Common soldier’s general: James Dada Morgan

The Historical Society
of Quincy and Adams County possesses important artifacts from a Quincy Civil
War general, James Dada Morgan.

One prized item is the elaborate ceremonial sword the general received during
the war. A second, and perhaps even more valuable item, is Morgan’s commission
as general signed by President Abraham Lincoln. Numerous documents from
Morgan’s life are also in the society’s library.

Morgan was born Aug.
1, 1810, in Boston, the son of a seafaring father. The young Morgan went to sea
in 1826 on a sailing vessel, supposedly venturing for a three-year cruise to
the East Indies. After just a month at sea, a mutiny occurred, the ship was
burned, and after several weeks in a lifeboat, Morgan and others made their way
to South America. He returned to Boston and, at the age of 24, decided to move
west and set up residence in Quincy. Morgan operated a cooper shop for several
years. Then, for a quarter of a century, he became an employee of the C.M.
Pomroy pork-packing enterprise. He participated in militia activity with the “Quincy
Grays,” a local militia company he helped form. Morgan enlisted at the start of
the Mexican-American War and became a major in the First Illinois Infantry,
which participated in several significant battles, most notably the battle of
Buena Vista.

At the outbreak of the Civil War in April 1861, because of his previous
military experience, Morgan was a logical choice for an officer’s assignment.
But unlike many, he had no political connections. If anything, he might be
described as a Douglas Democrat. He enlisted with the 10th Illinois Infantry,
90-day volunteers. However, when the 10th left for Cairo, Lt. Col. Morgan was
unable to accompany them, because he had recently suffered a broken leg. When
the 90 days expired, Morgan re-enlisted for the duration of the war.

The transition from a prewar army of 16,000 men, with just five general
officers, to an army that ultimately had 2 million men and 565 generals
provided an enormous challenge. Men like Morgan and fellow Quincyan Benjamin
Prentiss were logical choices for officer assignments. Prentiss, who had
political connections, had also served as an officer in Mexico.

He rose to the rank of general and served effectively, but his services were no
longer needed and he was discharged near the end of 1863. Morgan was elevated
to brigadier general in July 1862 with the recommendation of U.S. Sen. Orville
H. Browning, another Quincyan. His commission was signed by Lincoln and is
proudly displayed in the Historical Society’s Lincoln Gallery. Unlike Prentiss,
Morgan served to the end of the war and was mustered out in August 1865.

During the war, Morgan served under Gens. John Pope, William S. Rosecrans,
George H. Thomas, and William T. Sherman. His Civil War assignments included:
Colonel of the 10th Illinois; command of the 4th Brigade; 1st Division for the
District of Cairo; andcommand of the 1st Brigade, 4th Division, the Army of the
Mississippi. Morgan’s battle assignments constitute virtually a review of the
war in the western theatre of operations, followed by the great campaigns that
helped bring about the final surrender of the Confederacy. He commanded troops
at New Madrid, Mo., and Island No. 10 on the Mississippi.

In the battle at Island No. 10, Union forces took 7,000 prisoners and opened
the river to operations further south on the Mississippi. This action occurred
one day after the battle of Shiloh, April 8, 1862. This was followed by the
siege of Corinth, Miss., an important transportation center, which Confederate
forces eventually evacuated. Next, Morgan’s forces were stationed at Nashville
for an extended period to provide stability to central Tennessee. Subsequently
Morgan’s division of the Army of the Cumberland was assigned to Gen. Thomas’
forces and served effectively at the battle of Missionary Ridge in the
Chattanooga campaign. After the Chattanooga campaign, General
Morgan served with William Tecumseh Sherman’s army as commander of the
4th Division in the vital Atlanta
campaign. Famous battles at Resaca and Kennesaw Mountain in Georgia preceded the
conquest of Atlanta. The fall of Atlanta is frequently cited by historians as
the crucial ingredient needed to secure Lincoln’s re-election in 1864. After
Atlanta, Morgan’s division participated in the Savannah campaign, better known
as Sherman’s March to the Sea.

From Savannah, Sherman’s army campaigned in the Carolinas. Morgan’s
division played a vital role at the battle of Bentonville, N.C. On March 19,
1865, Confederate Gen. Joe Johnston launched a desperate surprise attack on
Union forces. Nearly surrounded, Morgan’s division successfully held its
position and Union forces were then able to inflict heavy damage on Johnston’s
army. Johnston’s defeat signaled that the end of the Confederacy was near.
Acclaimed Civil War author Shelby Foote described the 55-year-old Morgan at
Bentonville, as “a workhorse type who had risen by hard fighting.” These
instincts served him well in an important action for which he received an
almost immediate promotion.

Foote’s description of Morgan was one reinforced by his own soldiers. Only a
minimal percentage of officers are both exemplary leaders and idolized by their
men. Morgan fit this category. A Nashville newspaper, the Union, printed an
article recognizing the special character traits that endeared Morgan to
ordinary soldiers.

As an example, in three years of service time, he took no furloughs. He sought
to break down barriers between himself and his men by wearing the uniform of
the common soldier. A reporter for the Nashville paper said he saw Morgan,
shovel in hand, helping to bury dead soldiers from his unit. The reporter went
on to heap further praise on Morgan: “Few officers in the army are superior to
Gen. Morgan, none are better liked by his men and caring little about
ostentation, he labors faithfully to do his duty to his country and to his
brigade.” These accolades were reinforced at a post-war reunion by one of his
men who remarked, “Gen. Morgan was always in the thickest of the fight, and he
never sent us to where he would not go himself.”

Morgan was rewarded after Bentonville by being elevated to the rank of brevet
major general. Sherman’s army continued to head north, ending at Washington to
participate in the grand review of the Union army on May 24, 1865. Morgan was
subsequently mustered out of the army in August 1865 and he returned to take up
peaceful occupations at his home in Quincy.

In peacetime, Morgan served as vice president of the First National Bank of Quincy and he served on the boards of several companies. Notably, he was
treasurer of the Soldier’s Home (today’s Illinois Veterans Home) at its
organization. Morgan maintained the same kind of respect in peacetime as he had
during the war.

He died at the age of 86 in September 1896 and is buried in Woodland Cemetery.
The Civil War produced almost mythical military figures like Grant and Lee, but
less celebrated are some like James Dada Morgan, whose dedication to the cause
contributed to the final outcome, preserving the Union and ending slavery.

David Costigan is professor emeritus of history at Quincy University, a
member of the Lincoln-Douglas Debate Interpretive Center Advisory Board, a
respected authority on local history, and a frequent speaker.

Sources

Costigan, David. A City
in Wartime: Quincy Illinois in the Civil War. Unpublished doctoral
dissertation, Illinois State University, 1994.

Foote, Shelby. The Civil
War: A Narrative. Vol. 3. New York: Random House Inc., 1974.

“Obituary.”
Quincy Daily Whig. Sept. 13, 1896.

Pease, Theodore Calvin;
and James G. Randall (eds.). The Diary of Orville H. Browning, 1850-81. Vol. 1.
Springfield, Ill.: Illinois State Historical Society. The diary is also
available online at

.

Sifakis, Stewart. Who
Was Who in the Civil War. Facts on File, 1988.

Warner, Ezra. Generals
in Blue: Lives of the Union Commanders. Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University
Press, 1964.