John Eaton (general)
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John Eaton, Jr. (December 5, 1829 – February 9, 1906) was an American educator who served as the U.S. Commissioner of Education and a Union Army
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 ...
during 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 ...
. On March 12, 1866, the
United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
confirmed his January 13, 1866, nomination for appointment to the grade of brevet brigadier general of volunteers to rank from March 13, 1865.


Early life and education

Eaton was born in
Sutton, New Hampshire Sutton is a New England town, town in Merrimack County, New Hampshire, United States. The population was 1,978 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Sutton includes the villages of Sutton Mills (shown as "Sutton" on topographic maps), Nor ...
, and attended Thetford Academy in
Vermont Vermont () is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, New York (state), New York to the west, and the Provinces and territories of Ca ...
. He was the eldest of nine children and his father was a farmer. He graduated from
Dartmouth College Dartmouth College ( ) is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Hanover, New Hampshire, United States. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, Dartmouth is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the America ...
in 1854, studied at
Andover Theological Seminary Andover Theological Seminary (1807–1965) was a Congregationalist seminary founded in 1807 and originally located in Andover, Massachusetts on the campus of Phillips Academy. From 1908 to 1931, it was located at Harvard University in Cambrid ...
, and was ordained in 1862 to the
Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a historically Reformed Protestant tradition named for its form of church government by representative assemblies of elders, known as "presbyters". Though other Reformed churches are structurally similar, the word ''Pr ...
ministry. He had to teach all four years he was in college in order to pay his board and tuition. He received a
Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
and
Legum Doctor Legum is an English surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Colin Legum (1919–2003), British anti-apartheid activist * Judd Legum (born 1978), American journalist, lawyer, and political staffer * Margaret Legum (1933–2007), Brit ...
from
Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...
.


Career


Civil War

Eaton entered the American Civil War as a chaplain of the 27th Ohio Volunteer Infantry on August 15, 1861.Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . p. 222. In November 1862, after Lincoln's preliminary
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. The Proclamation had the eff ...
, Major General
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 ...
appointed him superintendent of freedmen and was later given supervision of all military posts from Cairo to Natchez and Fort Smith. In November 1863, Grant appointed him as the Superintendent of Negro Affairs for the Department of the Tennessee; there Eaton supervised the establishment of 74 schools. On October 10, 1863, Eaton was made colonel of the 63rd United States Colored Infantry. On January 13, 1866,
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: Arts and entertainment Film and television *'' Præsident ...
Andrew Johnson Andrew Johnson (December 29, 1808July 31, 1875) was the 17th president of the United States, serving from 1865 to 1869. The 16th vice president, he assumed the presidency following the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. Johnson was a South ...
nominated Eaton for appointment to the grade of brevet brigadier general of volunteers, to rank from March 13, 1865, and the United States Senate confirmed the appointment on March 12, 1866.


Postwar career

General Eaton left the military and eventually returned to his career in education. He remained with the freedman bureau until he was discharged on December 18, 1865 and then became editor of the '' Memphis Daily Post'' in 1866. From 1867-1869 he was the state superintendent of schools of Tennessee. He was then appointed
United States Commissioner of Education The Commissioner of Education was the title given to the head of the federal Office of Education, which was historically a unit within and originally assigned to the Department of the Interior in the United States. The position was created on March ...
in 1870 and served with efficiency in the United States Bureau of Education where he, among other things, organized Washington, D.C.'s Board of Education and reorganized the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands. From 1886 to 1891, Eaton was president of
Marietta College Marietta College (MC) is a private liberal arts college in Marietta, Ohio, United States. Its campus encompasses approximately six city blocks next to downtown Marietta and enrolls 1,200 students. History Marietta College began as the Muskin ...
, and, in 1895, he was appointed president of Sheldon Jackson College in
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. In 1898, he became inspector of education in
Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...
and played a role in the centralization of its educational system. At the same time, he was the president of Westminster College in Salt Lake City. He also served as Councillor of the American Public Health Association, Vice President of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and president of the Association of Social Science. He was a representative of the Interior Department at the centennial exposition and the organizer of the educational exhibit at New Orleans. He was president of the national congress of education and of the American Society of Religious Education. Eaton wrote a history of Thetford Academy, "Mormons of Today", "The Freedmen in the War", "Schools of Tennessee" and several reports, addresses and magazine articles.


Personal life

After several years of failing health, he took ill on February 8, 1906, and died one day later in his apartment in the Concord Flats in
Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
He was buried in
Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...
. Four years later, John Eaton Elementary School was named for him. Eaton's daughter, Elsie Eaton Newton (1871–1941), was an educator associated with the United States Indian Service, and later served as the first Dean of Women at Marietta College."Mrs. Elsie Eaton Newton"
''Chicago Tribune'' (January 13, 1941): 10. Retrieved September 18, 2019, via Newspapers.com


See also

* List of American Civil War brevet generals (Union)


References

* Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., ''Civil War High Commands'', Stanford University Press, 2001, . :


Notes


External links


President Rutherford B. Hayes on U.S. Commissioner of Education John Eaton: Original Letter
Shapell Manuscript Foundation {{DEFAULTSORT:Eaton General), John 1829 births 1906 deaths Activists for African-American civil rights American educators 19th-century American non-fiction writers Editors of Tennessee newspapers People from Sutton, New Hampshire People of Vermont in the American Civil War Andover Theological Seminary alumni Rutgers University alumni Dartmouth College alumni Union army colonels United States Bureau of Education people Writers from New Hampshire Writers from Vermont Thetford Academy, Vermont alumni Burials at Arlington National Cemetery