Wartime Governor

Amanda Hayes
Good Shepherd Lutheran School, Collinsville

Richard Yates was the thirteenth governor of the state of Illinois (1861-1865). His most important work was to help guide Illinois' contribution to the Civil War. Yates was educated at Miami University in Ohio, and Georgetown College in Kentucky. In 1837 he moved to Jacksonville, Illinois, to begin a law practice. He was well-known enough to be elected to the state legislature. On January 14, 1861, Richard Yates was inaugurated as governor. In his inauguration speech he stood against any concessions or compromises with the South. He declared that "the whole material of the government, moral, political, and physical, if need be, must be employed

Richard Yates was Illinois' controversial wartime governor.

to preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States." When Lincoln called for volunteers, Yates sent more than double the state's quota for volunteers. Yates also appointed West Point graduate, Ulysses S. Grant, as mustering officer for Illinois, which gave him the reputation of being the state's "war governor." Grant showed himself a capable and skillful leader. President Lincoln appointed him major general in the regular army. Later Grant was given command of all the Union armies. The state legislature passed a compromise with the Confederate states, an indication that the legislature did not always agree with the governor's war policy. Yates supported emancipation of black slaves, recommending to Lincoln that "loyal blacks" be enlisted in the union cause. Yates was also a

good speaker and well expressed the grief for many whose relatives or friends died in the war. Yates was also very effective in rallying volunteers to military service. Lincoln requested six thousand men from Illinois, but Yates was able to help recruit many more. One man was even convinced to walk twenty miles to enlist.

In 1871 Yates largely retired from public life, although he did serve as U.S. Commissioner to inspect land subsidy railroads. He died in St. Louis, Missouri.

Many have asked if Yates was a good or bad governor. The fact the Governor Yates supported the Union effectively, was antislavery, and helped U. S. Grant start his career, suggests to this student historian that Yates was a success as a Civil War Governor.—[From Mary Logan, Reminiscence of the Civil War and Reconstruction; J.]. Nick Perrin, Perrin's History of Illinois.]

ILLINOIS HISTORY / FEBRUARY 1994

31