The Notorious "Bull" Nelson: Murdered Civil War General

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n TheNotorious “Bull”Nelson Murdered Civil War General Donald A. Clark M ajor General William “Bull” Nelson played a formative role in the Union’s success in Kentucky and the Western theater of the Civil War. In this illuminating biography Donald A. Clark presents a long-overdue examination of an irascible officer, his numerous accomplishments, and his grim fate. The child of a privileged family, Nelson was one of the first officers to graduate from the newly formed U.S. Naval Academy . His years in the Navy imbued in him the qualities of bravery, loyalty, and fortitude ; however, his term of service also seemed to breed an intolerance of others for which he became infamous and that ultimately led to his violent downfall. Clark sheds new light on Nelson’s pre–Civil War years as a naval officer, when he became a hardened veteran of battle, fighting at the siege of Veracruz and the capture of Tabasco during the Mexican War in the 1840s. On the basis of Nelson’s military experience, in 1861 President Abraham Lincoln sent him to Kentucky—which was considering secession—and Nelson rallied loyalists and helped the Union prepare to maintain control of the state during the next several years of war. Nelson went on to prove instrumental in blocking Confederate attempts to subdue Kentucky and the West, serving important roles in the battle of Shiloh, General Henry W. Halleck’s advance against Corinth, and Brigadier General Don Carlos Buell’s movement toward Chattanooga. During September of 1862, in a crime that was never prosecuted, fellow Union general Jefferson C. Davis shot and killed Printed in the United States of America Barber Clark Nelson after an argument. Clark explores this remarkable exception in military law, arguing that while the fact of the murder was indisputable, prosecution of the murder went by the wayside because a public angered by the arrogant behavior of Federal officers generally approved of Davis having dispatched an abusive tyrant. For Nelson’s indispensable role in keeping Kentucky loyal to the Union, officials named a new supply depot Camp Nelson. This comprehensive study—the first biography of Nelson—eliminates previous misconceptions about a well-known yet misunderstood Civil War general. Through Clark’s impeccable research and richly layered narrative, William “Bull” Nelson springs from these pages as large and volatile as he was in life. Donald A. Clark has written articles for Filson Club History Quarterly, Northern Kentucky Encyclopedia, Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society, and Tennessee Historical Quarterly. The Notorious “Bull” Nelson ...