Jacob Downing (April 1830 – 1907) was a major in the Union Army during 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 ...

. He was present at the infamous

Sand Creek Massacre The Sand Creek massacre (also known as the Chivington massacre, the battle of Sand Creek or the massacre of Cheyenne Indians) was a massacre of Cheyenne and Arapaho people by the U.S. Army in the American Indian Genocide that occurred on No ...

as a subordinate of Colonel

John Chivington John Milton Chivington (January 27, 1821 – October 4, 1894) was a Methodist pastor and Mason who served as a colonel in the United States Volunteers during the New Mexico Campaign of the American Civil War. He led a rear action against a ...

. After the war ended, he played a part in the development of

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

and in particular the city of

Denver Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

Early life

Jacob Downing was born in

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. It is located on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River. Albany is the oldes ...

in April 1830, the youngest of 11 children of Jacob Downing Sr. (1785–1858) and Jane (née Winne) Downing. Downing Sr. was, according to one source, the owner of several farms and a successful entrepreneur. The family were Hicksite Quakers, Downing Sr. being a cousin of

Elias Hicks Elias Hicks (March 19, 1748 – February 27, 1830) was a traveling Quaker minister from Long Island, New York. In his ministry he promoted doctrines deemed unorthodox by many which led to lasting controversy, and caused the second major schism w ...

. The younger Downing was schooled at

The Albany Academy Albany Academy is an independent college preparatory day school in Albany, New York. It enrolls students from Prekindergaten (age 4) to Grade 12. It was established in 1813 by a charter signed by Mayor Philip Schuyler Van Rensselaer and the cit ...

. At 14, he went to work as a clerk at the Albany City Bank. In 1850, he was badly injured aboard the steamer ''Alabama'' when the boiler burst. He studied law in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

and was admitted to the Illinois bar in 1858. Downing moved to

, in 1859, during the Colorado Gold Rush, or in 1860. In 1860, he was elected a judge of the municipal court.

Military service

Battle of Glorieta Pass Action at Apache Canyon

When the

broke out in 1861, he volunteered and was assigned to the

1st Colorado Infantry Regiment The 1st Colorado Infantry Regiment (officially the 1st Regiment of Colorado Volunteers) was a volunteer infantry regiment of the United States Army formed in the Colorado Territory in 1861 and active in the American West in the late 19th century. ...

. He fought in the Battles of Apache Canyon and Pigeon's Ranch (March 1862), and Peralta (April 1862) in the

New Mexico Campaign The New Mexico campaign was a military operation of the trans-Mississippi theater of the American Civil War from February to April 1862 in which Confederate Brigadier General Henry Hopkins Sibley invaded the northern New Mexico Territory in ...

. Promoted to the rank of major, he was given command of Fort Larned, Kansas in 1862. In April 1864, Downing came upon a band of

Cheyenne The Cheyenne ( ) are an Indigenous people of the Great Plains. The Cheyenne comprise two Native American tribes, the Só'taeo'o or Só'taétaneo'o (more commonly spelled as Suhtai or Sutaio) and the (also spelled Tsitsistas, The term for th ...

camped near Cedar Canyon, 60 miles above the

South Platte River The South Platte River is one of the two principal tributaries of the Platte River. Flowing through the U.S. states of Colorado and Nebraska, it is itself a major river of the American Midwestern United States, Midwest and the American Sou ...

. Although he only suspected them of stealing cattle and horses, Downing launched an attack that killed an estimated 25 Cheyennes and destroyed their lodges and belongings. Downing was also present at the

Sand Creek massacre The Sand Creek massacre (also known as the Chivington massacre, the battle of Sand Creek or the massacre of Cheyenne Indians) was a massacre of Cheyenne and Arapaho people by the U.S. Army in the American Indian Genocide that occurred on No ...

(also called the "Chivington massacre" after the officer in charge, Colonel

). In the ensuing outcry, he served as Chivington's legal counsel.

Return to civilian life

He mustered out of the army in 1864 or 1865 and returned to Denver. In 1867, Downing was elected probate judge of

Arapahoe County, Colorado Arapahoe County ( ) is a county located in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 655,070, making it the third-most populous county in Colorado. The county seat is Littleton, Colorado, L ...

, for a term of two years. He acquired land, and took up developing real estate, farming, and raising cattle and horses. He acquired a ranch near Denver and made it into a showplace called "Downingdale". A civic leader, he was one of those who pushed for parks in the community, and originated the bill that led to the establishment of

City Park An urban park or metropolitan park, also known as a city park, municipal park (North America), public park, public open space, or municipal gardens ( UK), is a park or botanical garden in cities, densely populated suburbia and other incorporate ...

. He also donated land and money for the Colfax Avenue streetcar and extended and improved Mount View Boulevard. When the Gentlemen's Driving and Riding Club of Denver, established in 1882 and whose members were "men who were leaders in the Denver business community and society", moved from

Arlington Park Arlington Park (formerly known as Arlington International Racecourse) is a former horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Once called the ''Arlington Park Jockey Club'', it was located adjacent to the Illinois Rou ...

to City Park, in the mid-1880s, "Downing acquired the property and maintained it as a clubhouse." After his death in 1907, his widow converted the building into the Downing Home for Old People. South Downing Street in Denver is named after him.

Personal life

On November 1, 1871, he married Caroline Rosecrans in

Glen Falls, New York Glens Falls is a city in Warren County, New York, United States and is the central city of the Glens Falls Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 14,830 at the 2020 census. The name was given by Colonel Johannes Glen, the falls ref ...

. She was an artist, musician and poet. Caroline Downing was the first member of the Ladies' Relief Society, president of the Ladies' Auxiliary to the

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 ...

and president of Pioneer Ladies' Aid Society. She gave to the Denver Orphans' Home,

Colorado Women's College Colorado Women's College was a division of the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado, focusing on evening, weekend, and online courses for women. It originally opened in 1909 as a private women's college and merged with the University of Denve ...

Children's Hospital A children's hospital (CH) is a hospital that offers its services exclusively to infants, children, adolescents, and young adults from birth up to until age 18, and through age 21 and older in the United States. In certain special cases, the ...

Denver Public Library The Denver Public Library is the public library system of the City and County of Denver, Colorado. The system includes the Denver Central Library, located in the Golden Triangle district of Downtown Denver, as well as 27 branch locations an ...

and Jacob Downing Home for the Aged. She was a member of the Woman's Press Club and the Woman's Club.

References

External links