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A Review of
Richard Rowett: Thoroughbreds,
Beagles, and the Civil War
by Susan D. Jones, University of Colorado at Boulder
Growing up in Carlinville, Illinois, author Tom Emery
heard interesting snippets about the life of a local Civil
War hero, politician, and stock breeder named Richard
Rowett. While a college student, Emery began in
earnest to reconstruct the life of Rowett.
With the resulting publication of Richard
Rowett, Emery joins other researchers interested in adding to the historical record by
contributing biographies of neglected historical figures. Rowett's life, as told by
Emery, may be a particularly useful
example of historical biography because
it illustrates larger social, political, and
cultural concerns of the Midwestern
United States in the late nineteenth
century.
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Like many other Illinoisans,
Rowett had immigrated to the
United States as a young adult (he
was born in England). No doubt
due to the limitations of available sources, Emery tells us little about Rowett's English
years save that the family was
of modest means and young
Rowett learned his father's
trade (carriage trimming).
This humble beginning
contrasts with Rowett's
later prominence; his
interest in breeding fancy
stock (fine Thoroughbreds and
Beagles) on his well-appointed farm, for example, hint at his desire to occupy and advertise a position
of social prestige unavailable to the son of a carriage-trimmer back in England. Although we hear little of
Rowett's own family (or nineteenth-century family life
generally), the author does not shy away from reporting
unhappy personal events. Indeed, despite his obvious
admiration for his subject, the author treats Rowett's life
evenhandedly throughout the book.
To many readers, Rowett's activities in the years
preceding the Civil War will be of particular interest.
Union officer Rowett, relieved that he "had a heart to
face the cannon's mouth," made his name as a hero of
the bloody battle of Allatoona (1864). Rowett also
fought the battle of public opinion in his hometown of
Carlinville. As with other northern border areas,
Southern Illinois harbored a volatile mixture of pro-Union and pro-Southern sympathizers. The strength of
Civil War era Copperhead sentiment in the Land of
Lincoln has received little historical attention, but the
author wisely highlights the tension that
Rowett and other Union supporters
felt in Carlinville.
This tension dominated local politics to a
significant degree. A
one-term member of the
Illinois Legislature, Rowett
also held a variety of local
and regional political posts
despite the "tattered" political
situation. His own career
reflected the prevalent uneasy
mood: Rowett initially opposed
but later supported Ulysses
Grant's presidency (a point that
could be addressed further by the
author); and Rowett played a role
in the 1874 "Farmer's Convention,"
foreshadowing the rise of Populism
twenty years later. While pursuing
his political career, Rowett also participated enthusiastically in the horse-breeding and racing culture of the
South and middle West. By breeding a
Kentucky Derby winner and pioneering
the importation of beagle dogs to the
United States, Rowett helped to create
American cultural icons while reaching the
pinnacle of the rural gentleman's social success.
From an impressive array of sources, Tom Emery
has constructed a coherent and easily read narrative.
Although the author dose not specify the book's intended audience, Richard Rowett should prove useful for
advanced high school and university students and interested adult readers. Richard Rowett not only brings a
forgotten character to life, but it also introduces important themes in nineteenth-century Illinois history. Both
are important contributions to the historical record.
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