Horace Porter | |
|---|---|
_(3x4a).jpg) Porter in the 1860s | |
| United States Ambassador to France | |
| In office May 26, 1897 – May 2, 1905 | |
| President | William McKinley Theodore Roosevelt |
| Preceded by | James B. Eustis |
| Succeeded by | Robert S. McCormick |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1837-04-15)April 15, 1837 Huntingdon, Pennsylvania, US |
| Died | May 29, 1921(1921-05-29) (aged 84) Manhattan, New York, US |
| Resting place | West Long Branch, New Jersey, US |
| Spouse | |
| Relations | Andrew Porter (cousin) Andrew Porter (grandfather) George Bryan Porter (uncle) James M. Porter (uncle) |
| Children | 4 |
| Parent(s) | David Rittenhouse Porter Josephine McDermott |
| Education | Lawrenceville School Harvard University |
| Alma mater | West Point |
| Occupation | Soldier, author, President of theUnion League Club of New York |
| Awards | Medal of Honor Legion of Honor |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | United States Union |
| Branch/service | United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1860–1873 |
| Rank |  Colonel BrevetBrigadier General |
| Battles/wars | |
Horace C. Porter[1] (April 15, 1837 – May 29, 1921) was an American soldier and diplomat who served as alieutenant colonel,ordnance officer and staff officer in theUnion Army during theAmerican Civil War, personal secretary toGeneral andPresidentUlysses S. Grant. He also was secretary toGeneralWilliam T. Sherman, vice president of thePullman Palace Car Company andU.S. Ambassador toFrance from 1897 to 1905.[2]
Porter was born inHuntingdon, Pennsylvania, on April 15, 1837,[3] the son ofDavid Rittenhouse Porter (1788–1867), an ironmaster who later served asGovernor of Pennsylvania, and Josephine McDermott.
His paternal grandfather wasAndrew Porter, theRevolutionary War officer and his paternal uncles includedGeorge Bryan Porter, theTerritorial Governor of Michigan, andJames Madison Porter, theSecretary of War. Among his first cousins wasAndrew Porter, aMexican–American War veteran and Union Armybrigadier general.[3] His aunt, Elizabeth Porter, was the grandmother ofMary Todd Lincoln.[4]
Porter was educated at TheLawrenceville School inLawrenceville, New Jersey (class of 1856)[5] andHarvard University.[6] He graduated fromWest Point July 1, 1860.[3]
Porter was commissioned a second lieutenant on April 22, 1861, and a first lieutenant on June 7, 1861.[3] During the American Civil War, Porter served in theUnion Army, reaching the grade oflieutenant colonel by the end of the war.[3]
During the war, he served as chief of ordnance in theArmy of the Potomac,Department of the Ohio and theArmy of the Cumberland.[3] He was distinguished in theBattle of Fort Pulaski, Georgia, at theBattle of Chickamauga, theBattle of the Wilderness and theSecond Battle of Ream's Station (New Market Heights).[3] On June 26, 1902, or July 8, 1902,[7] Porter received theMedal of Honor for theBattle of Chickamauga as detailed in the citation noted below. In the last year of the war, he served on the staff of Gen.Ulysses S. Grant, later writing a lively memoir of the experience,Campaigning With Grant (1897).[3][8]
From April 4, 1864, to July 25, 1866, Porter was aide-de-camp toGeneralUlysses S. Grant with the grade oflieutenant colonel in theregular army.[3] On July 17, 1866,PresidentAndrew Johnson nominated Porter for appointment asbrevetbrigadier general, to rank from March 13, 1866, and theU.S. Senate confirmed the appointment on July 23, 1866.[9] From July 25, 1866, to March 4, 1869, Porter was aide-de-camp toGeneralUlysses S. Grant with the grade ofcolonel in theregular army.[3]
From 1869 to 1872, Porter served as President Grant'spersonal secretary in theWhite House. At the same time, he held the grade ofcolonel and an appointment as aide-de-camp toGeneralWilliam T. Sherman.[3]
Porter had refused to take a $500,000 vested interestbribe fromJay Gould, aWall Street financier, in theBlack Friday gold market scam. He told Grant about Gould's attempted bribery, thus warning Grant about Gould's intention of cornering the gold market. However, during the Whiskey Ring trials in 1876,Treasury SolicitorBluford Wilson claimed that Porter was involved with the scandal.[10][11] Porter testified before the committee investigating the scandal and was never formally charged with wrongdoing.[12] Porter resigned from the U.S. Army on December 31, 1873.[3]
After resigning from the Army, Porter became vice president of thePullman Palace Car Company, and later, president of theWest Shore Railroad. He wasU.S. Ambassador toFrance from 1897 to 1905,[3] paying for the recovery of the body ofJohn Paul Jones and sending it to the United States for re-burial. He received the Grand Cross of theLegion of Honor from the French government in 1904. In addition toCampaigning with Grant, he also wroteWest Point Life (1866).[2]
Porter was president of theUnion League Club of New York from 1893 to 1897. In that capacity, he was a major force in the construction ofGrant's Tomb.[2]
He was elected an honorary member of the PennsylvaniaSociety of the Cincinnati in 1902. He was also a member of theMilitary Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, theSons of the American Revolution and a Hereditary Companion of theMilitary Order of Foreign Wars by right of his descent from Lieutenant Colonel Andrew Porter who served in the American Revolution.[2]
In 1891 he joined the Empire State Society of theSons of the American Revolution, where he served as President General from 1892 through 1896. He was assigned national membership number 4069 and state membership number 69.[13]
He died in Manhattan, New York and is interred at the Old First Methodist Church Cemetery in West Long Branch, New Jersey.[14]
In 1863, Porter was married to Sophie King McHarg (1840–1903),[8] the daughter of John McHarg (1813–1884) and Martha Whipple Patch.[15] Together, they were the parents of:[8]
After a period of suffering,[16] Porter died at New York, New York, May 29, 1921.[3][2] He was buried in West Long Branch Cemetery,West Long Branch, New Jersey.[3][17] In his will, he left the Grant Association $10,000 and the flag that flew at General Grant's field headquarters during the Civil War.[18]
Rank and Organization:
Citation:
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | U.S. Ambassador to France 1897–1905 | Succeeded by |
| Envoys to France (1776–1779) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Ministers Plenipotentiary to France (1778–1815) | ||
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to France (1816–1893) | ||
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to France (1893–present) | ||
