Henry B. Carrington
Encyclopedia
Henry Beebee Carrington (March 2, 1824 – October 26, 1912) was a lawyer, professor, prolific author, and an officer in the United States Army
during the American Civil War
and in the Old West during Red Cloud's War
. A noted engineer, he constructed a series of forts to protect the Bozeman Trail
, but suffered a major defeat at the hands of the warchief Red Cloud
.
. An ardent abolitionist in his youth, he was graduated from Yale University
in 1845. He was professor of natural science and Greek at the Irving Institute in Tarrytown, New York
from 1846 to 1847. Under the influence of the school's founder, Washington Irving
, he subsequently wrote Battles of the American Revolution, which appeared in 1876.
In 1847 he studied at Yale Law School
, taught school briefly at a women's institute, and the following year moved to Columbus, Ohio
, where he practiced his profession in partnership with William Dennison, Jr. (who was to become Governor of Ohio in 1860). Carrington was an active anti-slavery Whig
, and helped organize the Republican Party
in 1854. He became a close friend and supporter of Governor Salmon P. Chase
and was appointed Judge Advocate General
by Chase in 1857, charged with reorganizing the state militia
.
for Ohio, mustering ten regiments of militia at the outbreak of the American Civil War
and organizing the first twenty-six Ohio regiment
s. He was commissioned the colonel
of the 18th U.S. Infantry in May 1861 and established Camp Thomas
near Columbus
.
In 1862, Indiana
Governor Oliver P. Morton requested Carrington's assistance to organize the state's levies for service. When he arrived in Indiana, a state of political warfare existed between Morton’s administration and its opponents. Morton had established an intelligence network to deal with rebel sympathizers, Knights of the Golden Circle
(Copperheads), Democrats, and anyone opposed to his rule, and Carrington was put at its head. In March 1863, Carrington was promoted to brigadier general
and made commander of the District of Indiana of the Department of the Ohio
, later renamed the Northern Department.
While Carrington succeeded in breaking up Morton’s enemies, his operatives carried out arbitrary arrests, suppressed freedom of speech and freedom of association, and generally maintained a repressive regime. His intelligence sources were recruited from disgruntled officials and unsolicited informers who gathered hearsay and unreliable information generally more valuable for political than military uses. Carrington subsequently rejoined his old regiment in the Army of the Cumberland
, and completed his war duty in the volunteer army in 1865.
, he built and personally manned the remote Fort Phil Kearny
. Carrington soon lost the respect of his officers due to his lack of aggressiveness in several Indian skirmishes. In December 1866, a force of up to fifteen hundred Indians attacked a wood-cutting detail, then overwhelmed a reaction force of eighty troops under Captain William J. Fetterman
. Fetterman, one of Carrington's antagonists, disobeyed his order not to pursue the Indians too far from the fort. Fetterman’s force was lured into an ambush and annihilated with no survivors.
Fetterman’s popularity, coupled with existing distrust of the colonel's leadership, led to rumors that his men had been ordered into the tragedy. General Ulysses S. Grant
moved to court-martial
Carrington but, at the suggestion of General William T. Sherman, submitted the matter to a court of inquiry, which subsequently exonerated Carrington, as did a separate investigation by the Department of the Interior. Nevertheless, Carrington had been relieved of command immediately after the disaster, so that his military career was effectively ruined.
In 1868, Margaret Carrington published her story about Fort Phip Kearny in a book titled Absaraka, home of the Crows. After Margaret’s death in 1870, Carrington brought out new editions of the book with expanded details of his experiences; the book eventually went through seven editions. In 1870, Carrington retired from active service and was appointed professor of military science at Wabash College
in Indiana
, serving until 1878 when he moved to Hyde Park
in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1871, Carrington married Frances Grummond, the widow of Lt. George W. Grummond who was killed in the Fetterman massacre.
He received the degree of LL. D. from Wabash College in 1873. He briefly returned to the West and was instrumental in drafting a treaty with the Flathead Indians in Montana
in 1889. In 1890, he conducted a detailed census of the Six Nations
in New York and the Cherokee
Nation. In 1908, Carrington and his second wife, Frances C. Carrington, were honored in Sheridan, Wyoming, and Carrington spoke at the Fetterman massacre site memorial. With Carrington's help, Frances authored Army Life on the Plains in 1910, detailing their experiences at Fort Phil Kearny.
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and in the Old West during Red Cloud's War
Red Cloud's War
Red Cloud's War was an armed conflict between the Lakota, Northern Cheyenne, and Arapaho and the United States in the Wyoming Territory and the Montana Territory from 1866 to 1868. The war was fought over control of the Powder River Country in north central present day Wyoming...
. A noted engineer, he constructed a series of forts to protect the Bozeman Trail
Bozeman Trail
The Bozeman Trail was an overland route connecting the gold rush territory of Montana to the Oregon Trail. Its most important period was from 1863-1868. The flow of pioneers and settlers through territory of American Indians provoked their resentment and caused attacks. The U.S. Army undertook...
, but suffered a major defeat at the hands of the warchief Red Cloud
Red Cloud
Red Cloud , was a war leader and the head Chief of the Oglala Lakota . His reign was from 1868 to 1909...
.
Early life
Carrington was born in Wallingford, ConnecticutWallingford, Connecticut
Wallingford is a town in New Haven County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 43,026 at the 2000 census.- History :Wallingford was established on October 10, 1667, when the Connecticut General Assembly authorized the "making of a village on the east river" to 38 planters and freemen...
. An ardent abolitionist in his youth, he was graduated from Yale University
Yale University
Yale University is a private, Ivy League university located in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701 in the Colony of Connecticut, the university is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States...
in 1845. He was professor of natural science and Greek at the Irving Institute in Tarrytown, New York
Tarrytown, New York
Tarrytown is a village in the town of Greenburgh in Westchester County, New York, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Hudson River, about north of midtown Manhattan in New York City, and is served by a stop on the Metro-North Hudson Line...
from 1846 to 1847. Under the influence of the school's founder, Washington Irving
Washington Irving
Washington Irving was an American author, essayist, biographer and historian of the early 19th century. He was best known for his short stories "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow" and "Rip Van Winkle", both of which appear in his book The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent. His historical works...
, he subsequently wrote Battles of the American Revolution, which appeared in 1876.
In 1847 he studied at Yale Law School
Yale Law School
Yale Law School, or YLS, is the law school of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Established in 1824, it offers the J.D., LL.M., J.S.D. and M.S.L. degrees in law. It also hosts visiting scholars, visiting researchers and a number of legal research centers...
, taught school briefly at a women's institute, and the following year moved to Columbus, Ohio
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
, where he practiced his profession in partnership with William Dennison, Jr. (who was to become Governor of Ohio in 1860). Carrington was an active anti-slavery Whig
Whig Party (United States)
The Whig Party was a political party of the United States during the era of Jacksonian democracy. Considered integral to the Second Party System and operating from the early 1830s to the mid-1850s, the party was formed in opposition to the policies of President Andrew Jackson and his Democratic...
, and helped organize the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
in 1854. He became a close friend and supporter of Governor Salmon P. Chase
Salmon P. Chase
Salmon Portland Chase was an American politician and jurist who served as U.S. Senator from Ohio and the 23rd Governor of Ohio; as U.S. Treasury Secretary under President Abraham Lincoln; and as the sixth Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court.Chase was one of the most prominent members...
and was appointed Judge Advocate General
Judge Advocate General's Corps
Judge Advocate General's Corps, also known as JAG or JAG Corps, refers to the legal branch or specialty of the U.S. Air Force, Army, Coast Guard, and Navy. Officers serving in the JAG Corps are typically called Judge Advocates. The Marine Corps and Coast Guard do not maintain separate JAG Corps...
by Chase in 1857, charged with reorganizing the state militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
.
Civil War service
Carrington subsequently became adjutant generalAdjutant general
An Adjutant General is a military chief administrative officer.-Imperial Russia:In Imperial Russia, the General-Adjutant was a Court officer, who was usually an army general. He served as a personal aide to the Tsar and hence was a member of the H. I. M. Retinue...
for Ohio, mustering ten regiments of militia at the outbreak of the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
and organizing the first twenty-six Ohio regiment
Regiment
A regiment is a major tactical military unit, composed of variable numbers of batteries, squadrons or battalions, commanded by a colonel or lieutenant colonel...
s. He was commissioned the colonel
Colonel (United States)
In the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, colonel is a senior field grade military officer rank just above the rank of lieutenant colonel and just below the rank of brigadier general...
of the 18th U.S. Infantry in May 1861 and established Camp Thomas
Camp Thomas
Camp Thomas was a United States Regular Army training facility located in North Columbus, Ohio , during the American Civil War. It was primarily used to organize and train new infantry regiments for service in the Western Theater.-Establishment:...
near Columbus
Columbus, Ohio
Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the third largest city in the American Midwest, and the fifteenth largest city...
.
In 1862, Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
Governor Oliver P. Morton requested Carrington's assistance to organize the state's levies for service. When he arrived in Indiana, a state of political warfare existed between Morton’s administration and its opponents. Morton had established an intelligence network to deal with rebel sympathizers, Knights of the Golden Circle
Knights of the Golden Circle
The Knights of the Golden Circle was a secret society. Some researchers believe the objective of the KGC was to prepare the way for annexation of a golden circle of territories in Mexico, Central America, and the Caribbean for inclusion in the United States as slave states...
(Copperheads), Democrats, and anyone opposed to his rule, and Carrington was put at its head. In March 1863, Carrington was promoted to brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
and made commander of the District of Indiana of the Department of the Ohio
Department of the Ohio
The Department of the Ohio was an administrative military district created by the United States War Department early in the American Civil War to administer the troops in the Northern states near the Ohio River.General Orders No...
, later renamed the Northern Department.
While Carrington succeeded in breaking up Morton’s enemies, his operatives carried out arbitrary arrests, suppressed freedom of speech and freedom of association, and generally maintained a repressive regime. His intelligence sources were recruited from disgruntled officials and unsolicited informers who gathered hearsay and unreliable information generally more valuable for political than military uses. Carrington subsequently rejoined his old regiment in the Army of the Cumberland
Army of the Cumberland
The Army of the Cumberland was one of the principal Union armies in the Western Theater during the American Civil War. It was originally known as the Army of the Ohio.-History:...
, and completed his war duty in the volunteer army in 1865.
Red Cloud's War
Following the Civil War, the 18th Infantry was stationed in the West. Carrington was assigned as commander of the Mountain District, Department of the Missouri, in 1866 and moved his regimental headquarters to Colorado. Assigned to protect the Bozeman TrailBozeman Trail
The Bozeman Trail was an overland route connecting the gold rush territory of Montana to the Oregon Trail. Its most important period was from 1863-1868. The flow of pioneers and settlers through territory of American Indians provoked their resentment and caused attacks. The U.S. Army undertook...
, he built and personally manned the remote Fort Phil Kearny
Fort Phil Kearny
Fort Phil Kearny was an outpost of the United States Army that existed in the late 1860s in present-day northeastern Wyoming along the Bozeman Trail. Construction began Friday July 13, 1866 by Companies A, C, E and H of the 2nd Battalion, 18th Infantry, under the direction of the regimental...
. Carrington soon lost the respect of his officers due to his lack of aggressiveness in several Indian skirmishes. In December 1866, a force of up to fifteen hundred Indians attacked a wood-cutting detail, then overwhelmed a reaction force of eighty troops under Captain William J. Fetterman
William J. Fetterman
William Judd Fetterman was an officer in the United States Army during the American Civil War and the subsequent Red Cloud's War on the Great Plains. Fetterman and his immediate command were killed during the Fetterman massacre....
. Fetterman, one of Carrington's antagonists, disobeyed his order not to pursue the Indians too far from the fort. Fetterman’s force was lured into an ambush and annihilated with no survivors.
Fetterman’s popularity, coupled with existing distrust of the colonel's leadership, led to rumors that his men had been ordered into the tragedy. General Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant
Ulysses S. Grant was the 18th President of the United States as well as military commander during the Civil War and post-war Reconstruction periods. Under Grant's command, the Union Army defeated the Confederate military and ended the Confederate States of America...
moved to court-martial
Court-martial
A court-martial is a military court. A court-martial is empowered to determine the guilt of members of the armed forces subject to military law, and, if the defendant is found guilty, to decide upon punishment.Most militaries maintain a court-martial system to try cases in which a breach of...
Carrington but, at the suggestion of General William T. Sherman, submitted the matter to a court of inquiry, which subsequently exonerated Carrington, as did a separate investigation by the Department of the Interior. Nevertheless, Carrington had been relieved of command immediately after the disaster, so that his military career was effectively ruined.
In 1868, Margaret Carrington published her story about Fort Phip Kearny in a book titled Absaraka, home of the Crows. After Margaret’s death in 1870, Carrington brought out new editions of the book with expanded details of his experiences; the book eventually went through seven editions. In 1870, Carrington retired from active service and was appointed professor of military science at Wabash College
Wabash College
Wabash College is a small, private, liberal arts college for men, located in Crawfordsville, Indiana. Along with Hampden-Sydney College and Morehouse College, Wabash is one of only three remaining traditional all-men's liberal arts colleges in the United States.-History:Wabash College was founded...
in Indiana
Indiana
Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
, serving until 1878 when he moved to Hyde Park
Hyde Park, Massachusetts
Hyde Park is a dissolved municipality and currently the southernmost neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Hyde Park is home to a diverse range of people, housing types and social groups. It is an urban location with suburban characteristics...
in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1871, Carrington married Frances Grummond, the widow of Lt. George W. Grummond who was killed in the Fetterman massacre.
He received the degree of LL. D. from Wabash College in 1873. He briefly returned to the West and was instrumental in drafting a treaty with the Flathead Indians in Montana
Montana
Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
in 1889. In 1890, he conducted a detailed census of the Six Nations
Iroquois
The Iroquois , also known as the Haudenosaunee or the "People of the Longhouse", are an association of several tribes of indigenous people of North America...
in New York and the Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
Nation. In 1908, Carrington and his second wife, Frances C. Carrington, were honored in Sheridan, Wyoming, and Carrington spoke at the Fetterman massacre site memorial. With Carrington's help, Frances authored Army Life on the Plains in 1910, detailing their experiences at Fort Phil Kearny.
Carrington's publications
- The Scourge of the Alps (1847)
- Russia Among the Nations and American Classics (1849)
- Battles of the American Revolution, 1775-81 (1876)
- Crisis Thoughts (1878)
- Battle Maps and Charts of the American Revolution (1881)
- The Indian Question (1884)
- Battles of the Bible
- Boston and New York, 1775 and 1776 (1885)
- Washington the Soldier (1899)
- The Exodus of the Flat Head Indians (1902).
- Absaraka, Home of the Crows: Being the Experience of an Officer's Wife on the Plains (1868) was written by Carrington's first wife, Margaret, and published in at least eight editions, based on a daily journal kept at the suggestion of Gen. William T. Sherman
- My Army Life and the Fort Phil. Kearney Massacre, With an Account of the Celebration of "Wyoming Opened,". (1910) was written by Carrington's second wife, Frances.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals