John Craven rose from humble beginnings. He was born in New York City September 8, 1822ⁱ to John and Catharine Welcher Craven. When he was nine years old they moved to Newark, New Jersey and he was apprenticed to a carpenter, David C. Ayres, of Newark. In 1843, when he reached the age of majority (21), he got a job with a carpenter-millwright, John Grigg. The first structure he helped build was the Passaic Chemical Works in Newark. When this was completed, he accepted  the offer of the plant owner, William Clough, described in the 1850 US Census as “manufacturer and practical chemist”, to stay on as supervisor of construction and repairs. The company produced acids and dry salts. Craven was fascinated by the manufacture of these products and further improved his knowledge by the study of chemistry.ⁱⁱ

Leaving this job in 1845, Craven became acquainted with a D.O. Griffith who was involved in expressing the quotations of the New York stock boards via ferry to Jersey City and then by horseback to the Newark Court House where they were sent by telegraph to Philadelphia. The two devised other methods using communication techniques of the day.  At this time, the Magnetic Telegraph Company (MTC) operated by Samuel F.B. Morse had its office located in the Newark Courthouse. Craven joined Morse’s company as Superintendant of Construction. He was paid $1.25 a day. They were constructing the telegraph line that was to run between Newark, Paterson, Hackensack and Fort Lee, NJ. When the job was done, Craven stayed on in Ft. Lee, NJ to experiment with submarine telegraph cables. At this point, Craven’s personal life took a happy turn. In that year he married Catherine S. Tichenor, the daughter of Samuel Tichenor of Newark. A year later, their son William was born and a year after that, a daughter, Anna.

As Morse’s company struggled with the need to connect New York and New Jersey by underwater cable,  Craven was shown a sample of gutta percha by a friend. Gutta percha is a gum found on the island of Borneo, is  similar to rubber, and was an early component of the golf ball.  Its properties intrigued Craven and with his wife Catherine’s assistance he coated copper wire with this substance and began running tests to see if it successfully insulated the wire under water. They were successful. Covering the wire by hand was very arduous so he found a company in New York City that would do it mechanically.  When sufficient wire was available, he approached his supervisor at the MTC, a Mr. Clark, with his invention. Clark roared that it was so much humbug and refused to spend any more money on submarine wires. Craven persevered and eventually convinced Clark to let him try it. He submerged a line in the Passaic River in the area of the Newark drawbridge and connected it to the MTC’s land lines and turned on the juice. The first wire was destroyed by winter ice but Clark had him order new wire. Several attempts in 1848 to lay a cable across the Hudson River resulted in failure due to the fact that the anchors of ships in the river snagged the cable and destroyed the connection.

Realizing that this cable might have significant commercial value he hired a solicitor (attorney) and applied for a US patent for this process. The Commissioners of Patents refused the application for lack of novelty stating that “the non-conducting property of gutta-perchas was among the first recognized in this substance and publicly made known in various accounts given in the London Mechanic’s Magazine and Athenaeumⁱⁱⁱ Another source stated that “Professor Faraday, had already mentioned gutta percha as being a non-conducting substance”. Faraday was a noted English chemist and physicist, however, he had never made a statement regarding its use as a insulator or uses with underwater products. On June 15, 1848 a cable was successfully laid from Fort Lee NJ to New York City, thereby connecting the line to Washington DC. Modern communications had taken a giant step and Craven was still earning $1.25 a day. The company had offered no stipend for his imaginative invention.

Craven must have been extremely frustrated and resigned from the company and succumbed, as did thousands of other ambitious men, to gold fever. He headed for Philadelphia and “there, fell in with some well-off young yahoos, who chartered a ship, equipped with a well stocked library^iv,” and sailed off to California via Cape Horn. At this time, in the 1850 US Census, John Craven, his wife Catherine, son William, and daughter Anna are listed as living in Newark’s West Ward along with Jabez and Emily Tichenor, who perhaps was Catherine’s brother. John could have been off in California and his wife recorded his name to the Census taker. It is recorded that he spent two years searching for gold without any great success and returned to New Jersey in 1851. With incredible resiliency and no mean share of self-confidence, at the age of 29, Craven decided to study medicine. It is reported that his preceptor was Dr. Gabriel Grant, a noted physician in Newark NJ.^v He also attended lectures at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in New York and began the practice of medicine in Newark NJ. 

In 1858, there was a celebration to salute the success of the first transatlantic telegraph cable and a speaker at this event, the Honorable William D. Kelly, named Craven as the person “who laid the first substantial, available submarine telegraph”. The public recognition must have given Craven and his family great pleasure. 

The Civil War 

President Abraham Lincoln published a call for 75,000 soldiers on April 15, 1861. John Craven signed his commission, with the 1^st New Jersey Militia on April 30^th. Three days later, a regiment of over 700 men left New Jersey and headed for Annapolis, Maryland. They reported to General Benjamin Butler on May 5 and moved on to Washington DC on the following day. They participated in the invasion of Virginia (May 23-24) and the occupation of Arlington Heights (May 24). They were posted as guards on the Alexandria & Loudon Railroad until July 16. They were attached to the 1st NJ Brigade, “Runyon's Reserve Division” , of General McDowell's Army of  Northeast Virginia. “The 1^st Militia and elements of the 1^st and 2^nd Volunteers , were ordered to advance on Centreville on July 21, reached their destination hours after the Battle of Bull Run began

Although most of this brigade was held in reserve or were at the rear guarding supplies, the First Militia Regiment participated in the Battle of Bull Run, July 21. The Newark Daily Mercury published a letter from a soldier of the First Brigade on July 25, 1861: 

“We left our trains within a mile of Fairfax Station, to march thence to the Station.We hardly left the cars before Dr. Craven, who had gone on before us, and had been all day of the battle-field, caring for the wounded, came to us, staggering us with the news that our own army, under General McDowell, was retreating. We absolutely refused to believe it….But when we reached Fairfax Station, we found all the excitement and the news confirmed.”

The regiment had served its three months enlistment, returned to New Jersey and was mustered out at Newark, July 31, 1861. Craven’s service did not end, however. One month later he was commissioned to the US Volunteers Medical Staff and promoted to full surgeon on September 4, 1861. His organizational skills were noted and he made rapid progress through the ranks. He was appointed Brigade Surgeon in General Sherman’s Expeditionary Corps, and in February, 1862, Chief Medical Officer (CMO) of General Wrights Brigade and served in Florida and Tybee Island, Georgia. In September he became Medical Purveyor of the Department of the South, CMO to General Gillmore at Fort Pulaski, CMO to field operations against Forts Wagner , Gregg and Sumter. In January, 1865 he moved to the position of Medical Purveyor, and CMO of the Department of Virginia and North Carolina. This included duties at Fortress Monroe. During this period, he attended lectures at Baltimore Academy of Medicine and was awarded an M.D. degree.

His Most Famous Patient; Jefferson Davis

These were Craven’s words published in 1867 describing Jefferson Davis’s entry into Fortress Monroe following his capture. ^[ix] Or maybe they weren’t his words. There was much controversy over the authorship of this document. Many feel that it was really written by General Haldine, a personal friend of  Craven’s. Even Davis denied some of what was written, however, it probably is accurate that Davis was in very bad physical shape. He was put in irons and could hardly move with them, he was kept awake by two soldiers constantly marching in his small space. His cell was dark and damp, he could not eat the rough food offered and he was consumed with worry for his family that was being sailed under guard to Savannah, Georgia. There was a plan to bring Davis to trial. His death in prison would be severely criticized. Craven had the manacles removed, treated his wounds, and had him moved to dryer quarters. Craven’s wife and daughter who were with him, prepared food for Davis that better suited his appetites. Craven gave him tobacco as he thought part of his weakness was nicotine withdrawal. Davis’s wife, Varina, wrote long letters to Craven asking for news of her husband, but he never responded as he considered it inappropriate. However, Davis’s letters to his wife, described Craven’s treatment as humane They developed a strong relationship without transgressing the patient: prisoner: physician balance. However, the military officials thought that Craven was too lenient and he was removed from the case in December, 1865. He was honorably discharged a month later and returned home to New Jersey with a final rank of Brevet Lieutenant Colonel. 

President Johnson gave Craven a job as Postmaster of Newark, NJ which he only held for four months as Congress did not approve many of Johnson’s appointments. He used this time to transcribe his diaries into a book, “The Prison Life of Jefferson Davis”. It created a great controversy as it created sympathy for Davis’ treatment.Powerful publishers in the US, Thaddeus Stevens, Horace Greeley and Gerrit Smith, were already trying to secure Davis’s release. That took place in May, 1866. He subsequently attacked much of what Craven had published. Craven moved to Jersey City and resumed his medical practice. There he became an actor in the cleanup of a local business, the Communipaw Abbatoir. It was a public health risk causing much disease and Craven became an expert in this field. He then focused on ways to safely transport meats. In this period, he successfully obtained three US patents, one treating blood for the manufacture of fertilizers, one for rendering and drying processes for meat and one for a refrigerator compartment for shipping meat on trains and boats. In 1876, the steamer “Abyssinia” of the Cunard line was outfitted with a freezer and his son, William, accompanied the first transatlantic delivery of dressed beef to London. William continued on as the London representative for a beef shipping syndicate.

In 1881, Craven retired and he moved his family to Patchogue, Long Island and purchased a home. He was an avid fisherman, hunter and tinkerer and soon became a celebrity within the village for his phenomenal memory for literature and plays. In June 1883 he was visited by a local clergyman who was trying to gather support for a free library. Craven liked the idea and immediately contributed. He became the Library Association’s first president. He was also president of the Board of Education, and the Board of Health of Brookhaven, a nearby town.

Craven died February 9, 1893 and is buried in Patchogue’s Cedar Grove Cemetery. He was survived by his wife, Catherine, his son, William Darcy Craven and a daughter, Anna Craven. William functioned as his business representative in London and had at least one son, William Darcy Craven II (born 11/7/1877). He was a construction engineer for Standard Oil and did considerable world travel in his work. In the 1910 US Census, Catherine Craven is living with her grandson, William and his wife Grace in Ridley Township, Pennsylvania. With this family is Anna Craven Williams, her daughter.

There is a marker in Dr. Craven’s honor at Fortress Monroe. It was erected by the United Daughters of the Confederacy in 1939. In attendance at this ceremony was Robert A. Craven, great grandson of John Craven and Mr. Gerald B. Webb, Jr., the great grandson of Jefferson Davis.

Submitted:  V. M. Josephson  rev. 07/17/2008

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i   Information concerning Craven’s early life is presented in a manuscript written by his son, William,  regarding his testimony in a trial over patent rights of George M. Simpson.  New Jersey Historical Society.  Although it is always indicated in the US Census that Craven was born in New Jersey, this seems to contradict that fact. 
ii  Ibid
iii Ibid.
^iv   Biographical Encyclopedia of New Jersey of the 19th Century.  Philadelphia. Galaxy Publications, 1877, p. 537.
v  Ibid.
vi Alan A. Siegel, Beneath a Starry Flag,  Rutgers Univ. Press, 2001, p 35.
vii  Bilby and Goble, Remember You Are Jerseymen”, Longstreet House, Hightstown NJ, p. 59 
viii Alan A. Siegel, Beneath a Starry Flag,  Rutgers Univ. Press, 2001, p 36.
ix  “Jefferson Davis in Prison” Extracts from the Post-Surgeon’s Diary”   New Orleans, 1866.  Crescent Office, New Orleans, 1866.
x   Letter from Mrs. Jefferson Davis to Col. John J Craven, October 10, 1865, Available at:
                                          www.foodhistory.com/foodnotes/leftovers/davis/varina/01/
xi  Biographical Encyclopedia of New Jersey of the 19^th Century., p 538. 

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John Craven, medical director of Morris Island is seen examining a patient prior to amputating his leg. 
Others are Dr. Samuel Green (on far right, straw hat) and|
Dr. William D. Murray, 100th NY Volunteers, administering anesthesia.
Photo courtesy of Massachusetts Commandery of the MOLLUS and the United States Army Military History Institute.