Roswell Sabine Ripley (March 14, 1823 – March 29, 1887) was an officer in the

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 ...

during the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War (Spanish language, Spanish: ''guerra de Estados Unidos-México, guerra mexicano-estadounidense''), also known in the United States as the Mexican War, and in Mexico as the United States intervention in Mexico, ...

, a brigadier general in the

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 ...

during the

Civil War A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...

. He was also an author and a prosperous

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

businessman.

Early life and career

Ripley was born in Worthington, Ohio, a small village in Franklin County not far from Columbus. His family relocated to the state of New York, where he received an appointment to 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 ...

. He graduated in 1843, ranked 7th out of 39 cadets. Other classmates in his year included

Ulysses S. Grant Ulysses S. Grant (born Hiram Ulysses Grant; April 27, 1822July 23, 1885) was the 18th president of the United States, serving from 1869 to 1877. In 1865, as Commanding General of the United States Army, commanding general, Grant led the Uni ...

, William B. Franklin, Samuel G. French and Franklin Gardner. He was assigned as a second lieutenant to garrison duty, as well as becoming an

artillery Artillery consists of ranged weapons that launch Ammunition, munitions far beyond the range and power of infantry firearms. Early artillery development focused on the ability to breach defensive walls and fortifications during sieges, and l ...

instructor. Lieutenant Ripley served in the

on the staffs of Gen.

Zachary Taylor Zachary Taylor (November 24, 1784 – July 9, 1850) was an American military officer and politician who was the 12th president of the United States, serving from 1849 until his death in 1850. Taylor was a career officer in the United States ...

and Gen. Gideon Pillow, and saw action at the battles of

Monterey Monterey ( ; ) is a city situated on the southern edge of Monterey Bay, on the Central Coast of California. Located in Monterey County, the city occupies a land area of and recorded a population of 30,218 in the 2020 census. The city was fou ...

, Vera Cruz, Cerro Gordo, Contreras, Churubusco, Molino del Rey, Chapultepec, and the capture of Mexico City. For gallantry in action, Ripley 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 Cerro Gordo and

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 ...

for Chapultepec. He published a ''History of the Mexican War'' (2 vols., New York, 1849). He was engaged in the Second Seminole War in

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

in 1849, where again he saw combat. Following the war, he was on garrison duty in various posts in the South, including

Fort Moultrie Fort Moultrie is a series of fortifications on Sullivan's Island, South Carolina, built to protect the city of Charleston, South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina. The first fort, formerly named Fort Sullivan, built of Cabbage Pal ...

on Sullivan's Island,

. Also living on the island was a wealthy widow, Alicia (Middleton) Sparks (1824–1899), from Charleston. They married in 1852. The novelist William Gilmore Simms was living on the island at the time, and tells of an incident during their courtship involving Ripley's boots and a barman. Alicia's uncle was Arthur Middleton Manigault, later a Confederate general. Ripley resigned from the army in 1853 and moved to Charleston to settle his wife's estates. From 1853–1854 he was the publisher, along with Charles G. Baylor, of the Baltimore Daily American Times. He later established a successful business, and, over time, Ripley became a supporter of

states rights In American political discourse, states' rights are political powers held for the state governments rather than the federal government according to the United States Constitution, reflecting especially the enumerated powers of Congress and t ...

. He joined the South Carolina state

militia A militia ( ) is a military or paramilitary force that comprises civilian members, as opposed to a professional standing army of regular, full-time military personnel. Militias may be raised in times of need to support regular troops or se ...

and became a

of ordnance.

Civil War

After South Carolina seceded from the Union, Ripley became a lieutenant colonel in the Army of South Carolina. He and his men garrisoned in

. He directed the fort during the bombardment of Fort Sumter in Charleston Harbor on April 13, 1861. On August 15, 1861, he was appointed as a brigadier general in the Confederate Army and assigned command of the Department of South Carolina and its coastal defenses. From December 1861 until May 1862, he had charge of the Second Military District of South South Carolina. In the Spring of 1862, slave Robert Smalls along with a slave crew, stole from Charleston Harbor a high-pressure side-wheeler steam powered ship, the 147-foot long “Planter”. Brigadier General Roswell S Ripley was astonished when his troops told him that the “Planter” had vanished from her berth directly in front of Ripley’s headquarters on the Charleston wharf. Transferred to field command in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

, Ripley commanded an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military unit, military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute ...

(comprising two

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

and two

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, military service, service, or administrative corps, specialisation. In Middle Ages, Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of l ...

s) in the defenses of

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

, in June 1862. Assigned to the

Army of Northern Virginia The Army of Northern Virginia was a field army of the Confederate States Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. It was also the primary command structure of the Department of Northern Virginia. It was most often arrayed agains ...

, Ripley's Brigade participated in the battles of Mechanicsville,

Gaines Mill The Battle of Gaines' Mill, sometimes known as the Battle of Chickahominy River, took place on June 27, 1862, in Hanover County, Virginia, as the third of the Seven Days Battles which together decided the outcome of the Union's Peninsula Campaig ...

, and

Malvern Hill Malvern Hill stands on the north bank of the James River in Henrico County, Virginia, USA, about eighteen miles southeast of Richmond. On 1 July 1862, it was the scene of the Battle of Malvern Hill, one of the Seven Days Battles of the American ...

during 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 ...

. Despite being depleted from recent fighting and illness, Ripley's Brigade fought in the

Maryland Campaign The Maryland campaign (or Antietam campaign) occurred September 4–20, 1862, during the American Civil War. The campaign was Confederate States Army, Confederate General (CSA), General Robert E. Lee's first invasion of the Northern United Stat ...

at the

Battle of South Mountain The Battle of South Mountain, known in several early Southern United States, Southern accounts as the Battle of Boonsboro Gap, was fought on September 14, 1862, as part of the Maryland campaign of the American Civil War. Three pitched battles ...

and the

Battle of Sharpsburg The Battle of Antietam ( ), also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, took place during the American Civil War on September 17, 1862, between Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virgin ...

in September 1862. He suffered a severe wound in the neck at Sharpsburg, but soon recovered and rejoined the army. In November, he was involved in the defense of Fredericksburg. Criticized for his performance at

Antietam The Battle of Antietam ( ), also called the Battle of Sharpsburg, particularly in the Southern United States, took place during the American Civil War on September 17, 1862, between Confederate General Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virgin ...

, General Ripley returned to South Carolina in early 1863 and took charge of the First Military District. His men constructed a series of improved defenses around Charleston, and Ripley commanded the troops that repelled a Union Navy attack on April 7, 1863. He continued in command of Charleston's fortifications until the city was evacuated in mid-February 1865 and fought under

Joseph E. Johnston Joseph Eggleston Johnston (February 3, 1807 – March 21, 1891) was an American military officer who served in the United States Army during the Mexican–American War (1846–1848) and the Seminole Wars. After Virginia declared secession from ...

at the

Battle of Bentonville The Battle of Bentonville (March 19–21, 1865) was fought in Johnston County, North Carolina, near the village of Bentonville, as part of the Western Theater of the American Civil War, Western Theater of the American Civil War. It was the last ...

Postbellum

After the war, Ripley went abroad and resided in England for over twenty years. His wife and daughter had left him to return to Charleston. In the late 1880s, he returned to the United States and settled in New York City, where he died of a massive

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

. He was buried in Magnolia Cemetery in Charleston, South Carolina. His uncle,

James Wolfe Ripley James Wolfe Ripley (December 10, 1794 – March 16, 1870) was an American soldier who served as a brigadier general in the Union Army during the Civil War. In 1861, he was selected to be the 5th Chief of Ordnance for the United States Army Ordn ...

, had led the Federal troops in Charleston Harbor during the Nullification Crisis, and was the Chief of Ordnance of the U.S. Army during the first half of the Civil War.

Recent Developments

With the recent efforts to remove monuments and memorials related to the Confederacy, in August 2017 the city of Worthington, Ohio, in conjunction with a private property owner, removed an Ohio state marker from outside of the home where Ripley was born.Gearino, Dan
Confederate general's historic marker removed in Worthington
''Columbus Dispatch,'' August 19, 2017. Accessed August 24, 2017.

References

*This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Wilson, James Grant; Fiske, John, eds. (1891). "Ripley, James Wolfe, subsection Roswell Sabine" in ''Appleton's Cyclopædia of American Biography''. Volume 5. New York: D. Appleton, 1891.

External links

*
General Roswell Sabin RipleyMonument to Ripley in Charleston, S.C.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ripley, Roswell S. 1823 births 1887 deaths People from Worthington, Ohio United States Military Academy alumni United States Army officers American military personnel of the Mexican–American War Members of the Aztec Club of 1847 Military personnel from Charleston, South Carolina Confederate States Army brigadier generals People of South Carolina in the American Civil War Northern-born Confederates Burials at Magnolia Cemetery (Charleston, South Carolina)

Early life and career

Civil War

Postbellum

Recent Developments

See also

References

Further reading

External links