General Alfred Gibbs

    Commander First New York Dragoons

    Alfred Gibbs to Thomas Hillhouse Offering His Service to His Native State

    Researcher’s Note: I found a new lead on the West Point database regarding Gibbs. I had not known that Gibbs had once been assigned to a unit while he was a prisoner. I do not have the entire document, but what follows is an excerpt of the lead I have thus far.

    Title: Alfred Gibbs to Thomas Hillhouse Offering His Service to His Native State

     
    Description: Colonel Gibbs, commanding Fort Wayne, writes to Hillhouse, Adjutant General in Albany, New York. Reports, “Having received official information from the War Department that my exchange has been effected, and that I am free to go to duty, I… offer my services to his Excellency the Governor of the State of New York- my native State- in command of a regiment. It will perhaps be remembered that I was commissioned as Colonel of the 8th Regt N.Y. Vol. Cavalry, which I was unable to accept while a prisoner of War on parole.”
     

    Creation Date: 1862

    Source: American History Module II: Civil War, Reconstruction and the Modern Era: 1860-1945
     

    ABOUT: Thomas Hillhouse (March 26, 1817 – February 3, 1897) was an American civil engineer, military officer, and surveyor. He was born in New Haven, Connecticut, and graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point in 1837. After graduation, he was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Corps of Engineers.

    Hillhouse served in various capacities during his military career, including working on the construction of coastal defenses and harbor improvements. He also played a significant role in the Mexican-American War, participating in the Battle of Cerro Gordo and the Siege of Veracruz.

    After the war, Hillhouse continued to work on various engineering projects, eventually reaching the rank of major. He resigned from the military in 1863 and pursued a career in civil engineering. Some of his notable projects included the construction of the New York State Capitol building and the development of the Albany water supply system.

    Thomas Hillhouse served as the Adjutant General of New York earlier than I previously mentioned. Hillhouse was appointed as Adjutant General by Governor Edwin D. Morgan and served from January 1862 to December 1862. During this period, the United States was in the midst of the Civil War, and Hillhouse played a crucial role in organizing, equipping, and managing New York’s military forces for the war effort.

    As Adjutant General, Hillhouse was responsible for overseeing the recruitment and organization of volunteer regiments in response to President Lincoln’s call for troops. He was also involved in ensuring the proper training, equipping, and deployment of these forces. His tenure as Adjutant General during the critical early years of the Civil War demonstrates his commitment to the Union cause and his dedication to the state of New York.