History of Magnolia, (Stark County) Ohio United States of America

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Jacob Dolson Cox, statesman, was born in Montreal, Canada, Oct. 27, 1828; son of Jacob Dolson and Thedia Redelia (Kenyon) Cox. His parents were natives of the United States and residents of New York, and he received his primary education in that city. On his father's side he was descended from Michael Cox (or Koch) a Hanoverian, who emigrated to New York in 1702. On his mother's side he was descended from Payne Kenyon, a Revolutionary soldier of Connecticut, who was at Burgoyne's surrender; from Freeman Allyn, another Revolutionary soldier of Connecticut, who fought at Groten against Benedict Arnold, and from Elder William Brewster of the Mayflower. The Allyns were of the earliest colonists of Salem and Manchester, Mass: He removed to Ohio in 1846, was graduated from Oberlin college in 1851, was admitted to the bar in 1853, and practised his profession at Warron, Ohio. In 1859 he was elected to the state senate as a Republican. As brigadier-general of the state militia he was active at the outbreak of the civil war in aiding General McClellan in organizing and forwarding state troops and was appointed by Governor Dennison brigadier-general of Ohio troops in the service of the United States. On May 17, 1861, President Lincoln commissioned him brigadier-general of the U.S. volunteers and he commanded an independent column under McClellan in the West Virginia campaign, from July to September, 1861, and under Resecrans from September to December of the same year.. He commanded the district of the Kanawha until August, 1862, when he was ordered to Washington. He led the advance of the right wing of McClellan's army at South Mountain and opened the battle, September 14, and when General Reno fell, he succeeded to the command of the 9th army corps, directing its movements in the battle of Antietam, Sept. 17, 1862. On Oct. 6, 1862, he was promoted major-general of volunteers and ordered to West Virginia, where he drove back the Confederates and commanded the district till April, 1863. He was then ordered to report to General Burnside, department of the Ohio, and commanded the district of Ohio and Michigan until November, when he was given temporary command of the 23d army corps in East Tennessee. Later he commanded the 3d division of the corps and joined Sherman in his Georgia campaign, leading his division in all the battles from May to September, resuming command of the corps during the absence of General Schofield, conducting it in the campaign against Hood in October, participating in the battle of Franklin, Nov. 30, 1864, and again resuming command of the 3d division in the battle of Nashville, on Dec. 16, 1864. For services at the battle of Franklin he was restored to the rank of major-general, from which he had been reduced in April, 1863, by reason of the number of appointments being in excess of the law, and was given permanent command of the 23d corps. He was transferred with his corps in February, 1865, to North Carolina as part of Schofield's army, capturing Fort Anderson, the cities of Wilmington and Kingston, joining Sherman's army at Goldsbero and commanding the district of western North Carolina at Greensboro after the surrender of General Johnston. He resigned from the service Jan. 1, 1866, and returned to Ohio, where he was elected governor of the state, serving 186667. He was secretary of the interior in President Grant's cabinet, 1869-70, and a representative from Toledo in the 45th congress, 1877-79. In 1881 he was elected dean and professor of constitutional law and civil procedure in the Cincinnati law school. In addition to his duties as dean of the law school he was president of the University of Cincinnati, 1884-89. In 1897 he retired from the deanship of the law school and from active professional life. He was married to Helen, daughter of the Rev. Charles Grandison Finney, president of Oberlin college. He served as president of the American microscopical society, fellow of the American association for the advancement of science, of the Royal microscopical society of London, honorary member of the American philosophical society, Philadelphia, and corresponding member of the Belgium microscopical society. He received the degree of M.A. from Oberlin in 1854, and that of LL.D. from Denison university in 1866, from the University of North Carolina in 1867 and from Yale in 1877. He is the author of articles on subjects relating to the civil war contributed to the leading reviews and magazines, and he published: Atlanta (1882); The March to the Sea (1882); The Second Battle of Bull Run (1882); Franklin and Nashville (1883); The Battle of Franklin (1897). He died at Magnolia, Ohio, Aug. 4, 1900.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

History of Magnolia, (Stark County) Ohio

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