Edwin Augustus Rigg (1822–1882), 49er, was a

military officer An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service. Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer (NCO), or a warrant officer. However, absent c ...

in the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

and the

Apache Wars The Apache Wars were a series of armed conflicts between the United States Army and various Apache tribal confederations fought in the Southwestern United States, southwest between 1849 and 1886, though minor hostilities continued until as l ...

Early life

Edwin Augustus Rigg was born January 15, 1822, in

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

. He moved to California in 1849. By September, 1852, he was an employee of the

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

custom house. Later that year he ran as a Whig for the office of City Tax Collector of San Francisco. He joined the Marion Rifles, an outstanding military unit of the

California Militia The California National Guard (Cal Guard) is part of the National Guard of the United States, a dual federal–state military reserve force in the state of California. It has three components: the California Army National Guard, California Air N ...

and one of the oldest volunteer companies in the State. He became an officer on November 7, 1855, serving as a first lieutenant. Became its captain April 19, 1856, and was reelected December 17, 1856, and in 1861.

American Civil War

On August 5, 1861, Captain Rigg with four other militia captains offered the services of their companies to the United States Government to protect the Overland Mail Route. Joined the 1st California Infantry, with many of his militia company August 15, 1861. He was made captain of Company B, formed largely from men from the Marion Rifles and other militia companies in San Francisco and others recruited at Camp Latham, near

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

. Promoted Major, 1st California Infantry, Sept. 5, 1861. He was sent to

Fort Yuma Fort Yuma was a fort in California located in Imperial County, across the Colorado River from Yuma, Arizona. It was established in 1848. It served as a stop on the Butterfield Overland Mail route from 1858 until 1861. The fort was retired from ...

to relieve Lt. Col. Joseph R. West as commander of

on November 26, 1861. While its commander he saw to the gathering of supplies of food and forage for the advance of the

California Column The California Column was a force of Union volunteers sent to Arizona and New Mexico during the American Civil War. The command marched over from California through Arizona and New Mexico Territory to the Rio Grande and as far east as El Paso, ...

between the Fort and the Pima Villages with the help of Ammi M. White. Promoted Lt. Colonel commanding 1st California Infantry, on April 28, 1862, during the California Column march from Fort Yuma to Fort Barrett at the Pima Villages. After the Californians had recovered New Mexico Territory and captured Franklin, in West Texas, they settled into occupation garrisons and fought to defend the territories of Arizona and New Mexico and West Texas from Apache and Navaho raiders. Rigg married seventeen-year-old Emma Antoinette Cooper November 26, 1862, in Mesilla, New Mexico, daughter of Hiram Cooper the superintendent of Hart's Mill near El Paso. Rigg's daughter, Sarah Adelia Rigg, was born at Ft. Craig, NM, on Dec. 5, 1863. During his time in Arizona he established Fort Goodwin on the

Gila River The Gila River (; O'odham ima Keli Akimel or simply Akimel, Quechan: Haa Siʼil, Maricopa language: Xiil) is a tributary of the Colorado River flowing through New Mexico and Arizona in the United States. The river drains an arid watershed of ...

under the direction of General Carleton directed operations against the

Apache The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwestern United States, Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan ho ...

. Promoted

Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

at Fort Craig, N.M. April 1864, he was discharged at Santa Fe in September 1864. His regiment was consolidated into a battalion the 1st Battalion of Veteran Infantry. On February 1, 1865, he was commissioned as Lieutenant Colonel of that unit, with headquarters at

Fort Craig Fort Craig was a U.S. Army fort located along El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro, near Elephant Butte Lake State Park and the Rio Grande in Socorro County, New Mexico. The Fort Craig site was approximately 1,050 feet east-west by 600 feet nor ...

. The battalion was mustered out in September 1866. He served until being mustered out on October 13, 1866, at Los Pinos, New Mexico, as Colonel of the 1st California Infantry.

U.S. Army career

Rigg decided to stay in the military, joining the regular Army after the Civil War. After failing the examination to become a Regular Army officer, Rigg was able to obtain the signatures of several politicians and a U. S. Senator on his petition for a new examination. Succeeding on the next try, Rigg received a commission in the 38th U.S. Infantry Regiment, one of the four regiments of veterans of the

United States Colored Troops United States Colored Troops (USCT) were Union Army regiments during the American Civil War that primarily comprised African Americans, with soldiers from other ethnic groups also serving in USCT units. Established in response to a demand fo ...

remaining in the U. S. Army. Riggs went on to serve as a 1st Lieutenant in the 38th U.S. Infantry at places like

Fort Selden Fort Selden was a United States Army post, occupying the area in what is now Radium Springs, New Mexico. The site was long a campground along the El Camino Real de Tierra Adentro. It was the site of a Confederate Army camp in 1861. The U.S. ...

, New Mexico where he served in 1869. In 1870, when the four colored regiments including the 38th were consolidated, he went to join the 25th U.S. Infantry as First Lientenant. Nearly half of the officers were crowded out of the army when the original four colored regiments were reduced to two. Rigg was one of them. On January 1, 1871, he was discharged, as part of the reduction in forces.

Later life

An 1871, Senate bill No. 520 was passed that provided for the relief of Edwin A. Rigg, for his service as late lieutenant colonel of the First Regiment Infantry California volunteers, making him a Postmaster at Fort Craig. He served there from October 30, 1873, until October 23, 1877. He moved to Arizona and was a member of

Tombstone A gravestone or tombstone is a marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. A marker set at the head of the grave may be called a headstone. An especially old or elaborate stone slab may be called a funeral stele, stela, or slab. The us ...

's Burnside Post,

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (United States Navy, U.S. Navy), and the United States Marine Corps, Marines who served in the American Ci ...

. In 1881, Rigg went on to become the justice of the peace in Contention City, Arizona.Wyatt's Reading Room, from www.wyattearpexplorers.com
Claim for land a half mile north of Contention City, witnessed by Edwin Augustus Rigg, Contention City Justice of the Peace. There he died of pneumonia on January 27, 1882, and was buried in the Contention City Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rigg, Edwin Augustus 1822 births 1882 deaths Military personnel from Philadelphia American people of the Indian Wars Union army colonels Military personnel from California People of California in the American Civil War People from Arizona Territory People from New Mexico Territory