Discover the crossroads of war, homefront, emancipation, and everyday life in Civil War Kentucky.
The Civil War Governors of Kentucky
During the American Civil War, three Unionists and two provisional Confederates served as Kentucky's governors. Their papers offer a lens to understand Civil War era Kentucky.
Explore
There are thousands of people, places, and organizations that offer a glimpse into the everyday life of Civil War Kentucky. The highlighted biographies below showcase ordinary and extraordinary aspects of wartime Kentucky, revealing how people lived and died in the war-torn state.
- People
- Organizations
- Places
Louisville, Kentucky, resident. Enslaved by John Dement in Rutherford County, Tennessee. Married to [Unknown] [Unknown], a contraband hired to work for Charles Levi in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1862. Fled as a contraband to Louisville in September 1862. Cook and domestic servant in the household of Willis Levi Jr., and Anna Levi from September 1862 to February 1863. Convicted of the murder of Blanche Levi in May 1863. Pardoned by Thomas E. Bramlette on September 24, 1863.
Green County, Kentucky, merchant, saddler, and soldier. Kentucky native. Son of William and Lucy Ann Hobson. Married to Kate A. Hobson. Father of William A. Hobson, Anna Mary Hobson, Atwood Monroe Hobson, John A. Hobson, Edwena Hobson, and Bettie M. Hobson. Served in the 2nd Kentucky Volunteer Infantry Regiment as a first lieutenant in the U.S.-Mexican War. Merchant in Green County, Kentucky, in 1850. Director of the Greensburg Branch Bank of Kentucky in 1853. President of the Greensburg Branch Bank of Kentucky from 1857 to 1861. Saddler in Green County in 1860. Served in the 13th Kentucky Volunteer Infantry Regiment (U.S.A.) as a colonel from January 1, 1862, to March 13, 1863. Promoted to Brigadier General in March 13, 1863. Mustered out in 1865.
Caldwell County, Kentucky, farmer. Kentucky native. Son of William Wadlington. Father of William J. Wadlington. Married to Mary A. J. Cartwright Wadlington in Caldwell County, Kentucky, on December 21, 1850. Father of Thomas M. Wadlington, Mary T. Wadlington, and Ann Babb Wadlington. Farmer in Caldwell County in 1850. Member of the Democratic Party. Caldwell County representative to Kentucky State Democratic Convention in Frankfort in January 1859. Elected Caldwell County representative to Kentucky State Democratic Convention in Frankfort in January 1860. Farmer and convict in Caldwell County in 1860. Household owned seven enslaved persons, including John [Unknown] and Jourdan [Unknown], in Caldwell County in 1860. Convicted by the Caldwell Circuit Court of the murder of Milton A. Cartwright in November 1860. Sentenced to death by the Caldwell Circuit Court in November 1860. Sentence commuted to life in prison by Governor Beriah Magoffin on February 11, 1861. Inmate of the Kentucky State Penitentiary in Frankfort from March 21, 1861, to March 21, 1863.
Organized at Camp Hobson, Kentucky. Mustered into service on December 30, 1861. Mustered out of service on January 12, 1865. Commander(s): Edward H. Hobson and William E. Hobson.
Located in Louisville, Jefferson County, Kentucky. Administratively contains the county offices of the sheriff, coroner, surveyor, jailor, county assessor, county attorneys, and constables. Judge(s): Andrew Monroe. Clerk(s): Charles M. Thruston and T. Jackson Conn.
State prison of the Commonwealth of Kentucky in Frankfort, Kentucky. Operated from 1798 to 1884. Keeper(s): Jeremiah W. South (1859-1863) and Harry I. Todd (1863-1871).
County in central Kentucky. Seat at Greensburg, Kentucky. Located on the Green River.
County in north central Kentucky. Seat at Louisville. Located on the Ohio River.
County in western Kentucky. Seat at Princeton.
Our Objectives
Civil War Governors of Kentucky is a living digital archive that inspires research into and discovery of the Civil War era in Kentucky. This project restores, animates, and showcases the lives of ordinary Kentuckians between 1860 and 1865 using the office of governor as a lens.
- Restores
Kentucky’s dominant, if complicated, Unionist narrative. - Animates
The lives and experiences of all Kentuckians. - Showcases
A society divided and disrupted by civil strife.