William Marshall Anderson
Encyclopedia
William Marshall Anderson (1807–1881) was an American scholar, explorer and politician, noted for his detailed travel journals in the Rocky Mountains
and Imperial Mexico.
, that had settled in Kentucky
and Ohio
after the Revolutionary War. His father had been aide-de-camp to Lafayette at the Battle of Yorktown
. His mother was cousin both to Chief Justice John Marshall
and to William Clark of the Lewis and Clark expedition
. His elder brother Robert Anderson was the Major Anderson forced to surrender Fort Sumter
at the start of the American Civil War
. His younger brother Charles Anderson was Governor of Ohio.
In 1834 Marshall, as he was known, took a trip west with a fur-trading party and kept a journal describing his encounters with the explorers and mountain men of the time, including Kit Carson
and Jim Bridger
.
Returning to Ohio he set up a law practice in Chillicothe
, married the daughter of former governor Duncan McArthur
, ran unsuccessfully for Congress, and with his brother Larz managed legal and financial matters for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. From at least 1839 onwards he was a devout and zealous Catholic.
In 1865, Anderson journeyed to Mexico, ostensibly on an archaeological expedition, in order to help plan the New Virginia Colony
, a resettlement venture for ex-Confederates and sympathizers. The Colony was conceived and promoted by a former USN & CSN officer and internationally famous oceanographer, Matthew Fontaine Maury
, with the support and sponsorship of Emperor Maximilian
. As Napoleon III started withdrawing his French troops due to political pressure, Maximilian's government began to crumble, so did the New Virginia Colony. However, all, including Maximilian had plenty of time to leave Mexico. Maximilian chose to stay and do the best he could with what he saw as his duty to Mexico and her people. Anderson, weakened with yellow fever, went to Vera Cruz in 1866 and took a ship back to the USA. For his remaining fifteen years he lived mostly in Circleville, Ohio, sometimes traveling on archeological explorations. His house in Circleville is on the National Register of Historic Places
.
W. Marshall Anderson's son Thomas McArthur Anderson, was a decorated officer in the Civil War and again many years later during the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection that followed.
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...
and Imperial Mexico.
Background
Anderson was born into a large and prominent family, originally from VirginiaVirginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
, that had settled in Kentucky
Kentucky
The Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
and Ohio
Ohio
Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
after the Revolutionary War. His father had been aide-de-camp to Lafayette at the Battle of Yorktown
Siege of Yorktown
The Siege of Yorktown, Battle of Yorktown, or Surrender of Yorktown in 1781 was a decisive victory by a combined assault of American forces led by General George Washington and French forces led by the Comte de Rochambeau over a British Army commanded by Lieutenant General Lord Cornwallis...
. His mother was cousin both to Chief Justice John Marshall
John Marshall
John Marshall was the Chief Justice of the United States whose court opinions helped lay the basis for American constitutional law and made the Supreme Court of the United States a coequal branch of government along with the legislative and executive branches...
and to William Clark of the Lewis and Clark expedition
Lewis and Clark Expedition
The Lewis and Clark Expedition, or ″Corps of Discovery Expedition" was the first transcontinental expedition to the Pacific Coast by the United States. Commissioned by President Thomas Jefferson and led by two Virginia-born veterans of Indian wars in the Ohio Valley, Meriwether Lewis and William...
. His elder brother Robert Anderson was the Major Anderson forced to surrender Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter
Fort Sumter is a Third System masonry coastal fortification located in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. The fort is best known as the site upon which the shots initiating the American Civil War were fired, at the Battle of Fort Sumter.- Construction :...
at the start 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...
. His younger brother Charles Anderson was Governor of Ohio.
In 1834 Marshall, as he was known, took a trip west with a fur-trading party and kept a journal describing his encounters with the explorers and mountain men of the time, including Kit Carson
Kit Carson
Christopher Houston "Kit" Carson was an American frontiersman and Indian fighter. Carson left home in rural present-day Missouri at age 16 and became a Mountain man and trapper in the West. Carson explored the west to California, and north through the Rocky Mountains. He lived among and married...
and Jim Bridger
Jim Bridger
James Felix "Jim" Bridger was among the foremost mountain men, trappers, scouts and guides who explored and trapped the Western United States during the decades of 1820-1850, as well as mediating between native tribes and encroaching whites...
.
Returning to Ohio he set up a law practice in Chillicothe
Chillicothe, Ohio
Chillicothe is a city in and the county seat of Ross County, Ohio, United States.Chillicothe was the first and third capital of Ohio and is located in southern Ohio along the Scioto River. The name comes from the Shawnee name Chalahgawtha, meaning "principal town", as it was a major settlement of...
, married the daughter of former governor Duncan McArthur
Duncan McArthur
right|thumb|350pxDuncan McArthur was a Federalist and National Republican politician from Ohio. He served as the 11th Governor of Ohio....
, ran unsuccessfully for Congress, and with his brother Larz managed legal and financial matters for the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. From at least 1839 onwards he was a devout and zealous Catholic.
In 1865, Anderson journeyed to Mexico, ostensibly on an archaeological expedition, in order to help plan the New Virginia Colony
New Virginia Colony
The New Virginia Colony was a colonization plan in central Mexico, to resettle ex-Confederates and any other immigrants from any nation. and other Americans after the American Civil War...
, a resettlement venture for ex-Confederates and sympathizers. The Colony was conceived and promoted by a former USN & CSN officer and internationally famous oceanographer, Matthew Fontaine Maury
Matthew Fontaine Maury
Matthew Fontaine Maury , United States Navy was an American astronomer, historian, oceanographer, meteorologist, cartographer, author, geologist, and educator....
, with the support and sponsorship of Emperor Maximilian
Maximilian I of Mexico
Maximilian I was the only monarch of the Second Mexican Empire.After a distinguished career in the Austrian Navy, he was proclaimed Emperor of Mexico on April 10, 1864, with the backing of Napoleon III of France and a group of Mexican monarchists who sought to revive the Mexican monarchy...
. As Napoleon III started withdrawing his French troops due to political pressure, Maximilian's government began to crumble, so did the New Virginia Colony. However, all, including Maximilian had plenty of time to leave Mexico. Maximilian chose to stay and do the best he could with what he saw as his duty to Mexico and her people. Anderson, weakened with yellow fever, went to Vera Cruz in 1866 and took a ship back to the USA. For his remaining fifteen years he lived mostly in Circleville, Ohio, sometimes traveling on archeological explorations. His house in Circleville is on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
.
W. Marshall Anderson's son Thomas McArthur Anderson, was a decorated officer in the Civil War and again many years later during the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection that followed.
Further reading
- The Rocky Mountain journals of William Marshall Anderson: the West in 1834 (1967)
- An American in Maximilian's Mexico, 1865–1866; the diaries of William Marshall Anderson, ed. by Ramón Eduardo RuizRamón Eduardo RuizRamón Eduardo Ruiz was an American historian of Mexico and Latin America. He was the author of fifteen books on Mexican and Latin American history and in 1998 he was awarded the US National Humanities Medal....
(1959)