Mark Harden Blandford

Mark Harden Blandford (born July 13, 1826 in Jones County , Georgia , † January 31, 1902 in Columbus , Georgia) was an American officer , lawyer and politician .

Life

Mark Harden Blandford, son of Nancy Hardin and Clarke Blandford, was born in Jones County about eleven and a half years after the end of the British-American War . His grandfather, also called Clarke Blandford, immigrated to the American colonies from England . He returned to England when the War of Independence broke out . In doing so, he left his wife and three children. Those kids were Clarke, Champion, and Polly. Polly married a Mr. Hardison from Florida , while Champion died unmarried. Clarke Blandford, the father of Mark Harden Blandford, moved from Trenton ( New Jersey ) to Georgia. He lived in Warrenton for a while(Jones County), before moving to Harris County moved, where he was one of the first town clerk ( county clerk worked). His wife was a member of the Hardin family of Kentucky . The couple had three children together: Francis, Mark Hardin, and Carrie.

Mark Harden Blandford attended school in Penfield ( Greene County ), which was better known as Murphy University of Georgia. At this point it should be mentioned that the only university in Penfield is Mercer University , which was founded there in 1833. His youth were overshadowed by the economic crisis of 1837 . He was less than 20 years old when the Mexican-American War broke out. Without his parents' knowledge, he enlisted in the US Army . Blandford held the rank of captain . He served in a company under Major General Winfield Scott (1786–1866) and took part in all skirmishes and battles during the war. After the war ended, he returned to Georgia. He began with Colonel Thomas Hardeman (1825-1891) from Macon ( Bibb County ) with his law degree . Under a special law of the legislature , he was admitted to the bar and began practicing in Tazewell , the then administrative seat of Marion County . In the course of time he established himself there as a lawyer. His work as a lawyer was interrupted by the outbreak of the civil war. Blandford raised a company, the Buena Vista Guards, which became part of the Twelfth Regiment of Georgia. He was given command of this company. Over time, he was wounded several times. In this context, he lost his right arm in 1862 in the battle at McDower in the Allegheny Mountains during Jackson's Shenandoah campaign . Because of this wounding, he retired from active service in the Confederate Army and returned home. Soon after, he was elected to the Second Confederate Congress and served there until the end of the Confederation . Blandford then moved to Columbus, Muscogee County , where he resumed his practice as a lawyer. In 1869 he entered into a partnership with BH Thornton, which was later dissolved. He then founded a law firm with Lewis Garrard, which they operated under Blandford & Garrard . In 1874, Blandford was elected associate judge at the Supreme Court of Georgia to fill an unexpired term. In the following regular election he was elected for a full term. He held this post for ten years. He then returned to Columbus, where he entered into a partnership with Thomas Wingfield Grimes (1844-1905), which he maintained until his death in 1902. He was buried in Linwood Cemetery in Columbus.

Blandford was married to Sarah C. Daniel (1832–1877). The couple had at least four children together: Robert Hall († 1904), John W. (1861–1921), Lucy May (1868–1947) and Martha Frances (1871–1871).

literature

• Harden, William: A History of Savannah and South Georgia , Volume 2, Lewis Publishing Company, 1913, p. 1033

Web links

• Mark Harden Blandford in the database of Find a Grave (English)
• Mark Harden Blandford at The Political Graveyard
• Mark Harden Blandford on usgwarchives.net
• Mark Harden Blandford at linwoodcemetery.org

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Thomas Wingfield Grimes in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 24, 2015.
2. ↑ Thomas Wingfield Grimes on The Political Graveyard website
3. ^ Sarah C. Daniel Blandford in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 24, 2015.
4. ^ Robert Hall Blandford in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 24, 2015.
5. ^ John W. Blandford in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 24, 2015.
6. ↑ Lucy May Blandford in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 24, 2015.
7. ↑ Martha Frances Blandford in the Find a Grave database . Retrieved January 24, 2015.