- Robert H. Hatton
Infobox Military Person
name= Robert Hopkins Hatton
lived= birth date|1826|11|2 – death date and age|1862|5|31|1826|11|2
caption=
nickname=
placeofbirth=Steubenville, Ohio
placeofdeath=Henrico County, Virginia
allegiance=Confederate States of America
branch=Confederate Army
serviceyears= 1861–62 (CSA)
rank= Brigadier General (not confirmed)
unit=
commands=
battles=American Civil War *Peninsula Campaign *Battle of Seven Pines †
awards=
relations=
laterwork=Robert Hopkins Hatton (
November 2 ,1826 –May 31 ,1862 ) was a lawyer, politician,United States Congressman , and Confederate officer during theAmerican Civil War .Biography
Hatton was born in
Steubenville, Ohio , but, early in his life, his family moved toTennessee . He graduated fromCumberland University , then studied law there atCumberland School of Law and established a successful practice inLebanon, Tennessee , after passing the bar exam in 1850. He joined the Whig Party and was elected to the State Legislature in 1855. He unsuccessfully ran for governor in 1857. He was elected to theThirty-sixth Congress in 1858 as an Opposition party candidate (the Whig party had collapsed), where he served as chairman of the Committee on Expenditures in the Department of the Navy.Hatton believed that the Union should be preserved and initially opposed
secession . However, after PresidentAbraham Lincoln called for volunteers to invade the Southern states, Hatton reversed his position and formed a Confederate military unit, the Lebanon Blues, which became a part of the 7th Tennessee. Hatton was soon elected ascolonel of the regiment, which was sent to western Virginia in July 1861.In 1862, Hatton and his men were ordered to the Richmond area to stop Federal Maj. Gen.
George B. McClellan 's drive on the Confederate capital. During the resultingPeninsula Campaign , Hatton served with distinction, and onMay 23 ,1862 , he was promoted to brigadier general of the 4th Brigade, 1st Division,Army of Northern Virginia ; this appointment was not confirmed by the Confederate Congress. [Eicher, p. 600.] Just eight days later, he was shot in the head and killed while leading his Tennessee Brigade at the Battle of Fair Oaks.cite web | url = http://www.wilsoncountycvb.com/images/tour.pdf | title = Lebanon, Tennessee: A Tour of Our City | format = PDF | publisher = Lebanon/Wilson County Chamber of Commerce | accessdate = February 5 | accessyear = 2007]His body was returned to Tennessee for burial, but because Middle Tennessee was occupied by Federal troops, he was temporarily buried at Knoxville. On
March 23 ,1866 , he was reburied in Lebanon's Cedar Grove Cemetery. A statue of him was erected in Lebanon's town square in 1912.Honors
The Robert H. Hatton Camp #723 of the
Sons of Confederate Veterans is named in his memory and honor.References
* Cummings, Charles M., "Robert Hopkins Hatton: Reluctant Rebel." "Tennessee Historical Quarterly" Number 23, June 1964, pages 169-81.
* Eicher, John H., and Eicher, David J., "Civil War High Commands", Stanford University Press, 2001, ISBN 0-8047-3641-3.Notes
External links
* [http://www.generalsandbrevets.com/sgh/hatton.htm Photo Gallery of Hatton]
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