John W. Colquitt (1840–1903)

Confederate colonel John W. Colquitt, who was a regimental commander of the First Arkansas Infantry during the Civil War, also served as a schoolteacher in Drew and Pulaski counties and worked for the Arkansas General Assembly.

John W. Colquitt was born on October 28, 1840, in Columbus, Georgia, to Walter Terry Colquitt and Aphiah E. Bushrod Colquitt. His father was an ordained Methodist minister and a lawyer in Sparta, Georgia, who served in both the U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate from 1834 to 1848. One of his brothers, Peyton H. Colquitt, served as a colonel commanding Gist’s Brigade, where he was killed at the Battle of Chickamauga on September 20, 1863. Another brother, Alfed H. Colquitt, served as a brigadier general in the Civil War and was elected governor of Georgia (1877–1882) and U.S. senator (1883–1894).

John Colquitt graduated from the Georgia Military Institute at Marietta, Georgia, in 1859, moving to Arkansas and settling in Monticello (Drew County) in 1860, where he taught school. At the outbreak of the Civil War, he enlisted in the Monticello Guards (Company I), First Arkansas Infantry, and was elected second lieutenant. The First Arkansas was sent to Virginia and was present at the First Battle of Manassas, although not as an active participant. The First Arkansas reenlisted for the war and was furloughed home in January 1862 before reassignment to Confederate forces in Tennessee. Upon reorganization, Colquitt was elected major under Colonel James F. Fagan and Lieutenant Colonel John Thompson.

At the Battle of Shiloh as part of Bragg’s Corps, Ruggles Division, Gibson’s Brigade, the First Arkansas took an active role. Major Colquitt suffered a serious wound and was on his way home to Georgia to recuperate when he was captured. He escaped and rejoined his regiment at Tupelo, Mississippi. Upon arrival, he was promoted to colonel of the regiment due to Fagan resigning and returning to Arkansas, and Thompson being killed at Shiloh. Colquitt served as commander through all the major battles of the Army of Tennessee until being wounded on July 22, 1864, during the Atlanta Campaign. Here, he received a gunshot wound above his right ankle, resulting in the need to amputate his right foot. After his wound healed, he returned to duty at West Point, Mississippi, and was placed in charge of the sub-department of Mississippi. He served in this capacity until the latter days of the war before being medically retired.

At the end of the war, penniless, he taught school at West Point, Mississippi, before returning to Arkansas in 1866. He married Mollie A. Bond in Drew County and continued in the field of education until being elected county and probate judge of Drew County. He was removed from those posts during Reconstruction.

Upon the death of his wife in 1876, he moved to Little Rock (Pulaski County), continuing as a schoolteacher and marrying Mollie Hudner in 1881. In 1887, he served as clerk of the Judiciary Committee of the Arkansas Senate and, in 1888, was elected sergeant at arms of the Arkansas Senate. He was elected Pulaski County tax assessor in 1890, serving two terms before being elected as state land commissioner (1898–1902). He then engaged in real estate until his death on September 24, 1903. He was survived by his wife and two daughters, Una and Mary. He is buried in Oakwood Cemetery in Little Rock.

For additional information:
Christ, Mark K., ed. Getting Used to Being Shot At: The Spence Family Civil War Letters. Fayetteville: University of Arkansas Press, 2002.

“COL Colquitt Called Higher.” Arkansas Democrat, September 26, 1903, p. 8.

“Death Claimed COL. J. W. Colquitt.” Arkansas Gazette, September 25, 1903, p. 1.

Hammock, Captain John C. With Honor Untarnished: The Story of the First Arkansas Infantry Regiment, CSA. Little Rock: Pioneer Press, 1961.

Masters, Daniel A. Hell by the Acre: A Narrative History of the Stones River Campaign, November 1862–January 1863. El Dorado Hills, CA: Savas Beatie, 2025.

Willis, James. Arkansas Confederates in the Western Theater. Dayton, OH: Morningside Press, 1998.

Anthony Rushing
Benton, Arkansas