Joseph Roswell Hawley (October 31, 1826March 18, 1905) was the 42nd Governor of Connecticut, a

U.S. The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

politician in the Republican and Free Soil parties, a

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 ...

general, and a journalist and newspaper editor. He served two terms in 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 ...

and was a four-term U.S. Senator.

Early life and career

Hawley, a direct descendant of Joseph Hawley, first of the name in America, through Ebenezer, Joseph and Samuel, was born in Stewartsville, near

Laurinburg, North Carolina Laurinburg is a city in and the county seat of Scotland County, North Carolina, United States. Located in southern North Carolina near the South Carolina border, Laurinburg is southwest of Fayetteville, North Carolina, Fayetteville and is home t ...

, where Hawley's father, a native of

Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...

, was pastor of a

Baptist Baptists are a Christian denomination, denomination within Protestant Christianity distinguished by baptizing only professing Christian believers (believer's baptism) and doing so by complete Immersion baptism, immersion. Baptist churches ge ...

church. He was born at the Stewart-Hawley-Malloy House; it was added to the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

in 1975. His father returned to Connecticut in 1837 and Joseph attended and graduated from

Hamilton College Hamilton College is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Clinton, Oneida County, New York, Clinton, New York. It was established as the Hamilton-Oneida Academy in 1793 and received its c ...

in New York in 1847. He was admitted to the bar in 1850 and practiced law in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. The city, located in Hartford County, Connecticut, Hartford County, had a population of 121,054 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 ce ...

for six years. An ardent opponent of

slavery Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

, Hawley became a Free Soiler, was a delegate to the National Convention which nominated John Parker Hale for the presidency in 1852, and subsequently served as chairman of the party's State Committee and editor of the party's newspaper, the ''Charter Oak''. In 1856, he took a leading part in organizing the Republican Party in Connecticut, and in 1857 became editor of the ''Hartford Evening Press'', a newly established Republican newspaper.

Civil War

Hawley served in the Federal army with distinction throughout the

, rising from the rank of captain to that of brevet major general of volunteers. In April 1861, Hawley helped recruit and organize an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

company. He was mustered into the three-month 1st Connecticut Infantry with the rank of

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of Company A on April 22. He first saw combat at the

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

in July, receiving praise from his

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 ...

commander, General Erasmus D. Keyes. After mustering out, he then assisted Col. Alfred H. Terry in raising the 7th Connecticut Infantry, a three-year regiment, and was named as lieutenant colonel. He participated in the Port Royal Expedition in November, and commanded the forces assigned to garrison two captured forts. He was a part of the four-month siege that culminated in the capture of Fort Pulaski in April 1862. Again, he commanded the garrison force. With Colonel Terry's promotion to brigade command, Hawley succeeded him as commander of the 7th Connecticut, leading the regiment in the battles of James Island and Pocotaligo. He was in Brannan's expedition to

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in January 1863, and commanded the post at Ferandina, near

Jacksonville Jacksonville ( ) is the most populous city proper in the U.S. state of Florida, located on the Atlantic coast of North Florida, northeastern Florida. It is the county seat of Duval County, Florida, Duval County, with which the City of Jacksonv ...

. In April, he participated in an unsuccessful expedition to capture

Charleston, South Carolina Charleston is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, most populous city in the U.S. state of South Carolina. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint of South Carolina's coastline on Charleston Harbor, an inlet of the Atla ...

. In the summer, he commanded a brigade on Morris Island during the siege of Charleston, and was involved in the attacks on Fort Wagner in September. During the autumn, he procured enough Spencer breech-loading rifles to outfit his regiment with the rapid-fire weapon. The following year, Hawley commanded a brigade under General Truman Seymour in the Battle of Olustee in Florida. He and his men were reassigned to the front lines in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

as a part of Terry's Division, X Corps, Army of the James. He was in the battles of Drewry's Bluff, Deep Run, Derbytown Road, and other actions near Bermuda Hundred and Deep Bottom. With openings created by battlefield losses and reassignments, Hawley commanded a division during the

Siege of Petersburg The Richmond–Petersburg campaign was a series of battles around Petersburg, Virginia, fought from June 9, 1864, to March 25, 1865, during the American Civil War. Although it is more popularly known as the siege of Petersburg, it was not a c ...

and was promoted in September 1864 to brigadier general of volunteers. Concerned over keeping the peace during the November elections, Hawley commanded a hand-picked brigade shipped to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

to safeguard the election process. In January 1865, Hawley succeeded his mentor Alfred Terry as divisional commander when Terry was sent to command troops in the attacks on Fort Fisher. Hawley later joined him in

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

as Chief of Staff for the X Corps. After the capture of

Wilmington, North Carolina Wilmington is a port city in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. With a population of 115,451 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, eighth-most populous city in the st ...

, Hawley took over command of the forces in southeastern North Carolina. In June, following the surrender of the Confederate armies, Hawley rejoined Terry and served as Chief of Staff for the Department of Virginia, serving until October when he returned home to Connecticut. He was breveted as a major general in September 1865, and mustered out of the army on January 15, 1866.

Postbellum

After the war, Hawley served as governor of Connecticut from April 1866 to April 1867, but was defeated in the 1867 election. A few months after stepping down from that office, he bought the ''

Hartford Courant The ''Hartford Courant'' is the largest daily newspaper in the U.S. state of Connecticut, and is advertised as the oldest continuously published newspaper in the United States. A morning newspaper serving most of the state north of New Haven and ...

'' newspaper, which he combined with the ''Press''. Under his editorship, this became the most influential newspaper in Connecticut and one of the leading Republican papers in the country. Hawley was the permanent chairman of the

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the Republican Party in the United States. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal o ...

in 1868, was a delegate to the conventions of 1872, 1876 and 1880. He represented Connecticut in the U.S. Congress from December 1872 until March 1875 and again in 1879–81, having lost the two elections in between. From 1873 to 1876, he served as president of the United States Centennial Commission, which planned and ran the Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. He was also a trustee of Hamilton College and received his LL. D. degree in 1875 (and another one from

Yale Yale University is a private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, and one of the nine colonial colleges ch ...

in 1888).

Hawley was a United States Senator from 1881 to 1905, being one of the key Republican leaders both in the House and the Senate. He was chairman of the committee on

civil service The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

, and vigorously promoted civil service reform legislation. He also chaired a special committee called to investigate the production of military ordnance and warships. In this capacity, he wrote a detailed report on the heavy steel industry and gun making in the United States and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He died 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 ...

, two weeks after stepping down from the Senate after his fourth term. At the time, he was the longest serving Senator from Connecticut. A

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals (such as phosphorus) or metalloid ...

'' bas relief'' representation of Hawley was commissioned from Herbert Adams, which was installed in the north portico of the Connecticut Capitol building and dedicated 18 October 1912. He was buried in Cedar Hill Cemetery, Connecticut. Hawley has a battery named in his honor at Fort Baldwin, in Phippsburg, Maine.

Personal life

Hawley and his wife Harriet Foote Hawley adopted one of her nieces after the girl's parents died; as Margaret Foote Hawley she would go on to achieve some note as a painter of

portrait miniature A portrait miniature is a miniature portrait painting from Renaissance art, usually executed in gouache, Watercolor painting, watercolor, or Vitreous enamel, enamel. Portrait miniatures developed out of the techniques of the miniatures in illumin ...

s. Harriet's sister Kate Foote Coe lived with the Hawleys while she was working as a newspaper correspondent in Washington.Maggie MacLean
"Harriet Foote Hawley: Civil War Nurse and Occasional Journalist"
''Civil War Women'' (May 19, 2014).

Notes

References

Retrieved on 2008-02-12 * *

External links

Col. Joseph Hawley at the Battle of Olustee
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hawley, Joseph R. 1826 births 1905 deaths 19th-century American newspaper editors Burials at Cedar Hill Cemetery (Hartford, Connecticut) Connecticut Free Soilers Connecticut lawyers American people of English descent Hamilton College (New York) alumni People from Scotland County, North Carolina People of Connecticut in the American Civil War People of North Carolina in the American Civil War Politicians from Hartford, Connecticut Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Connecticut Republican Party governors of Connecticut Republican Party United States senators from Connecticut Union army generals 20th-century United States senators 19th-century United States senators 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives