Background
Samuel J. Kirkwood was born on December 20, 1813 in Harford County, Maryland.
Samuel J. Kirkwood was born on December 20, 1813 in Harford County, Maryland.
Kirkwood attended country schools and the academy of John McLeod in Washington, D. C.
In 1835 Kirkwood moved with his family to Ohio, where he became a member of the bar in 1841 and prosecuting attorney in 1845. In 1855 he again moved west, to Iowa, where he became a leader of the newly formed Republican Party. The party won an initial success in 1856 when its candidate was elected governor of Iowa, and in 1860 Kirkwood himself was elected governor. He served through 1864. During the Civil War he contributed his personal funds to raise troops and firmly suppressed proslavery activity. Subsequently he became U. S. senator from Iowa (1866-1867 and 1877-1881), governor once more (1876-1877), and secretary of the interior under President James A. Garfield (1881). He died in Iowa City, Iowa, on September 1, 1894.
During the Civil War, Kirkwood gained national attention for his extraordinary efforts to secure soldiers and supplies from Iowa for the Union Army. A strong supporter of President Abraham Lincoln's policies during the American Civil War, he was active in raising and equipping dozens of regiments of infantry, as well as cavalry and artillery, for the Union Army.
Member of the Iowa Senate (1856-1859)
Kirkwood married Jane Clark, the sister of Ezekiel Clark, and thus became the brother-in-law of Edward Lucas, son of Iowa's first Territorial Governor Robert Lucas.