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Black Jack Logan: An Extraordinary Life In Peace And War
He was a dominant player in the politics of the Gilded Age, a three-term senator who was as popular as he was partisan. He was the vice-presidential candidate in the losing race in 1884. Had he not died unexpectedly at the age of sixty, he likely would have become president in 1888. He entered the political scene in 1859 with controversy, a Northern (Illinois) congressman so committed to enforcing the Fugitive Slave laws that abolitionists dubbed him
“Dirty Work” Logan.
The Civil War was the epiphany that changed his political and social philosophy. But more than that, the war made him a star. He changed his philosophy, changed political parties, and fought for the rights of African-Americans and for women’s suffrage. His own Southern-bred mother refused to speak to him for years. He witnessed his first battle as a United States congressman, but became so impassioned with the fury of the fight that he picked up a discarded rifle and battled alongside the foot soldiers. Officially entering the war as a colonel, he served under such legends as Grant and Sherman, and his ostentatious nature and solid leadership on the battlefield earned him rapid promotions and dominant roles in
the decisive campaigns of the war. By 1865 he was a major general leading an army, considered the best volunteer soldier that the war produced.
He may be the most noteworthy nineteenth-century American to escape the notice of the twentieth century. His name is John Alexander Logan, known in his time as Black Jack Logan, and this, finally, is the book he deserves.
“Dirty Work” Logan.
The Civil War was the epiphany that changed his political and social philosophy. But more than that, the war made him a star. He changed his philosophy, changed political parties, and fought for the rights of African-Americans and for women’s suffrage. His own Southern-bred mother refused to speak to him for years. He witnessed his first battle as a United States congressman, but became so impassioned with the fury of the fight that he picked up a discarded rifle and battled alongside the foot soldiers. Officially entering the war as a colonel, he served under such legends as Grant and Sherman, and his ostentatious nature and solid leadership on the battlefield earned him rapid promotions and dominant roles in
the decisive campaigns of the war. By 1865 he was a major general leading an army, considered the best volunteer soldier that the war produced.
He may be the most noteworthy nineteenth-century American to escape the notice of the twentieth century. His name is John Alexander Logan, known in his time as Black Jack Logan, and this, finally, is the book he deserves.
391 pages, Hardcover
First published July 1, 2005
25 people want to read
About the author
Gary L. Ecelbarger
8 books10 followersHe has published more than a dozen articles and reviews for Civil War and historical periodicals and has conducted group tours and Marine Corps staff rides of the 1862 Shenandoah Valley Campaign. He is a former president of the Bull Run Civil War Round Table and a charter member of the Kernstown Battlefield Association.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 8, 2019
Defeated vice presidential candidates rarely rate books about them unless they go on to something
better. But this one does. Illinois politician John A. Logan ran with James G. Blaine in 1884 as his
running mate for Vice President on the Republican ticket. He was also a US Senator and Representative before that and held some local elected office in Illinois. He was a stalwart Republican
and firm supporter of Ulysses S. Grant in the war and as president.
But all this did not make Logan one of the most powerful men in the country. In the years following
the Civil War Logan was the founder of the Grand Army Of The Republic, the most powerful veteran's
organization this nation ever saw. It was part of the get out the vote strategy of every Republican
national ticket. Logan was high in party councils and this is what got him there.
John A. Logan was born in Illinois in 1826 and upon reaching his majority identified himself with
the politics of Democrat Stephen A. Douglas. After serving in some local offices Logan went to the
House of Representatives as a Democrat and Douglas supporter in 1859. When war broke out Logan left Congress and volunteered for the army. His patron Douglas dies in the summer of 1861
and Logan becomes a Republican.
He raised a volunteer regiment and served for the most part in the western theater, having the good
fortune to be under Ulysses S. Grant who promoted his career whenever he could. At the end of
the war Logan went back to the House and served until 1870 when he won a term in the Senate.
Some local rivalries cost Logan his seat in 1876. But he was back in 1878 in the Senate and was
there until he died in 1886.
Logan in his life was a spellbinding orator and stump speaker as well for his party. No legislation
goes under his name save one. In the House he sponsored a bill designating May 30 as Decoration
Day in which to honor our military dead. It's now known as Memorial Day though it is not now
always celebrated on May 30.
Gary Ecelbarger's book is valuable for Logan himself and for showing how the veteran's group the
Grand Army of the Republic became so influential in the post Civil War years.
better. But this one does. Illinois politician John A. Logan ran with James G. Blaine in 1884 as his
running mate for Vice President on the Republican ticket. He was also a US Senator and Representative before that and held some local elected office in Illinois. He was a stalwart Republican
and firm supporter of Ulysses S. Grant in the war and as president.
But all this did not make Logan one of the most powerful men in the country. In the years following
the Civil War Logan was the founder of the Grand Army Of The Republic, the most powerful veteran's
organization this nation ever saw. It was part of the get out the vote strategy of every Republican
national ticket. Logan was high in party councils and this is what got him there.
John A. Logan was born in Illinois in 1826 and upon reaching his majority identified himself with
the politics of Democrat Stephen A. Douglas. After serving in some local offices Logan went to the
House of Representatives as a Democrat and Douglas supporter in 1859. When war broke out Logan left Congress and volunteered for the army. His patron Douglas dies in the summer of 1861
and Logan becomes a Republican.
He raised a volunteer regiment and served for the most part in the western theater, having the good
fortune to be under Ulysses S. Grant who promoted his career whenever he could. At the end of
the war Logan went back to the House and served until 1870 when he won a term in the Senate.
Some local rivalries cost Logan his seat in 1876. But he was back in 1878 in the Senate and was
there until he died in 1886.
Logan in his life was a spellbinding orator and stump speaker as well for his party. No legislation
goes under his name save one. In the House he sponsored a bill designating May 30 as Decoration
Day in which to honor our military dead. It's now known as Memorial Day though it is not now
always celebrated on May 30.
Gary Ecelbarger's book is valuable for Logan himself and for showing how the veteran's group the
Grand Army of the Republic became so influential in the post Civil War years.
February 17, 2022
Logan himself was a fascinating man, and Ecelbarger gives a good summary of the ups and downs of his life, but doesn't quite succeed in capturing or explaining the fascinating nature of the man, or going into the reason for his astonishing turn around from the sponsor of a bill for the exclusion of African Americans from Indiana in 1853 to Frederick Douglass' candidate for the presidency in the mid 1880s. He does provide proof that this conversion was genuine and born of the civil war, but doesn't explore this aspect of Logan's life in any detail. The prose is a little gratingly purple in many places, including the end. But overall a not-so-bad account of the life of one of the 19th century's most fascinating men.
January 5, 2008
I'd wager that few residents of my Chicago neighborhood of Logan Square know much about our community's namesake.
General John "Black Jack" Logan began his political career as a downstate Illinois supporter of slavery and underwent one of the greatest transformations in American politics. He was a fiery orator and a fearless soldier who played a pivotal role in the Union's ultimate victory in the Civil War.
Besides founding Memorial Day and advocating for Civil War veterans, he also became a tireless supporter of African American civil rights and counted Frederick Douglas as a close friend in his later years. He also opposed prohibition.
It's heartening that not all Logan Square residents have forgotten about Black Jack's many contributions to preserving the Union and promoting abolition and equality. In fact, a growing number of community members are working to relocate the General Logan statue from its lonely corner in Grant Park to the heart of our neighborhood. It's time to bring General Logan home where he rightfully belongs!
To get involved in the campaign to bring Gen. Logan home, read this book and join us for the Logan Square Draught Beer Preservation Society's "March 4th for Froth Hiking Day Pub Stroll" (see www.BringBacktheDraught.com for more info).
And if the polemics aren't enough to grab you, the book details many grisly Civil War battle scenes centering on the swashbuckling exploits of our hero.
General John "Black Jack" Logan began his political career as a downstate Illinois supporter of slavery and underwent one of the greatest transformations in American politics. He was a fiery orator and a fearless soldier who played a pivotal role in the Union's ultimate victory in the Civil War.
Besides founding Memorial Day and advocating for Civil War veterans, he also became a tireless supporter of African American civil rights and counted Frederick Douglas as a close friend in his later years. He also opposed prohibition.
It's heartening that not all Logan Square residents have forgotten about Black Jack's many contributions to preserving the Union and promoting abolition and equality. In fact, a growing number of community members are working to relocate the General Logan statue from its lonely corner in Grant Park to the heart of our neighborhood. It's time to bring General Logan home where he rightfully belongs!
To get involved in the campaign to bring Gen. Logan home, read this book and join us for the Logan Square Draught Beer Preservation Society's "March 4th for Froth Hiking Day Pub Stroll" (see www.BringBacktheDraught.com for more info).
And if the polemics aren't enough to grab you, the book details many grisly Civil War battle scenes centering on the swashbuckling exploits of our hero.
August 26, 2008
As part of the Movement to rescue/bring The General back to Logan Square before Daley melts him and his horse down into a wrought iron fence around the Grant Park( his current home) Children's Museum, I need to get into the General's mind
UPDATE, clearly the General must be returned to Logan Square! The spirit of this War Hero is so irrepresable, that not even the a boring biographers like Gary Ecelbarger could not contain the Black Eagle!
UPDATE, clearly the General must be returned to Logan Square! The spirit of this War Hero is so irrepresable, that not even the a boring biographers like Gary Ecelbarger could not contain the Black Eagle!
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January 6, 2013It's very interesting to read about someone in your family line. But at the same time it was kind of a hard read as well.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews