Theodore Alexander Ripley (1835–1866) was an American Brevet Brigadier General who participated 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 ...

. He commanded the 14th New Hampshire Infantry Regiment throughout its entire creation and disbandment. Ripley was also known for his murder by the

Ku Klux Klan The Ku Klux Klan (), commonly shortened to KKK or Klan, is an American Protestant-led Christian terrorism, Christian extremist, white supremacist, Right-wing terrorism, far-right hate group. It was founded in 1865 during Reconstruction era, ...

that took place at

Emanuel County, Georgia Emanuel County is a county located in the eastern portion, or "Classic South" region of the U.S. state of Georgia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 22,768. The county seat is Swainsboro. History The county was created on December 1 ...

after being discharged from military service and moving there after the war.

Early years

Theodore Alexander Ripley was born on December 23, 1835. Prior to the war, Ripley was a merchant at

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and married Harriet Sophia Fulham on July 9, 1857.

American Civil War

On October 2, 1862, Ripley enlisted into the 14th New Hampshire Infantry Regiment as a Captain within Company F. At the

Battle of Cedar Creek The Battle of Cedar Creek, or Battle of Belle Grove, was fought on October 19, 1864, during the American Civil War. The fighting took place in the Shenandoah Valley of Northern Virginia, near Cedar Creek, Middletown, and the Valley Pike. D ...

, Ripley was captured during the battle and was imprisoned at

Libby Prison Libby Prison was a Confederate States of America, Confederate prison at Richmond, Virginia, during the American Civil War. In 1862 it was designated to hold officer prisoners from the Union Army, taking in numbers from the nearby Seven Days battl ...

until his exchange in March 1865, having endured the many abuses there. Ripley was then brevetted Brigadier General on March 13, 1865, and promoted to full colonel on March 29 before being discharged on late May 1865.

Murder

After the war, Ripley was in a partnership that established the firm of Ripley, Barker and Flanders 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 ...

which aimed to help former soldiers and sailors to obtain back pay, pensions and bounties during their service. He continued his business by gaining some real estate 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 ...

as well as fully relocating the firm down south to

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 ...

with his first documented visit being in January 1866. He fully settled into

and started many businesses there until he formed a partnership with George O. Marcy who was a veteran of the 1st Connecticut Cavalry Regiment. They then gained a plantation by the

Ogeechee River The Ogeechee River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed April 26, 2011 blackwater river in the U.S. state of Georgia. It heads at the confluence of its North and Sout ...

as Ripley served as superintendent of the plantation and building up his partnership with Marcy's lumber company. While most Northern landowners in the southern states were generally disliked and unwanted among the populace, Ripley was on friendly terms with his neighbors and customers. Ripley found himself the victim of several horse and mule robberies as one of the earliest cases of this was at late summer or early fall of 1865 as three South Carolinian men who were possibly affiliated with the

known as Henry Padgett, Henry Hodge and John Pryer, stole some of his horses and mules but Ripley and other employees managed to catch the thieves and had them arrested at Savannah jail until their release of Summer 1866. The thieves wanted revenge on Ripley as they enacted it on the night of July 23, 1866, heading directly for his home. They told a household servant that they needed to have a talk with Ripley at his front gate and after they refused an offer of discussing matters within inside, Ripley went outside to meet with one of the members. He then proclaimed “Colonel Ripley, you are my prisoner!” but Ripley drew his revolver and shot at the man, causing him to flee immediately afterwards. The other members hid in the dark and began firing at Ripley with four bullets hitting Ripley and causing him to retreat back to his house. Harriet tried her best to treat his wounds and pleaded with the three men to allow a doctor to attend her dying husband but they refused, even preventing her from drawing water from the well in a last ditch effort to treat him. Ripley died on the early morning on July 24, 1866, dying at Harriet's arms. Satisfied, the three men left the house and hid back in the darkness. After a few months, all three men were arrested along with Daniel Coleman and his son, Thornton were also indicted for the crime but the latter two were then cleared of the crimes in September 1866 while the former three's sentence remains unknown.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ripley, Theodore Alexander 1835 births 1866 deaths People of New Hampshire in the American Civil War Union army colonels Union army generals People from Winchester, New Hampshire Military personnel from New Hampshire 19th-century American planters People murdered in 1866 19th-century American merchants Racially motivated violence in Georgia (U.S. state) Victims of the Ku Klux Klan Ku Klux Klan in Georgia (U.S. state) Violence during Reconstruction (1865–1877)

Early years

American Civil War

Murder

See also

References