Michael Kelly Lawler

Michael Kelly Lawler
Michael Kelly Lawler during the American Civil War
Born	November 16, 1814(1814-11-16) County Kildare, Ireland
Died	July 22, 1882(1882-07-22) (aged 67) near Shawneetown, Illinois
Buried at	Lawler Family Cemetery near Equality, Illinois
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army (Mexican War) Union Army (Civil War)
Years of service	1846–48 (U.S. Army) 1861–65 (Union Army)
Rank	Brevet Major General
Unit	18th Illinois Infantry
Commands held	Lawler's Brigade, XIII Corps, Army of the Tennessee
Battles/wars	Mexican War American Civil War Battle of Fort Donelson Vicksburg Campaign Battle of Port Gibson Battle of Champion's Hill Battle of Big Black River Bridge
Other work	Farmer, merchant

Michael Kelly Lawler (November 16, 1814 – July 26, 1882) was an officer in the United States Army in both the Mexican War and the Civil War. In the latter conflict, as a brigadier general he commanded a brigade of infantry in the Western Theater and served in several battles.

Early life and career

Born in County Kildare, Ireland, in 1814, Lawler and his parents, John and Elizabeth Kelly Lawler, moved to the United States and settled initially in Frederick County, Maryland. In 1819, they moved to rural Gallatin County, Illinois. On the 20th day of December, 1837 he married Elizabeth Crenshaw. He received an appointment as a captain in the Mexican War and was asked by Governor Thomas Ford to organize a company of riflemen. He served in the campaign to take Matamoros, Tamaulipas.

He then returned to his farm in Illinois, where he was residing at the outbreak of the Civil War. He established a thriving mercantile business, dealing in hardware, dry goods, and shoes. He studied law, passed his bar exam, and used his legal license to help the claims of Mexican War veterans.^[1]

Civil War service

In May 1861 he recruited the 18th Illinois Volunteer Infantry Regiment, and was appointed as its first colonel. His time in command of the regiment in Kentucky and Tennessee was controversial and an "ordeal."^[1] He was suffered a wound during the Battle of Fort Donelson. In November 1862 he was commissioned as a brigadier general, and commanded a brigade in the Second Division of the XIII Corps. He fought with distinction in the Vicksburg Campaign in 1863. He led his men in the battles of Port Gibson, Champion's Hill, and Big Black River Bridge.^[2]

Following the surrender of Jackson, Mississippi, the XIII Corps was split up and divided among other operations in the Western Theater. For the rest of the war, General Lawler served in Louisiana in the Department of the Gulf.

In the omnibus promotions at the end of the Civil War, Lawler received a promotion for distinguished service to major general in the Union army backdated from March 13, 1865.

Post-bellum and later career

After mustering out of the army in 1866, Lawler returned home and resumed his legal practice and farming near Shawneetown, Illinois.

He died in the summer 1882 and is buried in the Lawler Family Cemetery near Equality, Illinois.

A memorial to Michael K. Lawler stands in Equality, Illinois. He also was honored with a marble bust in Vicksburg National Military Park in Vicksburg, Mississippi.

Notes

1. ^ ^{a b} Pitkin, 357.
2. ^ wayside marker, Gallatin Historical Society and The Illinois State Historical Society

References

• Gallatin Historical Society and The Illinois State Historical Society, wayside marker erected 1/1/1970, near the Shawneetown Mall in Shawneetown, Illinois.
• Pitkin, William A., "Michael K. Lawler's Ordeal with the Eighteenth Illinois Infantry," Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1908–1984), Vol. 58, No. 4 (Winter, 1965), pp. 357–77.

Further reading

• Crichton, Jane, "Michael Kelly Lawler: A Southern Illinois Mexican War Captain and Civil War General." Thesis. Carbondale, Illinois: Southern Illinois University. 1965.
• Dorris, Jonathan T., "Michael Kelly Lawler: Mexican and Civil War Officer," Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, Vol. 48, No. 4 (Winter 1955).
• Heidler, David Stephen, Heidler, Jeanne T., and Coles, David J., Encyclopedia of the American Civil War: a political, social, and military history, W. W. Norton & Company, 2002, p. 1146, ISBN 039304758X.
• Hicken, Victor, Illinois in the Civil War, Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1991.
• Lawler's personal papers - Collection at Southern Illinois University at Carbondale; microfilm copy at Illinois State Historical Library

External links

• Lawler Cemetery at graveyards.com, showing M.K. Lawler monument
• Find-a-Grave entry for Michael Kelly Lawler (location given on this page is incorrect)
• illinoiscivilwar.org entry for Lawler.

Persondata
Name	Lawler, Michael K.
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	November 16, 1814
Place of birth	County Kildare, Ireland
Date of death	July 22, 1882
Place of death	near Shawneetown, Illinois