John Goff Ballentine

John Goff Ballentine. The oldest son of A.M. and Mary Ballentine, John Goff Ballentine was born at his family's residence on South First Street in Pulaski on May 20, 1825. He graduated from Wurtemburg Academy in 1841, from the University of Nashville in 1845 and from Harvard in 1848. Ballentine attended Livingston Law School in New York before moving back to Pulaski and practicing law with Judge Lunsford Bramlett., In 1854, Ballentine had moved to Mississippi, but by 1860 had settled in Memphis, Tennessee where he was engaged in the practice of law. With the outbreak of the Civil War, Ballentine enlisted as a private in the Shelby County Dragoons and became known for his courage and “derring-do.” He quickly rose to the rank of Captain and commanded a regiment named in his honor, Ballentine's Mississippi Regiment., Ballentine was wounded in 1864 but returned to service in time to defend General Hood's retreat through Pulaski after the Battle of Nashville and reportedly, Ballentine was the last Confederate to cross the Richland Creek Bridge., After the war, John Ballentine returned to Pulaski and resumed his practice of law. He was elected as a Democrat to the United States House of Representatives and served in the 48th and 49th Congresses but refused a third term due to ill health. John Goff Ballentine died on November 25, 1915.