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Joseph J. Cook

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joseph Jarvis Cook
Cook's Burial at Cook Cemetery
Born(1826-12-01)December 1, 1826
New Bern, North Carolina, United States
DiedJanuary 31, 1869(1869-01-31) (aged 42)
Alabama, United States
Buried
Cook Cemetery, Pickensville, Alabama, United States
Allegiance United States
 Confederate States
Branch United States Navy
 Confederate States Navy
Years of service1848 – 1852
1861 – 1865
RankColonel
Battles / warsAmerican Civil War

Joseph Jarvis Cook (1826-1869) was an American Colonel who served the Confederate States Navy during the American Civil War. He was most notable for being the main Confederate commander at the Battle of Galveston Harbor.

Biography

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Early life

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Cook was born on New Bern, North Carolina on December 1, 1826, as the son of Major and Mary W. Cook.[1][2]

He entered military service in 1848 at Annapolis, Maryland and graduated from the naval academy there at the same year but was discharged from the United States Navy in 1852.[1][3] Due to this, he moved to Fairfield, Alabama where he would farm at his plantation until the outbreak of the American Civil War.[3] During his life there, he married Melissa Dew in 1851 and had one daughter with her.[1]

American Civil War

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Around 1861, Cook was at Harrisburg, Texas but when the Union blockaded the Texan coast, Cook enlisted as a lieutenant colonel and formed the Active Company of Dixie Grays. This unit would spend time at Fort Herbert at the Galveston area before being merged into the 3rd Texas Artillery Battalion and Cook assuming command of the Battalion.[1][3] When Union ships arrived at the area in October 1862, Cook participated at the Battle of Galveston Harbor before asking for a negotiation after the Confederate defeat[4] but then assisting the Confederates at the Battle of Galveston at Kuhn's Wharf.[1][3]

He later participated at the Second Battle of Sabine Pass and repelled the Union advance there.[1] However he later had to get a surgery in 1864, reducing his military career before surrendering on June 2, 1865.[1] He was paroled on August 8 of the same year and returned to Alabama.[1][3] Cook later died on January 31, 1869, from unknown circumstances and was buried at Cook Cemetery, Pickensville, Alabama.[3][2]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Cook, Joseph Jarvis (1826–1869)". Texas State Historical Association. Retrieved February 6, 2022.
  2. ^ a b "WHERE IS COL JOSEPH JARVIS COOK BURIED?". peoplelegacy.com. Retrieved February 6, 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Jefferson Davis (1995). Lynda Lasswell Crist; Mary Seaton Dix; Kenneth H. Williams; Grady McWhiney (eds.). The Papers of Jefferson Davis. Vol. 8. LSU Press. p. 504. ISBN 9780807158821. Retrieved February 6, 2022.
  4. ^ Andrew W. Hall (June 10, 2014). Civil War Blockade Running on the Texas Coast. Arcadia Publishing Incorporated. ISBN 9781625850249. Retrieved February 6, 2022.