Colonel of the 1st South Carolina Infantry

His troops defeated the 54th Massachusetts Colored Infantry, commanded by Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, at the battle of Fort Wagner, S.C., in 1863

Governor of South Carolina

(1829-98) Born in 1829, in Barnwell, South Carolina, to a planter family, Hagood attended the private Richmond Academy in Augusta, Georgia, and later the South Carolina Military Academy (now The Citadel), graduating in 1847 at the top of his class. He was admitted to the bar in 1850. He was appointed deputy adjutant general of the South Carolina Militia in 1851, by Governor John H. Means, and served as the commissioner for Barnwell District, from 1851-61. In 1854, he married Eloise P. Butler, daughter of U.S. Senator Andrew P. Butler. As the flames of Civil War were just starting to ignite in early 1861, Hagood volunteered for service in the South Carolina army, and on January 27, 1861, he was elected colonel of the 1st South Carolina Infantry. He participated in the bombardment of Fort Sumter, in April 1861, The Battle of Secessionville, S.C., on June 16, 1862, and at the 2nd battle of Manassas, Va., August 28-30, 1862. He demonstrated remarkable skills in the military arts and due to his bravery in the field, and considerable administrative acumen, he was promoted to brigadier general, Confederate States Army, to rank from July 21, 1862. After defeating Colonel Robert Gould Shaw, commander of the all-black 54th Massachusetts Infantry Regiment, in their assault on the Confederate works at the 2nd Battle of Fort Wagner, S.C., on July 18, 1863, General Hagood, commanding the Confederate troops at the battle, had the bodies of nearly all of the dead Union officers returned to their lines, as was customary with one exception. He deliberately had Colonel Shaw's body buried in a mass grave with his black soldiers. Like many Confederate officers at the time, he believed that the African-American soldiers were fugitive slaves, and characterized their attack on the fort as a slave revolt led by Shaw. During the 1864 Virginia Overland Campaign, General Hagood brought a brigade north with him to Petersburg, Virginia, and fought under Major General Robert F. Hoke, in the battles of Drewry's Bluff, and Cold Harbor, Va. He and his soldiers served in the entrenchments during the siege of Petersburg, until December 1864, when General Hoke's Division was ordered to the relief of Fort Fisher, North Carolina. Hagood commanded Fort Anderson during the Battle of Wilmington, N.C. At the end of the war, Hagood's troops were serving under General Joseph E. Johnston in North Carolina. It is unknown if Hagood surrendered with Johnston at Durham Station, in April, 1865, as no record of General Hagood's parole has ever been found. After the war, Hagood resumed operating his plantation where he was an advocate of scientific agriculture, and he was also a noted breeder of thoroughbred horses. He represented Barnwell in the General Assembly, 1865-66. He served as President of the State Agricultural and Mechanical Society, 1869-73. He actively campaigned for fellow Confederate General Wade Hampton for Governor of South Carolina in 1876, and he was elected on the Democratic state ticket as Comptroller General, serving from 1876-80, and during his time in office he masterminded the crucial voluntary tax funding of Hampton's administration. During the "Ellenton Riots" of 1876, Hagood commanded a posse that was commissioned to make arrests and quell the violence. He then ran for governor himself easily winning the race, and choosing to serve only one term, 1880-82. One of his many accomplishments was to enact legislation that created a stronger railroad commission, he reopened the Citadel Military Academy in Charleston, and expanded the coverage of artificial limbs for Confederate Veterans. A gifted organizer, he was devoted to The Citadel, where he served as chairman of the Board of Visitors, 1878-98, and president of the Association of Graduates, 1877-98. General Johnson Hagood, died in Barnwell, S.C., on January 4, 1898, at his "Sherwood Plantation," and was buried at Barnwell's Church of the Holy Apostles Episcopal Cemetery. As a deep measure of respect, the entire corps of cadets, officers, and faculty of the Citadel attended his funeral.

Signature as Governor: 6 1/2 x 2 3/4, in ink, Johnson Hagood, signed above his printed title as Governor. This was cut from the bottom right hand corner of an official Governor's document. Very large, boldly written autograph. Excellent condition. Very desirable.