Samuel Jordan Kirkwood (December 20, 1813 – September 1, 1894) was an American politician who twice served as

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Iowa Iowa () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wiscon ...

, twice as a

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and power ...

from Iowa, and as the

U.S. Secretary of the Interior The United States secretary of the interior is the head of the United States Department of the Interior. The secretary and the Department of the Interior are responsible for the management and conservation of most federal land along with natura ...

Early life and career

Samuel Jordan KirkwoodClark, Dan Elbert
''Samuel Jordan Kirkwood''
Iowa City, Iowa: Iowa State Historical Society, 1917, p. 8. was born on December 20, 1813, in

Harford County, Maryland Harford County is located in the U.S. state of Maryland. As of the 2020 census, the population was 260,924. Its county seat is Bel Air. Harford County is included in the Baltimore-Columbia-Towson, MD Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is a ...

. At age 17, he began teaching school and had as one of his pupils his cousin

Daniel Kirkwood Daniel Kirkwood (September 27, 1814 – June 11, 1895) was an American astronomer. Kirkwood was born in Harford County, Maryland to John and Agnes (née Hope) Kirkwood. He graduated in mathematics from the York County Academy in York, Pennsylv ...

, who later achieved prominence as a

mathematician A mathematician is someone who uses an extensive knowledge of mathematics in their work, typically to solve mathematical problems. Mathematicians are concerned with numbers, data, quantity, structure, space, models, and change. History On ...

and

astronomer An astronomer is a scientist in the field of astronomy who focuses their studies on a specific question or field outside the scope of Earth. They observe astronomical objects such as stars, planets, moons, comets and galaxies – in either ...

. Samuel spent part of his youth in Washington, D.C., then joined his father in moving to

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

in 1835. There he became a well-known anti-slavery Republican. He was elected to several state offices and worked closely with Thomas Bartley, the future governor of Ohio, in the 1840s. Kirkwoods 1852

In 1855 Kirkwood moved to Iowa, living northwest of

Iowa City Iowa City, offically the City of Iowa City is a city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States. It is the home of the University of Iowa and county seat of Johnson County, at the center of the Iowa City Metropolitan Statistical Area. At the time ...

, and became involved with the Clark family, also from Ohio, in a milling venture, and then with the Clark and Lucas families in land speculation. Kirkwood married Jane Clark, the sister of Phoebe Ann Clark, and thus became the brother-in-law of Edward Lucas, son of Iowa's first Territorial Governor Robert Lucas and his second wife Friendly Ashley (Sumner) Lucas. Although Kirkwood intended to leave politics behind him in Iowa, he took an interest in the newly founded

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa * Republican Party (Liberia) *Republican Party ...

. Summoned from his mill at Coralville and still coated in flour dust, Kirkwood gave a rousing speech at the founding meeting of the

Iowa Republican Party The Republican Party of Iowa (RPI) is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in Iowa. The State Central Committee is chaired by Jeff Kaufmann. The RPI operates the Republican side of the Iowa caucuses and previously sponsored the ...

in February 1856. Many people credited Kirkwood’s speech and subsequent work with the success of the Republican Party in Iowa; that year he was elected to the

Iowa Senate The Iowa Senate is the upper house of the Iowa General Assembly, United States. There are 50 seats in the Iowa Senate, representing 50 single-member districts across the state of Iowa with populations of approximately 60,927 per constituency, ...

serving from 1856 to 1859.

Governorship: Coppock incident and the Civil War

In 1859, Kirkwood was nominated for governor and defeated Augustus C. Dodge after a bitter campaign which focused on the slave issue. In 1860, Kirkwood’s first year in office, the John Brown raid on

Harpers Ferry Harpers Ferry is a historic town in Jefferson County, West Virginia. It is located in the lower Shenandoah Valley. The population was 285 at the 2020 census. Situated at the confluence of the Potomac and Shenandoah rivers, where the U.S. stat ...

further polarized the nation over slavery, and Kirkwood was clearly on the side of the militant abolitionists. When

Barclay Coppock Barclay Coppock (January 4, 1839 – September 4, 1861), also spelled "Coppac", "Coppic", and "Coppoc", was a follower of John Brown (abolitionist), John Brown and a Union Army soldier in the American Civil War. Along with his brother Edwin ...

, a youth from Springdale, who was part of Brown’s raid, fled to Iowa, Kirkwood refused to accept extradition papers for him from

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...

, and allowed Coppock to escape. During the Civil War, Kirkwood gained national attention for his extraordinary efforts to secure soldiers and supplies from Iowa for the

Union Army During the American Civil War, the Union Army, also known as the Federal Army and the Northern Army, referring to the United States Army, was the land force that fought to preserve the Union (American Civil War), Union of the collective U.S. st ...

. A strong supporter of

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...

's policies during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and t ...

, he was active in raising and equipping dozens of

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

s of

infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

, as well as

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from "cheval" meaning "horse") are soldiers or warriors who fight mounted on horseback. Cavalry were the most mobile of the combat arms, operating as light cavalry in ...

and

artillery Artillery is a class of heavy military ranged weapons that launch munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during si ...

, for the Union Army. In 1862, he attended the Loyal

War Governors' Conference The Loyal War Governors' Conference was an important political event of the American Civil War. It was held at the Logan House Hotel in Altoona, Pennsylvania, on September 24 and 25, 1862. Thirteen governors of Union states came together to di ...

Altoona, Pennsylvania Altoona is a city in Blair County, Pennsylvania. It is the principal city of the Altoona Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA). The population was 43,963 at the time of the 2020 Census, making it the eighteenth most populous city in Pennsylvania. T ...

, which ultimately gave Lincoln support for his

Emancipation Proclamation The Emancipation Proclamation, officially Proclamation 95, was a presidential proclamation and executive order issued by United States President Abraham Lincoln on January 1, 1863, during the American Civil War, Civil War. The Proclamation c ...

Senate and Secretary of the Interior

After he left office in 1864, Kirkwood moved to a new house on Wyoming Road in Iowa City (now Kirkwood Avenue) and practiced law. About this time Kirkwood sold his share of the mill, part of it to his brother, William, and part to Valentine Miller. In 1865-1867, he served the remainder of James Harlan’s term in the U.S. Senate, and served in the Senate again from 1877 to 1881. Between his separate terms as a Senator, he was again the Governor of Iowa from 1876 to 1877. He resigned as governor in 1877 to begin his second term as U.S. Senator. In 1881, Kirkwood resigned his Senate seat to become

Secretary of the Interior Secretary of the Interior may refer to: * Secretary of the Interior (Mexico) * Interior Secretary of Pakistan * Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (Philippines) * United States Secretary of the Interior See also *Interior ministry An ...

under

James Garfield James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831 – September 19, 1881) was the 20th president of the United States, serving from March 4, 1881 until his death six months latertwo months after he was shot by an assassin. A lawyer and Civil War gene ...

. He served as Interior Secretary until 1882. He unsuccessfully ran for Congress in 1886. Kirkwood died on September 1, 1894, in

, and is buried in Oakland Cemetery.

Memorials

Monuments

* Kirkwood's sculptured likeness by sculptor

Vinnie Ream Lavinia Ellen "Vinnie" Ream Hoxie (September 25, 1847 – November 20, 1914) was an American sculptor. Her most famous work is the Statue of Abraham Lincoln (U.S. Capitol), statue of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in the United States Capit ...

is maintained among the two coveted statues apportioned to each state on display under the rotunda in the

National Statuary Hall Collection The National Statuary Hall Collection in the United States Capitol is composed of statues donated by individual states to honor persons notable in their history. Limited to two statues per state, the collection was originally set up in the old ...

in the

United States Capitol The United States Capitol, often called The Capitol or the Capitol Building, is the seat of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, which is formally known as the United States Congress. It is located on Capitol Hill ...

in Washington, D.C. * A bust of Kirkwood is in the

Vicksburg National Military Park Vicksburg National Military Park preserves the site of the American Civil War Battle of Vicksburg, waged from March 29 to July 4, 1863. The park, located in Vicksburg, Mississippi (flanking the Mississippi River), also commemorates the greater ...

. *A memorial plaque is in front of Iowa City High School.

Educational institutions

Kirkwood Community College Kirkwood Community College is a public community college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. Kirkwood has a secondary campus in Iowa City, and several additional regional and county centers located in Belle Plaine, Coralville, Hiawatha, Monticello, Tipton, ...

is named for the former Iowa Governor and Senator it has several campuses in eastern Iowa. *Kirkwood Elementary School is located in Coralville, the town where Kirkwood ran his mill.

Places

* The town of Kirkwood, Illinois. *Kirkwood Avenue in

. *Kirkwood Avenue in

Des Moines Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines ...

. *Kirkwood Boulevard in

Davenport Davenport may refer to: Places Australia *Davenport, Northern Territory, a locality *Hundred of Davenport, cadastral unit in South Australia **Davenport, South Australia, suburb of Port Augusta ** District Council of Davenport, former local govern ...

. *The Kirkwood House in Iowa City is listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

. *The

Hotel Kirkwood The Hotel Kirkwood, also known as the Kirkwood Civic Center Hotel, is a historic building located in downtown Des Moines, Iowa, United States. The building was designed by the Chicago architectural firm of H.L. Stevens & Company and built in 193 ...

in Des Moines, which is named in his honor, is also listed on the National Register.

References

Bibliography

*Aurner, Charles R. (1912)''Leading Events in Johnson County, Iowa, History.'' Western Historical, Cedar Rapids, Iowa. *Parish, John C. (1921) The Miller of Coralville. In ''Yearbook of the Old Settlers Association: 1920–1921'', pp. 6–18. Johnson County Old Settlers Association, Iowa City, Iowa. *Dan E. Clark (1917) ''Samuel Jordan Kirkwood'', Iowa City *Henry W. Lathrop (1893), ''The Life and Times of Samuel J. Kirkwood, Iowa's War Governor'', Chicago

External links

* , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Kirkwood, Samuel Jordan 1813 births 1894 deaths Governors of Iowa United States Secretaries of the Interior Iowa state senators Iowa lawyers Ohio lawyers 19th-century American railroad executives Union (American Civil War) political leaders People from Harford County, Maryland Politicians from Mansfield, Ohio Politicians from Iowa City, Iowa People of Iowa in the American Civil War Robert Lucas family American abolitionists Ohio Republicans Iowa Republicans Republican Party governors of Iowa Republican Party United States senators from Iowa Garfield administration cabinet members Arthur administration cabinet members 19th-century American politicians Union (American Civil War) state governors