John Lawrence Grattan

John Lawrence Grattan
Born	June 1, 1830 Corinth, Vermont
Died	August 19, 1854 (aged c24) Near Fort Laramie, Wyoming
Buried at	Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Allegiance	United States of America
Service/branch	United States Army
Years of service	1853–1854
Rank	Second Lieutenant
Unit	6th Infantry Regiment
Battles/wars	American Indian Wars

John Lawrence Grattan (June 1, 1830 – August 19, 1854) was a mid-19th century US Cavalry officer, whose poor judgement and inexperience led to the Grattan massacre, which was a major instigator for the First Sioux War.

Grattan was born in Corinth, Vermont on 1 June 1830. His mother, Sarah Rogers, died when he was only five and his father, Peter Grattan, relocated with his young son, John, and daughter, Mary, to Lisbon, New Hampshire where he worked as a wheelwright. John L. Grattan entered West Point in 1849, but did very poorly in his courses. Out of a class of 63, he finished 51st in French, and 43rd in Engineering, and failing mathematics altogether. Due to this, he was held back for a year. He applied himself the following year, finishing in the top third of his class for that year, only to again fall to the bottom third by his final year. In 1853, he graduated 36th out of a class of 55. Fellow graduates that year were James B. McPherson, Philip Sheridan, John Bell Hood, and John Schofield, all of whom would go on to fame during the American Civil War. Grattan, however, would achieve what fame he did receive due to a mistake during his very first command.

Initially, Grattan's poor performance at West Point left him without a definite assignment as an officer. For a time he was attached as a Brevet Second Lieutenant to the 6th Infantry. Given the customary three months leave following his graduation, Grattan was to have reported to Company G, 6th Infantry, at Fort Laramie, by October 1, 1853. However he failed to arrive until November 16, 1853. Within his first month, according to recorded reports from Post Surgeon Charles Page, Grattan received a reputation as being brash and boastful, while also giving off the impression that he was proud to serve in the army. The most disturbing trait, according to later accounts given by Page, was that Grattan displayed a disdain and dislike of the American Indians, despite having had no contact with them whatsoever up to that point, save seeing or meeting any who were in or around the post.

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