The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1901-05-22
FITZ JOHN PORTER DEAD
FAMOUS GENERAL SUCCUMBs TO
DIABETES IN NEW JERSEY.
His Services I'm Two Wars. Court
Martial and Vindication-Death of
{. A. Boutelle-Other Obituary.

NEW YORK, May 21-General Fitz John
Porter died at his home in Morristown. y.
J.. to-day from chronic diabetes He was
seventy-nine years of age.
General Porter's funeral will take place
from Trinity Church. this city, on saturday
The pail bearers will be Gen. Alexander :.
| Webb, Gen. James L. Schofield, Lieut.. Royal
Earragut Col. David Porter Heath, Col
Edward Wright, Gen. William b, Franklin,
Major c. c. Mcconnell, Gen. Stephen weep,
Cen A. NJ Clark. Gen. Daniel Butterneld,
Gen. Joshua L. Chamberlain, eX-Mayor
Hewitt and eX-MayOr Grace of New YORK
Theodore Lord. Jonn Busstt, Arson Malt
by and Charles Bacon. Major General
BROOKE, commander of the department or
the East. will have entire charge of the
military arrangements for the funeral
| Fitz John Porter was born in Portsmouth,
". H.. on June 49, 1922 the son OF Com
mander John Porter, L. S. n. He was
graduated with honor from West Point. in
1915. AS second lieutenant of the Fourth
Artillery he fought in Mexico at the battle
| of Cerro Gordo. Contreras. Molino del Rey,
| in the sieges of Vera Cruz and Chapultepec,
| and in the capture of Mexico. where he was
wounded. His services won him distinction,
and he was successfully brevetted as captain
and major He was appointed instructor of
artillery and cavalry at West Point in the
year lS49 and served as assistant adjutant
general of the Utah expedition from 1857 to
1860. When the civil war broke out he was
in Texas
Returning with the troops under his
charge, he received a command in Pennsyl-
vania. with the duty OF keeping the roads
TO Washington open. As the result OF his
vigilance ana Independence, the Missouri
volunteers were mustered in when tele-
graphic communication between st. Louis
and Washington and the safety or the
arsenal OF st. Louis were threatened by the
secessionists. In order TO accomplish this
Useful service he telegraphed the necessary
order in the name of the secretary or war,
who highly complimented him on his readi-
ness or resource. After serving Tor tlme
chief OF staff with General Patterson, he
was appointed commander OF division in
the newly organized Army of the Potomac,
IN which capacity he captured yorktown
As commander OF the Fifth Army Corps he
1ought IN the battles OF New Brlose, ran
over Courthouse, GaineSS Mills, Turkey
Bridge and Malvern, and was promoted to
major general of volunteers and brevet
brigadier general in the regular army.
When the peninsula was abandoned by
the Army of the Potomac, General Porter
was assigned a command under General
Pope. He reported on the 18th of August.
1862 The second battle of Bull Run was
fought during the closing days of the
same month and it was charged against
Porter by General Pope that he was
guilty of diSObedience of orders ana mis-
behavior before the enemy during the
progress of this conflict, Aug. 21-S The
consequence was cOurt-martlal trial,
which was begun on the LIST of December,
1862. and ended the 10th of January en-
suing. General Porter was found guilty
OF the charges made against him and SEN
fenced TO be cashiered and forever dis
qualified from holding any office of trust or
profit under the government OF the United
States He soon after began business in
New York city, which he relinqushed to
become superintendent of the construction
of the New Jersey Insane Asylum. In 1915
he was appointed a commissioner of public
works in New York. Ever since his con-
viction General Porter had worked in
defatigably to bring about a reversal of the
sentence pronounced against him. President
Hayes appointed a commission to inquire
into the case. This commission exonerated
Porter from blame in the matters upon
which he had been found delinquent by the
court-martal. This opinion was adopted
by General Grant, and accepted by the
country and he was lifted from disgrace.
In speaking of General Porter's conduct.
General Grant, in 1881, said that If Porter
had been in command at Bull Run the war
would have come to an end then and there.
Since 1856 General Porter has been promi-
nent in the business life of New York.