A Soldier's Life

Autobiographies are usually published about the rich, famous and notorious. Perhaps that is why the memoirs of Daniel P. Whiting have not been printed for 150 years. Whiting was not rich, famous or notorious. He was a loyal officer in the U.S. Army for three decades during the middle of the 19th century. His career began in the time of Daniel Webster and John C. Calhoun. It coincided with a period in American history when the country was moving West in those tumultuous years of Manifest Destiny. As an infantry officer, Whiting seemed to be in the thick of every crisis. He was in Florida during the Seminole wars. He was in Indian Territory in today's Oklahoma. He was in Corpus Christi when Texas became a state and in the bombardment of Fort Brown when the Mexican War began. He was with Zachary Taylor at Monterrey and Winfield Scott at Veracruz. He was in Utah Territory during the "Mormon troubles" and was on garrison duty out West when the Civil War began. During his far-flung service, he fathered seven children with his beloved wife until her untimely death after child-birth. Whiting wrote his autobiography during the last years of service. He retired during the Civil War after long years of duty in war and peace at a time of decisive change in American history.