Richard Hanson Weightman (December 28, 1816 – August 10, 1861) was an

antebellum Antebellum, Latin for "before war", may refer to: United States history * Antebellum South, the pre-American Civil War period in the Southern US ** Antebellum Georgia ** Antebellum South Carolina ** Antebellum Virginia * Antebellum architectu ...

delegate to the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

from the

Territory of New Mexico The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of '' Nuevo México'' becomi ...

, serving one term from 1851 to 1853. He was also a district commander of the

secession Secession is the formal withdrawal of a group from a Polity, political entity. The process begins once a group proclaims an act of secession (such as a declaration of independence). A secession attempt might be violent or peaceful, but the goal i ...

ist

Missouri State Guard The Missouri State Guard (MSG) was a military force established by the Missouri General Assembly on May 11, 1861. While not a formation of the Confederate States Army, the Missouri State Guard fought alongside Confederate troops and, at variou ...

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 ...

, and was killed in action at the

Battle of Wilson's Creek The Battle of Wilson's Creek, also known as the Battle of Oak Hills, was the first major battle of the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War. It was fought on August 10, 1861, near Springfield, Missouri. In August, Confe ...

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

Early life and education

Born in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, where his father

Roger C. Weightman Roger Chew Weightman (June 15, 1787 – February 2, 1876) was an American politician, civic leader, and printer. He was the eighth mayor of Washington, D.C. from 1824 to 1827. Early and family life Weightman was born in Alexandria, Virginia, in 1 ...

later served as mayor, Weightman attended private schools there and in Alexandria, Virginia. He graduated from the

University of Virginia at Charlottesville The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his Academical Village, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The original governin ...

in 1834 and attended 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 ...

at West Point, 1835–1837, but was expelled for contemplating a duel. He subsequently studied law and was

admitted to the bar An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...

in 1841 in the District of Columbia, but did not practice.

Mexican-American War

Weightman moved to

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an Independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Miss ...

, and on May 28, 1846, was elected captain of Clark's Battalion, Missouri Volunteer Light Artillery, in the

Mexican War Mexican War may refer to: *Mexican War of Independence (1810–21) *Mexican–American War (1846–48) *Second French intervention in Mexico (1861–67) *Mexican Revolution (1910–20) *Cristero War (1926–1929) See also *List of wars involving Me ...

, later fighting in the Battle of Sacramento. He served as Additional Paymaster, Volunteers, in the Army in 1848 and 1849 and left the service as a Major.

Later career

He moved to

New Mexico Territory The Territory of New Mexico was an organized incorporated territory of the United States from September 9, 1850, until January 6, 1912. It was created from the U.S. provisional government of New Mexico, as a result of '' Nuevo México'' becomi ...

in 1851 and edited a newspaper in Santa Fe. He was appointed agent for Indians in New Mexico in July 1851.

Fight with F.X. Aubry

While in Santa Fe in August 1854, he killed

François Xavier Aubry François Xavier Aubry (; December 3, 1824 – August 18, 1854) was a French Canadian merchant and explorer of the American Southwest. His achievements include speed records riding the Santa Fe Trail and early exploration of the 35th paralle ...

(December 3, 1824 – August 18, 1854) who was a French Canadian merchant and explorer of the American Southwest. When Aubry drew his revolver, Weightman stabbed Aubry with a

Bowie knife A Bowie knife ( ) is a pattern of fixed-blade fighting knives created by Rezin Bowie in the early 19th century for his brother James Bowie, who had become famous for his use of a large knife at a duel known as the Sandbar Fight. Since its fir ...

Congressional delegate

Weightman was elected as a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (Cyprus) (DCY) **Democratic Part ...

as the New Mexico Territory's Delegate to the

Thirty-second Congress The 32nd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1851, ...

(March 4, 1851 – March 3, 1853). He was not a candidate for reelection in 1852.

Civil War

After leaving Congress, he went back to newspaper work. In 1858 he moved to Kickapoo and

Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city in, and the county seat of, Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator ...

, and in 1861 to

Independence, Missouri Independence is a city in and one of two county seats of Jackson County, Missouri, United States. It is a satellite city of Kansas City, Missouri, and is the largest suburb on the Missouri side of the Kansas City metropolitan area. In 2020 Unite ...

. On June 11, 1861, Weightman was elected as

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 ...

of the First Regiment Cavalry, Eighth Division,

Confederate States Army The Confederate States Army (CSA), also called the Confederate army or the Southern army, was the Military forces of the Confederate States, military land force of the Confederate States of America (commonly referred to as the Confederacy) duri ...

. He was promoted to command of the First Brigade, Eighth Division, June 20, 1861, and led it competently at the Battle of Carthage on July 5, 1861.

Death and burial

Colonel Richard Hanson Weightman was killed while leading his brigade at the

in Missouri on August 10, 1861, and was buried on the battlefield near

Springfield, Missouri Springfield is the List of cities in Missouri, third most populous city in the U.S. state of Missouri and the county seat of Greene County, Missouri, Greene County. The city's population was 169,176 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 censu ...

Notes

References

Retrieved on May 11, 2009. {{DEFAULTSORT:Weightman, Richard Hanson 1816 births 1861 deaths American military personnel of the Mexican–American War Burials at Springfield National Cemetery Confederate States Army officers Confederate States of America military personnel killed in the American Civil War Delegates to the United States House of Representatives from New Mexico Territory Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New Mexico Missouri State Guard People of Missouri in the American Civil War Politicians from Washington, D.C. United States Army officers United States Military Academy alumni Politicians killed in the American Civil War University of Virginia alumni 19th-century members of the United States House of Representatives