Samuel W. Thornton was a prominent farmer, businessman, soldier, and politician. He was elected to serve one term in the Nebraska State Legislature (1877), representing Buffalo County

Buffalo County, Nebraska

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 42,259 people, 15,930 households, and 10,227 families residing in the county. The population density was 44 people per square mile . There were 16,830 housing units at an average density of 17 per square mile...

.

Early years

Samuel W. Thornton was the son of Abner and Esther Strain Thornton. His father was a member of a large Scots-Irish and devoutly Presbyterian family that had migrated to Ohio

Ohio

Ohio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...

 from South Carolina

South Carolina

South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...

 over opposition to slavery During the American Civil War

American Civil War

The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...

, Samuel joined the Union Army

Union Army

The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...

, fighting with Company C, 8th Regiment, Iowa Infantry. He participated in several of the bloodiest battles of the war, including the Battle of Shiloh

Battle of Shiloh

The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6–7, 1862, in southwestern Tennessee. A Union army under Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had moved via the Tennessee River deep into Tennessee and...

, Battle of Vicksburg

Battle of Vicksburg

The Siege of Vicksburg was the final major military action in the Vicksburg Campaign of the American Civil War. In a series of maneuvers, Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant and his Army of the Tennessee crossed the Mississippi River and drove the Confederate army of Lt. Gen. John C...

, and Battle of Memphis

Battle of Memphis

The First Battle of Memphis was a naval battle fought on the Mississippi River immediately above the city of Memphis on June 6, 1862, during the American Civil War. The engagement was witnessed by many of the citizens of Memphis. It resulted in a crushing defeat for the Rebels, and marked the...

, where he was shot in the thigh and hospitalized until the end of the war.

Returning home to Washington County, Iowa, he was hailed as a war hero and served in a series of elected positions: city collector, marshal, assessor, and one term as Deputy Sheriff. He also conducted the 1870 census

United States Census, 1870

The United State Census of 1870 was the ninth United States Census. Conducted by the Census Bureau in June 1870, the 1870 Census was the first census to provide detailed information on the black population, only years after the culmination of the Civil War when slaves were granted freedom. The...

 of Washington County, Iowa.

Buffalo County, Nebraska

In 1874 Samuel and his family moved to Buffalo County, Nebraska, a sparsely settled frontier land where farming was difficult and time-consuming. For the first few years, the farm teetered on ruin; however, by the end of the decade, Samuel began having tremendous success, and his reputation amongst local farmers grew accordingly. He served on various committees of the Buffalo County Agricultural and Mechanical Society. In 1883, the County Board named the area around Samuel Thornton’s homestead as Thornton Township, Buffalo County, Nebraska

Thornton Township, Buffalo County, Nebraska

Thornton Township is one of twenty-six townships in Buffalo County, Nebraska, United States. The population was 181 at the 2000 census. A 2006 estimate placed the township's population at 178. In 1883 the Buffalo County Board of Directors named the township for Samuel W. Thornton, a local...

, in honor of his military service. This honor was followed by his being elected to the state legislature (1887).

For the last thirty years of his life, Samuel remained in Buffalo County. While he continued farming, he expanded his business interests into the grocery business and utilities. He also stayed close with his fellow Civil War veterans, serving as post chaplain and speaking at the unveiling of the Civil War Soldiers’ Monument, Kearney, Nebraska, on October 25, 1910. Pictures of Samuel Thornton’s old homestead can be located at the Nebraska Historical Society, Lincoln, Nebraska

Lincoln, Nebraska

The City of Lincoln is the capital and the second-most populous city of the US state of Nebraska. Lincoln is also the county seat of Lancaster County and the home of the University of Nebraska. Lincoln's 2010 Census population was 258,379....

.

Family

Samuel W. Thornton married Sarah Larimer on September 14, 1854, and had eight children: Eva, William, Charles, Mary Etta, Harry Lyle, Mabel, Kate, and Lillie. William would later serve as President, Board of Directors, Union Valley Telephone Company. Samuel later married Dallastine Hopkins.

Samuel was a cousin of Military Reconstruction Judge James Johnston Thornton of Seguin, Texas, and the Thorntons of Logansport: Dr. William Patton Thornton, Judge William Wheeler Thornton

William Wheeler Thornton

William Wheeler Thornton was an Indiana lawyer, Attorney General, judge, and author. He was born in Logansport, Indiana, to John Allen and Elizabeth B. Thomas Thornton, members of respectable farming families...

, and Sir Henry Worth Thornton.