Henry Dana Washburn

Henry Dana Washburn

Henry Dana Washburn (born March 28, 1832 in Windsor , Windsor County , Vermont , † January 26, 1871 in Clinton , Indiana ) was an American politician , major general and explorer. In 1870 he led the second expedition to what is now Yellowstone National Park .

Earlier career

Henry Washburn was the son of James Washburn and Mary Cain and a cousin of Elihu Benjamin Washburne , an influential politician of the day. Little after Henry's birth, his parents moved with him to the Wayne County ( Ohio ), where he lived until the 1850th At the age of thirteen he began an apprenticeship as a tanner . Since he did not like this craft, he added training to become a teacher. Subsequently he taught in Helt's Prairie (Indiana). There he met Serena Nebeker and married her in late 1854. After his position in Helt's Prairie, he first attended Oberlin College and then graduated from New York State and National Law School . He opened a law firm in Newport, Indiana . In addition, he accepted the job as the county's financial auditor. Until the outbreak of the civil war , he and his wife Serena had four children.

Military and politics

At the beginning of the war, Henry Washburn assembled a company of volunteers in Terre Haute , who joined the Union Army as the 18th Indiana Company . Washburn was made a lieutenant colonel . In July 1862 he was promoted to colonel . On 26 July 1865 he resigned in poor health with the rank of major general from (Major General) from the army. During the war he had served in Missouri and Arkansas , among others , and participated in the Battle of Vicksburg .

While he was still in the army, he was able to take Daniel W. Voorhees ' seat in the US House of Representatives . Washburn added a second term, but turned down a third candidacy due to his health situation. Hoping the country air of the West would help him recover, he applied to US President Ulysses S. Grant for the position of Inspector General of Montana . Washburn prevailed against its competitor Philetus Norris , who later became the second superintendent of Yellowstone National Park.

Exploration of the Yellowstone area

In May 1869, Henry Washburn moved to Montana with his wife, two children, and other relatives. When arriving by ship, they were attacked by hostile Indians . The passengers were able to repel the attack, but the Washburns lost all their belongings. Henry decided to move to Helena (Montana) alone ; the rest of the family traveled back to Indiana.

A year later, he led an expedition to what is now Yellowstone National Park, together with writer Nathaniel Langford and Lieutenant Gustavus C. Doane . The expedition was named after them Washburn-Langford-Doane Expedition . His leadership at this company earned him great praise and made it a success. However, the expedition participant Truman Everts got lost in the bad weather on the way. While searching for the missing person, Washburn caught a bad cold, which further worsened his ailing health. After completing the expedition, he was forced to travel back to Indiana.

Despite his condition, he was still able to write a report on his findings in the Yellowstone area. He reached his father-in-law's home in Clinton, Indiana. A few days later, on January 26, 1871, he died.

Mount Washburn , a popular scenic mountain in Yellowstone National Park , was named after him.

literature

• Aubrey L. Haines: The Yellowstone Story. A History of our First National Park , Volume Two, University Press of Colorado, Niwot, 1996, ISBN 0-87081-391-9

Web links

• Henry Dana Washburn in the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress (English)
• Washburn Biography at Indiana in the Civil War (Engl.)