John Mansfield (August 1822May 6, 1896) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

lawyer and Republican politician. He was the 15th

lieutenant governor of California The lieutenant governor of California is the second highest Executive (government), executive officer of the government of the U.S. state of California. The Lieutenant governor (United States), lieutenant governor is elected to serve a four-yea ...

. 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 ...

, he was a Union Army officer serving in the

2nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment The 2nd Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It spent most of the war as a member of the famous Iron Brigade of the Army of the Potomac. It suffered the largest numbe ...

in the famous

Iron Brigade The Iron Brigade, also known as The Black Hats, Black Hat Brigade, Iron Brigade of the West, and originally King's Wisconsin Brigade was an infantry brigade in the Union Army of the Potomac during the American Civil War. Although it fought ent ...

of the

Army of the Potomac The Army of the Potomac was the primary field army of the Union army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was created in July 1861 shortly after the First Battle of Bull Run and was disbanded in June 1865 following the Battle of ...

. He took command of the regiment during the first day of the Battle of Gettysburg and remained in command until the regiment was disbanded in the fall of 1864. After the war, he received an honorary brevet to brigadier general.

Early life and career

Originally from

Monroe County, New York Monroe County is a county in the U.S. state of New York, located along Lake Ontario's southern shore. As of 2022, the population was 752,035, according to Census Bureau estimates. Its county seat and largest city is Rochester. The county is ...

, Mansfield emigrated to

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

prior to 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 ...

. During the 1850s, Mansfield practiced law in

Portage, Wisconsin Portage is a city in Columbia County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 10,581 at the 2020 census, making it the largest city in Columbia County. It is part of the Madison metropolitan area. Portage was named for ...

Civil War service

Following President Lincoln's call for 75,000 state militia troops in April 1861, at the onset of the Civil War, Mansfield was commissioned as captain of Company G,

, known as the "Portage Guards." Mustered at

Camp Randall Camp Randall was a United States Army base in Madison, Wisconsin, the largest staging point for Wisconsin troops entering the American Civil War. At this camp fresh volunteers received quick training before heading off to join the Union Army. Al ...

Madison Madison may refer to: People * Madison (name), a given name and a surname * James Madison (1751–1836), fourth president of the United States * Madison (footballer), Brazilian footballer Places in the United States Populated places * Madi ...

on June 11, 1861, Mansfield's regiment entered as a three-year regiment and departed Wisconsin for

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 ...

, on June 20 to join the

. At Washington, Mansfield's regiment was initially

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

d under

William T. Sherman William is a masculine given name of Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. It is ...

along with the

13th New York Volunteer Infantry The 13th New York Infantry Regiment ("Rochester Regiment") was an infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 13th New York Infantry was organized at Elmira, New York and mustered in for two years state se ...

, the 69th New York Volunteer Infantry and the

79th New York Volunteer Infantry The 79th New York Infantry Regiment was a military regiment organized on 20 June 1859, in the state of New York. Prior to the American Civil War it was one of the three regiments which formed the Fourth Brigade of the First Division of the New Y ...

. Mansfield's regiment first saw action at the

First Battle of Bull Run The First Battle of Bull Run, called the Battle of First Manassas
. by Confederate States ...

in July 1861. Mansfield and the 2nd Wisconsin went on to take part in many key battles of the war as part of the famed

, including South Mountain,

Antietam The Battle of Antietam ( ), also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, took place during the American Civil War on September 17, 1862, between Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virgin ...

, and Gettysburg.

Battle of Gettysburg

At Gettysburg, Mansfield had become major of the 2nd Wisconsin and was the 2nd highest ranking officer left in the regiment. The 2nd Wisconsin and the Iron Brigade were part of the 1st Division of I Corps, under Brig. General

James S. Wadsworth James Samuel Wadsworth (October 30, 1807 – May 8, 1864) was a philanthropist, politician, and a Union general in the American Civil War. He was mortally wounded at the Battle of the Wilderness in 1864. Early years Wadsworth was born t ...

, and were at the vanguard on the march to Gettysburg. On the first day of fighting, July 1, 1863, the 2nd Wisconsin engaged a Confederate brigade under Brig. General

James J. Archer James Jay Archer (December 19, 1817 – October 26, 1864) was a lawyer and an officer in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War. He later served as a brigadier general in the Confederate States Army (CSA) during the American C ...

at McPherson Woods. Early in the fighting, 2nd Wisconsin soldier Private Patrick Maloney captured Archer himself, who surrendered his sword to Mansfield. Archer's surrender to Mansfield marked the first capture of a Confederate general officer since

Robert E. Lee Robert Edward Lee (January 19, 1807 – October 12, 1870) was a general officers in the Confederate States Army, Confederate general during the American Civil War, who was appointed the General in Chief of the Armies of the Confederate ...

had assumed command of the

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...

. Later in the first day of fighting, Major Mansfield assumed command of the 2nd Wisconsin after the senior officer, future Wisconsin governor

Lucius Fairchild Lucius Fairchild (December 27, 1831May 23, 1896) was an American politician, soldier, and diplomat. He served as the tenth governor of Wisconsin and represented the United States as Minister to Spain under presidents Rutherford B. Hayes and Jam ...

, was shot. Mansfield himself would be wounded later that same day and be forced to relinquish command of the regiment. Following the battle, Mansfield was appointed lieutenant colonel on July 5, 1863 and went on to serve in the Bristoe and

Mine Run Campaign The Battle of Mine Run, also known as Payne's Farm, or New Hope Church, or the Mine Run campaign (November 27 – December 2, 1863), was conducted in Orange County, Virginia, in the American Civil War. An unsuccessful attempt of the Union ...

s before being wounded and captured in June 1864 during the

Overland Campaign The Overland Campaign, also known as Grant's Overland Campaign and the Wilderness Campaign, was a series of battles fought in Virginia during May and June 1864, towards the end of the American Civil War. Lieutenant general (United States), Lt. G ...

. Held at

Libby Prison Libby Prison was a Confederate States of America, Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army, taking in numbers from the nearby Seven Days battl ...

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

, Mansfield was later returned to the north as part of a

prisoner exchange A prisoner exchange or prisoner swap is a deal between opposing sides in a conflict to release prisoners: prisoner of war, prisoners of war, spy, spies, hostages, etc. Sometimes, cadaver, dead bodies are involved in an exchange. Geneva Conven ...

. Towards the end of the Civil War, Mansfield became colonel of the

Veteran Reserve Corps The Veteran Reserve Corps (originally the Invalid Corps) was a military reserve organization created within the Union Army during the American Civil War to allow partially disabled or otherwise infirm soldiers (or former soldiers) to perform li ...

, a reserve organization also known as the U.S. Invalid Corps, made up of men unfit for combat but able to assist in hospital work or other light duties. Mansfield was later

brevetted In military terminology, a brevet ( or ) is a warrant which gives commissioned officers a higher military rank as a reward without necessarily conferring the authority and privileges granted by that rank. The promotion would be noted in the of ...

as a brigadier general of volunteers, a rank to date from March 13, 1865.

Lieutenant governor

Following the war, Mansfield settled in California and later served as a delegate to the second California constitutional convention in 1878 and 1879 and as an at-large delegate to the

1880 Republican National Convention The 1880 Republican National Convention was held from June 2 to June 8, 1880, at the Interstate Exposition Building in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Delegates nominated James A. Garfield of Ohio and Chester A. Arthur of New York (state), N ...

. He was elected as California's lieutenant governor in

1879 Events January * January 1 ** The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. ** Brahms' Violin Concerto is premiered in Leipzig with Joseph Joachim ...

and served one term under Republican Governor George C. Perkins from 1880 to 1883. Mansfield died at his home in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

in 1896 and was

cremated Cremation is a method of Disposal of human corpses, final disposition of a corpse through Combustion, burning. Cremation may serve as a funeral or post-funeral rite and as an alternative to burial. In some countries, including India, Nepal, and ...

. His ashes were interred in

Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery Angelus-Rosedale Cemetery is a cemetery, located at 1831 West Washington Boulevard in the West Adams, Los Angeles, West Adams neighborhood of Los Angeles, southwest of Downtown Los Angeles, Downtown. History Located in the West Adams, Los Angeles ...

without record of their location. Mansfield may be the namesake of

Mansfield, Illinois Mansfield is a village in Piatt County, Illinois in the United States. The population was 906 at the 2010 census. History Mansfield was originally incorporated around 1870. The village may have been named for John Mansfield, an officer in the Ci ...

, although other sources suggest the village was named after other unrelated men named Mansfield, or potentially the city of

Mansfield, Ohio Mansfield is a city in Richland County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. The population was 47,534 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located approximately from Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, Columbus via Interstate 71, it i ...

Early life and career

Civil War service

Battle of Gettysburg

Lieutenant governor

References

Further reading