John Brown Gordon

John Brown Gordon
Gen. J.B. Gordon
United States Senator from Georgia
In office March 4, 1873 – May 26, 1880
Preceded by	Joshua Hill
Succeeded by	Joseph E. Brown
In office March 4, 1891 – March 3, 1897
Preceded by	Joseph E. Brown
Succeeded by	Alexander S. Clay
53rd Governor of Georgia
In office November 9, 1886 – November 8, 1890
Preceded by	Henry D. McDaniel
Succeeded by	William J. Northen
Personal details
Born	February 6, 1832 Upson County, Georgia
Died	January 9, 1904(1904-01-09) (aged 71) Miami, Florida
Spouse(s)	Rebecca (Fanny) Haralson
Military service
Allegiance	Confederate States of America
Service/branch	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–1865
Rank	Major General (CSA)
Commands	Second Corps, Army of Northern Virginia
Battles/wars	American Civil War First Battle of Bull Run Seven Days Battles Battle of Malvern Hill Maryland Campaign Battle of Antietam Battle of Shepherdstown Gettysburg Campaign Battle of Gettysburg Overland Campaign Battle of the Wilderness Battle of Spotsylvania Court House Valley Campaigns of 1864 Battle of Opequon Battle of Cedar Creek Siege of Petersburg Battle of Fort Stedman Appomattox Campaign Battle of Appomattox Courthouse

American Civil War

John Brown Gordon (February 6, 1832 – January 9, 1904) was one of Robert E. Lee's most trusted Confederate generals by the end of the American Civil War. After the war, he was a strong opponent of Reconstruction during the late 1860s. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a U.S. Senator from 1873 to 1880, and again from 1891 to 1897. He also served as the 53rd Governor of Georgia from 1886 to 1890.

Gordon was descended from an ancient Scottish lineage, and was born on his father Zachariah Gordon's farm in Upson County, Georgia, the fourth of twelve children. Many Gordon family members fought in the Revolutionary War. His family moved to Walker County, Georgia in the 1840s, where his father owned a plantation with 18 slaves at the time of the 1840 census. He was an outstanding student at the University of Georgia, where he was a member of the Mystical 7 Society, but left before graduating. He studied law in Atlanta and passed the bar examination. Gordon and his father, Zachariah, invested in a series of coal mines in Tennessee and Georgia. He also practiced law. Gordon married Rebecca "Fanny" Haralson, daughter of Hugh Anderson Haralson, in 1854, and they had a long and happy marriage. They had six children.

In 1860, he owned one slave, a 14-year-old female. His father owned four slaves that same census.

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