He served as a
first lieutenant in the United States Army under General
Abraham Eustis in the
Black Hawk War and
Second Seminole War. In 1836 he immigrated to the
Republic of Texas, receiving a 1,240-acre land grant from
Anson Jones. He and his brother-in-law, Joseph Upton Fields, ended the Regulator-Moderator War while he was sheriff of Harrison County, Texas. Kennedy was also a Harrison County commissioner. Kennedy ran for the
Texas Senate campaigning against the
Compromise of 1850. He was initially declared the winner, but then was defeated. According to the
1860 United States census Kennedy owned 21 slaves, making him a planter. During the American Civil War Kennedy served as Captain of Company K,
17th Texas Cavalry, also named
Clough Rangers. He fought in the
Battle of Arkansas Post where he evaded capture. ==Notes==