Brevet Lieutenant Colonel Martin Scott (January 18, 1788,

Bennington, Vermont Bennington is a New England town, town in Bennington County, Vermont, United States. It is one of two shire towns (county seats) of the county, the other being Manchester (town), Vermont, Manchester. As of the 2020 United States Census, US Cens ...

– September 8, 1847,

Molino del Rey Los Pinos (English: ''The Pines'') was the official residence and office of the President of Mexico from 1934 to 2018. Located in the Bosque de Chapultepec (Chapultepec Forest) in central Mexico City, it became the presidential seat in 1934, wh ...

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

) was a career officer in the United States Army who was a signatory to the Treaty of St. Peters in 1837.

Early life

Martin Scott was born in

on January 18, 1788. He was the son of Phineas Scott - one of the early settlers of Bennington. He was also a member of the Bennington organization the Sons of Liberty along with other local notables such as Hiram Harwood. He had a common school education and legendary skill as a marksman. He was known to drive nails with bullets and prided himself on being able to kill animals with shots to the head rather than to the body. He was barred from participating in turkey shoots (as his skill with a rifle gave him an unfair advantage) and was known to brag that once a raccoon surrendered to him in preference to being shot.

Military career

During 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 ...

, he was commissioned as a 2nd lieutenant in the 26th Infantry in April 1814. The next month he was promoted to 1st lieutenant. Soon after the war's conclusion, he was discharged in June 1815.Historical Register and Dictionary of the United States Army, 1789-1903. Francis B. Heitman. 1903. Vol. 1. pg. 869. In June 1818, he re-entered the Army as a 2nd lieutenant in the

Regiment of Riflemen The Regiment of Riflemen was a unit of the U.S. Army in the early nineteenth century. Unlike the regular US line infantry units with muskets and bright blue and white uniforms, this regiment was focused on specialist light infantry tactics, an ...

. He was promoted to 1st lieutenant in November 1819 and was transferred to the 5th Infantry in June 1821. He was promoted to captain in August 1828 and represented the U.S. Army at the signing of the Treaty of St. Peters between the United States and the

Ojibwa The Ojibwe (; syll.: ᐅᒋᐺ; plural: ''Ojibweg'' ᐅᒋᐺᒃ) are an Anishinaabe people whose homeland (''Ojibwewaki'' ᐅᒋᐺᐘᑭ) covers much of the Great Lakes region and the northern plains, extending into the subarctic and thro ...

tribes. The treaty ceded land in Minnesota and Wisconsin. Capt. Scott was in command of

Fort Mackinac Fort Mackinac ( ) is a former British and American military outpost garrisoned from the late 18th century to the late 19th century in the city of Mackinac Island, Michigan, on Mackinac Island. The Kingdom of Great Britain, British built the f ...

on Mackinac Island, Michigan, in 1842. He was described by an acquaintance as “an interesting man, with strong, alert, athletic figure, bright, eager, keen grey eyes, and ruddy face, bronzed by long exposure. He was a great disciplinarian, and the fort was clean and orderly in the extreme.” Scott was unpopular with his fellow officers as he was perceived as being stingy (although Martin's frugality resulted from his spending most of his money to support his mother and sister back in Vermont). He was also viewed as being anti-social as he did not drink nor gamble. He once fought a duel in which both parties were wounded but survived. He married late in life at the age of in 1840 to Miss Lavinia McCracken of Rochester, New York.

Mexican–American War

Scott saw active service during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

. In May 1846, he fought under Major General

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...

at the battles of

Palo Alto Palo Alto ( ; Spanish language, Spanish for ) is a charter city in northwestern Santa Clara County, California, United States, in the San Francisco Bay Area, named after a Sequoia sempervirens, coastal redwood tree known as El Palo Alto. Th ...

and Resaca de la Palma and received a brevet (honorary promotion) to major. He was promoted to the full rank of major on June 29, 1846. He also received a brevet to the rank of lieutenant colonel for heroism at the

Battle of Monterey The Battle of Monterey, at Monterey, California, occurred on 7 July 1846, during the Mexican–American War. The United States captured the town unopposed. Prelude In February 1845, at the Battle of Providencia, the Californio forces had ouste ...

on September 23, 1846. He was killed in action at the

Battle of Molino del Rey The Battle of Molino del Rey (8 September 1847) was one of the bloodiest engagements of the Mexican–American War as part of the Battle for Mexico City. It was fought in September 1847 between Mexican forces under General Antonio León again ...

on September 8, 1847. A few months after his death Martin Scott's body was brought back from Mexico to Vermont in Feb 1848, escorted by his nephew K. Scott, Esq., with the funeral held on 2 March 1848. The funeral Sermon from Psalms 48:16 was preached by Rev. Justin A. Smith of Bennington, eulogy by Gen. George R. Davis of Troy, NY, with the Masonic funeral service officiated by Bro. Leonard Sargeant, Lt. Governor of Vermont. In attendance were his family, a large concourse of people, the Masonic Fraternity,

Odd Fellows Odd Fellows (or Oddfellows when referencing the Grand United Order of Oddfellows or some British-based fraternities; also Odd Fellowship or Oddfellowship) is an international fraternity consisting of lodges first documented in 1730 in 18th-cen ...

Sons of Temperance The Sons of Temperance was and is a brotherhood of men who promoted the temperance movement and Benefit society, mutual support. The organization was started in New York City in 1842. In the 1840s, it spread quickly across the United States and ...

, and

Rechabites The Rechabites () were a Hebrew Bible, Biblical clan, the descendants of Rechab through Jehonadab. Biblical sources One theory is the Rechabites belonged to the Kenites, who accompanied the Israelites into the Holy Land and dwelt among them; the ...

. Scott's widow Lavinia (née McCracken) Scott would die on 27 Sep 1852, while aboard the American paddle steamer SS Arctic that sank off the coast of Cape Race, Newfoundland. All aboard we lost.

Legacy

In December 1848, the Army established an outpost near

Fredericksburg, Texas Fredericksburg () is a city in and the county seat of Gillespie County, Texas, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 Census, this city had a population of 10,875. Fredericksburg was founded in 1846 and named after Prince Frede ...

which was later named

Fort Martin Scott Fort Martin Scott is a restored United States Army outpost near Fredericksburg in the Texas Hill Country, United States, that was active from December 5, 1848, until April, 1853. It was part of a line of frontier forts established to protect tr ...

. The fort was active until 1853 and is now a tourist attraction. The Masonic lodge, Freedom Lodge No. 100 AF&AM, was chartered on 20 January 1852 by the

Grand Lodge of Texas The Grand Lodge of Texas, Ancient Free and Accepted Masons is the largest of several governing bodies of Freemasonry in the State of Texas, being solely of the Ancients' tradition and descending from the Ancient Grand Lodge of England, founded on ...

, and is rumored to have met at Fort Martin Scott in Fredericksburg, TX. However the lodge became defunct in "1856 due to a lack of members." Scott's name is engraved on a plaque in the Texas state Capitol along with other officers of the U.S. Army who fell during the Mexican War. From his days stationed at Fort Crawford, it is said that he named the Bloody Run Creek, which flows into the Mississippi River from the west, directly across from

Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin Prairie du Chien ( ) is a city in Crawford County, Wisconsin, United States, and its county seat. The population was 5,506 at the 2020 census. Often called Wisconsin's second-oldest city, Prairie du Chien was established as a European settlemen ...

. According to James Henry Lockwood, then-justice of the peace at Prairie du Chien, then-Lieutenant Scott named the creek for his frequent successful hunting trips.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, Martin People from Bennington, Vermont United States Army officers 1788 births 1847 deaths American military personnel of the Mexican–American War