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William Cogswell (August 23, 1838 – May 22, 1895) was a United States House of Representatives, U.S. Representative from Massachusetts and a Colonel (United States), colonel in the Union Army during the American Civil War who was appointed to the grade of Brevet (military), brevet Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general, U.S. Volunteers.
Cogswell was a private in the Second Corps of Cadets, a militia organization of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Cogswell served in the Second Corps of Cadets during the winter of 1860–1861.
On April 19, 1861, word reached Salem that the Sixth Massachusetts had been attacked in Baltimore while on its way to defend Washington, D.C. Cogswell turned his office into a recruiting station and in 24 hours raised a full company, the first company in the country recruited for the war. This became Company C of the Second Massachusetts Volunteers, with Cogswell as captain in command.
Cogswell was commissioned a captain in the Second Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, May 11, 1861. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on October 23, 1862, and to colonel on June 25, 1863.
Colonel Cogswell was appointed Brevet (Military), brevet Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general of volunteers by appointment of President Abraham Lincoln on December 12, 1864, to rank from December 15, 1864, and the appointment was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 14, 1865. Colonel and Brevet Brigadier General Cogswell was mustered out of the U.S. Volunteers on July 24, 1865.Eicher and Eicher, 2001, p. 179
After the Civil War Cogswell resumed the practice of his profession.
''Memorial Addresses on the Life and Character of William Cogswell (late a Representative from Massachusetts)
Delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate, 54th United States Congress, Fifty-fourth Congress, First and Second Sessions'' (1897).
William Cogswell
as a member of the 50th Congress Massachusetts Delegation. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cogswell, William 1838 births 1895 deaths Phillips Academy alumni Republican Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Union Army generals People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War Dartmouth College alumni Harvard Law School alumni Mayors of Salem, Massachusetts Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts 19th-century American politicians People from Bradford, Massachusetts Burials at Harmony Grove Cemetery People from Atkinson, New Hampshire
Biography
Cogswell was born in Bradford, Massachusetts, to George Cogswell and Abigail (Parker) Cogswell. Cogswell's father was a well-respected surgeon and one of the founders of the Massachusetts Republican Party. His grandfather, William Cogswell (New Hampshire physician), William Cogswell, was a surgeon's mate in the Revolutionary War who practiced medicine in Atkinson, New Hampshire, and gave land for the Atkinson Academy. Abigail's mother died when he was about 7 years old. Cogswell attended Atkinson Academy, Kimball Union Academy in Meriden, New Hampshire, Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, and Dartmouth College in Hanover, New Hampshire. Cogswell entered Dartmouth in 1855, leaving it soon after. From 1856 to 1857 he went on a voyage around the world, spending two years as a sailor. When Cogswell returned from his voyage he entered Harvard Law School.Law practice
On September 8, 1860, Cogswell was Admission to the bar in the United States, admitted to the bar in Essex County, Massachusetts. He worked for a while in the office of Attorney William D. Northend, and in April 1861 Cogswell opened his own office in Salem, Massachusetts.Military service
Cogswell was a private in the Second Corps of Cadets, a militia organization of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Cogswell served in the Second Corps of Cadets during the winter of 1860–1861.
On April 19, 1861, word reached Salem that the Sixth Massachusetts had been attacked in Baltimore while on its way to defend Washington, D.C. Cogswell turned his office into a recruiting station and in 24 hours raised a full company, the first company in the country recruited for the war. This became Company C of the Second Massachusetts Volunteers, with Cogswell as captain in command.
Cogswell was commissioned a captain in the Second Massachusetts Volunteer Infantry Regiment, May 11, 1861. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on October 23, 1862, and to colonel on June 25, 1863.
Colonel Cogswell was appointed Brevet (Military), brevet Brigadier general (United States), brigadier general of volunteers by appointment of President Abraham Lincoln on December 12, 1864, to rank from December 15, 1864, and the appointment was confirmed by the United States Senate on February 14, 1865. Colonel and Brevet Brigadier General Cogswell was mustered out of the U.S. Volunteers on July 24, 1865.Eicher and Eicher, 2001, p. 179
After the Civil War Cogswell resumed the practice of his profession.
Political activities
He served as mayor of Salem, Massachusetts, Salem 1867–1869, 1873, and 1874. He served as member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives 1870, 1871, and 1881–1883. He served in the Massachusetts State Senate in 1885 and 1886. He served as delegate to the Republican National Convention in 1892.Congressional service
Cogswell was elected as a Republican Party (United States), Republican to the 50th United States Congress and to the four succeeding Congresses and served from March 4, 1887, until his death in Washington, D.C., May 22, 1895. He was interred in Harmony Grove Cemetery, Salem, Massachusetts.Personal life
Cogswell married Emma Thorndike Proctor on June 20, 1865. They had two children, William and Emma Silsby Cogswell. Emma died on April 1, 1877. Cogswell remarried to Eva M. Davis on December 12, 1881 and they remained married until his death, having no children.See also
*List of American Civil War brevet generals (Union) *List of Massachusetts generals in the American Civil War *Massachusetts in the American Civil War *List of United States Congress members who died in office (1790–1899)Notes
References
* Eicher, John H. and David J. Eicher, Eicher, David J. ''Civil War High Commands''. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 2001. .''Memorial Addresses on the Life and Character of William Cogswell (late a Representative from Massachusetts)
Delivered in the House of Representatives and Senate, 54th United States Congress, Fifty-fourth Congress, First and Second Sessions'' (1897).
External links
Retrieved on 2008-02-12William Cogswell
as a member of the 50th Congress Massachusetts Delegation. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cogswell, William 1838 births 1895 deaths Phillips Academy alumni Republican Party members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives Union Army generals People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War Dartmouth College alumni Harvard Law School alumni Mayors of Salem, Massachusetts Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Massachusetts 19th-century American politicians People from Bradford, Massachusetts Burials at Harmony Grove Cemetery People from Atkinson, New Hampshire