Adjutant General of Kentucky

The Adjutant General of the Commonwealth of Kentucky is the head of the Kentucky National Guard. Established in 1793, the adjutant general is appointed by the Governor of Kentucky to a term that expires alongside that of the appointing governor.

Adjutant General of the Commonwealth of Kentucky
Seal of the Office of the Adjutant General of the Commonwealth of Kentucky
General officer flag
Incumbent Major General Haldane B. Lamberton since December 10, 2019 (2019-12-10)
Kentucky National Guard
Seat	Frankfort, Kentucky
Appointer	Governor of Kentucky
Term length	Four years or end of appointing governor's term
Formation	1793
First holder	Percival Pierce Butler

The current adjutant general is Major General Haldane B. Lamberton, who was appointed by Governor Andy Beshear on December 10, 2019.^[1]

History

Formation

The first constitution of Kentucky, ratified in April 1792, named the Governor of Kentucky as commander-in-chief of the army, navy, and militia of the commonwealth and granted them the authority to appoint field and staff officers.

While the exact date is unknown, Governor Isaac Shelby appointed Percival Pierce Butler as Kentucky's first adjutant general. The first official act taken by General Pierce is recorded to have been in March 1793.^[2]

Notable adjutants general and events

In 1851, Governor John L. Helm appointed future Supreme Court Justice John Marshall Harlan to the position at the age of 18 despite the fact that he had no prior experience serving in public office, and his only military experience was limited training for the Mexican–American War.^[3]

Samuel Ewing Hill, who served in the position from 1887 to 1891, is sometimes pointed to as the origin of the euphemism, "Sam Hill." General Hill was tasked by Governor Simon Bolivar Buckner to investigate the Hatfield-McCoy feud following a threat by West Virginia Governor Emanuel Willis Wilson to send the state militia across the Kentucky border to resolve the situation. From this, some newspapers began to question "what in the Sam Hill is going on," when reporting on the feud.^[4]

From February 3 to May 22, 1900, the office of adjutant general was contested as part of the wider disputes that resulted from the assignation of Governor William Goebel. General Daniel Collier –who was appointed by Governor William S. Taylor– and General John Breckinridge Castleman –appointed by Governor J. C. W. Beckham– each claimed the office. Following the decision of the United States Supreme Court in Taylor v. Beckham, Collier conceded the office to Castleman. Notably, both men had previously served as adjutant general in past administrations.^[2]

Beginning with the promotion of Adjutant General Roscoe L. Murray in 1950, all future adjutants general would automatically be commissioned as a major general.^[5]

Appointment and qualifications

Kentucky Revised Statutes Chapter 36, Section 020 stipulates each governor must appoint an adjutant general immediately upon taking office. For the appointee to be eligible for the position they must have:

• Served at least 10 years in the Kentucky National Guard;
• Have attained the rank of lieutenant colonel;
• Have not been separated from the Kentucky National Guard for more than five years;
• Meet the federal requirements for their current rank as well as the ranks of brigadier general and major general.^[6]

List of adjutants general

No.	Portrait	Name	Term of office	Governor(s) served
1		Percival Pierce Butler[2]	1793 – 1817	Isaac Shelby James Garrard Christopher Greenup Charles Scott Isaac Shelby George Madison Gabriel Slaughter
2		Oliver G. Waggener[2]	1817 – 1828	Gabriel Slaughter John Adair Joseph Desha
3		Preston S. Loughborough[2]	1828 – 1829	Joseph Desha
4		Peter Dudley[2]	1829 – 1851	Thomas Metcalf John Breathitt James T. Morehead James Clark Charles A. Wickliffe Robert P. Letcher William Owsley John J. Crittenden John L. Helm
5		John Marshall Harlan[3][2]	1851 – 1859	John L. Helm Lazarus W. Powell Charles S. Morehead
6		Scott Brown[2]	1859 – 1861	Beriah Magoffin
7		John William Finnell[2]	1861 – 1863	Beriah Magoffin James F. Robinson
8		John Boyle[2]	1863 – 1864	Thomas E. Bramlette
9		Daniel Weisiger Lindsey[2]	1864 – 1867	Thomas E. Bramlette
10		Frank Lane Wolford[2]	1867 – 1870	John W. Stevenson
11		Josiah Stoddard Johnston[2]	1870 – 1871	John W. Stevenson
12		James Allen Dawson[2]	1871 – 1875	Preston H. Leslie
13		John Montgomery Wright[2]	1875 – 1879	James B. McCreary
14		Joseph Preyer Nuckols[2]	1879 – 1883	Luke P. Blackburn
15		John Breckenridge Castleman[2]	1883 – 1887	J. Proctor Knott
16		Samuel Ewing Hill[2]	1887 – 1891	Simon Bolivar Buckner
17		Andrew Jackson Gross[2]	1891 – 1893	John Y. Brown
18		John Crepps Wickliffe[2]	1893 – 1894	John Y. Brown
19		Andrew Jackson Gross[2]	1894 – 1895	John Y. Brown
20		Daniel Ray Collier[2][7]	1895 – 1898	William O'Connell Bradley
21		Wilbur Rush Smith[2][7]	1898[a]	William O' Connell Bradley
22		Daniel Ray Collier[2][8]	1898 – 1900[b]	William O' Connell Bradley Williams S. Taylor William Goebel J. C. W. Beckham
23		John Breckenridge Castleman[2]	1900[c]	William Goebel J. C. W. Beckham
24		David Rodman Murray Jr.[2]	1900 – 1903	J. C. W. Beckham
25		William Purcell "Percy" Dennis Haly[2]	1903 – 1906	J. C. W. Beckham
26		Henry Robert Lawrence[2][9]	1906 – 1907	J. C. W. Beckham
27		Philip Preston Johnston[2][10]	1907 – 1912	Augustus E. Wilson
28		William Birch Haldeman[2][11]	1912 – 1914	James B. McCreary
29		James Tandy Ellis[2][12]	1914 – 1919	Augustus O. Stanley James D. Black
30		James Madison DeWeese[2][12]	1919 – 1920	Edwin P. Morrow
31		Isaac Wilder[2][12]	1920	Edwin P. Morrow
32		Jackson Morris[2][12]	1920 – 1923	Edwin P. Morrow
33		Jouett Henry[2][12]	1923 – 1924	William J. Fields
34		James Arthur Kehoe[2][13]	1924 – 1927	William J. Fields
35		William Henry Jones Jr.[2][12]	1927 – 1932	Flem D. Sampson Ruby Laffoon
36		Henry H. Denhardt[2][12]	1932 – 1935	Ruby Laffoon
37		George Lee McLain[2][14]	1935 – 1939	Albert "Happy" Chandler
38		John Arthur Polin[2][14]	1939 – 1944	Keen Johnson
39		Gustavus Herbert May[2][15]	1944 – 1947	Simeon Willis
40		Roscoe Lee Murray[2][5]	1947 – 1951	Earle C. Clements Lawrence W. Wetherby
41		Jesse Scott Lindsey[2][16]	1951 – 1955	Lawrence W. Wetherby
42		John Jacob Bethurum Williams[2][12]	1955 – 1959	Albert "Happy" Chandler
43		Arthur Young Lloyd[2][17]	1959 – 1967	Bert Combs Edward T. Breathitt
44		Allan Kenneth Carrell[2][18]	1967 – 1968	Louie Nunn
45		Larry Clark Dawson[2][19]	1968 – 1971	Louie Nunn
46		Richard L. Frymire Jr.[2][20]	1971 – 1977	Wendell Ford Julian Carroll
47		Billy Gene Wellman[2][21]	1977 – 1987	Julian Carroll John Y. Brown Jr. Martha Layne Collins
48		Michael Walker Davidson[2][22]	1987 – 1991	Wallace G. Wilkinson
49		Tebbs Shewmaker Moore[2][23]	1991	Wallace G. Wilkinson
50		Robert Louis DeZarn[2][24]	1991 – 1995	Brerton C. Jones
51		John Russell Groves Jr.[2][25]	1995 – 2001	Paul Patton
52		Dean Allen Youngman[2]	2001 – 2003	Paul Patton
53		Donald C. Storm[26]	2003 – 2007	Ernie Fletcher
54		Edward W. Tonini[27]	2007 – 2015	Steve Beshear
55		Stephen R. Hogan[28]	2015 – 2019	Matt Bevin
56		Haldane B. Lamberton[1][29]	2019 – Present	Andy Beshear