BMG Davis, Jefferson Columbus

Jefferson Columbus Davis​

Born: March 2, 1828

Birthplace: Clark County, Indiana

Father: William Davis Jr. 1800 – 1879

(Buried: Silver Creek Cemetery, Sellersburg, Indiana)​

Mother: Mary Drummond 1801 – 1881

(Buried: Silver Creek Cemetery, Sellersburg, Indiana)​

Wife: Marietta Woodson Athon 1838 – 1917

(Buried: Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana)​

Occupation before War:

1846: Enlisted as a soldier in the United States Army​

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1846 – 1848: Sergeant in the United States Army​

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Served in the Mexican – American War​

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1848 – 1852: 2nd​ Lt. United States Army 1st​ Artillery​

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1852 – 1861: 1st​ Lt. United States Army 1st​ Artillery​

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1858 – 1861: Served at Fort Moultrie South Carolina​

Civil War Career:

1861: Officer in the Garrison at Fort Sumter, South Carolina​

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Captain in the United States Army​

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1861: Colonel of 22nd​ Indiana Infantry Regiment​

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1861 – 1865: Brigadier General of Union Army Volunteers​

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Served as Commander of troops in Northwestern Missouri​

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1861 – 1862: Commander of 3rd​ Division Army of the Southwest​

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1862: Division Commander at the Battle of Pea Ridge, Arkansas​

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1862: Granted leave of absence from the Union Army​

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1862: Organized and armed volunteers in Louisville, Kentucky​

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1862: Dismissed from duty at Louisville, Kentucky​

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1862: Reassigned to duty at Louisville, Kentucky​

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1862: Killed Major General William "Bull" Nelson in Louisville.​

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1862: Placed under arrest by the Union Army​

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1862: Released from custody on October 13th​​

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1864: Brevetted Major General for his service at Battle of Kennesaw Mountain​

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1864 – 1865: Commander of Union Army XIV Army Corps​

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1864: Ordered the removal of pontoon bridges before African American refugees could cross.​

Occupation after War:

1866 – 1879: Colonel of United States Army 23rd​ Infantry Regiment​

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1867 – 1870: Military Commander of Alaska​

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1867: He established at Fort at Sitka, Alaska​

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He ordered Russian residents of Sitka, Alaska to leave their homes​

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1872 – 1873: Commander of U.S. Army forces in Modoc War​

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1873: United States Army Commander at Battle of Dry Lake​

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1877: Commanded 300 men and 2 Gatling guns during General Strike​

Died: November 30, 1879

Place of Death: Chicago, Illinois

Cause of Death: Pneumonia complicated by Jaundice and Anemia

Age at time of Death: 51 years old

Burial Place: Crown Hill Cemetery, Indianapolis, Indiana

 

[gentlemanrob]

Happy Birthday Brig. General Jefferson C. Davis! Salutes remembering General Davis on his birthday.

 

[ErnieMac]

Davis' shooting of Nelson ended any chance of promotion to higher command during the War even though he was an able commander. The Ebenezer Bridge affair near Savannah clouded whatever legacy he may have had.

 

[USS ALASKA]

Brigadier General Jefferson C. Davis: Civil War General by Major Bruce V. Sones

This thesis is a historical analysis and an assessment of Brigadier General Jefferson C. Davis' life with special emphasis on his division's performance during the Civil War. The thesis will discuss Davis' quick rise through the military ranks, which led to his eventual assumption of a corps command by the end of the Civil War. Davis' career was not without controversy. He was a non-traditional soldier in an army that was very traditional. He was a tough disciplinarian and took training of soldiers seriously. He was also aggressive, feisty, and confrontational. It was these later characteristics that on occasion led him into trouble with his superiors and may have been determiners in his non-selection for promotions and specific assignments. The thesis begins with an examination of Davis' background and life from his birth through his participation in the Mexican War and the initiation of hostilities at Fort Sumter. Next, Davis' Civil War experiences to include the Battles of Pea Ridge and Murfreesboro and details of Davis' performance at the Battle of Chickamauga will be discussed. Thereafter, Davis' march through the South with General Sherman and the remainder of his military career and life will be discussed. Finally, an analysis will be presented of who Davis was and why he did or did not achieve the potential that he thought he deserved.

Amazon.com: Brigadier General Jefferson C. Davis: Civil War General eBook : Sones, Major Bruce V.: Kindle Store

Amazon.com: Brigadier General Jefferson C. Davis: Civil War General eBook : Sones, Major Bruce V.: Kindle Store

www.amazon.com

Jefferson Davis in Blue: The Life of Sherman's Relentless Warrior by Nathaniel Cheairs Hughes Jr. and Gordon D. Whitney

Besides his illustrious name, the Union general Jefferson Columbus Davis is best known for two appalling actions: the September 1862 murder of General William "Bull" Nelson -- his former commanding officer -- and the abandonment of hundreds of African American refugees to the mercy of Confederate cavalry at Ebenezer Creek during Sherman's march through Georgia in 1864. Historians have generally dismissed Davis (1828--1879) as a reckless assassin, a racist, a journeyman soldier at best, and an embarrassment to the Lincoln war effort. But Nathaniel Cheairs Hughes, Jr., and Gordon D. Whitney shatter the collective memory of "Jef" Davis as a grim, destructive child of war and replace it with a more rounded portrait of a complex military leader. They bring order to the muddle of contradictions that was Davis's life and offer an impartial profile of the soldier and the man, who must be remembered for his splendid contributions as well as his startling failures.

Jefferson Davis in Blue: The Life of Sherman's Relentless Warrior: Hughes Jr., Nathaniel Cheairs, Whitney, Gordon D.: 9780807131602: Amazon.com: Books

Jefferson Davis in Blue: The Life of Sherman's Relentless Warrior [Hughes Jr., Nathaniel Cheairs, Whitney, Gordon D.] on Amazon.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. Jefferson Davis in Blue: The Life of Sherman's Relentless Warrior

www.amazon.com

Cheers,
USS ALASKA

 

[Pollaco]

The murder of Bull Nelson instantly comes to mind but even with that incident He probably would have been remembered for the "stunt'' He pulled later in the war. He was the general who abandoned hundreds of negro slaves who were following Sherman's March to the Sea. Didn't he have the pontoon bridge over a creek pulled up just before the followers crossed?

 

[Luke Freet]

Davis is kind of a mixed bag to me. His actions at Jonesborough were a mix of brilliance and incompetence, overruning and capturing an entire Confederate brigade, but not following up and pushing the attack on with his reserve. Else, I know few successful actions on his part. He's a hard conservative, and his actions towards freemen refugees during Sherman's March I find deplorable.

 

[Luke Freet]

The murder of Bull Nelson instantly comes to mind but even with that incident He probably would have been remembered for the "stunt'' He pulled later in the war. He was the general who abandoned hundreds of negro slaves who were following Sherman's March to the Sea. Didn't he have the pontoon bridge over a creek pulled up just before the followers crossed?

oh yeah, that occurred. Who knew a guy who gets away with murdering a fellow officer in cold blood was an awful person?

 

[Norman Dasinger Jr]

He was a democrat surrounded by mostly republicans - therefore he was not considered to in 'the cool club'

 

[Luke Freet]

He was a democrat surrounded by mostly republicans - therefore he was not considered to in 'the cool club'

there wer plenty of Democrats in the army at the time, even to late war (Rosecrans and Sherman, for example, were conservative Democrats). It was because of his connections with Governor Morton of Indiana that he was never really brought to task for the murder of Nelson.

 

[Norman Dasinger Jr]

Davis served under Sheridan- not a democrat -

 

[Luke Freet]

Davis served under Sheridan- not a democrat -

At what point did Davis serve under Sheridan? Davis was not a subordinate of Sheridan at any battle. Davis served entirely in the west, and in the Army of the Ohio/Cumberland as a division commander the entire time Sheridan was present...as a division commander.

 

[NFB22]

His grave at Crown Hill Cemetery in Indianapolis, IN

 

[Norman Dasinger Jr]

At what point did Davis serve under Sheridan? Davis was not a subordinate of Sheridan at any battle. Davis served entirely in the west, and in the Army of the Ohio/Cumberland as a division commander the entire time Sheridan was present...as a division commander.

Correct - Sheridan and Davis were co div commanders - but there is some political issue surrounding the two - one being a republican and the other a democrat. Did it have something to do with Davis subordinate brigadiers not liking his politics? Which made his ability to lead diminish? Once Grant got on the scene the situation worsened? Sheridan becoming a Grant buddy also.

 

[Luke Freet]

Correct - Sheridan and Davis were co div commanders - but there is some political issue surrounding the two - one being a republican and the other a democrat. Did it have something to do with Davis subordinate brigadiers not liking his politics? Which made his ability to lead diminish? Once Grant got on the scene the situation worsened? Sheridan becoming a Grant buddy also.

I do not know what exactly you are getting at here. Yeah, Sheridan was a republican and he served alongside Davis in the Army of the Cumberland, and given their different political backgrounds and connections I have little doubt that these two probably took issue with one another. But really, it did not seem to matter in the grand scheme during the conflict. Grant only breifly commanded over Davis during the Chattanooga Campaign, and didn't seem to care too much about Davis one way or the other. He would then go east, taking Sheridan with him, meaning most if not all of the AotC's senior officers in 4th and 14th Corps were of broadly conservative sidings.
Of course, it seems that Davis didn't get along with his subordinates, like Carlin and Heg, over politics. As far as I know, however, they did not do much if anything to undermine his authority in command in places like Jonesborough, or at Kennesaw.

 

[Norman Dasinger Jr]

Heg was a very strong Republican.

 

[Scott1967]

General Reb was a horrid man both pro slavery and he shared the name of the confederate president , His men disliked him but for some reason Sherman and the Government put up with him because he fights , Heard that one before.

 

[rbasin]

The murder of Bull Nelson instantly comes to mind but even with that incident He probably would have been remembered for the "stunt'' He pulled later in the war. He was the general who abandoned hundreds of negro slaves who were following Sherman's March to the Sea. Didn't he have the pontoon bridge over a creek pulled up just before the followers crossed?

Yep. And Sherman did his best to explain it away, which made zero sense.

 

[breckod]

Heg was a very strong Republican.

He also died at Chickamauga and Davis ranked him ...

 

[USS ALASKA]

Journal Article
THE YANKEES' JEFF DAVIS IN TENNESSEE
James P. Jones
Tennessee Historical Quarterly
Vol. 19, No. 2 (June, 1960), pp. 166-171
Tennessee Historical Society

https://www.jstor.org/stable/42621480

Full article at above link on JSTOR with Google sign-in (In the upper right-hand corner of the linked page, there is a 'Log in' button. If you have a Gmail account, you have a Google sign-in and this will allow for free reading of 100 articles a month).

Cheers,
USS ALASKA