George Washington Morgan (September 20, 1820 – July 26, 1893) was an American

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a conscripted or volunteer enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, or an officer. Etymology The word ''soldier'' derives from the Middle English word , from Old French ...

, lawyer,

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

, and diplomat. He fought in the Texas Revolution and 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 was a general in 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 ...

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 ...

. Morgan later served as a three-term postbellum

United States Congressman 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 ...

from

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

. He also served as the United States Ambassador to Portugal from 1858 to 1861, during the term of President James Buchanan.

Early life and career

Morgan was born in Washington County, Pennsylvania, to a prominent family. His grandfather, Col. George Morgan, was the first to give President

Thomas Jefferson Thomas Jefferson (April 13, 1743 – July 4, 1826) was an American statesman, diplomat, lawyer, architect, philosopher, and Founding Father who served as the third president of the United States from 1801 to 1809. He was previously the natio ...

the information regarding Aaron Burr's conspiracy. G. W. Morgan was educated in local schools, and then in 1836, he withdrew from

Washington College Washington College is a private liberal arts college in Chestertown, Maryland. Maryland granted Washington College its charter in 1782. George Washington supported the founding of the college by consenting to have the "College at Chester" name ...

at the age of 16 and enlisted in a military company that was commanded by his older brother, Thomas Jefferson Morgan. They traveled south to

Mexican Texas Mexican Texas is the historiographical name used to refer to the era of Texan history between 1821 and 1836, when it was part of Mexico. Mexico gained independence in 1821 after winning its war against Spain, which began in 1810. Initially ...

to fight in the struggle for independence from

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

. Morgan received a commission in the regular Texas Army under Sam Houston as a

lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations. The meaning of lieutenant differs in different militaries (see comparative military ranks), but it is often ...

, and rose to captain commanding the post at

Galveston Galveston ( ) is a coastal resort city and port off the Southeast Texas coast on Galveston Island and Pelican Island in the U.S. state of Texas. The community of , with a population of 47,743 in 2010, is the county seat of surrounding Ga ...

. He served with Captain Robertson's rangers and Company B of the First Regiment of Texas Rangers. He resigned in 1839 to return to Pennsylvania.Handbook of Texas Online
/ref> In 1841, he 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 ...

, but left in 1843 due to poor grades. He moved to

Mount Vernon, Ohio Mount Vernon is a city in Knox County, Ohio, United States. It is located northeast of Columbus. The population was 16,990 at the 2010 census. It is the county seat of Knox County. History The community was platted in 1805, and named after M ...

, studied law, passed the bar exam, and established a law practice there in 1845. He served as prosecutor for Knox County. When war erupted with Mexico, Morgan was appointed

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 2nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. He subsequently was commissioned as Colonel of the 15th U.S. Infantry in March 1847, serving under General

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 ...

. To put an end to the guerrilla warfare and murder of American soldiers, Colonel Morgan seized a number of prominent Mexican citizens and issued a proclamation announcing that for every American soldier killed by the guerrillas, a citizen would be executed. The murders ceased at once. He was breveted to

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 1848 for his gallantry at the battles of Contreras and Churubusco, where he was severely wounded. Returning to Ohio to recuperate, he received the formal thanks of the Ohio legislature. Morgan resumed his law practice in Mount Vernon. He married Sarah H. Hall of

Zanesville, Ohio Zanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. It is located east of Columbus and had a population of 24,765 as of the 2020 census, down from 25,487 as of the 2010 census. Historically the state capita ...

, on October 7, 1851, and they had two children. He was a lawyer until 1856, when he was appointed by President James Buchanan as the United States Consul to Marseilles. Two years later, he became the Minister to Portugal, which post he held until 1861, when he returned to the United States following the outbreak of the Civil War.

Civil War

Morgan, due to his previous military experience in two wars, was appointed as a brigadier general in the

on November 21, 1861, reporting to

Maj. Gen. 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 ...

Don Carlos Buell Don Carlos Buell (March 23, 1818November 19, 1898) was a United States Army officer who fought in the Seminole War, the Mexican–American War, and the American Civil War. Buell led Union armies in two great Civil War battles— Shiloh and Per ...

in the Western Theater. In March 1862, Morgan assumed command of the 7th Division of the

Army of the Ohio The Army of the Ohio was the name of two Union armies in the American Civil War. The first army became the Army of the Cumberland and the second army was created in 1863. History 1st Army of the Ohio General Orders No. 97 appointed Maj. Gen. ...

and was ordered to southeastern

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...

to drive the Confederates from the strategic

Cumberland Gap The Cumberland Gap is a pass through the long ridge of the Cumberland Mountains, within the Appalachian Mountains, near the junction of the U.S. states of Kentucky, Virginia, and Tennessee. It is famous in American colonial history for its r ...

and occupy it. Moving quickly, Morgan defeated

Carter L. Stevenson Carter Littlepage Stevenson, Jr. (September 21, 1817 – August 15, 1888) was a career military officer, serving in the United States Army in several antebellum wars and then in the Confederate States Army as a general in the Western Theater ...

's Confederates and chased off the defenders on June 18, 1862. He then successfully manned the gap with his four brigades of infantry, augmented by artillery placed on the heights. However, in September, he was forced to hastily retreat towards the Ohio River as

Braxton Bragg Braxton Bragg (March 22, 1817 – September 27, 1876) was an American army officer during the Second Seminole War and Mexican–American War and Confederate general in the Confederate Army during the American Civil War, serving in the Western ...

invaded Kentucky, cutting off his supply routes. Morgan conducted a masterful retreat in the face of the much superior enemy force, despite being harassed by constant attacks from Col. John H. Morgan's guerrillas. George Morgan's 8,000 men marched over 200 miles from Cumberland Gap in sixteen days to

Greenup, Kentucky Greenup is a home rule-class city located at the confluence of the Little Sandy River with the Ohio River in Greenup County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 1,188 at the 2010 census. Greenup is one of three county seats in the Com ...

, arriving there on October 3 on their way to Camp Dennison in Ohio. In November, Morgan served with Maj. Gen. Jacob D. Cox in western Virginia (now

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the B ...

) in the Kanawha River Valley, defending Charleston. The following year, Morgan commanded the 3rd Division of the XIII Corps under Maj. Gen.

William T. Sherman William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

during the

Vicksburg Campaign The Vicksburg campaign was a series of maneuvers and battles in the Western Theater of the American Civil War directed against Vicksburg, Mississippi, a fortress city that dominated the last Confederate-controlled section of the Mississippi Ri ...

. Sherman, however, was upset with Morgan's performance at the battle of Chickasaw Bluffs, when he failed to carry out orders for a planned attack. Morgan soon redeemed himself as he subsequently led the XIII Corps force that captured Fort Hindman in

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the O ...

. His health having deteriorated from the lengthy campaigning, and dissatisfied with the use of black troops, Morgan resigned his commission on June 8, 1863, and returned to Ohio and civilian life.

Later life and political career

While strongly in favor of maintaining the

Union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

at any cost, Morgan was equally opposed to any governmental interference with the state institution of the South,

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

, and believed that the Federal government had no legal right to abolish the practice. Morgan campaigned in Ohio for former army general

George B. McClellan George Brinton McClellan (December 3, 1826 – October 29, 1885) was an American soldier, Civil War Union general, civil engineer, railroad executive, and politician who served as the 24th governor of New Jersey. A graduate of West Point, McCl ...

in the 1864 Presidential Election. In 1865 he was the unsuccessful Democratic candidate for Governor of Ohio, being defeated by his former commander in the Kanawha Valley, Jacob D. Cox. Nonetheless, he continued to pursue a political career, and in 1866 was elected to the Fortieth United States Congress from Ohio's 13th District, serving on the Committee on Foreign Affairs. There, he voted against the impeachment of President Andrew Johnson. Two years later, he appeared to have won reelection. However, his seat was contested by the defeated

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

candidate,

Columbus Delano Columbus Delano (June 4, 1809 – October 23, 1896) was a lawyer, rancher, banker, statesman, and a member of the prominent Delano family. Forced to live on his own at an early age, Delano struggled to become a self-made man. Delano was electe ...

, who supplanted him on June 3, 1868. Not deterred, Morgan campaigned again in 1870 and was elected to another term, holding his Congressional seat until 1873, serving on the committees on foreign affairs, military affairs, and reconstruction. He was an outspoken critic of the administration's harsh policies on

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 ...

and constantly battled with the

Radical Republicans The Radical Republicans (later also known as "Stalwarts") were a faction within the Republican Party, originating from the party's founding in 1854, some 6 years before the Civil War, until the Compromise of 1877, which effectively ended Recons ...

. Morgan ran for Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, but was defeated by James G. Blaine.

Retirement and death

Following his retirement from Congress, Morgan was a delegate-at-large to the 1876 Democratic National Convention in

St. Louis 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 ...

. He died at

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

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 ...

on July 26, 1893, the last surviving general of the Mexican-American War. He was buried in Mound View Cemetery in Mount Vernon, Ohio.

Notes

References

Handbook of Texas Online

Kentucky Historical Society - roadside markers for Morgan's Retreat
* Newark, Ohio, ''Daily Advocate'', August 18, 1900. * ;Attribution *

External links

* Retrieved on 2008-08-13
Smithsonian Institution collection - photo of Morgan's Mexican-American War flintlock pistol
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, George Washington 1820 births 1893 deaths People from Washington County, Pennsylvania Washington & Jefferson College alumni People of Ohio in the American Civil War American military personnel of the Mexican–American War People of the Texas Revolution Union Army generals People from Mount Vernon, Ohio County district attorneys in Ohio 19th-century American diplomats 19th-century American politicians Ambassadors of the United States to Portugal Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Ohio Military personnel from Pennsylvania