Gilman Marston

Gilman Marston

Gilman Marston (* 20th August 1811 in Orford , Grafton County , New Hampshire , † 3. July 1890 in Exeter , New Hampshire) was an American politician ( Republican Party ), of the state of New Hampshire in both houses of Congress represented . During the Civil War he served as a brigadier general in the US Army .

Early political career

Gilman Marston graduated from Dartmouth College in Hanover , New Hampshire in 1837 and passed his law exam at Harvard University three years later . After his admission to the bar, he practiced as a lawyer in Exeter from 1841. His political career began with membership in the New Hampshire House of Representatives between 1845 and 1849; In 1850 he took part in the state's constitutional convention as a delegate.

In 1858, Marston first ran for a seat in the United States House of Representatives . After a successful election he represented the first district of New Hampshire between March 4, 1859 and March 3, 1863 in Washington . There he was one of the staunch supporters of the policies of US President Abraham Lincoln and the war against the Confederation .

Civil war

Marston joined the US Army during his time as an MP. He was initially in command of the 2nd New Hampshire Infantry Regiment and took part in the First Battle of the Bull Run in July 1861. He sustained a serious arm injury; but he refused an amputation. When he was well again, deployments in the Peninsula Campaign , the Second Battle of Bull Run and the Battle of Fredericksburg followed . On November 29, 1862, Marston was promoted to brigadier general. He was part of the Potomac Army , but was assigned to the defense of the federal capital Washington before the Battle of Chancellorsville . In this way he was able to take up his vacant seat in the congress again.

After the Battle of Gettysburg , Marston was commissioned to build a prison camp in Maryland that would later become known as Point Lookout . Major General Benjamin Franklin Butler was in charge of activities in the area . In 1864 Marston led a brigade in the XVIII. Corps under Major General William Farrar Smith , which was used in the Bermuda Hundred Campaign . He was also involved in the Battle of Cold Harbor , which resulted in heavy losses for his brigade. During the Second Battle of Petersburg he was temporarily commander of the 1st Division of the XVIII. Corps. He then commanded the Union units that were deployed on the north bank of the James and was later again commander of the 1st Division, with which he took part in the Second Battle of Fair Oaks in October 1864. After he was re-elected to Congress, he resigned from military service in 1865; for his service in the war he was particularly honored by the state of New Hampshire.

Return to Congress

Marston resumed his seat in the House of Representatives, which had since fallen to Daniel Marcy , on March 4, 1865, and remained there for two years. The proposed office of governor of the Idaho Territory he declined in 1870; instead he served in 1872, 1873 and from 1876 to 1878 further terms in the parliament of his home state. In 1876 an attempt to be re-elected to Congress failed. In the same year he was again a delegate to the New Hampshire Constitutional Convention.

On March 4, 1889, Marston was finally appointed US Senator , although he only filled the time of a short vacancy. His predecessor William E. Chandler was also elected as his successor and replaced Marston on June 18 of the same year. He died the following year in Exeter and was buried there.

Web links

• Gilman Marston in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)

• Gilman Marston in the database of Find a Grave (English)