Samuel King Vaughan (April 20, 1824September 28, 1872) was an American businessman and

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 ...

pioneer. He served as a Union Army officer throughout 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 ...

and was granted an honorary brevet to brigadier general. After the war, he served a term as

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

Columbia County, Wisconsin Columbia County is a County (United States), county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 58,490. Its county seat and largest city is Portage, Wisconsin, Portage. The county ...

Career

Vaughan joined the Union Army as a second lieutenant in the 2nd Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment on June 11, 1861.Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, ''Civil War High Commands.'' Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. . pp. 543–544. He resigned his commission on September 16, 1861. He rejoined the army on March 31, 1862, as a captain in the

19th Wisconsin Volunteer Infantry Regiment The 19th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was a volunteer infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Service The 19th Wisconsin was organized at Madison, Wisconsin, and mustered into Federal service April 30, 1 ...

. He was promoted to major on January 22, 1864. He later took part in 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 ...

. When

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

was occupied by the Union Army on April 3, 1865, the 19th Wisconsin Infantry was the first regiment to reach the city and Vaughan received the distinction of raising the regiment's flag at the city hall. He assumed command of the regiment later that month. He was promoted to lieutenant colonel on May 3, 1865. Vaughn was mustered out of the volunteers on August 9, 1865. He received an appointment as brevet

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 ...

to rank from August 9, 1865, preliminary to his appointment as a brevet brigadier general of volunteers. On February 21, 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 Vaughn for appointment to the grade of brevet brigadier general of volunteers to rank from August 9, 1865, and 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 the appointment on April 10, 1866. Vaughan died at his home 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 ...

, on September 28, 1872, after a months-long illness.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vaughan, Samuel 1824 births 1872 deaths People from Adams, Massachusetts People from Portage, Wisconsin People of Wisconsin in the American Civil War Union army officers Wisconsin sheriffs