Randal William McGavock
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Randal William McGavock (1826–1863) was an American lawyer, Democratic politician, Southern planter, and colonel in the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...
.Friends of Metropolitan Archives of Nashville and Davidson County, TN
/ref>Nashville Public Library: Mayors of Nashville, Tennessee
/ref>
Sons of Confederate Veterans The Sons of Confederate Veterans (SCV) is an American neo-Confederate nonprofit organization of male descendants of Confederate soldiers that commemorates these ancestors, funds and dedicates monuments to them, and promotes the pseudohisto ...
Battle of Raymond
/ref>Tennessee State Library and Archives
/ref> He served as the mayor of
Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, often known as Music City, is the capital and List of municipalities in Tennessee, most populous city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County in Middle Tennessee, locat ...
, from 1858 to 1859.


Early life

Randal William McGavock was born on August 10, 1826, in Nashville, Tennessee. He was a fourth-generation Irish-American. His paternal grandfather's brother was
Randal McGavock Randal McGavock (1766–1843) was an American politician and Plantations in the American South, Southern planter in Nashville, Tennessee. Identifying as a Jeffersonian Republican, he served as the List of mayors of Nashville, Tennessee, Mayor of N ...
(1766–1843), who served as Mayor of Nashville from 1824 to 1825 and owned the
Carnton Carnton is a historic Plantation complexes in the Southern United States, plantation home built in 1826 in Franklin, Tennessee, Franklin, Williamson County, Tennessee, United States. The property, comprising , played an important role during an ...
plantation. His father, Jacob McGavock, fought in the
Creek War The Creek War (also the Red Stick War or the Creek Civil War) was a regional conflict between opposing Native American factions, European powers, and the United States during the early 19th century. The Creek War began as a conflict within th ...
of 1813–1814 with
Andrew Jackson Andrew Jackson (March 15, 1767 – June 8, 1845) was the seventh president of the United States from 1829 to 1837. Before Presidency of Andrew Jackson, his presidency, he rose to fame as a general in the U.S. Army and served in both houses ...
. His mother was Louisa Caroline (Grundy) McGavock. His maternal grandfather was
Felix Grundy Felix Grundy (September 11, 1777 – December 19, 1840) was an American attorney and politician who served as the 13th United States Attorney General. He also had served several terms as a congressman and as a U.S. senator from Tennessee. He ...
(1775–1840),
U.S. Congressman The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the 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 Article One of th ...
from Tennessee from 1829 to 1838 and 13th
United States Attorney General The United States attorney general is the head of the United States Department of Justice and serves as the chief law enforcement officer of the Federal government of the United States, federal government. The attorney general acts as the princi ...
from 1838 to 1840. McGavock attended a private academy, The Classical and Mathematical Seminary run by Professor Moses Stevens (1790–1841) in Nashville, which closed down in 1846. From 1843 to 1846, he attended the
University of Nashville University of Nashville was a private university in Nashville, Tennessee. It was established in 1806 as Cumberland College. It existed as a distinct entity until 1909; operating at various times a medical school, a four-year military college, a ...
. In 1847, he enrolled at the
Harvard Law School Harvard Law School (HLS) is the law school of Harvard University, a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1817, Harvard Law School is the oldest law school in continuous operation in the United ...
, where he was active in the debating club called Kent Club and the
Moot court Moot court is a co-curricular activity at many law schools. Participants take part in simulated court or arbitration proceedings, usually involving drafting memorials or memoranda and participating in oral argument. In many countries, the phrase ...
. He received his law degree from the Harvard Law School in 1849.Helen P. Trimpi, ''Crimson Confederates: Harvard Men who Fought for the South'', Knoxville, Tennessee: University of Tennessee Press, 2010, p. 38

/ref> He then went on a twenty-month tour of Europe, Asia and Africa. He wrote articles about his experiences abroad for the ''Daily Nashville Union'' and published them in a book in 1854.


Career

Upon his return from Europe, McGavock worked as a lawyer in Nashville. He joined the A.O.M.C., a fraternal organization whose members wore black robes and hoods during ceremonies. He also oversaw his family plantations in
Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the West South Central region of the Southern United States. It borders Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, Texas to the southwest, and Oklahoma ...
,
Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
, and
Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...
. His portrait was painted by
Washington Bogart Cooper Washington Bogart Cooper (September 18, 1802 – March 30, 1888) was an American portrait painter, sometimes known as "the man of a thousand portraits".James Hoobler,Washington Bogart Cooper" ''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'' ...
(1802–1888) . McGavock was active in the
Tennessee Democratic Party The Tennessee Democratic Party (TNDP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party in Tennessee. The party was founded in 1826 initially as the Jacksonian democracy, Jacksonian Party. The Tennessee Democratic Party w ...
. For example, he canvassed for
James Buchanan James Buchanan Jr. ( ; April 23, 1791June 1, 1868) was the 15th president of the United States, serving from 1857 to 1861. He also served as the United States Secretary of State, secretary of state from 1845 to 1849 and represented Pennsylvan ...
in the 1856 campaign. He served as Mayor of Nashville from 1858 to 1859. He had won the election thanks to the Irish vote. In 1860, he campaigned for
John C. Breckinridge John Cabell Breckinridge (January 16, 1821 – May 17, 1875) was an American politician who served as the 14th vice president of the United States, with President James Buchanan, from 1857 to 1861. Assuming office at the age of 36, Breckinrid ...
. He was a strong proponent of states's rights. Prior to 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 ...
of 1861–1865, McGavock established a militia in Tennessee among the Irish. Meanwhile, his wife founded the Ladies Soldiers' Friend Society, a patriotic group that included Sarah Childress Polk, the widow of President
James Polk James Knox Polk (; November 2, 1795 – June 15, 1849) was the 11th president of the United States, serving from 1845 to 1849. A protégé of Andrew Jackson and a member of the Democratic Party, he was an advocate of Jacksonian democracy an ...
(1795–1849). During the war, he organized, outfitted, and served as lieutenant colonel of the 10th Tennessee Infantry ("Sons of Erin") in the
Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...
. In 1862, he succeeded to command of the 10th Tennessee at
Fort Donelson Fort Donelson was a fortress built early in 1862 by the Confederacy during the American Civil War to control the Cumberland River, which led to the heart of Tennessee, and thereby the Confederacy. The fort was named after Confederate general Da ...
when its colonel,
Adolphus Heiman Adolphus Heiman (April 17, 1809 – November 16, 1862) was a Prussian-born American architect and soldier; later becoming a Confederate States Army, Confederate officer during the American Civil War.Christine Kreyling (ed.), ''Classical Nashville ...
, was given command of a brigade. He was captured in the ensuing siege and imprisoned in Fort Warren on Georges Island in
Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...
for five months. He was paroled in September 1862 and re-elected lieutenant colonel when the regiment was exchanged and reorganized. Upon Heiman's death from illness in November, McGavock became colonel of the 10th Tennessee and was killed in action leading a counter-attack at the
Battle of Raymond The Battle of Raymond was fought on May 12, 1863, near Raymond, Mississippi, during the Vicksburg campaign of the American Civil War. Initial Union (American Civil War), Union attempts to capture the strategically important Mississippi River ...
in Mississippi on May 12, 1863.


Personal life

McGavock married Seraphina Deery in 1855.


Death and legacy

After he was killed in combat on May 12, 1863, McGavock was first buried in Raymond, but his sister Ann and her husband, Judge Henry Dickinson made arrangements for the body to be brought to their home in
Columbus, Mississippi Columbus is a city in and the county seat of Lowndes County, Mississippi, Lowndes County, on the eastern border of Mississippi, United States, located primarily east, but also north and northeast of the Tombigbee River, which is also part of the ...
. Finally, on St. Patrick's Day, 1866, he was buried in Mount Olivet Cemetery in Nashville during a ceremony conducted by the Masons. McGavock's portrait, done by
Washington Bogart Cooper Washington Bogart Cooper (September 18, 1802 – March 30, 1888) was an American portrait painter, sometimes known as "the man of a thousand portraits".James Hoobler,Washington Bogart Cooper" ''Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture'' ...
, hangs in the
Nashville Public Library Nashville Public Library (NPL) is the public library system serving Nashville, Tennessee and the metropolitan area of Davidson County. In 2010, the Nashville Public Library was the recipient of the National Medal for Museum and Library Service. ...
.


Bibliography


Primary source

*Randal William McGavock, ''A Tennessean Abroad'' (1854).


Secondary source

*Jack Allen, ''The Diary of Randal William McGavock, 1852–1862: An Interpretation of a Period'' (Nashville, Tennessee: George Peabody College for Teachers, 1941).


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McGavock, Randal William 1826 births 1863 deaths 19th-century mayors of places in Tennessee American people of Irish descent Politicians from Nashville, Tennessee University of Nashville alumni Harvard Law School alumni Mayors of Nashville, Tennessee Tennessee Democrats 19th-century American planters Confederate States Army officers American Freemasons McGavock family Politicians killed in the American Civil War Slave owners killed in the American Civil War Burials at Mount Olivet Cemetery (Nashville) 19th-century American lawyers