Thomas Leonidas Crittenden (May 15, 1819 – October 23, 1893) was an American statesman, politician, soldier and lawyer from the U.S. state of Kentucky.

His family was fairly typical for Kentucky, in that he and his father supported the Union during the war, but his elder brother fought for the Confederacy.

Their son, John Jordan Crittenden III, served in the United States Army and died with Lt. Col. George Armstrong Custer at the Battle of Little Bighorn in 1876.

Crittenden and his father remained loyal to the Union, but his brother joined the Confederate Army, a common occurrence in the border states.

[1] He assumed command on May 12 and led it during the final days of Spotsylvania and through the Battle of Cold Harbor, before resigning on December 13, 1864.

[2] After the war Crittenden served as the state treasurer of Kentucky and was appointed as a colonel and then brevetted to brigadier general in the regular army before retiring in 1881.