Kearny, << KAHR nee, >> Stephen Watts (1794-1848), an American general, commanded the western armies of the United States in the Mexican War (1846-1848). He also helped open the American West to settlement.
Kearny was born on Aug. 30, 1794, in Newark, New Jersey. He attended Columbia College (now Columbia University) for one year but left to join the army in the War of 1812. In 1825, Kearny joined an expedition to the Yellowstone River, and after 1828 commanded several frontier posts.
During the Mexican War, Kearny led the armies that conquered New Mexico and California. In 1847, Kearny and U.S. Navy Commodore Robert Stockton received conflicting orders concerning their authority in California. Stockton appointed John C. Fremont civil governor of California. But later orders from Washington gave Kearny control of the civil government. The conflicting orders led to a dispute between Kearny and Fremont, and Fremont was court-martialed for insubordination. Late in 1847, Kearny was ordered into Mexico, and he served as governor of Veracruz and Mexico City for a few months before his death on Oct. 31, 1848.
