Joseph Alexander Cooper was an American farmer and soldier. He fought for the Union Army during the American Civil War, was briefly in politics and served as an Internal Revenue collector for ten years for the Knoxville District.
Background
Joseph Alexander Cooper was the son of John Cooper, a native of Maryland and a veteran of the War of 1812. The latter removed to Kentucky and settled as a farmer near Cumberland Falls in Whitley County, where his son Joseph Alexander was born on November 25, 1823. A few years later the family moved across the Tennessee line to the adjoining county of Campbell where they settled on Cove Creek and carried on fanning.
Career
In September 1847 Cooper enlisted in the 4th Tennessee Infantry and served for the remainder of the war against Mexico. After the war he returned to Tennessee and engaged in farming near Jacksboro in Campbell County until the outbreak of the Civil War. Later he busied himself with recruiting and drilling men in his county for the Union army. In August 1861 he enlisted at Whitesburg, Kentucky, and was mustered into service as captain of the 1st Tennessee Infantry.
Before the Civil War, Cooper had been little more than a poorly educated, impecunious farmer without any great significance even in his own county, but his war record was brilliant and he rapidly rose to prominence. As captain he fought in the mountains of Kentucky and Tennessee during the fall of 1861 and the spring of 1862, and in March of the latter year was made colonel of the 6th Tennessee Infantry.
He became involved in a quarrel with his brigade commander, Brigadier-General Spears, and finally joined with his fellow officers in having Spears court-martialed for Southern sympathies. In July 1864 Cooper was made brigadier-general and led the 2nd Division of the 23rd Corps in Sherman’s attack on Atlanta. From this time to the end of the war he took part in the operations in East Tennessee.
In May 1865 he was made brevet major-general. He was mustered out of service at Nashville, January 15, 1866. In 1868 he was an unsuccessful candidate for senator from Tennessee. In 1869 Grant appointed him collector of Internal Revenue for the Knoxville District, in which position he continued for ten years. In 1880 he removed to Stafford County, Kansas, and engaged in farming until his death.
Achievements
Religion
Cooper was a member of the Baptist church and for more than thirty-five years was a deacon. He helped organize the South-Central Baptist Association of Kansas in 1889 and served for many years as moderator of the Association.
Politics
Cooper was a Whig in politics and in common with the great majority of his East Tennessee neighbors he opposed the secession of his state. He was a delegate to the union convention at Knoxville in 1861 and took a prominent part in its deliberations and activities.
Connections
Cooper was twice married: on April 9, 1846, to Mary J. Hutson, who died in 1874, and on January 21, 1875, to Mary J. Polston.