Bluford Wilson (November 30, 1841 – July 15, 1924) was a Union Army officer in the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

and a government official who served as

Solicitor of the United States Treasury The Solicitor of the Treasury position was created in the United States Department of the Treasury by an act of May 29, 1830 , which changed the name of the Agent of the Treasury. Function The Solicitor of the Treasury served as legal advisor to t ...

Early life

Bluford Wilson was born near

Shawneetown, Illinois Shawneetown is a city in Gold Hill Township, Gallatin County, Illinois, United States. The population was 1,054 at the 2020 United States census. It is the county seat of Gallatin County. Geography Shawneetown is located southeast of the cent ...

on November 30, 1841. He studied at

McKendree College McKendree University (McK), formerly McKendree College, is a private university in Lebanon, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1828 as the "Lebanon Seminary", it is the oldest college or university in Illinois. The school was renamed McKendree ...

and the

University of Michigan Law School The University of Michigan Law School (branded as Michigan Law) is the law school of the University of Michigan, a public research university in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Founded in 1859, the school offers Master of Laws (LLM), Master of Comparati ...

before enlisting for the

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

Military career

Wilson joined the 120th Illinois Volunteer Infantry. He soon received an officer's commission and appointment as regimental

adjutant Adjutant is a military appointment given to an Officer (armed forces), officer who assists the commanding officer with unit administration, mostly the management of “human resources” in an army unit. The term is used in French-speaking armed ...

. He later served on several other staffs, including that of the XIII Corps, taking part in numerous battles and campaigns, including

Champion Hill Champion Hill is a association football, football stadium in East Dulwich in the London Borough of Southwark. It is the home ground of Dulwich Hamlet F.C., Dulwich Hamlet. History Dulwich Hamlet began playing at the ground in 1912. 'The Hill' ...

, Black River and the

Siege of Vicksburg The siege of Vicksburg (May 18 – July 4, 1863) was the final major military action in the Vicksburg campaign of the American Civil War. In a series of maneuvers, Union Major General Ulysses S. Grant and his Army of the Tennessee crossed th ...

, and the Red River Campaign. He was discharged with the rank of

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

at the end of the war. For the rest of his life Wilson was active in the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (United States Navy, U.S. Navy), and the United States Marine Corps, Marines who served in the American Ci ...

and the

Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States The Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States (MOLLUS), or, simply, the Loyal Legion, is a United States military order organized on April 15, 1865, by three veteran officers of the Union Army. The original membership was consisted ...

Legal career

Wilson resumed studying law at the University of Michigan Law School, graduated in 1866, and was admitted to the bar in 1867. A Republican, Wilson was appointed

United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...

for the

Southern District of Illinois Southern may refer to: Businesses * China Southern Airlines, airline based in Guangzhou, China * Southern Airways, defunct US airline * Southern Air, air cargo transportation company based in Norwalk, Connecticut, US * Southern Airways Express, M ...

in 1869. In 1874 Wilson received appointment as Solicitor of the Treasury, which he held until 1876. Wilson's rise through the ranks of federal appointed office were based in part on his family's relationship with President

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

. Bluford Wilson's brother Major General James H. Wilson served on Grant's staff and as one of Grant's subordinate commanders during the Civil War. As Solicitor Wilson played a key role in exposing the

Whiskey Ring The Whiskey Ring took place from 1871 to 1876 centering in St. Louis during the presidency of Ulysses S. Grant. The ring was an American scandal, broken in May 1875, involving the diversion of tax revenues in a conspiracy among government agent ...

. He conducted an investigation into the frauds, reported his findings to his superiors, and attempted through his brother James to warn President Grant. When Grant moved to protect members of his administration and prevent prosecutions, Wilson resigned.

Later life

After leaving government service Wilson settled in

Springfield, Illinois Springfield is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Illinois. Its population was 114,394 at the 2020 United States census, which makes it the state's List of cities in Illinois, seventh-most populous cit ...

, where he practiced law and became involved in the construction and management of several

railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in railway track, tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel railway track, rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of ...

s. During the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

Wilson offered his services; the governor authorized him to raise a regiment and he was commissioned a

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

in the Illinois militia, but the war ended before his regiment could see active service.

Death and burial

Wilson died in Springfield on July 15, 1924. He was buried at

Oak Ridge Cemetery Oak Ridge Cemetery is an American cemetery in Springfield, Illinois. The Lincoln Tomb, where Abraham Lincoln, his wife and all but one of their children lie, is there, as are the graves of other prominent Illinois figures. Opened in 1860, it ...

in Springfield.

Family

In 1865 Wilson married Alice Warren Mather of

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville is the List of cities in Kentucky, most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeastern United States, Southeast, and the list of United States cities by population, 27th-most-populous city ...

, and they were the parents of five children. Harry died in infancy. Jessie was the wife of Phillip Barton Warren. Lucy was the wife of Ralph Vance Dickerman. Bluford died during his senior year at

Yale University Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...

Arthur Arthur is a masculine given name of uncertain etymology. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. A common spelling variant used in many Slavic, Romance, and Germanic languages is Artur. In Spanish and Ital ...

graduated from

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

in 1904, attained the rank of Colonel during a career that spanned the years 1904 to 1942, and received the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

during the

Philippine Insurrection The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

.''Historical Encyclopedia of Illinois and History of Sangamon County''
, published by Munsell Publishing Company, Chicago, Volume II, 1912, entry for Bluford Wilson

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Bluford 1841 births 1924 deaths Lawyers from Springfield, Illinois McKendree University alumni University of Michigan Law School alumni People of Illinois in the American Civil War United States Department of the Treasury officials Union army officers Burials at Oak Ridge Cemetery People from Shawneetown, Illinois Illinois Republicans Anti-crime activists 19th-century American lawyers