James G. Spears
| James G. Spears | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
March 29, 1816 Bledsoe County, Tennessee |
| Died | July 22, 1869 (aged 53) Bledsoe County, Tennessee |
| Buried at | Pikeville City Cemetery, Pikeville, Tennessee |
| Allegiance | United States of America |
| Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1861–1864 |
| Rank |
 Brigadier General
|
| Unit | Army of the Cumberland |
| Commands held | 1st Tennessee Infantry 25th Brigade 3rd Brigade |
| Battles/wars |
American Civil War • Camp Wildcat (1861) • Mill Springs (1862) • Cumberland Gap (1862) • Stones River (1863) • Chickamauga (1863) • Knoxville Campaign (1863) |
James Gallant Spears (March 29, 1816 – July 22, 1869) was an American general who served in the Union Army during the Civil War. Leading a unit composed primarily of Tennessee loyalists, he participated in early battles in the Cumberland Gap area before marching with the Army of the Cumberland at Stones River and Chickamauga. He later provided support for the Knoxville Campaign.
An ardent Southern Unionist, Spears was appointed vice president of the 1861 East Tennessee Convention, which sought to form a separate, Union-aligned state in East Tennessee. He opposed the abolition of slavery, however, and was dismissed from the Army in 1864 for speaking out against the Emancipation Proclamation.
Spears was born in Bledsoe County, Tennessee, the eldest of five children of John Holliday Spears, a doctor, and his wife, Sarah (Gallant) Spears. As a child, his family struggled financially after his father lost much of the family's estate through speculation. Fond of reading, Spears managed to educate himself, and eventually studied law.
In 1848, Spears was elected clerk of the state circuit court. By 1851, he had acquired a large farm and several slaves, located on the outskirts of Pikeville. In 1860, he was among the commissioners appointed by the state to oversee construction of a turnpike connecting Pikeville and Jasper. On the eve of the Civil War, Spears opposed secession. A Democrat, he supported the Northern Democratic candidate Stephen Douglas in the 1860 presidential election.
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