Fighting Butlers

1791 St. Clair's defeat: "Rare old map tells of disaster to Gen. Butler (Mapped by Ebenezer Denny of Pittsburg)

Three sons of the Fighting Butlers were breveted rank for their work as adjutants or inspectors for Andrew Jackson at the battle of New Orleans

The five Fighting Butlers were brothers of Irish extraction who settled in Carlisle, colonial Pennsylvania, and at Fort Pitt, and were involved in the American Revolutionary War, the Battle of the Wabash, and the American settlement of the region surrounding the mouth of the Mississippi River. ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} Editor Francis P. Blair popularized the story of the Fighting Butlers when William O. Butler was a Democratic Party vice-presidential candidate in 1848 with Lewis Cass. ^{[5] [6]}

The older three were born in Ireland. ^[2] The younger two were born in Pennsylvania. ^[2]

• Richard Butler (1743–1791), killed in the Northwest Indian War
  • Four children with Maria Smith
    • William Butler, U.S. Navy, died during War of 1812 ^[3]
    • James Ormond Butler, commanded Pittsburg Blues in War of 1812 ^[3]
  • Tamanatha ("Captain Butler") with Nonhelema Hokolesqua ^[7]
• William Butler (d. 1789), involved in the Battle of Monmouth and Sullivan Expedition
  • Son died in the Navy ^[3]
  • Son was officer in Wayne's army in 1794 ^[3]
  • Richard Butler (1777–1820) m. Margaret Farar, daughter of Benjamin Farar ^[8]
  • Rebecca Butler m. Samuel McCutchon ^[8]
• Thomas (1748–1805), 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment, severely wounded in the Northwest Indian War
  • Thomas Butler m. Ann Ellis (of Ellis Cliffs, Mississippi), settled in Louisiana ^[9]
  • Robert Butler m. Rachel Hays (a niece of Andrew Jackson), settled in Florida
  • William Edward Butler m. Martha Thompson "Patsy" Hays (a niece of Andrew Jackson), settled in west Tennessee
  • Lydia Butler m. Stockley D. Hays (a nephew of Andrew Jackson)
• Percival Butler (1760–1821), 2nd Pennsylvania Regiment, an adjutant general of Kentucky in the War of 1812 m. Mildred Hawkins ^{[10] [11]}
  • Thomas Langford Hawkins Butler ^[10]
  • William O. Butler (1791–1880), candidate for Vice President of the United States in 1848 ^{[10] [12] [13]}
  • Caroline Hawkins Butler m. James Pryor ^[10]
  • Jane Hawkins Butler m. N. E. Ewing ^[10]
  • Percival Pierce Butler Jr. (1794–1851), Kentucky state Senator ^{[10] [14]}
• Edward (1762–1803), 9th Pennsylvania Regiment and the Northwest Indian War, adjutant general of the U.S. Army
  • Anthony Wayne Butler
  • Caroline Swanwick Butler m. Bell
  • Edward George Washington Butler, married a great-granddaughter of Martha Washington, settled in Louisiana
  • Eliza Eleanor Butler m. John Donelson IV (a nephew of Andrew Jackson)

See also

• Wards of Andrew Jackson
• Donelson family

References

1. Brubaker, Jack (2024-06-03). "Thomas Butler's gun shop and the old man who lived there [The Scribbler]". LancasterOnline. Retrieved 2025-09-25.
2. "Ormonde-Dunboyne-Butler". The Baltimore Sun. 1904-11-27. p. 8. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
3. "Revolutionary Heroes". The Times-Democrat. 1892-06-04. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
4. "Fighting Butler History Made Complete". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. 1916-09-10. p. 30. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
5. Blair, Francis Preston; YA Pamphlet Collection (Library of Congress) (1848). Biographical sketch of General William O. Butler. Washington, D.C.: Printed at the Congressional Globe Office.
6. Linn, John Blair (1883). "The Butler Family of the Pennsylvania Line". The Pennsylvania Magazine of History and Biography. 7 (1): 1–6. ISSN   0031-4587.
7. Winkler, John F. (2011-11-20). Wabash 1791: St Clair's defeat. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN   978-1-84908-677-6.
8. "Richard Butler Papers" (PDF).
9. Cowan, Barry, ed. (2025) [2003]. "ELLIS-FARAR PAPERS Mss. 1000 Louisiana and Lower Mississippi Valley Collection Special Collections, Hill Memorial Library" (PDF). Baton Rouge: Louisiana State University Libraries.
10. "Hawkins Family". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 1914-06-07. p. 39. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
11. "Mildred Hawkins, related to the Todd family". The Twice-A-Week Courier-Journal. 1897-04-14. p. 3. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
12. "From Graham's Magazine: Biographical Sketch of William O. Butler". Vermont Patriot. 1848-06-15. p. 1. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
13. "Continued from 1st page". Vermont Patriot. 1848-06-15. p. 4. Retrieved 2025-12-09.
14. "Major Pierce Butler". The Tri-Weekly Maysville Eagle. 1851-01-18. p. 2. Retrieved 2025-12-09.