A Civil War Biography
Alexander Robert Lawton
Lawton was born 4 November 1818 in Beaufort District, South
Carolina. He attended the US Military Academy, graduating 13th in
the class of 1839. He served a year in the artillery before
resigning to attend Harvard Law School from which he graduated in
1842. Lawton settled in Savannah, Georgia where he established a law
practice. He also was involved in railroad administration and state
politics. Lawton served in both the Georgia house of representatives
and the state senate.
He favored Georgia's secession and as a colonel in the Georgia
militia commanded the 1st Georgia Volunteers that seized Fort
Pulaski on 3 January 1861 under orders from Georgia Governor Joseph
Brown.
Lawton was commissioned a brigadier general in the Confederate army
on 13 April 1861. He was with "Stonewall" Jackson during the
Shenandoah Valley campaign. Lawton commanded the 4th Brigade in
Jackson's command during the Seven Days and at Second Manassas.
Lawton commanded Richard Ewell's Division at Sharpsburg and was
severely wounded.
On 10 August 1863 Lawton took on the administrative position of
quartermaster general of the Confederacy. A gifted administrator he
conducted the first census of Confederate resources, established the
plan of production and distribution, and organized the Bureau of
Foreign Supplies in a strategy for importing parts, machinery,
goods, and military uniforms. He was, however, unable to solve the
problem of material shortages and poorly-regulated railroads.
Following the war Lawton became increasingly important in Georgia
politics. He was a delegate to the state constitutional convention
in 1877 and a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in 1880
and 1884. He ran for the US Senate in 1880 but lost in what was
considered a victory of the "New South" over the "Old South." Lawton
was chosen president of the American Bar Association in 1882. He was
appointed minister to Austria in 1887 and served until 1889. He died
on 2 July 1896 at Clifton Springs, New York.
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