John McGavock | |
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![]() Portrait of John McGavock by Washington Bogart Cooper | |
Born | April 2, 1815 |
Died | June 7, 1893 |
Nationality | American |
Occupation | Farmer |
Spouse | Carrie Elizabeth Winder |
Children | Winder McGavock |
Parent | Randal McGavock |
Col. John McGavock (1815–1893) was an American heir and Southern planter.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]
John McGavock was born on April 2, 1815.[3] His father was Randal McGavock (1766–1843), Mayor of Nashville from 1824 to 1825 and owner of the Carnton Southern plantation in Franklin, Tennessee.[2] His sister Elizabeth Irwin McGavock was married to William Giles Harding, owner of the Belle Meade Plantation.[2]
McGavock worked as private secretary for Felix Grundy in his Washington, D.C. office.[2]
Upon his father's death, he inherited the Carnton plantation.[1][4][5][6][7] He soon added a Greek Revival two-story portico at the front and a two-story gallery at the rear.[6] Washington Bogart Cooper (1802–1888) painted his portrait circa 1850.[8]
During the American Civil War, Carnton was damaged by the Battle of Franklin and served as a hospital for the Confederacy.[1][4] On December 1, 1864, four Confederate Generals lay dead at Carnton: Patrick R. Cleburne, Hiram B. Granbury, John Adams, and Otho F. Strahl.[1] In 1866, McGavock donated two acres of land to establish the McGavock Confederate Cemetery on the plantation.[4][5][6][7]
He married Carrie Elizabeth Winder (1829–1905) in December 1848.[3][4] They had a son, Winder McGavock (1857–1907),[3][9] and a daughter, Hattie, who married George Cowan.[10]
McGavock died on June 7, 1893, at the age of seventy-eight.[3]