James Blunt was born on July 21, 1826, in Trenton, Maine, United States, and after passing his earlier years in the little town of Ellsworth, yielded to his love of travel and adventure and went to sea. From his fifteenth to his twentieth year he was a sailor.
James Blunt studied medicine, and in the year 1849 graduated from the Starling Medical College, Columbus, Ohio.
James Blunt practised his profession in New Madison, Ohio. In 1856 he moved to Kansas, where he settled at Greeley and continued the practise of medicine, but soon became actively interested in politics and took an active part in the antislavery movement. He was closely associated with John Brown, and his strong antipathy toward slavery took practical form in aiding Brown in secretly removing slaves from the United States into Canada. A member from Anderson County, of the now historic constitutional convention, which met at Wyandotte, July 5, 1859, and which framed the constitution of Kansas, Blunt was made chairman of the committee on militia - an appointment which probably influenced his future military career.
On July 24, 1861, he was mustered into the Union army as lieutenant-colonel of the 3rd Kansas Volunteers, and later was placed in command of cavalry attached to the brigade of Gen. James H. Lane. On April 8, 1862, he was promoted brigadier-general, and placed in command of the military department of Kansas. He first distinguished himself with his brigade of Kansans and Cherokees, October 22, 1862, in what is known as the battle of Old Fort Wayne, near the southwest corner of Missouri. Here he encountered the enemy, some 3, 000 to 5, 000 Indians under Col. Douglas H. Cooper, concentrated near Maysville and on their way north to invade Kansas. The Confederates were severely punished and gave up their northward march, and on November 20, 1862, Gen. Schofield turned over to Blunt command of what was known as the Army of the Frontier. Continuing his active operations against the Confederates, Blunt attacked Gen. Marmaduke, November 28, 1862, at Cane Hill, and signally defeated him. These successful operations were recognized by the Federal government by Blunt's promotion to major-general, November 29, 1862.
Still on the aggressive, Blunt again attacked the enemy under Gen. Hindman on December 7, at Prairie Grove, and, with the cooperation of Gen. Herron, caused Hindman to fall back fifty miles to the Arkansas River and to abandon his objective of occupying Missouri. Following up his advantage, Blunt captured Van Buren on the Arkansas, December 28, again defeated the Confederate forces, and destroyed four of their gunboats. In June 1863, having been relieved of command of the Department of Kansas, he took the field with the Army of the Frontier, and on July 16 defeated Gen. Cooper at Honey Springs, and opposed with his division the threatened invasion of Missouri by Gen. Sterling Price. At Newtonia, Missouri, October 28, 1864, he defeated Price, and in combination with Gen. Sanborn, engaged in a final skirmish with Shelby's cavalry. This ended what is known in history as the disastrous "Price Raid. " Viewed in the light of a subsequent study of conditions obtaining at that period, it seems quite certain that had not Blunt and his veteran soldiers thrown themselves across Price's advance, he would undoubtedly have captured Kansas City and occupied southeastern Kansas. After Price's defeat, the latter crossed the Arkansas River above Fort Smith with a few pieces of artillery, and with his army reduced by captures and dispersion to some 5, 000 demoralized men. Most of the noted guerrilla bands followed Price from the state.
At the close of the Civil War, Blunt was honorably mustered out of the service, July 29, 1865, and settled in Leavenworth, Kansas, where he resumed the practise of his profession. About the year 1869, he removed to Washington, D. C. , where for twelve years he practised before the Federal departments as a solicitor of claims. On April 9, 1873, Blunt and others were charged by the Department of Justice with conspiracy to defraud the government and a body of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina, but about two years later he was discharged by the United States Court in North Carolina hearing the case. His health gradually giving way, Blunt was, on February 12, 1879, admitted as a patient to St. Elizabeth's, the government hospital for the insane, where he finally died. His remains were sent to Kansas for interment.
James Blunt was a member of the Republican Party.
James Blunt married Nancy Carson Putnam, daughter of Ernestus and Elizabeth Putnam.
