Mary A. Franklin
Director of Operations
National Headache Foundation
Chicago, IL
Seymour Diamond, MD
Executive Chairman and Founder
National Headache Foundation
Director Emeritus and Founder
Diamond Headache Clinic
Chicago, IL
Editor’s Note: Because we have recently celebrated the 150th anniversary of the end of the Civil War, it seemed appropriate to
republish this article about a famous general, president, and migraineur. The headaches and the depressive bouts suffered by
Ulysses S. Grant are frequently cited in his biographical notes.
This article is based on a previously published article of the same name which appeared in Headache Quarterly 1999; 10:145-146.
O
ne of the major figures of the U.S. Civil War was the
best known of the Union commanders, Ulysses S.
Grant (1822-1885), who later served as the 18th President
of the United States. Born in Ohio, where his father had
a leather tannery, Grant developed an early proficiency
for handling horses. He was a precise child, did well in
mathematics, and earned an appointment at the U.S.
Military Academy in West Point, New York. His tenure
at the Academy was undistiguished – graduating 21st in a
class of 39 – except for his masterful equestrian skills. After
graduation in 1843, he was posted to St. Louis where he
met his future wife, Julia Dent, whom he married in 1848.
Grant served with distinction during the Mexican War,
earning two brevets for meritorious conduct at the battles
of Molino del Rey and Chapultepec.
A military life seemed his destiny until he was transferred to the Pacific Northwest in 1852, and Grant became
extremely depressed during his absence from his family.
Throughout Grant’s life, his depression usually triggered
a bout with excessive alcohol consumption. This problem
forced him to resign from the Army in 1854.
Success on the battlefields did not translate into success
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in business. In St. Louis, Grant tried his hand at farming,
real estate, politics, and civil service as a customs agent – all
to no avail. With financial obligations at a critical point,
Grant moved his family to Galena, IL, and worked as a
clerk in a leather goods store owned by his brothers. Living in Galena was interrupted by the outbreak of the Civil
War, and Grant was again called to serve his country. He
received an appointment as a colonel in an Illinois regiment. Due to his military experience and leadership skills,
he was soon appointed a brigadier general of volunteers. It
should be noted that the Union Army was conspicuously
lacking in experienced military leadership. The cream of
the pre-war army had allied with the Confederacy, leaving
a void at the top of the U.S. army.
Throughout his military career, Grant demonstrated
consistent behavior, serious judgement, and unflinching
courage in the face of great odds. While the armies in the
Eastern theater of war were losing major battles, Grant in
the West, started charting military victories. Unlike many
of his colleagues, Grant did not pursue his own political
agenda, but dealt with the matters at hand. The first major
battle in the West was at Shiloh, Tennessee. On the first
day of the battle (April 5, 1862), all seemed lost
for the Union. However, Grant’s arrival in the
evening helped the Union forces regroup, and
they soundly defeated the rebels on the battle’s
second day. Due to political machinations by
his superiors (primarily, General Henry Halleck), Grant’s leadership was ignored. He again
fell into a depression and reportedly, his drinking problem reappeared. The talents of this
great military leader were squandered during
the next few months, until he was appointed commander
of the Department of Tennessee, and was instructed to lay
siege to Vicksburg, MS – a major Confederate supply center located on bluffs above the Mississippi river. Despite
many maneuvers by Grant’s forces and naval gunboats on
the river, the city did not capitulate until July 4, 1863. This
event, combined with the Union victory at Gettysburg,
PA, on July 3, 1863, signaled the turning point of the war.
Because of Grant’s continuing successes, he was appointed general-in-chief of all Union forces in February, 1864.
Grant’s self-reliance, tenacity, and confidence impressed
President Abraham Lincoln, who noted to a Grant detractor that “I c