Clinton Bowen Fisk (December 8, 1828 - July 9, 1890) was a senior officer during

Reconstruction Reconstruction may refer to: Politics, history, and sociology *Reconstruction (law), the transfer of a company's (or several companies') business to a new company *'' Perestroika'' (Russian for "reconstruction"), a late 20th century Soviet Unio ...

in the

Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands The Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands, usually referred to as simply the Freedmen's Bureau, was an agency of early Reconstruction, assisting freedmen in the South. It was established on March 3, 1865, and operated briefly as a ...

and served as the Prohibition Party's presidential candidate during the 1888 presidential election. Fisk University was named in his honor after he endowed it with $30,000. Reavis L. Mitchell, Jr., "Clinton Bowen Fisk"
, ''The Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'', 1998, accessed 3 Mar 2009 In addition, he helped establish the first free public schools in the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, or simply the South) is a geographic and cultural region of the United States of America. It is between the Atlantic Ocean ...

for white and African-American children.

Life

Early life

Clinton Bowen Fisk was born on December 8, 1828 in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, Livingston County, New York to Benjamin Bigford Fisk and Lydia Aldrich Powell. As part of the 19th-century westward migration, his family soon moved to

Coldwater, Michigan Coldwater is a city in Branch County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 10,945. It is the county seat of Branch County, located in the center of the southern border of Michigan. The city is surrounded by Co ...

. He studied in the preliminary course at Albion Seminary before becoming one of the five students to

matriculate Matriculation is the formal process of entering a university, or of becoming eligible to enter by fulfilling certain academic requirements such as a matriculation examination. Australia In Australia, the term "matriculation" is seldom used now. ...

on the opening day of

Michigan Central College , mottoeng = Strength Rejoices in the Challenge , established = , type = Liberal arts college , religious_affiliation = Not affiliatedBaptist (historical) , endowment = $900 million ( ...

in 1844. Fisk later became a merchant, miller, and banker in Coldwater, but suffered financial disaster in the Panic of 1857. In 1859 he moved to

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

where he started working in the insurance business.

Civil War

After the start of the Civil War Fisk joined the Union Army in 1861 as a private and was appointed colonel of the 33rd Missouri Volunteer Infantry of the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union of the collective states. It proved essential to th ...

on September 5, 1862. He was later commissioned 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 ...

in charge of a brigade on November 24, 1862 and also served on Major General

George Armstrong Custer George Armstrong Custer (December 5, 1839 – June 25, 1876) was a United States Army officer and cavalry commander in the American Civil War and the American Indian Wars. Custer graduated from West Point in 1861 at the bottom of his class, b ...

's staff. He served most of 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 ...

in Missouri and Arkansas, commanding first the District of Southeast Missouri and later the Department of North Missouri to opposing raids into Missouri by

Confederate cavalry The American Civil War saw cavalry tactics move largely away from the offensive towards the defensive, with the emphasis on screening, raiding, and reconnaissance. Development of the rifled musket had also rendered the cavalry charge bot ...

and

guerrillas Guerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare in which small groups of combatants, such as paramilitary personnel, armed civilians, or irregulars, use military tactics including ambushes, sabotage, raids, petty warfare, hit-and-run tacti ...

. In 1865 he was promoted to brevet major general.

Freedmen's Bureau and Fisk University

After the Civil War, Fisk was appointed assistant commissioner of the Freedmen's Bureau for Kentucky and Tennessee under the command of

Oliver Otis Howard Oliver Otis Howard (November 8, 1830 – October 26, 1909) was a career United States Army officer and a Union general in the Civil War. As a brigade commander in the Army of the Potomac, Howard lost his right arm while leading his men agains ...

.Warner, Ezra J, "Generals in Blue", LSU Press, 1964, p. 155 He worked through the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen and Abandoned Lands and the American Missionary Association to establish the first free schools in the American South for both black and white children. He made the abandoned barracks in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and ...

available to the American Missionary Association for the creation of the Fisk School, and endowed it with a total of $30,000.

Politics

After authorizing legislation expired for the Freedmen's Bureau, Fisk returned to his native New York where he returned to banking. In 1874 President

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 ...

appointed him to the Board of Indian Commissioners. He was a zealous leader of the prohibition movement. In 1886 he ran for governor of New Jersey with the Prohibition nomination. During the 1888 presidential election he served the Prohibition Party's presidential nominee after being given the nomination by acclamation on June 6, 1888. He was accused of being a possible spoiler candidate that would prevent

Benjamin Harrison Benjamin Harrison (August 20, 1833March 13, 1901) was an American lawyer and politician who served as the 23rd president of the United States from 1889 to 1893. He was a member of the Harrison family of Virginia–a grandson of the ninth pr ...

from winning like John St. John had been accused of in 1884. Harrison won the election although without winning the national popular vote. "General," said one Republican to Fisk, "if I should vote for this rohibitionbill it would lay me in my political grave." "Vote for it and die, then," Fisk responded, "and I will write on your tombstone, 'Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord'"

Death and legacy

Fisk died in New York City on July 9, 1890, from influenza and was buried in Coldwater, Michigan. Prohibition Park, a planned community on Staten Island, New York, named one of its major streets Clinton B. Fisk Avenue in his honor. The name remains, although the community changed its name to Westerleigh. In 2001 he was the first to be inducted into the new

Hillsdale County, Michigan Hillsdale County is a county located in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 45,746. The county seat is Hillsdale. Hillsdale County is the only county in Michigan to border both Indiana and Ohio. Due to an ...

Veterans' Hall of Fame, for his distinguished service in the American Civil War. (Hall of Fame inductee 001, Civil War inductee 001.)

Electoral history

References

External links

Clinton B. Fisk
Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture {{DEFAULTSORT:Fisk, Clinton Bowen 1828 births 1890 deaths People from York, New York People of Missouri in the American Civil War People of New York (state) in the American Civil War Union Army generals Hillsdale College alumni American temperance activists New York (state) Prohibitionists New Jersey Prohibitionists Missouri Prohibitionists Prohibition Party (United States) presidential nominees Candidates in the 1888 United States presidential election