History of Newburgh, (Orange County) New York United States of America

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Biographies:

George David Ruggles, soldier, was born at Newburgh, N.Y., Sept. 11, 1833; son of David and Sarah (Colden) Ruggles; grandson of Joseph and Mercy (Warner) Ruggles and of David and Gertrude (Wynkoop) Colden, and a descendant of colonial governors Thomas Dudley of Massachusetts, William Leete of Connecticut and Cadwallader Colden of New York. His first ancestor in America was John Ruggles of Nasing, Essex, England, who came to Rexbury, Massachusetts Bay colony, 1635. George D. Ruggles was graduated at the U.S. Military academy, July 1, 1855; was assigned to duty as 2d lieutenant, and infantry, and served in the Chippewa and Sioux Indian country. He was adjutant of his regiment, 1857?61, and acting adjutant-general of the Department of the West, 1858. He was promoted 1st lieutenant, May 21, 1861, and was assigned to Gen. Robert Patterson's army, in which he served as acting adjutant-general of brigade, being appointed assistant adjutant-general with brevet rank of captain in July, 1861. He was commissioned assistant adjutant-general with the rank of captain, Aug. 3, 1861, and assigned to duty in the war department, charged with the organization of volunteer forces when there was little precedent of law or regulation to guide him in his important work. The quartermasters' and subsistence departments were not authorized to pay any expenses of soldiers prior to mustering in, which expenses had to be met by the several states. About the time that their funds were exhausted, Captain Ruggles appealed to congress and succeeded in obtaining an appropriation of twenty millions of dollars for "collecting, organizing and drilling volunteers." The volunteer bureau having been completely organized under his direction, in one year after its conception he was assigned to duty as chief of staff and adjutant-general of the Army of Virginia, with the rank of colonel of volunteers, June 28, 1862, and was promoted to the rank of major in the regular service, July 17, 1862. He took part in the actions at Cedar Mountain, the two days' fight on the Rappahannock, the battle of Waterloo Bridge, the second battle of Bull Run and the battle of Chantilly. When General McClellan took command of the army after Pope's disastrous campaign, Colonel Ruggles became his assistant chief of staff, and he served in that position throughout the Maryland campaign, including the battles of South Mountain and Antietam and the skirmish at Snicker's Gap. Shortly after the retirement of General McClellan from the army, Colonel Ruggles was ordered by Secretary Stanton to duty in his office at Washington. Later he assisted in organizing the conscription bureau, and was in the west on special duty. In the winter of 1864?65, upon the application of General Meade, he became adjutant-general of the Army of the Potomac, and remained in that position until the disbandment of the army, June 30, 1865. In this last campaign, he was in the three days' engagement at Hatcher's Run, siege of Petersburg, and the pursuit of General R. E. Lee, and was present at the surrender of the Army of Northern Virginia, at Appomattox. He received the brevets of lieutenant-colonel and colonel, U.S.A., March 13, 1865, for gallant and meritorious services during the war, of brigadier-general, U.S.A., "for gallant and meritorious services during the campaign terminating with the surrender of the insurgent army of northern Virginia," and brigadier-general of volunteers, April 9, 1865, for gallant and meritorious services in the events leading to the surrender of Lee's army. For special service rendered March 25, 1865, he received the verbal thanks of General Meade and President Lincoln. After the war, he served as adjutant-general of the divisions of the Atlantic and the Pacific and of the departments of the Lakes, the East, the Platte, Dakota, Texas and Californian. He was married, Jan. 8, 1868, to Alma Hammond, daughter of Stephen Satterlee and Alma (Hammond) L'Hommedieu. Of his children: Capt. Colden L'Hommedieu was graduated at the U.S. Military academy, an honor man in the class of 1890; Charles Herman was graduated at the Rensselaer Polytechnic institute, Troy, N.Y., in 1892; Alma Hammond L'Hommedieu was graduated at Radcliffe college in 1900; and Francis Augustus was graduated at Sheffield Scientific school, Yale, in 1900; was commissioned in the army as lieutenant of cavalry, Feb. 2, 1901, and was ordered to duty in the Philippines. General Ruggles was promoted lieutenant-colonel, June 15, 1880, colonel, June 7, 1889, adjutant-general of the army with the rank of brigadier-general, Nov. 6, 1893, and was retired by operation of law, Sept. 11, 1897. His total actual services in the army covered, up to that time, a period of forty-six years. He was appointed in 1898, by President McKinley, to the command of the Soldiers' Home at Washington, D.C. His tour of duty there expired Jan. 10,1903.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Henry Cornelius Hasbrouck, soldier, was born in Newburgh, N.Y., Oct. 26, 1839; son of William Cornelius and Mary Elizabeth (Roe) Hasbrouck; grandson of Cornelius Benjamin and Jane (Kelso) Hasbrouck, and of William and Maria (Hazard) Roe; and a descendant of Abraham Hasbroucq, a Huguenot, who was born near Calais, France; arrived at Boston, Mass., 1675; sailed thence to New York and thence to Esopus, Ulster county, N.Y., at which place he arrived in July, 1675. In 1677 Abraham Hasbroucq and eleven other Huguenots obtained from Governor Andros of New York a patent to land near Esopus which the Patentees called New Paltz. He settled there in 1678 and lived there until his death March 17, 1717. Henry Cornelius Hasbrouck was graduated from the U.S. military academy in 1861. He was commissioned 2d lieutenant and assigned to the 4th artillery, May 6, 1861; was promoted 1st lieutenant, 4th artillery, May 14, 1861; captain, 4th artillery, July 26, 1866; major, 4th artillery, March 5, 1887; lieutenant-colonel, 4th artillery Oct. 29, 1896; and colonel, 7th artillery, March 13, 1899. He served throughout the civil war and was in active service against the Cheyenne and Arrapahoe Indians in western Kansas in 1870; against the Modoc Indians in California and Oregon in 1873; against the Nez Perc? Indians in Idaho in 1877; against the Bannock Indians in Nevada in 1878; was commandant of cadets at the U.S. military academy from Aug. 3, 1882, till Feb. 1, 1888; was detailed to attend and report upon the maneuvers of the French army in the autumn of 1887; was a member of the board of officers that prepared the drill regulations for infantry, cavalry and artillery adapted for the use of the U.S. army, Oct. 3, 1891; on duty at the artillery school at Fort Monroe, Va., as director of the departments of artillery, ballistics, chemistry and high explosives, and practical artillery exercises for the second battalion from June 6, 1892, until May 27, 1898, when he was appointed brigadier-general of U.S. volunteers and served in the volunteer army through the Spanish-American war as commander of the 2d brigade of the 2d division of the 7th army corps.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

Albert James Myer, scientist, was born in Newburgh, N.Y., Sept. 20, 1827; son of Henry Beekman and Elinor Pope (McClanahan) Myer; grandson of Simon Johnson and Cornelia (Thorn) Myer and of Robert and Elinor (Baird) McClanahan and a descendant of Jan Dircksen and Tryntje Andriesse (Grevenrast) Myer, who emigrated from Amsterdam to New Amsterdam previous to 1652. He was graduated at Hobart college, A.B., 1847, A.M., 1850, and at Buffalo Medical college in 1851. He entered the U.S. army as an assistant surgeon, Sept. 18, 1854, and served in Texas, 1854-57. He was married, Aug. 24, 1857, to Catherine, daughter of Judge Ebenezer and Susan (Marvin) Walden. He was on special signal service duty, 1858-60, when he devised a system for signalling messages with accuracy and rapidity for many miles, by the use of flags during the day and torches at night. He was promoted major and signal officer of the U.S. army, June 27, 1860; served on the department staff, June to October, 1860, and in the department of New Mexico until May, 1861, when he engaged in expeditions against the Navajo Indians. He was signal officer on the staff of General Butler; organized and commanded the signal camp at Fort Monroe, Va.; served as aide-de-camp to General McDowell, and was engaged in the first battle of Bull Run. He was chief signal officer on the staff of General McClellan, established camps of instruction, organized signal parties and introduced the system of signalling at the U.S. Naval academy. He commanded the signal corps of the Army of the Potomac, participated in the advance on Manassas, the siege of Yorktown and the battles of Williamsburg, West Point, Hanover Court House, Seven Pines, Fair Oaks, Mechanicsville, Gaines's Mill, Savage Station, White Oak Swamp, Malvern Hill, South Mountain and Antietam. He was brevetted lieutenant-colonel, May 27, 1862, and colonel, July 2, 1862, for gallant and meritorious services at Hanover Court House and Malvern Hill, Va. He had charge of the signal office at Washington, D.C. from March to November, 1863; was promoted colonel, March 3, 1863; introduced the study of military signals into the U.S. Military academy in that year, and was a member of the central board of examination for admittance to the U.S. signal corps. He served on reconnoissance of the Mississippi river between Cairo, Ill., and Memphis, Tenn., December, 1863, to May, 1864; was chief signal officer of the military division of West Mississippi from May, 1864, to the close of the war; served on the staff of General Canby, and participated in the capture of Fort Gaines. He was brevetted brigadier-general of the U.S. army, March 13, 1865, for distinguished services in organizing, instructing and commanding the signal corps of the army and for its special service, Oct. 5, 1864, when the post and provision at Allatoona, Ga., were saved from capture through the aid of the signals. He was promoted chief signal officer with the rank of colonel, July 28, 1866, and on Nov. l, 1870, having been entrusted with the experiments in telegraphing and signalling the approach and force of storms, made his first observations which were received at twenty-four stations at twenty-five minutes of eight in the morning and on November 8, telegraphed his first storm warning to the stations on the Great Lakes. He represented the United States at the international congress of meteorologists in Vienna in 1873, and at the meteorological congress at Rome in 1879. He was promoted brigadier-general by congress, June 16, 1880, as a reward for his services. In 1875 he established a daily international bulletin and in 1878 a daily international chart in connection with the signal service bureau; a system of day and night signals for navigation, and a system of reports for the benefit of interior commerce and for farmers. Hobart conferred upon him the degree of LL.D. in 1872 and Union that of Ph.D. in 1875. He is the author of Manual of Signals for the U.S. Army and Navy (1868). He died in Buffalo, N.Y. Aug. 24, 1880.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor

William Henry Crawshaw, educator, was born in Newburgh, N.Y., Nov. 6, 1861; son of Charles and Mary (Lodge) Crawshaw and grandson of Samuel Crawshaw and of John Lodge. He prepared for college at Colgate academy and was graduated at Colgate university, A.B., 1887, and A.M., 1889. He was instructor in English and elocution at Colgate university, 1887-89; associate professor of English, 1889-93; professor of English literature from 1893; dean of the faculty from 1897, and in charge of the work of the president's office, 1897-99. He was elected a member of the Modern language association of America in 1893. He was married Dec. 26, 1888, to Jennie Louise, daughter of Aaron C. and Delia M. (Codman) Broughton. His published works include: The Interpretation of Literature (1896); an edition of Dryden's Palamon and Arcite with notes, etc. (1898), and contributions to periodicals.

From: Twentieth Century Biographical Dictionary of Notable Americans, Johnson, Rossiter, editor