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Joseph Hooker Facts

Joseph Hooker Facts
Joseph Hooker was a general in the Union Army during the American Civil War and although successful in a number of battles, he is perhaps best known for his loss to Confederate general Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville from April 30 to May 6, 1863. Active in both the Western and Eastern Theaters of operations, Hooker was known for his acerbic and polarizing personality, as well as for his heavy drinking, gambling, and womanizing. Hooker was born on November 13, 1814 in Headley, Massachusetts to a distinguished military family. Like most of his contemporaries on both sides of the Civil War, Hooker attended the United States Military Academy in West Point, New York, graduating in 1837. He saw combat as a lieutenant in the Second Seminole War (1835-1842) and the Mexican-American War (1846-1848). Hooker married Olivia Groesbeck on October 3, 1865; the couple never had children.
Interesting Joseph Hooker Facts:
Hooker testified against his commander, Winfield Scott, in the Mexican-American War for insubordination, which hurt his prospects for advancement in the military before the Civil War.
In the period between the Mexican-American War and the Civil War, Hooker lived and farmed in California.
Hooker was promoted to brigadier general in the Union Army on May 17, 1861 and given command of a division in the Army of the Potomac.
He became known as "Fighting Joe" during the Civil War.
Hooker distinguished himself as an able commander and keen strategist during the Peninsula Campaign of 1862, which earned him a promotion to major general.
He incurred a foot wound at the Battle of Antietam on September 17, 1862.
President Lincoln gave Hooker command of the Army of the Potomac on January 26, 1863.
The Battle of Chancellorsville was not only a failure for Hooker because he lost to Lee on the battlefield, but also because he was injured by a cannonball, which put him out of commission.
Problems with disloyal subordinates further complicated Hooker's position as commander after the loss at Chancellorsville.
President Lincoln replaced Hooker with general Meade as commander of the Army of the Potomac on June 28, 1863, just before Gettysburg.
Hooker spent the remainder of the war in the Western Theater of operations, requiting himself well at the Battle of Chattanooga and in the Atlanta Campaign.
After the war, Hooker continued to serve in the military as commander of the Department of the East and commander of the Department of the Lakes.
Hooker died on October 31, 1879 at the age of sixty-four in New York as the result of chronic health problems at least partially caused by an earlier stroke.
Hooker was interred in Spring Grove Cemetery in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Due to his reputation for gambling and womanizing, the origin of the slang term "hooker" for prostitute began to be association with him, but studies show the term was known before the Civil War.
Today, some historians have questioned the validity of the claims that Hooker was a hard drinking womanizer, stating that his often lax attitude toward those things as a commander led to the reputation.


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