Joseph B. "Jo" Abbott (January 15, 1840February 11, 1908) was a lawyer, judge, Confederate Army officer, member of the

Texas House of Representatives The Texas House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Texas Legislature. It consists of 150 members who are elected from single-member districts for two-year terms. There are no Term limits in the United States, term limits. The ...

and a member of the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

. The city of

Abbott, Texas Abbott is a city in Hill County, Texas, United States. It is north of Waco, along Interstate 35. The population was 352 in 2020. History Abbott was founded in 1871 as a stop for the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad and was named for Joseph "J ...

, is named for him.

Biography

Joseph B. Abbott was born January 15, 1840, to William and Mary (''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' McMillan) Abbott in

Morgan County, Alabama Morgan County is a county in the north-central part of the U.S. state of Alabama. As of the 2020 census, its population was 123,421. The county seat is Decatur. On June 14, 1821, it was renamed in honor of American Revolutionary War General ...

, near Decatur, and attended the public schools. His parents were both born near

Petersburg, Virginia Petersburg is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 33,458 with a majority bla ...

. His father William had been a soldier in the

War of 1812 The War of 1812 was fought by the United States and its allies against the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and its allies in North America. It began when the United States United States declaration of war on the Uni ...

, and was stationed at

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

. Abbott moved with his parents to

Freestone County, Texas Freestone County is a county in the east-central part of the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 19,435. Its county seat is Fairfield. The county was created in 1850 and organized the next year. History Native Am ...

, in 1853. He was educated by the scholar Franklin Laughlin Yoakum, the father of

Benjamin Franklin Yoakum Benjamin Franklin Yoakum (August 20, 1859 – November 28, 1929) was an American railroad executive of the late 19th and early 20th centuries who attempted to join the Frisco and Rock Island Railroads into a great system stretching from Chicago ...

and the president of

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, and George F. Allison, who operated a classical school in Freestone County. He began to

read law Reading law was the primary method used in common law countries, particularly the United States, for people to prepare for and enter the legal profession before the advent of law schools. It consisted of an extended internship or apprenticeship un ...

in 1859 and continued in this practice until the beginning of 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 ...

. Abbott entered into service of the

Confederate Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), fi ...

in the Civil War as a junior second lieutenant, eventually becoming a first lieutenant in Company B of the Twelfth Texas Cavalry Regiment. He fought in at least half a dozen battles including the

Battle of Cotton Plant The Battle of Cotton Plant also known as Action at Hill's Plantation or Action at Cache River or Action at Round Hill (July 7, 1862) was fought during the American Civil War in Woodruff County, Arkansas. Frustrated in its attempt to march to Lit ...

, the

Battle of Pleasant Hill The Battle of Pleasant Hill on April 9, 1864, in Louisiana formed part of the Red River Campaign during the American Civil War, when Union Army, Union forces were attempting to occupy the Louisiana state capital, Shreveport, Louisiana, Shrevepo ...

, and the

Battle of Yellow Bayou The Battle of Yellow Bayou, also known as the Battle of Norwood's Plantation, (May 18, 1864) saw Union Army forces led by Brigadier General Joseph A. Mower clash with Confederate States Army troops commanded by Brigadier General John A. Wharton ...

, in which he was wounded and disabled for many months. He later rejoined his command and remained with it until the end of the war. After the end of the war he resumed his studies of law and entered the office of Lochlin J. Farrar in Springfield, Limestone County, Texas, and received instructions from D. W. Pendergast. Abbott was admitted to the bar by Robert S. Gould, who became a chief justice of the

Texas Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Texas (SCOTX) is the court of last resort for civil matters (including juvenile delinquency cases, which are categorized as civil under the Texas Family Code) in the U.S. state of Texas. A different court, the Texas Court o ...

. After he became licensed in October 1866, he began to practice law in Springfield as a partner of Farrar. He moved to

Hill County Hill County is the name of two counties in the United States: * Hill County, Montana Hill County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Montana. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 16, ...

in 1867, where he taught a school for five months. He returned to his legal profession after the county court system was organized in 1868. On December 15, 1868, he married Rowena Sturgis of Hillsboro, daughter of James W. L. and Martha Sturgis.''A Memorial and Biographical History of Johnson and Hill Counties, Texas''
Chicago: The Lewis Publishing Company. 1892. pp. 225–227. Retrieved November 29, 2023. – via

University of North Texas Libraries The University of North Texas Libraries is an American academic research library system that serves the constituent colleges and schools of University of North Texas in Denton. The phrase "University of North Texas Libraries" encompasses thre ...

. He was a member of the

from 1870 to 1873 He was appointed a district judge in the Twenty-eighth judicial district by Governor Oran M. Roberts. In 1880, he was elected for a full four-year term for that position. In 1886, he was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

to the

, and served in that capacity through the end of Fifty-Fourth Congress in 1897. Upon leaving Congress, he resumed his legal career in Hillsboro, Texas, where he died on February 11, 1908.

Electoral history

1886 election

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbott, Joseph 1840 births 1908 deaths Politicians from Decatur, Alabama Democratic Party members of the Texas House of Representatives Texas state court judges Confederate States Army officers People from Freestone County, Texas People from Hillsboro, Texas People from Limestone County, Texas Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas 19th-century Texas state court judges Military personnel from Texas 19th-century members of the Texas Legislature 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives