John Bnchanan Floyd, an American statesman, born in Montgomery (now Pulaski) co., Va., in 1805, died at Abingdon, Va., Aug. 20, 1803. He was a son of Governor John Floyd. He graduated at South Carolina college in 1820, was admitted to the bar in 1828, and in 1830 removed to Helena, Ark., where he practised for three years. In 1839 he settled in Washington co., Va., and in 1847-'9 held a seat in the lower house of the state legislature. In December, 1849, the general assembly chose him governor of the state for the term ending Jan. 1, 1853. In 1855 he was again elected to the legislature. In 1856 ho was chosen a presidential elector, and voted for James Buchanan, for whose nomination he had exerted himself at the democratic national convention, and in whose favor during the canvass he had made many speeches in different parts of the country. In March, 1857, he was appointed by President Buchanan secretary of war. When Major Anderson moved his garrison from Fort Moultrie to Fort Sumter, Dec. 26, 1860, and President Buchanan refused to withdraw the United States troops from Charleston harbor, Floyd resigned and retired from Washington. During the latter part of his administration of the Avar department he had dispersed the army to remote parts of the country, and transferred 113,000 muskets and many cannon from northern to southern arsenals.

He was indicted by the grand jury of the District of Columbia as being privy to the abstraction of $870,000 in bonds from the department of the interior, in the winter of 1800, but failed to appear for trial. Soon after the beginning of the civil war he was made a brigadier general in the confederate army, and commanded with Generals Wise and Henningsen in Western Virginia. On Sept. 10,1861, he was defeated and driven from Gauley bridge by Gen. Cox, with the loss of baggage, ammunition, and camp equipage. He commanded a brigade at Fort Donelson when it was besieged by Gen. Grant, and the night before the surrender, Feb. 16, 1862, he, with Gen. Pillow and about 3,000 men of the garrison, escaped into Tennessee. For this retreat he was officially censured by the confederate government. He never again held a command.