Robert H. Hatton

Robert H. Hatton
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Tennessee's 5th district
In office March 4, 1859 – March 3, 1861
Preceded by	Charles Ready
Succeeded by	William B. Campbell (1866)
Member of the Tennessee House of Representatives from Wilson County
In office October 1, 1855 – October 5, 1857
Personal details
Born	Robert Hopkins Hatton November 2, 1826 Steubenville, Ohio
Died	May 31, 1862 (aged 35) Henrico County, Virginia
Political party	Opposition Whig
Alma mater	Cumberland University
Military service
Allegiance	Confederate States
Service/branch	Confederate States Army
Years of service	1861–1862
Rank	Brigadier General (not confirmed)
Battles/wars	American Civil War Peninsula Campaign Battle of Seven Pines †

Robert Hopkins Hatton (November 2, 1826 – May 31, 1862) was a lawyer, politician, United States Congressman, and Confederate General during the American Civil War.

Biography

Hatton was born in Steubenville, Ohio, but, early in his life, his family moved to Tennessee. He graduated from Cumberland University, then studied law there at Cumberland School of Law and established a successful practice in Lebanon, 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 the Thirty-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.

Congressman Robert H. Hatton.

Hatton believed that the Union should be preserved and initially opposed secession. However, after President Abraham Lincoln called for volunteers to suppress unlawful combinations that were preventing the laws of the United States from being executed,^[1] 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 as colonel 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 resulting Peninsula Campaign, Hatton served with distinction, and on May 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.^[2] Just eight days later, he was shot in the head and killed while leading his Tennessee Brigade at the Battle of Fair Oaks.^[3]

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.^[3]

Honors

The Robert H. Hatton Camp #723 of the Sons of Confederate Veterans is named in his memory and honor.

See also

• List of American Civil War generals (Confederate)

Notes

1. Proclamation of President Abraham Lincoln, dated April 15, 1861
2. Eicher, p. 600.
3. "Lebanon, Tennessee: A Tour of Our City" (PDF). Lebanon/Wilson County Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 15, 2007. Retrieved February 5, 2007.

References

• Cummings, Charles M., "Robert Hopkins Hatton: Reluctant Rebel." Tennessee Historical Quarterly Number 23, June 1964, pages 169-81.
• Eicher, John H., and David J. Eicher, Civil War High Commands. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 2001. ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1.
• Sifakis, Stewart. Who Was Who in the Civil War. New York: Facts On File, 1988. ISBN 978-0-8160-1055-4.
• Warner, Ezra J. Generals in Gray: Lives of the Confederate Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Press, 1959. ISBN 978-0-8071-0823-9.

External links

• United States Congress. "Robert H. Hatton (id: H000349)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress. Retrieved on 2009-05-03
• Photo Gallery of Hatton at the Wayback Machine (archived February 8, 2008)