John Gould Stephenson

John Gould Stephenson
Stephenson, early 1860s
5th Librarian of Congress
In office May 24, 1861 – December 31, 1864
President	Abraham Lincoln
Preceded by	John Silva Meehan
Succeeded by	Ainsworth Rand Spofford
Personal details
Born	(1828-03-01)March 1, 1828 Lancaster, New Hampshire, US
Died	November 11, 1883(1883-11-11) (aged 55) Washington, D.C., US
Resting place	Congressional Cemetery
Political party	Republican
Education	Dartmouth Medical School Castleton Medical College
Occupation	Physician soldier
Military career
Allegiance	United States
Service / branch	Indiana Legion, Army
Years of service	1861–1864
Rank	Colonel
Unit	Iron Brigade
Conflict	American Civil War Chancellorsville Gettysburg

John Gould Stephenson (March 1, 1828 – November 11, 1883) was an American physician and soldier who served as Librarian of Congress from 1861 to 1864. Born in Lancaster, New Hampshire, to a prominent merchant family, he attended the Dartmouth Medical College and Castleton Medical College, where he received his M.D in 1849. Stephenson moved to Terre Haute, Indiana, in the early 1850s, where he became active in the temperance movement and the nascent Republican Party. He campaigned for Abraham Lincoln in the 1859 Senate race in Illinois and the 1860 presidential election. He pursued an appointment of Librarian of Congress immediately following Lincoln's election, possibly due to his brother's work as a librarian in Cincinnati. After a lengthy pressure campaign from prominent Republicans, Lincoln appointed Stephenson as Librarian of Congress, replacing long-term incumbent John Silva Meehan despite opposition from the Joint Committee on the Library.

Believing the library had fallen into neglect under Meehan's administration, Stephenson began a mass change of staff soon after taking office, firing all but one assistant. He hired journalist Ainsworth Rand Spofford, a friend of his brother, as assistant librarian in August 1861. Although never formally commissioned, Stephenson began serving in the Union Army soon after his appointment as Librarian of Congress. He briefly served as an acting naval surgeon to the 19th Indiana Infantry in 1861, before serving as an aide-de-camp in the Indiana militia, where he achieved the rank of colonel. In 1863, he served as the aide-de-camp of Solomon Meredith, commander of the Iron Brigade, and saw action at the battles of Chancellorsville and Gettysburg. He resigned as librarian for unclear reasons in December 1864, and was succeeded by Spofford. He served in various positions as a legal clerk during the 1870s, and was appointed as a medical examiner at the Bureau of Pensions in Washington in the early 1880s. He died after a period of illness and was buried in the Congressional Cemetery.