McAdoo, W. G. (William Gibbs), 1820-1894

William G. McAdoo was a Mexican War and Confederate soldier, author and Registrar for the University of Tennessee. He also served as Attorney General of the 3rd Judicial Circuit.

From the description of Bill of complaint to the Honorable Thomas C. Lyon against the Bank of Knoxville, 1857. (University of Tennessee). WorldCat record id: 31395217

William Gibbs McAdoo (1820-1894) was a man of import in Tennessee. Born in Knoxville, he was graduated from East Tennessee University in 1845. From 1845-1846, McAdoo served in the State Legislature, and from 1846-1847 saw military service in the Mexican War. Subsequent to the war, he was back in Tennessee and held the position of attorney general for the Knoxville district from 1851-1860. Involved in disputes with Governor Brownlow over the politics of sectionalism, McAdoo removed to Georgia in 1862. During the 1861-1865 War, he served as a Captain in the Army of the Confederate States. Still in Georgia in 1871, he was the judge of the 20th Judicial District. He later returned to his native Tennessee, the location of his primary mark as a jurist. McAdoo published a book on Tennessee geology, a tract on geographical nomenclature, several addresses, and wrote a history of his Mexican War experiences which, unpublished, is at the University of Tennessee. The National Union Catalog describes his published writings, of which not one is literary in nature. This is a point of significance and will be commented on later. McAdoo was the father of William Gibbs McAdoo, Jr., later secretary of the Treasury under Woodrow Wilson. Further details on this six foot four, "handsomest man in Tennessee," can be found in Appleton's and in a manuscript biography owned by the Georgia Historical Society in Savannah.

From the description of William Gibbs McAdoo letter, 1866. (University of Georgia). WorldCat record id: 310354916

William Gibbs McAdoo, Sr. was a United States (U.S.) junior officer who participated in the Mexican War.

From the description of William Gibbs McAdoo papers, 1846-1847, undated. (US Army, Mil Hist Institute). WorldCat record id: 50406095

William Gibbs McAdoo, Sr., married Mary Faith Floyd. He served in the Tennessee state government and as attorney general in Knoxville before the Civil War. In 1863 he moved to Georgia intending to reside on his wife's family plantation, but bleak prospects forced them to stop in Marietta and then settle in Milledgeville, the old state capital. During the last years of the war, McAdoo fought in Georgia as a Confederate officer. Like many southerners, he never recovered financially after the war, but tried to replace material advantage with intellectual pursuits. Both he and his wife wrote essays and book reviews for the local press. McAdoo struggled to find work in Milledgeville before securing a professorship at the University of Tennessee in 1877 and moving the family back to Knoxville. --Derived from "McAdoo, William Gibbs." American National Biography Online. http://www.anb.org/ (Retrieved December 17, 2008)

Munsell, Joel (14 Apr. 1808-15 Jan. 1880), printer and publisher, was born in Northfield, Massachusetts, the son of Joel Munsell, a wagon- and plowmaker, and Cynthia Paine. Munsell attended the local elementary school and worked with his father for three years. In 1825 he went to Greenfield, Massachusetts, where he became an apprentice in a printing shop and continued his education by reading widely and studying Latin, French, and Spanish. He left for Albany, New York, in 1827 and for six years held a variety of jobs there. He amassed volumes of scrapbooks on literary, historical, and typographic subjects and continued to do so all of his life. On 1 May 1834, with a partner, Munsell bought the Microscope, a newspaper on which he had worked, and its printing office... He established himself as a full-fledged publisher and bookseller... Joel Munsell principally became the greatest printer of his era because of his contributions to the art of typography, his work in printing history, and the voluminous output of his press, which included almost every type of reading material available in his day. Although much of the printing was undistinguished due to the necessity of containing costs to meet competition, he nevertheless established an outstanding reputation. "Munsell, Joel." American National Biography Online. http://www.anb.org/ (Retrieved December 17, 2008)

From the description of William Gibbs McAdoo letter, 3 February 1872. (University of Georgia). WorldCat record id: 291078265