Lawrence Sprague Babbitt (February 18, 1839 – October 15, 1903) was a

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

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 ...

. He was the father of

Edwin Burr Babbitt Edwin Burr Babbitt (July 26, 1862 – December 9, 1939) was a major general in the United States Army. Biography Babbitt was born at Watervliet Arsenal in Watervliet, New York on July 26, 1862, to Lawrence Sprague Babbitt, a U.S. Army Colo ...

Biography

Lawrence Sprague Babbitt served in the United States Army for 46 years. He was the son of Brevet Brigadier General Edwin Burr Babbitt, U.S. Army, and Sarah Stedman Sprague; the grandson of Surgeon Lawrence Sprague, U.S. Army, and Sarah Titcomb; and the great-grandson of Jonathan Titcomb, of

Newburyport, Massachusetts Newburyport is a coastal city in Essex County, Massachusetts, United States, northeast of Boston. The population was 18,289 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. A historic seaport with a vibrant tourism industry, Newburyport includes p ...

, who was a member of the Provincial Congress of 1774. Babbitt's father graduated from

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

in 1826; Babbitt in 1861; and Babbitt's son,

, in 1884. Babbitt was born in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

, Massachusetts, on February 18, 1839. He entered the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

on July 1, 1857. Graduating from the Academy on June 24, 1861, he was promoted to second lieutenant, Third Artillery. He served 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 ...

in the

Manassas campaign The Bull Run campaign, also known as the Manassas campaign, was a series of military engagements in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War in 1861. Background Military and political situation The Confederate forces in northern Vi ...

and the

First Battle of Bull Run The First Battle of Bull Run, called the Battle of First Manassas
. by Confederate States ...

in 1861. He was brevetted

first lieutenant First lieutenant is a commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces; in some forces, it is an appointment. The rank of lieutenant has different meanings in different military formations, but in most forces it is sub-divided into a se ...

for gallant and meritorious services in that action. He served in the

Peninsula campaign The Peninsula campaign (also known as the Peninsular campaign) of the American Civil War was a major Union operation launched in southeastern Virginia from March to July 1862, the first large-scale offensive in the Eastern Theater. The oper ...

and

Siege of Yorktown The siege of Yorktown, also known as the Battle of Yorktown and the surrender at Yorktown, was the final battle of the American Revolutionary War. It was won decisively by the Continental Army, led by George Washington, with support from the Ma ...

in 1862. He was promoted to first lieutenant of ordnance on March 3, 1863. On March 13, 1865, he was brevetted

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

for faithful and meritorious services during the war. In 1861, Babbitt married Francis McDougall, the daughter of Brevet Brigadier General

Charles McDougall Charles McDougall is a British Emmy Award and BAFTA-winning director. Biography McDougall has directed for popular television series which include the pilot episode of ABC's ''Desperate Housewives'' (which includes the unaired pilot as well). M ...

, U.S. Army, and Maria Griffith Hanson. Babbitt was promoted to captain of ordnance on December 22, 1866. From 1865 to 1877 he served in command of various government arsenals and as chief ordnance officer of departments. In 1877 he served in the

Indian Wars The American Indian Wars, also known as the American Frontier Wars, and the Indian Wars, was a conflict initially fought by European colonial empires, the United States, and briefly the Confederate States of America and Republic of Texas agains ...

against the

Nez Perce The Nez Perce (; autonym in Nez Perce language: , meaning 'we, the people') are an Indigenous people of the Plateau who still live on a fraction of the lands on the southeastern Columbia River Plateau in the Pacific Northwest. This region h ...

and

Bannocks Map of lands traditionally inhabited by the Bannock The Bannock tribe () were originally Northern Paiute but are more culturally affiliated with the Northern Shoshone. They are in the Great Basin classification of Indigenous People. Their tr ...

. He was promoted to major of ordnance on May 10, 1878. He was in command of

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe is a former military installation in Hampton, Virginia, at Old Point Comfort, the southern tip of the Virginia Peninsula, United States. It is currently managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth o ...

Arsenal from 1879 to 1887. He was brevetted

major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

on February 27, 1890, for gallant services in action against Indians at the Clearwater, Idaho, on July 11–12, 1877. He was promoted to lieutenant-colonel of ordnance on September 15, 1890. He was in command of San Antonio Arsenal and chief ordnance officer for the

Department of Texas The Department of Texas was a military department of the United States Army that existed from 1850 to 1861, and again from 1865 to 1866, from 1870 to 1913 and during the First World War. It was subordinate to the Military Division of the Missouri ...

from 1887 to 1890. He was promoted to colonel of ordnance on April 7, 1899. He was in command of

Benicia Arsenal The Benicia Arsenal (1851–1964) and Benicia Barracks (1852–66) were part of a large military reservation located next to Suisun Bay in Benicia, California. For over 100 years, the arsenal was the primary US Army Ordnance facility for the W ...

, California, from 1890 to 1899, and equipped the First Philippine Expedition in 1899. Babbitt was in command of the U.S. Powder Depot in

Dover, New Jersey Dover is a town in Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Located on the Rockaway River, Dover is about west of New York City and about west of Newark, New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 18,4 ...

, until February 18, 1903, when he was retired from active service. He died in Dover, New Jersey, on October 15, 1903.

References

External links

;Attribution * This article incorporates text from a publication now in the

public domain The public domain (PD) consists of all the creative work to which no Exclusive exclusive intellectual property rights apply. Those rights may have expired, been forfeited, expressly Waiver, waived, or may be inapplicable. Because no one holds ...

: * {{DEFAULTSORT:Babbitt, Lawrence Sprague 1839 births 1903 deaths Military personnel from Boston People of Massachusetts in the American Civil War Union army officers United States Army colonels United States Army personnel of the Indian Wars United States Military Academy alumni