Overview
Charles Ewing (1835–1883) was a distinguished Union officer from Ohio. Educated at Gonzaga College and the University of Virginia, he practiced law before joining the Union Army in 1861. Rising to the rank of Brigadier General, Ewing played key roles in pivotal Civil War campaigns, including Vicksburg and Atlanta. Following the war, he was a patent lawyer and a leader in Catholic missionary efforts, serving as the first Commissioner of the Bureau of Catholic Indian Affairs.
Personal Facts
- Full Name: Charles Ewing
- Born: March 6, 1835, Lancaster, Ohio
- Parents: Thomas Ewing and Maria (Boyle) Ewing
- Education: Gonzaga College, University of Virginia
- Occupation: Lawyer, Military officer
- Positions: Lieutenant Colonel (USA), Brigadier General (USVA)
- Spouse: Virginia Larwell Miller (1870)
- Died: June 20, 1883, Washington, D.C.
- Buried: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia
Biography
Early Life
Charles Ewing was born in Lancaster, Ohio, on March 6, 1835. He was the sixth child and fifth son of Thomas Ewing, Sr. and Maria (Boyle) Ewing. Ewing’s father, Thomas Ewing, Sr., was a prominent lawyer and a United States senator who also served as United States Secretary of the Treasury and United States Secretary of the Interior. Two of Ewing’s brothers, Thomas Ewing, Jr. and Hugh Boyle Ewing, and his foster brother, William Tecumseh Sherman, eventually became general officers in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Ewing received his early education at St Joseph’s, a Dominican College, in Perry County, Ohio. When his family moved to Washington, DC., Ewing attended Gonzaga College. He later studied law at the University of Virginia before being admitted to the bar. In 1860, Ewing moved to Missouri and established a law partnership in St. Louis with John Hunter, a boyhood friend from Lancaster.
Union Officer
After the American Civil War began, Ewing joined the regular army as a captain with the 13th U.S. Infantry on May 14, 1861. For the first year of the war, he served at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and at Alton, Illinois on recruitment duty and guarding Confederate prisoners. In October 1862, Ewing’s regiment joined the Army of the Tennessee to prepare for the Union assault on the Confederate stronghold at Vicksburg, Mississippi.
Vicksburg Campaign
During the Vicksburg Campaign, Ewing commanded troops during the Battle of Chickasaw Bayou (December 26–29, 1862), the Battle of Arkansas Post (January 9–11, 1863), the Battle of Champion Hill (May 16, 1863), two unsuccessful attempts to storm Vicksburg (July 19 and July 22), and the Siege of Vicksburg (May 25–July 4, 1863). On June 22, Ewing attained the rank of lieutenant colonel of volunteers and joined the staff of his brother-in-law, Major General William T. Sherman, as assistant inspector general of the 15th Army Corps. On July 4, 1863, officials brevetted Ewing as a major in the regular army for gallant service at Vicksburg.
Chattanooga Campaign
After the surrender of Vicksburg, Ewing took part in the federal re-occupation of Jackson, Mississippi, in July 1863. In October 1863, he accompanied the Army of the Tennessee eastward to relieve Confederate General Braxton Bragg‘s siege of Chattanooga, Tennessee. During the Chattanooga Campaign, Ewing led troops during the Union victory at the Battle of Missionary Ridge (November 25, 1863).
Atlanta, Savannah, and Carolinas Campaigns
Following the Union breakout from Chattanooga, Ewing accompanied General Sherman’s army throughout the Atlanta Campaign, the Savannah Campaign, and the Carolinas Campaign. On September 1, 1864, officials brevetted Ewing as a lieutenant colonel in the regular army and, on March 8, 1865, to the rank of brigadier general of volunteers. Five days later, he became a colonel in the regular army.
Post-War Life
When the Civil War ended, Ewing remained in the army, but he mustered out of volunteer service on December 1, 1865. Ewing transferred, as a captain, to the 22nd U.S. Infantry on September 21, 1866. A few months later, on July 31, 1867, Ewing resigned from the army.
Civilian Life and Marriage
After leaving the army, Ewing pursued a career as a patent lawyer in Washington, DC. On December 20, 1870, at the nation’s capital, he married Virginia Larwell Miller of Mount Vernon, Ohio. His wife was the daughter of Ohio Congressman John K. Miller. Their marriage produced nine children, seven of whom survived to adulthood.
Catholic Indian Missionary
On January 2, 1874, James Roosevelt Bayley, the Archbishop of Baltimore, appointed Ewing as the Catholic Commissioner of Indian Affairs. In 1879, the church created the Bureau of Catholic Indian Affairs, with Ewing serving as the first commissioner. In that capacity, Ewing promoted Catholic Indian missionary interests in the United States until his death. In appreciation for Ewing’s service, Pope Pius IX made Ewing a Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great on June 1, 1877.
Death
In June 1883, Ewing contracted pneumonia. Although he rallied and appeared to improve, Ewing eventually succumbed on June 20, at his home in Washington. Ewing was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Accomplishments and Milestones
- 1835, March 6 — Charles Ewing was born in Lancaster, Ohio, as the sixth child of Thomas and Maria (Boyle) Ewing.
- Early Education — Ewing attended St. Joseph’s College in Perry County, Ohio, and later Gonzaga College in Washington, D.C.
- Law Studies — He studied law at the University of Virginia and was admitted to the bar.
- 1860 — Charles Ewing moved to Missouri and established a law partnership in St. Louis.
- 1861, May 14 — Ewing was commissioned as a captain in the 13th U.S. Infantry after the outbreak of the Civil War.
- 1861–1862 — He conducted recruitment and prisoner-guarding duties at Jefferson Barracks, Missouri, and Alton, Illinois.
- 1862, October — Charles Ewing joined the Army of the Tennessee for operations against Vicksburg, Mississippi.
- 1862–1863 — Ewing participated in key battles of the Vicksburg Campaign, including Chickasaw Bayou, Arkansas Post, Champion Hill, and the Siege of Vicksburg.
- 1863, June 22 — He was promoted to lieutenant colonel of volunteers and became assistant inspector general of the 15th Army Corps under Major General William T. Sherman.
- 1863, July 4 — Ewing was brevetted to major in the regular army for gallantry at Vicksburg.
- 1863–1865 — He took part in the Chattanooga Campaign (notably at Missionary Ridge), the Atlanta Campaign, the Savannah Campaign, and the Carolinas Campaign with Sherman’s army.
- 1864, September 1 — Charles Ewing was brevetted to lieutenant colonel in the regular army.
- 1865, March 8 — Ewing was promoted to brigadier general of volunteers.
- 1865, March 13 — He was brevetted to colonel in the regular army.
- 1865, December 1 — Ewing resigned as brigadier general of volunteers but remained in the regular army.
- 1866, September 21 — He transferred as a captain to the 22nd U.S. Infantry.
- 1867, July 31 — Ewing resigned from the U.S. Army.
- Postwar Career — He practiced as a patent lawyer in Washington, D.C.
- 1870, December 20 — Charles Ewing married Virginia Larwell Miller, with whom he had nine children, seven surviving to adulthood.
- 1874, January 2 — Ewing was appointed Catholic Commissioner of Indian Affairs by Archbishop James Roosevelt Bayley.
- 1877, June 1 — He was knighted by Pope Pius IX as a Knight of the Order of St. Gregory the Great.
- 1879 — Ewing became the first commissioner of the Bureau of Catholic Indian Affairs, promoting Catholic missionary efforts among Native Americans.
- 1883, June 20 — He died of pneumonia at his home in Washington, D.C.
