Joseph Stewart (U.S. Army officer)

Joseph Stewart
Joseph Stewart
	Lieutenant Colonel
Commands held	Fort Alcatraz; Fort Churchill; Department of Alaska
Battles/wars	Mexican War; Battle of Monterrey; Pyramid Lake War; Second Battle of Pyramid Lake; Civil War; Bannock War

Joseph Stewart (January 29, 1822 – April 23, 1904) was an officer in the United States Army notable for serving as commander of Fort Alcatraz, Fort Churchill and the Department of Alaska. His name is occasionally seen as Jasper Stewart.^[1]

Biography

Early life

Joseph Stewart was born in

captain of Company H in the 3rd Artillery. In December 1859 Captain Stewart took command of Fort Alcatraz. In the years immediately preceding the Civil War, Stewart transformed the fort into the most powerful coastal defense in the west.^[3] It was also during Stewart's time on Alcatraz that it took on the role of a prison for the first time. 11 soldiers under Stewart's command were imprisoned there and soon other nearby forts were sending prisoners there too.^[3]

Pyramid Lake War

In 1860 a vigilante force was soundly defeated by

John C. Hays who was in command of a regiment of U.S. Volunteers. Hays and Stewart defeated the Paiutes in the second Battle of Pyramid Lake

.

Fort Churchill

While Hays' volunteers disbanded shortly after the battle, Stewart's regulars remained in the area for some time. Stewart was ordered to construct a permanent army post in the area. Eventually, he chose a site along the

Fort Churchill began.^[5]

Construction was completed in 1861 with Stewart as the post's first commander.

Civil War

During the American Civil War Stewart briefly returned to command Fort Alcatraz. In 1861 he was transferred to the defenses of Washington, DC and commanded the artillery in George A. McCall's division of the Army of the Potomac from December 1861 to February 1862. From April to October 1862 he served as recruiting officer for San Francisco and was the Inspector General of the Humboldt Military District during the Winter of 1862/1863. He was chief of artillery for the Department of the Pacific from April to July 1863 and ended the war as recruiting officer for Salem MA from November to December 1865. On December 11, 1865, Stewart was promoted Major in the 4th U.S. Artillery.^[6]

Post Civil War

Following the Civil War, Stewart commanded various forts along the eastern United States including

Fort Canby engaged against Native Americans during the Bannock War. On July 18, 1879, Stewart was promoted Lieutenant Colonel of the 3rd U.S. Artillery. He retired on August 25, 1879, and died in Berkeley, CA on April 23, 1904.^[2]^[6]

He is buried at San Francisco National Cemetery in the Presidio.^[2]

References

^ History of Nevada p.65
^ ^a ^b ^c Thirty-Sixth Annual Reunion. Association of Graduates of the United States Military Academy. June 13, 1905. pp. 42–51. Retrieved August 8, 2022 – via Google Books.
^ ^a ^b The Long History of Alcatraz
^ "Pyramid Lake War". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
^ Totton, Kathryn, Fort Churchill: Nevada Military Outpost of the 1860s, 1981 Nevada Natural History Association, p. 16
^ ^a ^b Cullum's Register: Joseph Stewart

External links

Joseph Stewart at Find a Grave

[1] History of Nevada p.65

[Reunion-2] Thirty-Sixth Annual Reunion. Association of Graduates of the United States Military Academy. June 13, 1905. pp. 42–51. Retrieved August 8, 2022 – via Google Books.

[Long-3] The Long History of Alcatraz

[4] "Pyramid Lake War". Archived from the original on July 27, 2011. Retrieved February 21, 2010.

[5] Totton, Kathryn, Fort Churchill: Nevada Military Outpost of the 1860s, 1981 Nevada Natural History Association, p. 16

[Cullum-6] Cullum's Register: Joseph Stewart

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