman who represented Kentucky in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. He was the seventh House speaker as well as the ninth secretary of state, al ...

. He served as a

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between ...

militia brigadier general during the American Civil War and before that in the War of 1812 and the Mexican–American War. He was a member of the Missouri State Senate and a Speaker of the Missouri House of Representatives. Watkins was also a founder of the city of Morley, Missouri. Nathaniel Watkins was the son of Captain Henry Watkins and Elizabeth Clay Watkins, who was previously married to the Reverend John Clay and was the mother of 16 children including statesman Henry Clay. Watkins studied law at Transylvania College. After college he moved to

Jackson, Missouri Jackson is a city in and the county seat of Cape Girardeau County, Missouri, United States. It is a principal city of the Cape Girardeau–Jackson, MO- IL Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population of Jackson was 15,481 at the 2020 census ...

, in 1819. During the Civil War he briefly served as a brigadier general in the Missouri State Guard, the first Confederate unit in Missouri. Governor Claiborne Fox Jackson appointed him along with

Meriwether Lewis Clark, Sr. Meriwether Lewis Clark (January 10, 1809 – October 28, 1881) was an architect, civil engineer and politician. He was also a military officer in the Mexican–American War and the American Civil War. He was a son of famous explorer William Clar ...

;

John Bullock Clark, Sr. John Bullock Clark Sr. (April 17, 1802 – October 29, 1885) was a politician who served as a member of the United States Congress and Confederate Congress. Early life and education John B. Clark Sr. was born in Madison County, Kentucky, a ...

;

William Y. Slack William Yarnel Slack (August 1, 1816 – March 21, 1862) was an American lawyer, politician, and military officer who fought for the Confederate States of America during the American Civil War. Born in Kentucky, Slack moved to Missouri as a ch ...

;

Alexander William Doniphan Alexander William Doniphan (July 9, 1808 – August 8, 1887) was a 19th-century American attorney, soldier and politician from Missouri who is best known today as the man who prevented the summary execution of Joseph Smith, founder of the Church ...

;

Mosby Parsons Brigadier general, Brigadier-General Mosby Monroe Parsons (May 21, 1822 – August 15, 1865) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civ ...

;

James H. McBride James Haggin McBride (c. 1814 – March 1864) was an American businessman, lawyer, banker, judge, legislator, and soldier. He served as a Confederate Missouri militia general during the American Civil War, later dying in the conflict from pneumoni ...

;

James S. Rains James S. Rains (October 2, 1817 – May 19, 1880) was a senior officer of the Missouri State Guard (MSG) who fought in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War. Born in Tennessee, Rains moved to Missouri by 1840, and was a f ...

; and

Thomas Beverly Randolph Thomas Beverly Randolph (1793 - November 12, 1867) was an American military officer who graduated from the United States Military Academy. He served during the War of 1812, resigning from the army in 1815, later returning to military service with t ...

as district/division commanders for the state. Watkins was appointed brigadier general and commander of the first military district which consisted of the Southeast Missouri. He resigned his commission in July 1861. In 1875, Watkins served as vice president of the Missouri Constitutional Convention. Watkins was married to Eliza Margaret Watson, a daughter of a man named Goah Watson from New Madrid, Missouri. Their children included Nathaniel W. Watkins, Jr., John C., Henry Clay, Washington E., Richard Jones, William B., Amanda J., and Elizabeth.

References

People of Missouri in the American Civil War People of Kentucky in the American Civil War 1796 births 1876 deaths American militiamen in the War of 1812 Confederate militia generals Missouri State Guard Missouri state senators Speakers of the Missouri House of Representatives Transylvania University alumni American city founders Henry Clay family {{AmericanCivilWar-bio-stub

See also

References