Ulysses S. Grant in St. Louis
After
his graduation from West Point in 1843, Ulysses S. Grant (1822-1885)
was commissioned as a second lieutenant and was assigned to the Fourth
Infantry Regiment stationed at Jefferson Barracks in St. Louis, MO. There
he met Julia Dent (1826-1902), the sister of a West Point classmate.
Grant courted Miss Dent, and they soon became engaged. However, the threat
of war with Mexico delayed their wedding. In 1844, the Fourth Infantry
left St. Louis for Louisiana and eventually, Texas. Grant was in Texas
when the Mexican War began in 1846. After seeing action in the battles
at Cerro Gordo and Chapultapec, Grant returned to St. Louis in 1848.
On August 22, 1848, Grant married Julia Dent at the White Haven plantation.
The White Haven mansion still stands today, and is located on Gravois
Rd. near Grant’s Farm.
Grant
remained in the army after his marriage because he hesitated to risk
the uncertainties of civilian life. After a confrontation with his commanding
officer on the issue of excessive drinking, Grant resigned his commission
is 1855 and returned to St. Louis. For the next six years, Grant’s life
was one of failure. Frederick Dent, Julia’s father,
gave
them a farm with 80 acres of land that was owned by the Dents. Grant
built a cabin there, which he named “Hardscrapple”. Years later, the
cabin was moved to its current location at Grant’s Farm, about one mile
from the original site. The family lived on the farm from 1855 to 1858.
Grant liked farming, but due to the poor quality of the land, he did
not fare well. To make ends meet, he sometimes peddled firewood on the
streets of St. Louis.
In
1859, Grant sold the farm and moved into the city of St. Louis. A relative
gave him a job in a real estate office, but Grant was not aggressive
in collecting rents. He next obtained, then lost, a job in the U.S. Customs
office. During this same period, Grant’s brothers opened a leather goods
store in Galena, Illinois. In 1860, urged by their father, the brothers
offered Grant a $50 per month job in the store. He accepted, but showed
no ability as a store keeper.
Grant was
almost 40 years old when the Civil War began. When President Abraham
Lincoln called for army volunteers, Grant helped drill a company that
was formed in Galena. He then went to Springfield, the Illinois state capital,
and worked for the Illinois adjutant general. Grant asked the federal
government for a commission as a Colonel, but his request was ignored.
After several months, Governor Richard Yates appointed him Colonel of
the 21st Illinois Infantry. Grant led these troops on a campaign against
Confederate guerrillas in Missouri. Thus, Ulysses S. Grant was headed
down a path that would lead him to command of the entire Union Army during
the Civil War and eventually, the presidency of the United States.
Credits for this page go to: Don Palmer for text and Scott Williams for
graphics. Background tune, General Grant's Grand March, composed by Edward Mack (1826-1882),
courtesy of Benjamin Robert Tubb
[website]
.
