h^T^'
KENTUCKY HISTORICAL
SERIES
Press of tke
Frankfort Printing C«.
Frankfort. Ky.
Gen. Zachary Taylor and
the Mexican War
Cy
History by Illustration
General Zachary T
Th
e Mexican War
BY
ANDERSON CHENAULT QUISENBERRY
AUTHOR OF
'Life emd Times of Humphrey Marshall the Elder," "Revolutionary Soldiaca 'v\ Ken
tucky," "Lopez's Elxpeditions to Cuba, 1850 and 1851," "The First John
Washington of Virginia," "Virginia Troops in the French and
Indian War," "Genealogical Memoranda of the Quiaett-
berry Family and Other Families," "Memorials of
the Quisenberry Family in Germany,
England and America,"
Etc., Etc.
The Kentucky State Historical Society
Frankfort Kentucky
1911
To the Memory of
ROGER W. HANSON
My Fathei's Schoolmate and Good Friend
Hyattsville, Maryland
October 26. 1910
Jew of the (Mexican War
R. QUISENBERRY, the author of
this series of the State Historical
Society, republished from the May
Register, needs no introduction to
the readers of Kentucky. For some years he has
been known as one of the most charming writers
the State has produced. His style is that of
Macaulay — enlisting the attention of the reader
at once, and holding it with the spell of his ele-
gant diction, and authentic presentation of the
facts of history. In this account of the Mexican
war he supplies a great want in Kentucky history.
He has obtained data and facts for it, beyond the
reach of the ordinary historian, having access to
the Government records in the War Department
at Washington, and upon these he has drawn for
much information that will be new to our read-
ers, to whom the Mexican War is almost a for-
gotten chapter in American history.
There are a few survivors of the Mexican War
now, and more than one of these has written to
us begging for a history and roster of the Ken-
tucky officers in that war. Here we have what
they have called for, and more, pictures of the
American hero of Buena Vista, General Zachary
Taylor,
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
"Rough and ready.
Strong and Mighty,
Rough and ready
On Old Whitey,"
his famous war horse — pictures of him as Presi-
dent of the United States, taken from his por-
traits in the Hall of Fame of the Historical So-
ciety in the Capitol — picture of Theodore O'Hara ;
and his immortal verses in the "Bivouac of the
Dead," verses sometimes omitted from the poem
because written on the battlefield, when a soldier
there — it is said — the picture of the military
monument in the cemetery at Frankfort-^erected
in honor of the soldiers who fell in the Mexican
War, and whose graves now form around the
monument the "Bivouac of the Dead," and last,
the flag under which General Taylor fought when
he sent his answer to Santa Anna,
"Zachary Taylor never surrenders."
There have been many histories written of the
different battles of the Mexican War and Ken-
tucky has a roster as nearly complete as then ob-
tainable of the soldiers of that war, by the late
General Hill, compiled under the direction of the
General Assembly of Kentucky. This history in
our series will add its richness, completeness and
superiority to them all — in that it is written by
Mr. Quisenberry, the author of whom his native
State is justly proud. — Editor of the Register.
10
History by Illustralion:
ZACHARY TAYLOR,
Hero of the Mexican War
"ROUGH AND READY."
iiMBIiii i MONG the most highly valued of the
Z-m Kentucky State Historical Society's
^^^ ^^ historical paintings is an eques-
trian portrait of one of our State's
greatest sons, General Zachary Taylor, who is
there depicted with field-glass in hand, mounted
upon his famous charger, "Old Whitey," viewing
the advance of the enemy at the battle of Buena
Vista, and directing the movements of his own
troops.
Because of the great love they bore him, as
well as because of his blunt readiness always for
meeting any emergency, his troops in the Mexican
War dubbed General Taylor "Rough and Ready,"
and his "clay-bank" war-horse they called "Old
Whitey;" and so this portrait of him is known as
"Rough and Ready on Old Whitey."
^ ^ *
To one whom this portrait of General Taylor
may inspire with the desire to inquire into the
details of his career, much of the history of the
United States stands ready to be unfolded; for
11
Gf<JNERAL ZAVHARY TAYLOR
his career includes the war of 1812, many Indian
battles, sieges and forays, and the Mexican War,
— the latter being a very important but apparent-
ly but little considered (in these days) chapter
of American history, which it is the purpose to
briefly synopsize in this paper.
But before going into that, let us first recite
in a few words an epitome of the preceding
events in the history of "Rough and Ready."
Zachary Taylor was born in Orange County,
Virginia, on November 24, 1784. His father,
Richard Taylor, received a commission in the
first regiment of troops raised in Virginia for ser-
vice in the Revolutionary War, and he remained
in the service until the army was disbanded at
the close of hostilities, being then a Lieutenant-
Colonel of the Continental Line. Colonel Taylor
was distinguished for intrepid courage and imper-
turbable coolness in battle; and he possessed that
invaluable faculty in a military leader, the ability
to inspire his followers with the same dauntless
courage that animated his own bosom. These
qualities he undoubtedly transmitted to his son,
Zachary Taylor, whose brilhant campaigns in
Mexico, far from any base of supplies, and always
in opposition to vastly superior numbers, show
him to have been one of the greatest military
geniuses that America has yet produced.
* * *
In 1785 Colonel Richard Taylor and his family
(Zachary being then about nine months old)
12
fiENERAL ZACHAR7 TAYLOR
moved to Kentucky and settled on a pioneer plan-
tation about five miles from the Falls of the
Ohio, in Jefferson County. Here the future great
General and President w^as brought up, with only
such education as the rude pioneer schools of the
neighborhood afforded, this, however, being sup-
plemented by a much better course of instruction
at home by his father and mother. He may be
said to have been literally cradled in war, for
from infancy to young manhood the yell of the
savage Indian and the crack of hostile rifles were
almost constantly ringing in his ears. It is, there-
fore, not at all strange that at an early age he
manifested a strong inclination for a military life,
and while still young received a commission in the
regular army of the United States.
GENERAL TAYLOR'S ETAT DE SERVICE.
The military etat de service of Zachary Taylor,
as briefly condensed from the records of the War
Department, is as follows:
Appointed First Lieutenant in the Seventh In-
fantry, May 3, 1808.
Promoted Captain, in the Seventh Infantry,
November 30, 1810.
Brevetted as Major on September 5, 1812, for
gallant conduct in defense of Fort Harrison, In-
diana.
Promoted full Major in the Twenty-sixth In-
fantry, May 15, 1814.
13
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
On the reorganization of the Army, May 17,
1815, retained as Captain in the Seventh Infantry,
which he declined, and he was honorably dis-
charged on June 15, 1815.
Reinstated in the army May 17, 1816, as Major
of the Third Infantry.
Promoted Lieutenant-Colonel of the Fourth In-
fantry, April 20, 1819.
Transferred as Lieutenant-Colonel of the Eighth
Infantry, August 13, 1819.
Transferred as Lieutenant-Colonel of the First
Infantry, June 1, 1821.
Transferred as Lieutenant-Colonel of the
Seventh Infantry, August 16, 1821.
Transferred as Lieutenant-Colonel of the First
Infantry, January 21, 1822.
Promoted as Colonel of the First Infantry,
April 4, 1832.
Brevetted Brigadier General, December 25,
1837, for distinguished services in the battle of
Kissimmee (Okeechobee), Florida, with Seminole
Indians.
Transferred as Colonel of the Sixth Infantry,
July 7, 1843.
Brevetted Major General on May 28, 1846, for
his gallant conduct and distinguished services in
the successive victories over superior Mexican
forces at Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma, Texas,
on the 8th and 9th of May, 1846.
Promoted full Major General on June 29, 1846.
(This promotion was from Colonel to Major Gen-
14
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
eral, the grade of Brigadier General being
skipped).
Tendered the thanks of Congress on July 16,
1846, "for the fortitude, skill, enterprise and cour-
age which distinguished the recent operations on
the Rio Grande, with the presentation of a gold
medal with appropriate devices and inscriptions
thereon, in the name of the Republic, as a tribute
to his good conduct, valor, and generosity to the
vanquished."
Tendered the thanks of Congress by resolution
of March 2, 1847, "for the fortitude, skill, enter-
prise and courage which distinguished the late
military operations at Monterey," and with the
presentation of a gold medal "emblematical of
this splendid achievement, as a testimony of the
high sense entertained by Congress of his judi-
cious and distinguished conduct on that memora-
ble occasion."
Tendered the thanks of Congress by resolution
of May 9, 1848, "for himself and troops under
his command for their valor, skill, and gallant
conduct, conspicuously displayed on the 22nd and
23rd of February last, in the battle of Buena
Vista, in defeating a Mexican army of more than
four times their number, consisting of chosen
troops under their favorite commander. General
Santa Anna, with the presentation of a gold medal
emblematical of this splendid achievement, as a
testimony of the high sense entertained by Con-
15
GENERAL ZACHART TAYLOR
gress of his judicious and distinguished conduct
on that memorable occasion."
General Taylor resigned from the army on
January 31, 1849.
THE MEXICAN WAR.
The war of the United States with Mexico, in
which General Zachary Taylor showed his great
military ability, loomed large in the public eye
from the time of its inception until the larger op-
erations of the Civil War overshadowed it in the
public estimation, and it then passed out of public
consideration, and is now apparently almost for-
gotten. A brief resume of its occurrences may
serve to revive some interest in it, especially
among those Kentuckians, whose kindred took
so distinguished a part in it.
It was a unique war, in that it lasted more than
two years, during which time a dozen pitched bat-
tles and many minor ones were fought, in every
one of which the Americans were victorious.
The Mexicans, with much larger forces than their
opponents in each battle, never won a victory. It
was one triumphant march for the armies of the
United States from beginning to end, notwith-
standing the fact that the Mexicans were hardy,
brave and patient, and well trained in the simpler
arts of war, their frequent internal struggles hav-
ing given them recent and extensive experience in
military affairs.
16
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
CAUSES OF THE MEXICAN WAR.
As to the causes that led to the Mexican War,
some writers have attempted to make it appear
that during the year 1830 General Sam Houston
with a band of adventurers went from the United
States into Texas with the object of fomenting
discontent, fostering revolution, seizing the reins
of government, emancipating Texas from Mexico,
and annexing it to the United States. This, it
has been claimed, was done in the interests of a
Southern policy, the object of which was to in-
crease the slave territory of the United States so
as to maintain a balance of power against the
free States, which were then constantly being in-
creased in number by the formation of new States
from the original Territories.
So far from this being the case, it is a well at-
tested historical fact that General Sam Houston
went to Texas, not in 1830, but 1832 ; and instead
of being accompanied by a band of adventurers
he went alone, with not a single follower. It
is also well attested historically that the real
causes of the movement for the independence of
Texas were as here briefly set forth; namely:
After the purchase of Louisiana from France
in 1803, Anglo-American adventurers began to
cross into Texas from the United States. Indeed,
there was always a claim, founded upon somewhat
vague and indefinite grounds, but persistently
adhered to, that the Louisana Purchase included
Texas, which therefore became part of the ter-
17
GENERAL ZACBARY TAYLOR
ritory of the United States; but Mexico just as
persistently claimed it as one of her Provinces.
The matter was, in a manner, settled when the
United States made a treaty with Spain in 1819.
She is supposed to have then surrendered her
claim to Texas in part compensation for the ces-
sion of Florida; and when Mexico revolted from
Spain, Texas became a part of the Republic of
Mexico established at that time. This was in
1821, and immediately after this date American
colonists were permitted, and even solicited, to
enter Texas and settle, under the patronage of
the Mexican Government. By the year 1831 more
than twenty thousand people from all parts of the
United States, though largely from the Southern
States, had settled between the Sabine and the
Colorado rivers. In 1830 the Mexican Govern-
ment, in breach of faith and promises, placed
these people under a so-called military rule, which
was in fact nothing less than a military despo-
tism; and this, as a free-born people from a land
cf liberty they resented, not latently but openly
and actively. In short, they immediately rose in
rebellion (as their fathers had done in 1776) and
from this originated the war for Texan independ-
ence.
The Anglo-American Texans were assisted in
their struggle for independence by volunteers
from the United States, who flocked in numbers
to their aid; and the war was terminated by the
utter defeat of the Mexicans under Santa Anna
18
GEMERAL ZACHAR7 TAYLOR
at the battle of San Jacinto, on April 21, 1836.
From that date until 1845 Texas was an inde-
pendent republic, and was so recognized and ac-
knowledged by most of the great powers of the
world.
On December 29, 1845, Texas was admitted as
a State of the United States, in spite of the vehe-
ment protest of Mexico, and war with that coun-
try ensued at once.
* * *
As soon as Texas was annexed to the United
States, Colonel Zachary Taylor with a little army
of fifteen hundred men was ordered to take
station on the eastern bank of the Nueces River,
in Texas, Mexico claimed this river as the true
boundary between her territory and that of Texas ;
but Texas and the United States claimed the Rio
Grande as the real boundary as established by the
treaty of San Jacinto.
Colonel Taylor, who had been ordered to Texas
to guard the soil of the new State, would pro-
ceed no further than the Nueces River without
definite and explicit instructions. In March,
1846, he received from President Polk positive
orders to march across the disputed territory to
the Rio Grande, which he at once did. General
Am/pudia, who was at that time at the town of
Matamoras, on the opposite bank of the Rio
Grande from Taylor, with a strong Mexican
force, demanded that Taylor should instantly re-
turn to the Nueces, and if he did not, then Mexico
19
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
would interpret the movement as equivalent to a
declaration of war on the part of the United
States.
PALO ALTO AND RES AC A DE LA PAL MA.
Shortly afterwards Ampudia was relieved o:f
command of the Mexican forces by General Aris-
ta, who, with an army of six thousand men,
boldly crossed the Rio Grande into Texas. This
act has always been construed by the United
States as the first act of invasion and hostility, and
that it was the act that brought on and precipi-
tated the war.
By this time Taylor's Army amounted to twen-
ty-three hundred men, all being troops of the reg-
ular army. On May 8, 1846, Arista with his six
thousand men boldly attacked Taylor's force at
the village of Palo Alto. Gen. Taylor defeated
him badly, winning an important battle and forc-
ing the Mexicans to retire in more or less con-
fusion and disorder to Resaca de la Palma, not
many miles distant from Palo Alto.
"Old Rough and Ready" pursued the Mexicans
to this point, and attacked them the very next day
with great ferocity, defeating them utterly, and
driving their whole force across the Rio Grande
into Mexico.
Thus did the gallant Taylor with an enemy out-
numbering him two to one, win two brilliant vic-
tories in as many days. The enemy found him
20
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
here, as elsewhere, ever ready to give them a
rough time.
In these engagements the American loss was
but slight, while the Mexican loss was about one
thousand in killed and wounded, eight guns, and
large quantities of materials of war ; but the most
important result was that the entire disputed
territory was secured to the United States by
force of arms.
FORMAL DECLARATION OF WAR.
President Polk claiming the disputed ground
as belonging of right to the United States de-
clared in a special message to Congress that the
United States territory had been invaded by a
hostile force from Mexico and that the blood of
citizens of the United States had been shed upon
their own soil. On May 13, 1846, Congress passed
an Act calling for fifty thousand volunteers, and
appropriating ten millions of dollars from the
Treasury for the thorough prosecution of the
war.
The fifty thousand volunteers were secured
without trouble, and were enlisted in the South-
ern and Western States. The Eastern States, as
in the War of 1812, were in an attitude of almost
open rebellion, and refused to furnish any troops
for what they considered an unholy war. At a
later date additional volunteers were called for.
21
GENERAL ZACHART TAYLOR
KENTUCKY TROOPS IN THE MEXICAN WAR.
On May 22, 1846, Governor Owsley, of Ken-
tucky, issued a formal proclamation calling for
two regiments of infantry or riflemen, and one of
cavalry, for the service of the United States
against Mexico, that being Kentucky's quota. On
May 26, four days later, he announced in another
proclamation that the requisition upon Kentucky
for troops had been filled. Nearly fourteen thou-
sand men had enlisted and formed themselves
into companies, but of course only the three regi-
ments called for by the Government could be ac-
cepted.
The Louisville Legion was organized as the
First Kentucky Infantry under Col. Stephen
Ormsby and embarked for Mexico by steamboat
from Louisville on the same day that Governor
Owsley issued his proclamation, May 26, 1846.
This regiment was raised in Louisville, and
was officered as follows: Stephen Ormsby,
Colonel; Jason Rogers, Lieutenant-Colonel; John
B. Shepperd, Major. Captains of the companies:
William L. Ball, Charles W. Bullen, John Fuller,
Charles H. Harper, Ebenezer B. Howe, Florian
Kern, William Minor, Frank Saunders, Conrad
Schroeder, Benjamin F. Stewart, Francis F. C.
Triplett.
The Second Kentucky Infantry was organized
with William R. McKee, of Lexington, as Colonel ;
Henry Clay, Jr., of Louisville, as Lieutenant-
Colonel ; Carey H. Fry, of Danville, as Major ; and
22
GENERAL ZACHART TAYLOR
was composed of the following companies, and
their Captains; to-wit:
1st Company, from Green county. Captain Wil-
liam H. Maxcy.
2nd Company, Franklin county. Captain Frank-
lin Chambers.
3rd Company, Mercer county, Captain Phil. B.
Thompson.
4th Company, Boyle county. Captain Speed
Smith Fry.
5th Company, Kenton county, Captain George
W. Cutter.
6th Company, Jessamine county. Captain Wil-
liam T. Willis.
7th Company, Lincoln county, Captain Wil-
liam Dougherty.
8th Company, Kenton county. Captain William
M. Joyner.
9th Company, Montgomery county. Captain
Wilkerson Turpin.
10th Company, Anderson county. Captain
George W. Kavanaugh.
The First Kentucky Cavalry was organized
with Humphrey Marshall, of Louisville, as
Colonel; Ezekiel H. Field, of Woodford county,
as Lieutenant-Colonel; John P. Gaines of Boone
county, as Major; and was composed of the follow-
ing companies and their Captains, to-wit:
1st Company, Jefferson county, Captain W. J.
Heady.
23
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
2nd Company, Jefferson county, Captain A.
Pennington.
3rd Company, Fayette county, Captain Cas-
sius M. Clay.
4th Company, Woodford county, Captain
Thomas F. Marshall.
5th Company, Madison county, Captain J. C.
Stone.
6th Company, Garrard county. Captain J.
Price.
7th Company, Fayette county. Captain G. L.
Postlethwaite.
8th Company, Gallatin county. Captain J. S.
Lillard.
9th Company, Harrison county. Captain John
Shawhan.
10th Company, Franklin county. Captain B.
C. Milam.
In addition to these three regiments, an In-
dependent Company of Cavalry was raised in
Winchester, Clark county, with John S. Williams
as Captain and Roger W. Hanson as Lieutenant,
which having been excluded from the quota by
mistake, was accepted for the war by special
order of the War Department.
The Second Lieutenants of this company were
William A. McConnell and George S. Sutherland.
The General officers of the army appointed from
Kentucky for the war were Zachary Taylor, Ma-
jor General in the regular army; William 0. But-
ler, of Carroll county. Major General of volun-
24
(GENERAL ZAVHARY TAYLOR
teers; and Thomas Marshall, of Lewis county,
Brigadier General of volunteers.
On August 31, 1847, requisition was made upon
Kentucky for two more regiments of infantry for
service in the Mexican War. Before September
20th they were organized and officered as follows :
Third Kentucky Infantry: Manlius V, Thomp-
son, of Scott county. Colonel; Thomas L. Crit-
tenden, of Franklin county, Lieutenant-Colonel,
John C. Breckinridge, of Fayette county. Major;
and the following companies and their Captains,
to-wit :
1st Company, Laurel county, Captain A, F.
Caldwell.
2nd Company, Estill county. Captain W. P.
Chiles.
3rd Company, Shelby county. Captain Thomas
Todd.
4th Company, Bourbon county. Captain Wil-
liam E. Simms.
5th Company, Scott county, Captain John R.
Smith.
6th Company, Bath county. Captain James
Ewing.
7th Company, Fleming county, Captain Lean-
der M. Cox.
8th Company, Nicholas county, Captain Leoni-
das Metcalfe.
9th Company, Boone county, Captain J. A.
Pritchard.
10th Company, Fayette county, Captain L. B.
Robinson.
25
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Fourth Kentucky Infantry: Soon after the
battle of Cerro Gordo the enlistment of the Clark
County Independent Company of Cavalry ex-
pired, and Captain John S. Williams returned to
Kentucky and recruited the Fourth Kentucky In-
fantry of which he became Colonel ; William Pres-
ton, of Louisville, Lieutenant-Colonel; William T,
Ward, of Green county, Major. The following
were the companies of this regiment, and their
Captains, to-wit:
1st Company, Caldwell county, Captain J. S.
Coram.
2nd Company, Livingston county, Captain G.
B. Cook.
3rd Company, Daviess county, Captain Decius
McCreery.
4th Company, Hart county, Captain P. H.
Gardner.
5th Company, Jefferson county, Captain T.
Keating.
6th Company, Adair county, Captain John C.
Squires.
7th Company, Pulaski county, Captain John
G. Lair.
8th Company, Washington county. Captain M.
R. Hardin.
9th Company, Nelson county. Captain B. Rowan
Hardin.
10th Company, Henry county. Captain A. W.
Bartlett.
Twelve other organized companies reported —
26
aiJNERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
one each from the counties of Mason, Mont-
gomery, Fayette, Madison, Bullitt, Hardin, Camp-
bell, Harrison and Franklin, and three from the
city of Louisville; a number of others that were
partially organized ceased their efforts upon learn-
ing that the requisition was full.
KEARNY'S EXPEDITION.
In order to carry along this brief story of the
Mexican War with due regard to the recital of
contemporaneous events in contemporaneous
order, it now becomes necessary to leave General
Taylor for a while on the banks of the Rio Grande
after his victories at Palo Alto and Resaca de la
Palma, while brief reference is made to Kearny's
and Doniphan's Expeditions.
Shortly after the declaration of war, Colonel
Stephen W. Kearny, of the regular army, was
dispatched from Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, with
about three thousand men, with orders to
conquer New Mexico, California, and Chihuahua
— an immense tract of country but sparsely popu-
lated. His force consisted of three squadrons of
regular cavalry, two regiments of Missouri vol-
unteer cavalry under Colonel Alexander W. Doni-
phan and Colonel Sterling Price, one battalion of
Mormons, and a few pieces of artillery. He made
a bold dash for Santa Fe, the capital of New
Mexico, and took it without a battle, the large
force of Mexican troops stationed there being so
27
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
terrified by his approach that they fled without
firing a gun.
Colonel Kearny left at Santa Fe the main body
of his troops to hold New Mexico and conquer
Chihuahua; and taking with him only a hundred
dragoons and two mountain howitzers, he marched
boldly forward to conquer California, fifteen hun-
dred miles away. Before he reached his destina-
tion, however, Colonel John C. Fremont, "the
Pathfinder," with a little band of "irregulars,"
had preceded him and had displaced the Mexican
rulers and declared California independent. How-
ever, the Mexicans still had a hostile force in the
field in California. These Kearny defeated at
San Pascual (near San Diego), and again at
Los Angeles. The California territory was at
once annexed to the United States, and Kearny
became its first Territorial Governor.
* * *
DONIPHAN'S EXPEDITION.
Kearny's main force at Santa Fe was left in
command of Colonel Alexander W. Doniphan, of
Missouri, a native of Mason county, Kentucky,
whose father, Joseph Doniphan, in 1779 taught
the first school ever held in the fort at Boones-
boro, Kentucky.
After making a treaty of peace with the Na-
vajos, the most powerful tribe of Indians in New
Mexico, and leaving Colonel Sterling Price in
charge of the garrison at Santa Fe, Colonel Doni-
28
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
phan with a regiment eight hundred strong and
a battery of four guns manned by one hundred ar-
tillerymen, set out on the long march through
a desolate country to the capital of Chihuahua.
They passed through immense desert stretches,
often making long marches without water, and
were frequently threatened with destruction by
prairie fires which had been started by roving
bands of Mexican guerrillas who hung about them.
Not the least of their harassments were the de-
predations of these same guerrillas, who were
constantly attacking stragglers and small scout-
ing parties. A sample of what Doniphan's men
had to endure from this guerrilla warfare is given
m the St. Louis Post-Dispatch of April 2, 1900,
which says:
"The Missouri branch of the Quisenberry fam-
ily furnished ithe United States with a number
of soldiers during the Mexican War. One of
these was John Quisenberry, of St. Louis county,
who figured in one of the most tragic events
that made Texas a part of the Union. While out
scouting, a party of St. Louis county boys, includ-
ing John Quisenberry and a member of the Lack-
land family, fell into the hands of Mexican guer-
rillas. After being tortured, Quisenberry and
Lackland were burned at the stake before the eyes
of their horrified companions. A relieving party
beat off the guerrillas before they had time to add
more victims to their sacrifice. The ashes of
these murdered Americans were brought back to
29
aiJNERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
their St. Louis county homes, and the older gener-
ation of residents in the county still remember
their impressive funeral."
On February 28, 1847, Colonel Doniphan
reached the Rio Sacramento, where he found a
large force of Mexicans, at Bracito, whom he at-
tacked and, after a hard fight, defeated badly.
The Mexican loss was about three hundred killed
and wounded, and ten pieces of artillery. On
the next day, March 1, 1847, Doniphan's victori-
ous little army entered Chihuahua, the capital
of the Province of the same name, a city of about
twenty-six thousand inhabitants. This success-
fully completed what is said to be the most won-
derful march ever m.ade by American troops.
Chihuahua was held until the close of the war.
* * *
MONTEREY.
After the battle of Resaca de la Palma, on May
9, 1846, General Taylor crossed the Rio Grande
and occupied the city of Matamoras, remaining
there until his army was reinforced in August.
Then he moved forward to Camargo, and thence
to Monterey, arriving in the vicinity of that town
on September 19th.
Monterey, with its neighboring defenses, was
held by General Ampudia with a force of ten
thousand Mexicans and a good supply of artillery.
Taylor's force by this time amounted to sixty-
three hundred men, many of whom were raw vol-
30
GENERAL ZACHAR7 TAYLOR
unteers, just arrived, and he organized it into
three divisions, under Generals Butler, Twiggs and
Worth. These divisions were so disposed that
by their combined assault on September 21st Mon-
terey and its defenses were taken, excepting the
plaza in the center of the town, the "Black Fort"
on itsi north and some works on the east. On
the 24th Ampudia surrendered. From the nature
of his instructions ^received from Washington,
General Taylor then put his troops into camp, and
remained in that vicinity for two months. The
battle of Monterey was a brilliant victory.
The first campaign of the war had advanced
thus far before any of the volunteer troops from
Kentucky were ordered to the front, and the bat-
tle of Monterey was the first action in which any
of them took part. Here Colonel Ormsby's First
Kentucky Infantry had a subordinate place. They
had charge of a mortar battery, where they un-
derwent the severest test that any troops can be
called upon to undergo — being exposed for nearly
twenty-four hours to an artillery fire to which
they could make no reply.
In the battle of Monterey, Major General Wil-
liam 0. Butler was severely wounded, and Major
Philip N. Barbour, of the regular army, a Ken-
tuckian, was killed.
On February 24, 1847, the Kentucky Legisla-
ture, by resolution, directed that a sword be pre-
sented to General Taylor as an evidence of Ken-
31
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
tucky's appreciation of his gallant conduct at the
battle of Monterey.
* * *
BUENA VISTA.
Resuming operations, General Taylor entered
Saltillo on November 16, 1846. On December 13,
General Twiggs, with one division, was detached
to Victoria; Quitman, with another division, fol-
lowed on the next day, and Patterson, with a third
division, a few daj^s later. On December 29th,
Quitman entered Victoria without opposition, and
on January 24, 1847, General Taylor with the
other two divisions joined him there. General
William 0. Butler, who had recovered from the
wound received at Monterey, was put in command
at Saltillo, and General John E. Wool moved for-
ward to occupy the pass called Angostura, at
Buena Vista.
It was at this time that General Taylor re-
ceived orders which took from him the best part
of his command, in order to strengthen the force
of General Winfield Scott, who had now arrived
in Mexico with another army — Taylor having
previously conducted the war alone. Realizing
that his army was now too weak to control so
much territory after the detachment of the greater
part of his forces to General Scott, General Tay-
lor fell back to Monterey, and for the time being
abstained from any aggressive movement.
32
GENERAL Z AC HART TAYLOR
While Taylor was still at Victoria, General
Santa Anna, then occupying San Luis Potosi, had
intercepted some dispatches sent by Scott to Tay-
lor. Informed by these of the weakness of Tay-
lor's army, he made his plans to destroy it. His
plan was to first make a forced march, crush
Taylor's army, and then turn to meet and defeat
Scott, whom he expected to march upon the City
of Mexico by another route.
The advance of Santa Anna's army becoming
known. General Taylor massed his forces at the
hacienda of Buena Vista, and in the adjacent
mountain pass called Angostura, or "the straight
pass," which has been called "the Thermopylae of
Mexico." Santa Anna soon approached with his
army of more than twenty thousand men. Tay-
lor's force, all told, amounted to four thousand
seven hundred and fifty-nine, so that he was out-
numbered more than four to one. Santa Anna,
vaunting his vast superiority of numbers, demand-
ed a surrender, which Taylor "respectfully de-
clined."*
*The following amusing incident was told us by a great
granddaughter of Col. Daniel Boone, Jr., of Tennessee.
It was while Santa Anna was considering whether or
not he would surrender to General Taylor that a scout
rushed in with the startling news to the Mexicans. "Daniel
Boone with a thousand men had just arrived to re-enforce
the American Army." "That settles it," said Santa Anna.
"We surrender." He had not heard of the death of the
great Daniel Boone, which occurred nearly twenty years
before, and thought if this man of invincible courage was
added to Taylor's men defeat stared the Mexicans in the
face. Col. Boone was a grandson of Daniel Boone, and an
officer in the Mexican war.
33
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
The issue was joined on February 22, 1847, and
was hotly contested for two days. The following
is a letter from surgeon Dr. John U. LeFon to
his brother-in-law, Richard Jackson, of Kentucky,
descriptive of the battle:
"Buena Vista Battle Field,
"12 o'clock A. M., Feb. 23, 1847.
"Dear Sir:
"The battle of battles has been fought and the
enemy has retired from the field. I write this
bivouaced on the bloodiest field of modern times.
It is useless to try to give you any connected,
or very accurate account of it in our present
worn-out condition. On the 21st instant, when
encamped at Qua Nevara, we received certain in-
formation that Santa Anna was advancing with
a very large force to attack us. General Taylor,
not thinking his position a very strong one, fell
back to Buena Vista pass, and took up his posi-
tion there that night. On the 22d, about ten
o'clock, the advance guard reported the enemy
advancing, and our men were drawn up in line
of battle about two hours before sundown. A
party of the enemy were discovered attempting
to take possession of the heights on our left flank ;
two rifle and two carbine companies of the Ken-
tucky Cavalry were ordered to repel them. They
ascended the mountain and a brisk firing was kept
up until it was too dark for our men to shoot with
precision, and they retired to camp. We slept
84
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
upon our arms in position. On the 23d, about
seven o'clock, the battle was opened upon the
heights by the skirmishers, as on the previous
evening. Santa Anna advancing to the attack
with his whole force, at the same time his camp
being four or five miles off, it was 9 o'clock before
the battle became general. It was opened first
by the 2nd Illinois Regiment, the 2nd and 3rd
Iowa following about a half hour after the 2nd
Kentucky Infantry was ordered up to engage.
With great alacrity they obeyed, and are said by
the regular officers to have entered upon the fight,
and sustained it through the day in as gallant
style as ever did the best trained troops of Well-
ington or Napoleon. And, contrary to all ex-
pectation. Colonels Marshall and Field behaved
most gallantly, and made a charge upon the Mex-
ican Lancers against an odds of four to one in
real Murat style, which charge, in all probability,
turned the fortunes of the day, as the Lancers
were coming up in our rear; they were entirely
routed, however, and driven from the field, leaving
thirty-seven dead upon the ground.
"Now comes the mournful part of the tale. Col.
W. R. McKee, Lieut. Col. Henry Clay, and Capt.
Willis, of the 2nd Kentucky Infantry, having fall-
en, fighting gallantly at their posts. Col. John
Hardin, of the 1st Illinois Regiment, has also
fallen, fighting gallantly as the others. Col. Yell,
of the Arkansas Cavalry, was killed in the charge
35
GENERAL ZACHABY TAYLOR
which he and Marshall made upon the Lancers,
as was Col. Marshall's Adjutant Vaughn, from
Lexington. He fell fighting valiantly against
large odds. Many other captains and subalterns
have also fallen in the other regiments whose
names I have not learned. Now for the relative
strength of the armies. Gen. Taylor did not have
5,000 men in the field at any one time; many
of the men out of ranks retired before the heat
of the battle, dropping off and falling back to
Saltillo, six miles in our rear, the majority of
these seriously endangering the fortunes of the
day, which retrieved by the bloody 2nd Kentucky
Infantry, as they are familiarly known in the
army.
"Gen. Taylor says they fought like devils. As
to the force of the enemy, it is variously estimated
from 12,000 to 30,000 ; I think the best informa-
tion comes from an officer, taken prisoner on the
23rd. He says the enemy was 21,000 in force
upon the field, exclusive of sick and camp guard.
If that is true, we were fighting against odds of at
least five to one, and bloody has been the contest,
"We can not estimate our loss correctly, but
it can not be less than 300 killed and 500 wounded.
To judge from the looks of the field occupied by
the enemy, our men must have averaged one to
the man. Such slaughter is perfectly inconceiv-
able to one who has not seen it. Gen. Taylor says
it is his best and bloodiest field. All concur in
36
GILXEh'AL ZACHAHY TAYLOR
its being the best fought battle since the record
of time began, and all equally concur that Old
Kentucky has nobly sustained herself here, on
horse and on foot.
"Many gallant and daring acts have been done,
and not the least of them by Kentuckians. The
standard of the 2nd Regiment (to which, by the
way, I have been attached for two or three weeks,
as surgeon) w^as twice snatched from the bearer,
and recovered by him, he killing the taker both
times with his sword. The bearer is a youth
named William Gaines, who formerly lived in Geo.
Stealy's apothecary store. He will be mentioned
in the dispatches. He is in Capt. J. F. Chamber's
company from Frankfort.
"It is now 2 o'clock in the morning of the 24th.
All is uncertainty as to whether the enemy will
return to the attack again or not. We scarcely
believe they will, but are prepared to meet them.
This is the third night I have not slept a moment.
I have just finished dressing the wounds of my
regiment. I have been in blood to my shoulders
since 9 o'clock this morning.
"Give my love to my mother, my sisters and
their children, and respects to friends.
"Most respectfully,
"JNO. U. LE FON."
(See September Register, 1907.)
37
GENENAL ZAVHARY TAYLOR
Many times it seemed that the Americans would
surely be defeated, but in the end they gained a
glorious and decisive victory, the Mexicans suffer-
ing a complete repulse, and being driven back
vi^ith the heavy loss of more than two thousand
killed and wounded. Taylor's loss was two hun-
dred and sixty-eight killed, and four hundred and
fifty-six wounded, a total of seven hundred and
twenty-four.
This was the greatest victory of the war; and,
indeed, until the Civil War of 1861-1865, it was
rated as the greatest battle that had ever been
fought on the American continent ; and it marked
General Zachary Taylor as a military genius of
the highest order.
* * *
The Kentucky troops that took part in the bat-
tle of Buena Vista were Colonel William R. Mc-
Kee's Second Kentucky Infantry, and a portion
of Colonel Humphrey Marshall's First Kentucky
Cavalry. In a gallant and desperate charge
against the enemy. Colonel McKee and Lieutenant-
Colonel Henry Clay, Jr., were both killed. Colonel
McKee was the father of Lieutenant Hugh Rod-
man McKee, of the United States Navy, who so
gallantly gave his life in his country's cause in
Korea, in 1871.
Henry Clay, Jr., was the son of the great
"Harry of the W)est." Colonel John J. Hardin,
of the First Illinois Infantry, a Kentuckian by
38
GENERAL ZAVHART TAYLOR
birth, was killed at the head of his regiment, in
the same charge with McKee and Clay.
The Kentucky Cavalry, under Colonel Marshall,
rendered good service, dismounted and acting as
light troops, in meeting and dispersing the
enemy's cavalry. Among Marshall's cavalrymen
on this occasion was Lieutenant John H. Morgan,
who, a few years later, became a Major General
in the Confederate service, and attained the dis-
tinction of being the greatest partisan leader of
the Civil War.
The Kentucky troops covered themselves with
glory in the battle of Buena Vista, the only battle
of the war in which Kentuckians were to any
considerable extent engaged; and General Taylor
in his official report bestowed the highest praise
upon them. Of the 901 Kentuckians engaged in
the battle (about one-fifth of the whole American
force) seventy-one were killed and ninety-one
were wounded, a total loss of one hundred and
sixty-two, or about one-fourth of the entire Amer-
ican loss.
On July 20, 1847, about six months after the
battle, the remains of McKee, Clay, Barbour and
many other Kentuckians, officers and enlisted men,
who had fallen at Buena Vista, were brought
from that bloody field and reinterred in the State
Cemetery at Frankfort in the presence of twenty
thousand people. Theodore O'Hara, a Kentuckian
39
GENERAL ZAVHARY TAYLOR
who served in the Mexican War as a Captain of
regulars, wrote for that solemn occasion his death-
less poem, "The Bivouac of the Dead." The
whole poem was inspired by the battle of Buena
Vista, it may be said; and the following stanzas
from it refer directly to that battle, and to the
Kentuckians who died there:
Like the fierce northern hurricane
That sweeps his great plateau,
Flushed with the triumph yet to gain,
Came down the serried foe.
Who heard the thunder of the fray
Break o'er the field beneath,
Knew well the watchword of that day
Was "Victory or Death."'
Long has the doubtful conflict raged
O'er all that stricken plain.
For never fiercer fight had waged
The vengeful blood of Spain;
And still the storm of battle blew,
Still swelled the gory tide;
Not long, our stout old chieftain knew,
Such odds his strength could bide.
'Twas in that hour his stern command
Called to a martyr's grave
The flower of his native land,
The nation's flag to save.
By rivers of their fathers' gore
His first-born laurels grew.
And well he deemed the sons would pour
Their lives for glory too.
Full many a norther's breath has swept
O'er Angostura's plain —
And long the pitying sky has wept
Above the moldering slain.
40
GENERAL ZAVHARY TAYLOR
Tile raven's scream, or eagle's flight,
Or shepherd's pensive lay,
Alone awakes each sullen height
That frowned o'er that dread fray.
Sons of the Dark and Bloody Ground,
Ye must not slumber there,
Where stranger steps and tongues resound
Along the heedless air.
Your own proud State's heroic soil
Shall be your fitter grave;
She claims from war his richest spoil —
The ashes of her brave.
Thus 'neath their parent turf they rest,
Far from the gory field.
Borne to a Spartan mother's breast
On many a bloody shield;
The sunshine of their native sky
Smiles sadly on them here,
And kindred eyes and hearts watch by
The heroes' sepulcher.
RESIGNATION OF GENERAL TAYLOR.
After the battle of Buena Vista, General Taylor,
if properly reinforced and supported, was in a
position to march triumphantly upon the City
of Mexico and bring the war to a speedy and
successful close; but, notwithstanding his great
and uninterrupted successes, it appears that it
was not intended that he should achieve that
great honor. General Winfield Scott, with a large
and fresh army, that had been still further
strengthened by taking away the greater part of
Taylor's troops, now appeared to have been
chosen to close the war. General Taylor, greatly
41
OENEh'AL ZACHARY TAYLOR
dissatisfied and chagrined by the treatment he
had received from the administration at Wash-
ington, immediately after his brilliant victory at
Buena Vista, asked to be relieved of his command,
and his request was granted. He then returned
to his home in the United States, and shortly after-
wards resigned entirely from the army.
* * *
One writer, a gentleman of New England where
the people were in practically open rebellion dur-
ing the whole of the Mexican War (as they had
also been during the War of 1812), has written:
"The Mexican War was mainly of a political na-
ture, undertaken by a Democratic administration,
so that Taylor's marked success created consid-
erable alarm lest he, a popular Whig, should lead
the party in opposition to a victory. With a view
to hindering such a political event. General Scott,
the only available General, was ordered to go to
Mexico and carry out the plans of a campaign
which, previously submitted by him, had been
once rejected. A military success by Scott, also
a Whig, it was believed by political leaders would
serve to lessen Taylor's popularity, and defeat any
political aspirations which he might have."
* * *
VERA CRUZ AND CERRO GORDO.
General Scott had arrived at Santiago, Texas
(near where Fort Brown now stands), in De-
cember, 1846. After detaching the greater part
V 42
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
of Taylor's troops, he assembled his forces in
front of Vera Cruz. With his army of twelve
thousand men he besieged this place until March
29, 1847, when the Mexican General Morales sur-
rendered the town and the fortification of San
Juan de Ulloa, together with five thousand prison-
ers, four hundred cannon, and large quantities
of ammunition and small arms. Scott's loss was
sixty-four killed and wounded.
General Scott then waited until April 8th for
reinforcem.ents that had been promised him. Not
receiving them, he set out upon a march to the
City of Mexico with the troops he already had.
At Cerro Gordo, on April 14, he encountered
Santa Anna with the remainder of his army that
had been defeated by Taylor at Buena Vista on
February 22nd and 23rd — just seven weeks pre-
viously. Here General Scott quickly defeated the
Mexicans and drove them out of his path, captur-
ing three thousand prisoners and much ordnance
and stores.
The only Kentucky troops engaged at Cerro
Gordo v^-ere the Independent Company of Cavalry
from Winchester, commanded by Captain John
S. Williams and Lieutenant Roger W. Hanson.
This company had joined Scott's army of inva-
sion at Vera Cruz, where it united with Colonel
Haskell's 2nd Tennessee Infantry. When Pillow's
brigade made a desperate assault upon the Mexi-
can position the advance post of honor was given
to Haskell. Twice driven back by a murderous
43
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
fire, Haskell's men rallied and gallantly stormed
the Mexican works, upon which they planted the
American flag. Conspicuous among the bravest,
Captain Williams led his company in the fore-
front, and contributed greatly to the success of
what was the most brilliant charge of the war.
For his bravery and daring in that charge he
won the sobriquet of "Cerro Gordo" Williams,
which he continued to bear until the day of his
death. It was not unusual for illiterate people to
refer to him as "Sarah Gordon Williams."
The time of his men expiring soon after this
battle, Captain Williams returned to Kentucky
and recruited the Fourth Kentucky Infantry. In
the Civil War he was a Brigadier General in the
Confederate service; and later he was a United
States Senator from Kentucky. Roger Hanson
also became a Confederate Brigadier General, and
fell at Murfreesboro while gallantly leading "The
Orphan Brigade" of Kentuckians into the thickest
of the fray.
No Kentucky volunteers were engaged
in any of the battles of the Mexican
War except those at Monterey, Buena
Vista and Cerro Gordo. The Third and
Fourth Regiments of Kentucky Infantry were re-
cruited and mustered when the war was far ad-
vanced, and its sudden termination deprived them
of an opportunity to show their qualities. They
were, however, in Mexico in time to see the finish,
44
GENERAL ZACHAR7 TAYLOR
and were among the first of the troops to enter
the City of Mexico when General Scott took pos-
session of that city.
* * *
CONTRERAS, CHURUBUSCO, CHAPULTEPEC.
After the battle of Cerro Gordo the march on
the City of Mexico was resumed. Scott's force
at this time hardly exceeded five thousand men,
as he had to send large numbers of his troops
back to Vera Cruz, their term of enlistment for
one year having expired.
Encamping at Pueblo, he remainded there until
August, when reinforcements arrived; and on
August 7th the march of invasion was again re-
sumed. By August 18th the army was eleven
miles due south of the City of Mexico, with the
fortified villages of Contreras and Churubusco
between. On the 20th Contreras was taken, with
many prisoners and supplies. Next Churubusco,
after hard fighting was turned and captured. So
also were, successively, all the defenses seized up
to tlie very edge of the City of Mexico itself, in-
cluding the heights of Chapultepec, the site of the
Mexican Military Academy. It was defended by
several hundred cadets, and those gallant boys
made the bravest and most determined fight that
was made by Mexicans during the entire course
of the war.
* * *
THE ADVENT OF PEACE.
On September 14, 1847, Scott's army made a
triumphal entry into the City of Mexico, and took
45
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
complete possession of it. Santa Anna having
privately decamped on the night of the 13th. Al-
though peace was not declared until some time
later, there was no actual fighting after that date.
So the period of active hostilities extended from
the firing of the first gun at Palo Alto on May 8,
1846, until General Scott entered the City of Mexi-
co on September 14, 1846 — or one year, four
months and six days.
The whole number of United States troops en-
gaged in the war was 101,282, of whom 27,506
were regulars and the remainder were volunteers.
The American losses in the entire war were 1,049
killed and 3,420 wounded.
A commission having been organized to act for
Mexico, on February 21, 1848, the treaty of
Guadalupe-Hidalgo was signed. This treaty fixed
the Rio Grande as the international boundary,
and ceded California and New Mexico (which in-
cluded Arizona) to the United States, which
was to pay Mexico eighteen millions of dollars.
Mexico was also permitted to retain Chihuahua,
which had been won by the fortitude and valor of
Doniphan and his men.
On July 4, 1848, President Polk proclaimed
peace between the United States and Mexico.
* * *
The Mexican War proved to be a training school
of efl^ciency for officers on both sides of the titanic
civil struggle that rent the Union from 1861 to
1865; and this was particularly the case with the
46
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
officers of the Southern Confederacy. It is re-
lated that while those gigantic but unsuccessful
efforts were being made to take Richmond, Presi-
dent Lincoln was one day discussing the matter
with General Scott, then retired, and he said :
"Scott, fifteen years ago it did not seem to be
much trouble for our army to go into the City
of Mexico — how is it that we are now having so
much trouble about going into Richmond?" and
General Scott replied:
"Well, Mr. President, it is this way— the men
who took our army into the City of Mexico are
the very same men who are now keeping our army
out of the City of Richmond."
THE AFTERMATH.
General Zachary Taylor was easily the foremost
hero of the Mexican War. The name of "Rough
and Ready" was upon everybody's lips. The
people at large believed from the evidence before
them that the administration had made a studied
effort to deprive him of his well-earned laurels,
and the reward of his invaluable services; and
the strong sense of justice always entertained by
the great mass of the American people when they
are aroused, impelled them to vindicate their
hero. The year that the war closed (1848) was
the year for the election of a President, and it
was plain to see that if General Taylor would be-
come a candidate he would easily be elected. Over-
47
GENERAL ZACHART TAYLOR
tures were made by the politicans to ascertain
his political views, which had always seemed
vague. He settled this question in an open letter
to a friend in which he described himself as "a
Whig, but not an ultra Whig." This was not very
strong, but there was generalship in it, for it ap-
pealed somewhat to Democrats, and it needs must
be satisfactory to the Whigs.
In the Whig National Convention held at Phil-
adelphia on June 7, 1848, the representatives of
the party ignored the claims of their old and
trusted leaders, Henry Clay and Daniel Webster;
and on the fourth ballot nominated General Tay-
lor for President by a vote of 171, Clay receiving
32, Webster 14, and Winfield Scott 63. Millard
Fillmore was nominated for Vice President.
On the first three ballots five of the Kentucky
delegation in this convention voted for Henry
Clay, namely: James Campbell, James Harlan,
John B. Huston, George T. Wood and William R.
Griffith ; and seven voted for General Taylor,
namely: Jno. A. McCIung, Jas. B. Husbands, Lit-
tleton Beard, James W. Hays, Josiah A. Jackson,
Robert Mallory and Benjamin F. Bedinger. On
the last ballot James Harlan alone voted for Mr.
Clay. The nomination of General Taylor des-
troyed forever Mr. Clay's hopes for the
Presidency — the dream of his life.
In the general election in November, Taylor
and Fillmore received 163 electoral votes, to 127
for Lewis Cass and General William 0. Butler,
48
GENERAL ZACHABY TAYLOR
Democratic candidates. Taylor's popular vote was
1,362,024, to 1,222,419 for Cass. In Kentucky, of
which State General Taylor had been a citizen
for more than forty years (though he was a citi-
zen of Louisiana at the time of the election) he
received 67,486 votes, to 49,865 for Lewis Cass.
* * *
March 4, 1849, came on Sunday, and as General
Taylor refused to be inaugurated on Sunday, that
ceremony was put off until the next day, Monday,
March 5, when he took the oath of office and as-
sumed the duties of the Presidency. In the one-
day interim, David Rice Atchison, of Missouri
(a native of Kentucky), who was then the Presi-
dent of the Senate, and therefore Acting Vice
President of the United States, is claimed to have
been President of the United States.
General Taylor, it is said, became a candidate
for the Presidency greatly against his own in-
clinations and judgment; for, as he said himself,
he was a plain, simple soldier, bred to the pro-
fession of arms, knowing nothing of the intri-
cacies of statecraft, and he distrusted his fit-
ness for high civic position. Notwithstanding his
modest depreciation of himself, his administra-
tion began well, and with the promise of success-
ful continuation, if only he could have lived to
carry it through.
In 1810, when about twenty-six years old,
Zachary Taylor, then a Lieutenant in the regular
army, was united in marriage to Miss Margaret
49
GENERAL ZACHABY TAYLOR
Smith, of Maryland, a lady in all respects worthy
of his affections, and their union was blessed with
several children. One of these, Richard Taylor,
was a distinguished Lieutenant General in the
Confederate army. One of General Taylor's
daughters eloped with and married Jefferson
Davis (another native of Kentucky), when he,
(Davis) was a Lieutenant in the army, stationed
at the same military post with Taylor, and under
his command. After this marriage, General Tay-
lor refused for many years to countenance or
recognize Davis in any way. Jefferson Davis re-
signed from the regular army, and settled in civil
life in Mississippi, where he remained until the be-
ginning of the Mexican War, when he early ap-
peared upon the scene of action as Colonel of the
regiment of Mississippi Volunteer Riflemen, His
heroic conduct while in command of these rifle-
men at the battle of Buena Vista won for him the
forgiveness of his stern father-in-law who then
gladly became reconciled with him. In his official
report of the battle of Buena Vista, General Tay-
lor says:
"The Mississippi Riflemen, under Colonel Davis,
were highly conspicuous for their gallantry and
steadiness, and sustained throughout the engage-
ment the reputation of veteran troops. Brought
into action against an immensely superior force,
they maintained themselves for a long time un-
supported and with a heavy loss, and held an
50
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
important part of the field until reinforced.
Colonel Davis, though severely wounded, remained
in the saddle until the close of the action. His
distinguished coolness and gallantry at the head
of his regiment on this day entitle him to the
particular notice of the Government."
After serving as President of the United States
for sixteen months, Zachary Taylor, from a sud-
den severe indisposition, died in the White House
on July 9, 1850. His remains were interred at
his father's old home place in Jefferson county,
Kentucky, about five miles from Louisville, where
they still repose in the last long sleep.
61
Appendix
Tiiis Appendix contains a roster of the Ken-
tuckians who served as officers in the war with
Mexico, both in the Regular Army and the Vol-
unteer Army. It is not claimed that the roster
is complete, but it is believed to be the most com-
plete one that has ever been published. It con-
tains, so far as it has been possible to get the in-
formation, the names of officers who were born
in Kentucky and appointed from Kentucky; of
officers who were born in Kentucky and appointed
from other States; and of officers who were ap-
pointed from Kentucky, but were born elsewhere.
General Don Carlos Buell was born in Ohio and
was appointed to the army from Indiana; and,
although he was a citizen of Kentucky for many
years, and died there, he did not settle in the
State until long after the close of the Mexican
War. His is the only case of the kind on this
roster.
It is probably now impossible to get anything
like a complete roster of native-born Kentuckians
who were officers of volunteers in the Mexican
War from other States. Perhaps half of those
from Missouri were born in Kentucky, as were
a great many of those from Illinois and Texas,
and, in a lesser degree, those from Arkansas, Ten-
nessee, Indiana and Mississippi.
52
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Where brevets were conferred on officers of the
Eegular Army, the fact is indicated in the roster
in parenthesis after the officer's name. For in-
stance, "Captain John B. Grayson, Commissary
of Subsistence (Major and Lieutenant-Colonel,
Contreras, Churubusco, and Chapultepec)," indi-
cates that Captain Grayson was brevetted Major
for gallant and distinguished conduct in one of
those battles, and Lieutenant-Colonel for similar
conduct in the others.
Many of the officers on this roster subsequently
served in the Union or the Confederate armies
in the Civil War. Where this was the case, the fact
is indicated, together with the rank the officer
held in the later service. Where the fact is known,
the date of the death of officers is also given.
53
The Regular Army
FIELD AND STAFF.
Major General Zachary Taylor, Commander of
the "Army of Occupation."
Brigadier General Thomas S. Jesup. Died
June 10, 1860.
Colonel George Croghan, Inspector General.
"The hero of Fort Stephenson" in War of 1812
where Fremont, Ohio, now stands, and where
there is a magnificent monument to his memory.
Died January 8, 1849.
Captain Abner R. Hetzel, Quartermaster. Died
in Louisville, July 20, 1847.
Captain John B. Grayson, Commissary of Sub-
sistence (Major and Lieutenant-Colonel, Contre-
ras, Churubusco, Chapultepec). Confederate
Brigadier General. Died October 21, 1861.
Captain John S. GrifRn, Assistant Surgeon.
Captain Alfred W. Kennedy, Assistant Surgeon.
Died June 3, 1851.
Captain John Sanders, Engineer Corps (Major,
Monterey) . Died July 29, 1859, at Fort Delaware,
Del.
Second Lieutenant Gustavus W. Smith, Corps
of Engineers (1st Lieutenant and Captain, Cerro
Gordo and Contreras). Confederate Major Gen-
eral.
Second Lieutenant Thomas J. Wood, Topograph-
ical Engineer (1st Lieutenant, Buena Vista).
Union Major General.
54
GENERAL ZACBART TAYLOR
FIRST DRAGOONS.
Captain Benjamin D. Moore, killed December
6, 1846, in action at San Pasqual, California.
Captain Enoch Steen (Major, Buena Vista).
Wounded at Buena Vista. Union Lieutenant-
Colonel. Died January 22, 1880.
First Lieutenant Abraham Buford (Captain,
Buena Vista). Confederate Brigadier General.
Died at Danville, Illinois, June 9, 1884.
SECOND DRAGOONS.
Second Lieutenant Newton C. Givens (First
Lieutenant, Buena Vista). Died March 9, 1859,
at San Antonio, Texas.
Second Lieutenant James M. Hawes (First
Lieutenant, San Juan de los Llanos, Mexico) . Con-
federate Brigadier General. Died November 22,
1889, at Covington, Ky.
THIRD DRAGOONS.
Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas P. Moore. Died
July 21, 1851.
Captain Corydon S. Abell, Assistant Surgeon.
Captain Edgar B. Gaither. Died September 18,
1855, at Columbia, Ky.
Second Lieutenant James J. Moore. Died Feb-
ruary 19, 1850.
Second Lieutenant William C. Wagley.
MOUNTED RIFLES.
Captain George Bibb Crittenden (Major, Con-
treras and Churubusco) . Confederate Major Gen-
eral. Died November 27, 1880, at Danville, Ky.
55
GENERAL ZACRARY TAYLOR
Captain Henry C. Pope. Killed in a duel, May,
1848.
Second Lieutenant William B. Lane (Union
Major) .
FIRST ARTILLERY.
Second Lieutenant Theodore Talbott. Union
Captain.
THIRD ARTILLERY.
Captain Robert Anderson, of Fort Sumter fame
(Major, Molino del Rey). Severely wounded at
Molino del Rey. Union Brigadier General. Died
October 26, 1871, at Nice, France.
Captain John F. Reynolds (Captain and Major,
Monterey and Buena Vista). Union Major Gen-
eral. Killed July 1, 1863, at the battle of Gettys-
burg, Pa.
FOURTH ARTILLERY.
First Lieutenant Thomas J. Curd. Died Feb-
ruary 12, 1850, at Frederick, Md.
First Lieutenant Samuel Gill. Died January
18, 1876, at Cincinnati.
FIRST INFANTRY.
Major John B. Clark. Died August 23, 1847.
Captain John M. Scott (Major, Monterey).
Died October 26, 1850, at Frankfort, Ky.
Second Lieutenant William Logan Crittenden.
Shot August 16, 1851, in Havana, Cuba, by Span-
ish authorities, while with the Lopez Expedition.
56
GEXERAL ZACEARY TAYLOR
SECOND INFANTRY.
Second Lieutenant John R. Butler. Confederate
Colonel.
Second Lieutenant James M. L. Henry. Died
July 4, 1881, at Washington, D. C.
THIRD INFANTRY.
Captain Edmund B. Alexander (Major and
Lieutenant-Colonel, Cerro Gordo, Contreras and
Churubusco). Union Colonel. Died January 3,
1888, at Washington, D. C.
Captain Philip N. Barbour (Major, Palo Alto
and Resaca de la Palma). Killed at the battle
of Monterey, Mexico.
First Lieutenant Don Carlos Buell (Captain
and Major, Monterey, Contreras and Churu-
busco). Severely wounded at Churubusco. Union
Major General.
Second Lieutenant .John J. Crittenden Bibb.
Died September 29, 1854, at Washington, D. C.
Second Lieutenant John C. McFerran, Union
Colonel. Died April 25, 1872, at Louisville, Ky.
Second Lieutenant James N. Ward (First Lieu-
tenant, Cerro Gordo). Died December 6, 1858,
at St. Anthony, Minn.
FOURTH INFANTRY.
First Lieutenant Richard H. Graham. Died
October 12, 1846, of wounds received at the bat-
tle of Monterej'.
57
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
SIXTH INFANTRY.
Captain Thomas L, Alexander (Major, Contre-
ras and Churubusco). Died March 11, 1881, at
Louisville, Ky.
Captain John B. S. Todd. Union Brigadier
General. Died January 5, 1872, at Yankton, Da-
kota.
First Lieutenant Edward Johnson (Captain and
Major, Molino del Rey and Chapultepec) . Con-
federate Major General. Died February 22, 1873,
at Richmond, Va.
Second Lieutenant Simon B. Buckner (First
Lieutenant and Captain Contreras, Churubusco
and Molino del Rey). Confederate Lieutenant-
General.
Second Lieutenant Anderson D. Nelson. Union
Major. Died December 30, 1885, at Thomasville,
Ga.
SEVENTH INFANTRY.
First Lieutenant Nevil Hopson. Died in 1847,
in Texas.
Secondi Lieutenant Samuel B. Maxey (First
Lieutenant, Contreras and Churubusco). Con-
federate Major General.
EIGHTH INFANTRY.
Second Lieutenant Edmunds B. Holloway
(First Lieutenant, Contreras and Churubusco).
Severely wounded at Churubusco. Confederate
Colonel. Died May 16, 1861, at Independence,
Mo., of wounds received mistakenly from his own
men.
58
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
NINTH INFANTRY.
Second Lieutenant Robert Hopkins.
ELEVENTH INFANTRY.
Second Lieutenant George Davidson.
THIRTEENTH INFANTRY.
Captain Hiram H. Higgins. Confederate Ma-
jor.
Second Lieutenant John L. Witherspoon. Died
October 22, 1847.
FOURTEENTH INFANTRY.
Second Lieutenant James G. Fitzgerald.
Second Lieutenant Thomas Hart.
Second Lieutenant Samuel H. Martin.
FIFTEENTH INFANTRY.
First Lieutenant Edward C. Marshall (Captain
Chapultepec) .
Second Lieutenant Henry F. Green.
SIXTEENTH INFANTRY.
Colonel John W. Tibbatts. Died July 5, 1852.
Major James M. Talbott. Died June 15, 1848.
Captain Alexander C. Hensley, Assistant Sur-
geon.
Captain James D. Stuart, Assistant Surgeon.
Captain James W. Brannon.
Captain Edward Curd.
Captain Theophilus T. Garrard. Union Brig-
adier General.
Captain Edward A. Graves.
59
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Captain Patrick H. Harris.
Captain Charles Wickliffe. Confederate Col-
onel. Died April 27, 1862, of wounds received at
the battle of Shiloh, Tenn.
First Lieutenant Charles J. Helm.
First Lieutenant John T. Hughes.
First Lieutenant George W. Singleton.
Second Lieutenant Edward C. Berry.
Second Lieutenant Alexander Evans. Confed-
erate Major.
Second Lieutenant Bernard H. Garrett.
Second Lieutenant Thomas T. Hawkins. Con-
federate Major.
Second Lieutenant Burwell B. Irvan.
Second Lieutenant Francis McMordie.
Second Lieutenant John A. Markley.
Second Lieutenant James M. Smith.
Second Lieutenant Thomas M. Winston. Union
Major.
VOLTIGEUR REGIMENT.
Captain James D. Blair.
Captain Alexander P. Churchill.
Second Lieutenant Charles F. Vernon.
60
le Vo
THE FIELD AND STAFF.
Major General William O. Butler. Candidate
for Vice President with Lewis Cass in 1848. Died
in Kentucky, August 6, 1880.
Brigadier General Thomas Marshall. Died in
Kentucky, March 28, 1853.
Captain Theodore O'Hara, Quartermaster of the
Regular Army and special aide to General Zach-
ary Taylor (Major, Contreras and Churubusco).
Confederate Colonel. Died June 6, 1867.
FIRST KENTUCKY CAVALRY.
Colonel Humphrey Marshall. Confederate
Brigadier-General. Died in Louisville, Ky., March
28, 1872.
Lieutenant-Colonel Ezekiel Field.
Major John P. Gaines. Died in 1853 in Oregon.
First Lieutenant Edward M. Vaughan, Ad-
jutant. Killed at the battle of Buena Vista.
First Lieutenant Thomas H. Barnes, Adjutant.
Union Major.
Alexander C. Hensley, Surgeon.
Alexander M. Blanton, Assistant Surgeon.
Captain Oliver P. Beard.
Captain Cassius M Clay. Union Major General.
Captain William J. Heady.
Captain J. S. Lillard.
Captain Thomas F. Marshall.
Captain Benjamin C. Milam.
61
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Captain Aaron Pennington.
Captain G. L. Postlewaite.
Captain Johnson Price. Died in 1861.
Captain John W. Shawhan. Wounded at Buen^
Vista.
Captain James C. Stone.
First Lieutenant Thomas J. Churchill. Con-
federate Brigadier General.
First Lieutenant Lafayette Dunlap.
First Lieutenant John Field.
First Lieutenant Joseph H. D. McKee.
First Lieutenant John H. Morgan. Confeder-
ate Major General.
First Lieutenant Samuel F. Patterson.
First Lieutenant William T. Torrence.
First Lientenant Jesse Woodruff.
Second Lieutenant John Allen.
Second Lieutenant Lowry J. Beard.
Second Lieutenant Randolph Brasfield.
Second Lieutenant George Mason Brown.
Second Lieutenant John Mason Brown. Wound-
ed at Buena Vista. Union Colonel.
Second Lieutenant Thomas K. Conn. Wounded
at Buena Vista.
Second Lieutenant Geo. R. Davidson
Second Lieutenant George W. Keene.
Second Lieutenant John W. Kimbrough.
Second Lieutenant John A. Merrifield. Wounded
at Buena Vista.
Second Lieutenant Thomas J. Peak.
Second Lieutenant George F. Sartain.
62
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Second Lieutenant Narbonne B. Scott.
Second Lieutenant Green Clay Smith. Union
Brigadier General.
Second Lieutenant George P. Swinford.
FIRST KENTUCKY INFANTRY.
Colonel Stephen Ormsby. Died April 16, 1869.
Lieutenant-Colonel Jason Rogers. Died May,
1848, in Louisville, Ky.
Major John B. Shepherd.
First Lieutenant William Fisher, Adjutant.
First Lieutenant William Riddle, Adjutant.
Thomas L. Caldwell, Surgeon.
John J. Mathews, Assistant Surgeon.
Captain William L. Ball. Died July, 1846, in
Matamoras, Mexico.
Captain Charles W. Bullen.
Captain John Fuller.
Captain Charles H. Harper.
Captain Ebenezer B. Howe.
Captain Florian Kern.
Captain William Minor.
Captain Frank Saunders.
Captain Conrad Schroeder.
Captain Benjamin F. Stewart.
Captain Francis F. C. Triplett.
First Lieutenant John L. Albrecht.
First Lieutenant Joseph C. Baird.
First Lieutenant William T. Barbour.
First Lieutenant John J. Huff.
First Lieutenant William Littrell.
63
GENERAL ZACHART TAYLOR
First Lieutenant Patrick McPike.
First Lieutenant George W. Sigler.
First Lieutenant Ephraim M. Stone.
First Lieutenant William White.
Second Lieutenant Lewis Becker.
Second Lieutenant David Black.
Second Lieutenant John R. Butler.
Second Lieutenant William Duerson.
Second Lieutenant John Harrigan.
Second Lieutenant Charles W. Hilton.
Second Lieutenant George D. Hooper.
Second Lieutenant Benedict Huebel.
Second Lieutenant Wm. E. Jones.
Second Lieutenant Reuben F. Maury.
Second Lieutenant Jacob Pfalzer.
Second Lieutenant David G. Swinner.
Second Lieutenant Richard W. N. Taylor
Second Lieutenant Levi White.
Second Lieutenant Lowry B. White.
Second Lieutenant Samuel Withington.
SECOND KENTUCKY INFANTRY.
Colonel William R. McKee. Killed at the bat-
tle of Buena Vista.
Lieutenant-Colonel Henry Clay, Jr. Killed at
Buena Vista.
Major Gary H. Fry. Union Lieutenant-Colonel.
Died March 5, 1873, at San Francisco, Cal.
First Lieutenant George N. Cardwell Adjutant.
First Lieutenant Thomas S. Todd, Adjutant.
First Lieutenant James E. Kelso, Regimental
Quartermaster.
64
GENERAL ZICHART TAYLOR
Robert P. Hunt, Surgeon.
John U. Le Fon, Assistant Surgeon.
James B. Snail, Assistant Surgeon.
Captain Franklin Chambers.
Captain George W. Cutter.
Captain William Dougherty.
Captain Speed S. Fry. Union Brigadier Gen-
eral.
Captain James 0. Hervey.
Captain George W. Kavanaugh.
Captain William N. Joyner.
Captain John H. McBrayer.
Captain William H. Maxcy.
Captain James W. Moss.
Captain Philip B. Thompson.
Captain Wilkinson Turpin.
Captain William T. Willis. Killed at Buena
Vista.
First Lieutenant John W. Cowan.
First Lieutenant Andrew J. Gait.
First Lieutenant Edward H. Hobson. Union
Brigadier General.
First Lieutenant Wm. R. Keene.
First Lieutenant William, G. Kincaid.
First Lieutenant Littleton T. Lacey.
First Lieutenant James Monroe.
First Lieutenant Joseph W. Powell. Died at
Monterey, January 2, 1847.
First Lieutenant David P. Wade.
Second Lieutenant William E. Akin.
Second Lieutenant George W. Ball.
65 ,
GENERAL ZACHART TAYLOR
Second Lieutenant Elias L. Barbee. Wounded
at Buena Vista.
Second Lieutenant Richard H. Clarke.
Second Lieutenant George M. Coleman.
Second Lieutenant Jos. C. Ewing.
Second Lieutenant Peter G. Flood.
Second Lieutenant John H. Lillard.
Second Lieutenant B. H. Lawler.
Second Lieutenant Henry C. Long.
Second Lieutenant Wm. C. Lowry.
Second Lieutenant William H. Moss.
Second Lieutenant Thomas W. Napier.
Second Lieutenant Thomas J. Proctor.
Second Lieutenant Lewis M. Reese.
Second Lieutenant William D, Robertson.
Second Lieutenant Alva C. Threlkeld.
Second Lieutenant James Wilson.
Second Lieutenant Wm. T. Withers. Confed-
erate Major General.
THIRD KENTUCKY INFANTRY.
Colonel Manlius V. Thompson.
Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas L. Crittenden.
Union Major General.
Major John C. Breckinridge, Vice President of
the United States; Confederate Major General;
Confederate Secretary of War. Died in Lexing-
ton, Ky., in 1875.
First Lieutenant Benjamin F. Bradley, Ad-
jutant. Member of Confederate Congress from
Kentucky.
William Cromwell, Assistant Surgeon.
66
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Captain Andrew F. Caldwell.
Captain William P. Chiles.
Captain Leander M. Cox.
Captain George S. Dodge.
Captain James Ewing.
Captain Leonidas Metcalfe. Union Colonel.
Captain James A. Pritchard.
Captain William E. Simms. Member of Con-
federate Senate from Kentucky.
Captain John R. Smith.
Captain Thomas Todd.
First Lieutenant William C. Allen.
First Lieutenant Enos H. Barry.
First Lieutenant William P. Bramlette.
First Lieutenant Jesse B. Davis. Died in
Mexico City, March 19, 1848.
First Lieutenant Thomas C. Flournoy.
First Lieutenant Walter L Lacey.
First Lieutenant John A. Logan.
First Lieutenant Henry H. Mize.
First Lieutenant William P. Morris.
First Lieutenant Thomas H. Taylor.
First Lieutenant William T. Walker.
First Lieutenant Rigdon S. Barnhill.
Second Lieutenant John Brock. Died in Mexi-
co City, March 9, 1848.
Second Lieutenant Churchill G. Campbell.
Second Lieutenant James B. Casey.
Second Lieutenant James C. Dear.
Second Lieutenant William Edmondson.
Second Lieutenant William E. Fisher
67
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Second Lieutenant John M. Heddleson.
Second Lieutenant James H. Holladay.
Second Lieutenant William B. Holladay.
Second Lieutenant Eli Holtzclaw.
Second Lieutenant Marshall L. Howe.
Second Lieutenant James Kendall.
Second Lieutenant Benjamin D. Lacey.
Second Lieutenant William C. Merrick.
Second Lieutenant James H. Miller.
Second Lieutenant Ansel D. Powell.
Second Lieutenant Daniel Runyon
Second Lieutenant John P. Thatcher.
Second Lieutenant Elisha B. Treadway. Union
Major.
Second Lieutenant Walter C. Whittaker.
Union Brigadier General. Died July 9, 1887.
Second Lieutenant James T. Young.
FOURTH KENTUCKY INFANTRY.
Colonel John S. Williams. Confederate Briga-
dier General.
Lieutenant-Colonel William Preston. Confed-
erate Major General. Died at Lexington, Ky., in
September, 1887.
Major William T. Ward. Union Brigadier Gen-
eral. Died October 12, 1878.
Second Lieutenant Charles H. Creel, Adjutant.
Second Lieutenant Robert P. Trabue, Adjutant.
Confederate Colonel.
Joseph G. Roberts, Surgeon.
John R. Steele, Assistant Surgeon.
68
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
Captain Anthony W. Bartlett.
Captain Joseph C. Conn.
Captain Joseph S. Corum.
Captain George B. Cook.
Captain Patrick H. Gardner.
Captain Mark R. Hardin.
Captain B. Rowan Hardin.
Captain Timothy Keating.
Captain John G. Lair.
Captain Decius McCreery.
Captain Thomas Mayfield.
Captain Hamilton N. Owens. Union Major.
Captain John C. Squires. Died in Mexico City,
March 20, 1848.
First Lieutenant Edgar D. Barbour.
First Lieutenant William Bristow.
First Lieutenant Jesse Davis.
First Lieutenant John Donan.
First Lieutenant Jeremiah F. Dorris.
First Lieutenant Milford Elliott.
First Lieutenant John W. Hughes,
First Lieutenant William E. Woodruff. Union
Colonel.
Second Lieutenant Titus P. A. Bibb.
Second Lieutenant William P. D. Bush.
Second Lieutenant Noah Z. Chapline.
Second Lieutenant John D. Cosby.
Second Lieutenant Samuel D. Cowan.
Second Lieutenant Benjamin F. Egan.
Second Lieutenant Cyrenius W. Gilmer.
Second Lieutenant William G. Johnson.
69
GENERAL Z AC HART TAYLOR
Second Lieutenant John M. Massey.
Second Lieutenant Charles D. Pennebaker.
Union Colonel.
Second Lieutenant William E. Russell.
Second Lieutenant Cyrus D. Scott. Died in
Mexico City, February, 1848.
Second Lieutenant John M. Snyder.
Second Lieutenant James M. Shackleford.
Union Brigadier General.
Second Lieutenant Presley Talbott.
Second Lieutenant Isaac P. Washburn.
Second Lieutenant Noah N. Watkins.
Second Lieutenant Levi White.
Second Lieutenant Charles A. Wickliffe.
Second Lieutenant Harry J. Woodward.
KENTUCKY INDEPENDENT COMPANY.
Captain John S. Williams. Confederate Briga-
dier General.
First Lieutenant Roger W. Hanson. Confeder-
ate Brigadier General. Killed in the battle of
Murfreesboro, Tenn., January 21, 1863.
Second Lieutenant William A. McConnell.
Second Lieutenant George S. Sutherland. Se-
verely wounded at the battle of Cerro Gordo.
Roger Tandy Quisenberry, a sergeant in this
company, was, in 1856, one of William Walker's
little army of sixty men who invaded, conquered
and held Nicaragua and took possession of the
country.
70
(GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
FROM ARKANSAS.
Captain Franklin W. Desha, 1st Arkansas Cav-
alry.
Second Lieutenant John C. Peay, 1st Arkansas
Cavalry. Confederate Major.
FROM ILLINOIS.
Colonel John J. Hardin, 1st Illinois. Killed at
Buena Vista.
First Lieutenant William H. L. Wallace, Ad-
jutant, 1st Illinois. Union Brigadier General.
Died April 10, 1862, of wounds received at the
battle of Shiloh, Tenn.
First Lieutenant Richard J. Oglesby, 4th Ill-
inois. Union Major General.
Second Lieutenant Benjamin Howard. Wound-
ed at Cerro Gordo.
Captain Calmes L. Wright, 2nd Additional Ill-
inois.
FROM INDIANA.
Lieutenant-Colonel Henry S. Lane, 1st Indiana.
Captain Lovell H. Rousseau, 2nd Indiana.
Union Major General.
FROM MARYLAND.
Captain Lloyd Tilghman, 1st Maryland. Con-
federate Brigadier. Killed at the battle of Baker's
Creek, Miss., May 16, 1863.
FROM MISSISSIPPI.
Colonel Jefferson Davis, Mississippi Rifles, Sec-
retary of War; President of the Confederate
71
GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR
States. Died December 6, 1889, at New Orleans,
La.
Lieutenant-Colonel Alexander K. McClung, Mis-
sissippi Rifles. Wounded at Monterey. Died in
1855 by suicide.
Captain John S. Clendennin.
FROM MISSOURI.
Colonel Alexander W. Doniphan, 1st Mounted
Missouri. Died in 1889.
Major Meriwether L. Clark, commanding Mis-
souri Light Artillery. Confederate Colonel. Died
in Frankfort, Ky., October 28, 1881.
FROM TEXAS.
Colonel John C. Hays, 1st Texas Mounted
Rifles.
Colonel George T. Wood, 2nd Texas Mounted
Rifles.
Colonel Albert Sidney Johnston, Texas Rifles.
Confederate General. Killed April 6, 1862, at the
battle of Shiloh, Tenn.
72
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