John P. Slough

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John Potts Slough (February 1, 1829 – December 17, 1867) was an American politician, lawyer, Union general and Chief Justice of New Mexico. He is famous for commanding the Union forces at the Battle of Glorieta Pass.

Slough was born in Cincinnati, Ohio. He became a lawyer and practiced law in Cincinnati before being elected to the Ohio General Assembly. While serving there, he struck a fellow assemblyman and was expelled. He moved to Denver, Colorado, in 1860 and continued to practice law, becoming one of the city's more distinguished lawyers.

In 1861 the American Civil War broke out and Slough joined the Union forces as a captain in the 1st Colorado "Pike's Peakers" Volunteer Regiment. Members of his regiment were initially skeptical of his loyalty to the Union due to his association with the Democratic Party. However in August 1861, he became colonel of the regiment. In 1862 a Confederate army was invading the New Mexico Territory. Coming to the aid of the Union forces in New Mexico, Slough marched his regiment to Fort Union and, being the senior ranking officer there, assumed command of the post.

Slough received orders from, Col. Edward R. S. Canby, commanding the Department of New Mexico, to remain at Fort Union. A Confederate force under William Read Scurry was moving to capture Fort Union. Disobeying orders, Slough took the garrison and marched towards Glorieta Pass to intercept Scurry. Slough and Scurry fought an initially indecisive action at the Battle of Glorieta Pass, but the battle was turned to a complete victory for the Union after Slough had sent Major John M. Chivington on a flank attack, which destroyed the Confederate's supply train.

Following the battle, Canby sent orders to Slough to return to Fort Union immediately. Worried that he had already disobeyed orders by leaving Fort Union in the first place, he resigned his commission. He went to Washington, D.C., where he was given command of a brigade in the Shenandoah Valley during Stonewall Jackson's Valley Campaign of 1862. His forces were stationed at Harpers Ferry and saw little action. He was appointed brigadier general of volunteers of August 25, 1862, and became the military governor of Alexandria, Virginia. For the rest of the war he commanded the District of Alexandria.

When the Civil War ended in 1865, Slough was appointed Chief Justice of the New Mexico Supreme Court by President Andrew Johnson. He became so unpopular in this post that many sought for his removal, including William D. Rynerson. In 1867 Slough and Rynerson had become such enemies that after a heated argument Rynerson killed Slough, aged 38, in Santa Fe.

[edit] Notes

• His last name is pronounced "slo"