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<html> <head> <title>John Alexander McClernand</title> <meta name="googlebot" content="noodp"> <meta name="robots" content="noodp"> <link rel="apple-touch-icon-precomposed" href="/silly-nndb-icon.png" /><style type="text/css">  </style></head> <body bgcolor=#ffffff> <center> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0><tr><td valign=top><table width=550 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0><tr><td bgcolor=white><table width="100%" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" background="/nndb.gif"> <tr> <td rowspan="2" align="left" valign="top"><a href="http://www.nndb.com/"><img src="/title.gif" width="260" height="50" border=0 alt="NNDB"></a></td> <td><table width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="6"> <tr align="center"> <td width="25%" nowrap><b><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif">This is a beta version of NNDB</font></b></td> </tr> </table></td> </tr> <tr> <td align="right" valign="middle"><b><font size="-1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"> <form action="http://search.nndb.com/search/nndb.cgi" method="get"> <input type="hidden" name="nndb" value="1"></input> <nobr>Search: <select name="omenu"> <option value="unspecified" selected>All Names</option> <option value="living">Living people</option> <option value="dead">Dead people</option> <option value="bands">Band Names</option> <option value="books">Book Titles</option> <option value="movies">Movie Titles</option> <option value="fulltext">Full Text</option> </select> for <input name="query" value="" size=24 maxlength=96> <input type=submit value="Search"> </font></b></nobr></form></td> </tr> </table>        </td></tr><tr><td bgcolor=red height=2></td></tr><map name=fool><area coords="102,0,240,14" href="/people/289/000050139/bibliography/" alt="bibliography"></map><tr bgcolor=F0F0F0><td bgcolor=F0F0F0 style="padding: 0px 15px 15px 15px;"><img src="/red-profile-2.gif" align="right" height=15 width=240 border=0 usemap=#fool><br clear="all"><table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width=100%><tr><td bgcolor=F0F0F0><font size=+3 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif"><b>John Alexander McClernand</b></font><p><img src="mcclernand.jpg" height=278 width=230 align=right hspace=10 vspace=10 alt="John Alexander McClernand"><b>Born:</b> <a href="/lists/668/000106350/" class=proflink>30-May</a>-<a href="/lists/811/000105496/" class=proflink>1812</a><br><b>Birthplace:</b> <a href="/geo/910/000142484/" class=proflink>Breckinridge County, KY</a><br><b>Died:</b> <a href="/lists/150/000106829/" class=proflink>20-Sep</a>-<a href="/lists/410/000106092/" class=proflink>1900</a><br><b>Location of death:</b> <a href="/geo/723/000069516/" class=proflink>Springfield, IL</a><br><b>Cause of death:</b> unspecified<br><b>Remains:</b> Buried, <a href="/cemetery/737/000208113/" class="proflink">Oak Ridge Cemetery, Springfield, IL</a><br><p><b>Gender:</b> Male<br><b>Race or Ethnicity:</b> White<br><b>Sexual orientation:</b> Straight<br><b>Occupation:</b> <a href="/lists/187/000068980/" class=proflink>Military</a>, Politician<br><b>Party Affiliation:</b> Democratic<p><b>Nationality:</b> United States<br><b>Executive summary:</b> Union General and Congressman<p>The American soldier and lawyer John Alexander McClernand was born in Breckinridge county, Kentucky, on the 30th of May 1812. He was admitted to the bar in Shawneetown, Illinois, in 1832; in the same year served as a volunteer in the <a href="/people/296/000177762/">Black Hawk</a> War, and in 1835 founded the <i>Shawneetown Democrat</i>, which he thereafter edited. As a Democrat he served in 1836 and in 1840-1843 in the Illinois House of Representatives, and in 1843-1851 and in 1859-1861 was a representative in Cingress, where in his first term he vigorously opposed the Wilmot proviso, but in his second term was a strong Unionist and introduced the resolution of the 15th of July 1861, pledging money and men to the national government. He resigned from Congress, raised in Illinois the "McClernand Brigade", and was commissioned (May 17, 1861) brigadier-general of volunteers. He was second in command at the battle of Belmont (Missouri) in November 1861, and commanded the right wing at Fort Donelson. On the 21st of March he became a major-general of volunteers. At Shiloh he commanded a division which was practically a reserve to General <a href="/people/275/000050125/">William T. Sherman</a>'s. In October 1861 <a href="/people/271/000050121/">Edwin M. Stanton</a>, Secretary of War, ordered him north to raise troops for the expedition against Vicksburg; and early in January 1864, at Milliken's Bend, McClernand, who had been placed in command of one of the four corps of <a href="/people/966/000023897/">Ulysses S. Grant</a>'s army, superseded Sherman as the leader of the force that was to move down the Mississippi. On the 11th of January he took Arkansas Post. On the 17th, Grant, after receiving the opinion of Admiral Foote and General Sherman that McClernand was unfit, united a part of his own troops with those of McClernand and assumed command in person, and three days later ordered McClernand back to Milliken's Bend. During the rest of this Vicksburg campaign there was much friction between McClernand and his colleagues; he undoubtedly intrigued for the removal of Grant; it was Grant's opinion that at Champion's Hill (May 16) he was dilatory; and because a congratulatory order to his corps was published in the press (contrary to an order of the department and another of Grant) he was relieved of his command on the 18th of June, and was replaced by General E. O. C. Ord. President <a href="/people/332/000024260/">Abraham Lincoln</a>, who saw the importance of conciliating a leader of the Illinois War-Democrats, restored him to his command in 1864, but McClernand resigned in November of that year. He was district judge of the Sangamon (Illinois) District in 1870-1873, and was president of the Mational Democratic Convention in 1876. He died in Springfield, Illinois, on the 20th of September 1900.<p> His son, Edward John McClernand (b. 1848), graduated at the U.S. Military Academy in 1870. He served on the frontier against the Indians, notably in the capture of <a href="/people/257/000173735/">Chief Joseph</a> in October 1877, became lieutenant-colonel and assistant adjutant-general of volunteers in 1898, and served in Cuba in 1898-99. He was then ordered to the Philippines, where he commanded various districts, and from April 1900 to May 1901, when he was mustered out of the volunteer service, was acting military governor.<p><b>Son:</b> Edward John McClernand (army officer, b. 1848)<br><p>    <a href="/gov/555/000121192/">Illinois State Official</a> Judge, Sangamon District (1870-73)<br>    <a href="/gov/292/000052136/">US Congressman, Illinois</a> 6th (1859-61)<br>    <a href="/gov/292/000052136/">US Congressman, Illinois</a> 2nd (1843-51)<br>    <a href="/gov/102/000121736/">Illinois State House of Representatives</a> (1840-43)<br>    <a href="/gov/102/000121736/">Illinois State House of Representatives</a> (1836)<br>    <a href="/group/580/000401374/">Funeral: Abraham Lincoln (1865)</a> <br><p> <br> <p> <table> <tr> <td align=right valign=middle style="padding-right: 5px;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, serif; font-size: 22px; font-style: italic; color: #ff3333;">New!</span><br> <a href="http://mapper.nndb.com/" class="fotmlink" style="font-family: Tahoma, sans-serif; font-size: 10px; font-weight: bold; text-decoration: none; color: #dd0000;">NNDB MAPPER</a></td> <td valign=middle align=right style="border-left: 1px solid #bbb; padding-left: 5px;">Create a map starting with</td> <td valign=middle align=right><a href="http://mapper.nndb.com/start/?id=50139"><img src="/man.gif" border=0 style="padding: 2px;"></a></td> <td align=left valign=middle> <a href="http://mapper.nndb.com/start/?id=50139">John Alexander McClernand</a></td> </tr> </table> <font face="Trebuchet MS, arial, helvetica, sans-serif" size="-2">Requires Flash 7+ and Javascript.</font> <br><br><p> <font size=-1>Do you know something we don't?</font><br> <font size=-1><a href="http://commentary.nndb.com/submit/feedback/?id=50139" rel="nofollow">Submit a correction or make a comment about this profile</a></font><br> <p> <br><br><p><font size=-1>Copyright ©2019 Soylent Communications</font><p> </td></tr></table> </td></tr> </table> </td> <td width=180 align="center" valign="top" style="padding: 0px 0px 8px 25px;"></td></tr> </table> </center> </body> </html>