Civil War Union Army Brigadier General, Presidential Cabinet Secretary. A member of the Indiana State Legislature at the start of the Civil War, he raised a company of infantry, and was commissioned Captain and commander of the company in the 53rd Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Promoted to Colonel and regimental commander in March 1862. He led his men in the campaign that culminated in the surrender of Vicksburg, Mississippi in July 1863. Promoted to Brigadier General, US Volunteers on August 11, 1863, he led first a brigade, then a division in the Army of the Tennessee's XVII Corps. At the July 20, 1864 Battle of Peachtree Creek north of Atlanta, Georgia, he was severely wounded in the leg, which ended his military service. He studied law and was admitted to the Indiana State Bar Association after the war, and made several unsuccessful runs for national office. He was appointed as United States Postmaster General in 1883, serving in the administration of President Chester A. Arthur. For one month he served as United States Secretary of the Treasury, but resigned to become a Federal Judge. He was later appointed as United States Secretary of State, serving in the 2nd Administration of President Grover Cleveland. He held the office from March 1883 until his death in office in May 1865.
Civil War Union Army Brigadier General, Presidential Cabinet Secretary. A member of the Indiana State Legislature at the start of the Civil War, he raised a company of infantry, and was commissioned Captain and commander of the company in the 53rd Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Promoted to Colonel and regimental commander in March 1862. He led his men in the campaign that culminated in the surrender of Vicksburg, Mississippi in July 1863. Promoted to Brigadier General, US Volunteers on August 11, 1863, he led first a brigade, then a division in the Army of the Tennessee's XVII Corps. At the July 20, 1864 Battle of Peachtree Creek north of Atlanta, Georgia, he was severely wounded in the leg, which ended his military service. He studied law and was admitted to the Indiana State Bar Association after the war, and made several unsuccessful runs for national office. He was appointed as United States Postmaster General in 1883, serving in the administration of President Chester A. Arthur. For one month he served as United States Secretary of the Treasury, but resigned to become a Federal Judge. He was later appointed as United States Secretary of State, serving in the 2nd Administration of President Grover Cleveland. He held the office from March 1883 until his death in office in May 1865.
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