As Jefferson Barracks´ first commander, he supervised the construction of several forts and barracks throughout the Midwest and the West.

In 1830 Kearny returned to Jefferson Barracks and married William Clark’s stepdaughter, Mary, with whom he had 11 children. In 1833, he was appointed lieutenant colonel of the First Dragons, the first cavalry unit of the United States Army, which earned him the nickname of “Father of the U.S. Calvary.”

He eventually became a general and participated in the Mexican War. He spent several years in California building military posts and training soldiers. Two of his lieutenants were William Tecumseh Sherman and Ulysses S. Grant. While in Mexico he contracted a disease and died one month after President James Polk commissioned him as a major general.

He is buried in Bellefontaine Cemetery. [Final Resting Place, p. 42]