★  Ingalls, Rufus

Rufus Ingalls

:us34stars:
Ingalls.jpg


Born: August 23, 1818

Birthplace: Denmark, Maine

Father: Cyrus Ingalls 1768 – 1832

Mother: Sarah Barker 1764 – 1847

Wife: Mercy Horton 1799 – 1863

Children:

Ebenezer Ingalls 1826 – 1829​
Mary Jane Ingalls 1830 –​
Sarah Ann Ingalls 1834 –​
Rufus Washington Ingalls 1835 – 1887​
Francis Marion Ingalls 1839 –​

Education:

1843: Graduated from West Point Military Academy – (32nd in class)​

Occupation before War:

1843 – 1845: Brevet 2nd Lt. United States Army Rifles​
1843 – 1845: Frontier Duty at Fort Jesup, Louisiana​
1845 – 1846: Frontier Duty at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas​
1847 – 1854: 2nd Lt. United States Army, 1st Dragoons​
1847: Served in the Skirmish at Embudo​
1847: Brevetted 1st Lt. for Gallantry at Embudo, and Taos​
1847: Served in the Assault at Pueblo de Taos​
1847 – 1848: Recruiter for United States Army​
1847 – 1854: 1st Lt. United States Army, 1st Dragoons​
1848: Quartermaster with troops on voyage to California​
1848 – 1861: Captain, and Assistant Quartermaster, U.S. Army​
1848 – 1849: Quartermaster at Monterey, California​
1849: Quartermaster at Los Angeles, California
Ingalls 1.jpg
1849 – 1852: Quartermaster at Fort Vancouver, Washington​
1853 – 1854: Quartermaster in Washington, D.C.​
1854 – 1855: Served on Colonel Steptoe’s Expedition​
1855 – 1856: Quartermaster in Washington, D.C.​
1856 – 1860: Quartermaster at Fort Vancouver, Washington​
1857 – 1858: Member of Commission to examine war debt of Oregon​
1860 – 1861: Quartermaster Duty in Washington, D.C.​

Civil War Career:

1861: Served in the Defenses of Fort Pickens, Florida​
1861 – 1863: Lt. Colonel and Aide in the Union Army​
1861 – 1862: Chief Quartermaster of Defenses of Washington, D.C.​
1862 – 1866: Major, and Quartermaster in United States Army​
1862 – 1864: Chief Quartermaster for Army of the Potomac​
1862 – 1863: Organizer and Superintendent of Depot at Acquia Creek​
1863 – 1866: Brigadier General, Union Army Volunteers​
1863 – 1864: Organizer, and Superintendent of U.S. Army Depot on Railroad​
1864: Brevetted Lt. Colonel for his service in the war​
1864 – 1865: Superintendent of U.S. Army Depot at City Point, Virginia​
1865: Brevetted Major General for his service in the war​
1865 – 1866: Quartermaster at Army Headquarters in Washington, DC​
1866: Special Inspection Duty across the continent of Oregon​
1866: Lt. Colonel, and Deputy Quartermaster General, U.S. Army​
1866 – 1882: Colonel, and Assistant Quartermaster General, U.S. Army​
1866: Mustered out of the Union Army on September 1st

Occupation after War:

1866 – 1882: Colonel and Assistant Quartermaster General, U.S. Army​
1866 – 1867: Awaiting Orders from the United States Army​
1867 – 1875: Chief Quartermaster for U.S. Army in New York City, New York​
1873 – 1874: Under Special Instructions in Europe
Ingalls 2.jpg
1875 – 1876: Acting U.S. Army Quartermaster General in Washington, D.C.​
1876: United States Army Depot, Quartermaster​
1876 – 1878: Chief Quartermaster for U.S. Army, Division of Pacific​
1878 – 1881: Chief Quartermaster for U.S. Army, Division of Missouri​
1881 – 1882: In Charge of Quartermaster Depot in New York City, New York​
1882 – 1883: Brigadier General and Quartermaster General for Army​
1882 – 1883: Quartermaster General of U.S. Army in Washington, D.C.​
1883: Retired from United States Army on July 1st

Died: January 15, 1893

Place of Death: New York City, New York

Cause of Death: Fatty degeneration of the heart and syncope

Age at time of Death: 73 years old

Burial Place: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Ingalls was not unique. He had a background in a family engaged in business, as did Sheridan and Grant. Sherman was a unsuccessful banker. Montgomery Meigs, on the other hand, was a true intellectual, fluent in multiple languages, but with the intelligence and discipline to become the top US quartermaster general.
On the business side, It Was a Mere Question of Time, before the US got down to business and extinguished the Confederacy.
Meigs and Ingalls both survived the firing of McClellan, twice, that's how good they were.
If Ingalls was still in the Virginia theater when Grant arrived, based on what Ingalls had already done, and the friendship between Ingalls and Grant, Grant's overland campaign becomes predictable.
Grant would rely on water based logistics, and proceed from Fredericksburg to White House to the vicinity of Harrison's Landing and City Point.
 
Last edited:
General Ingalls's coach dog, a Dalmatian whose name is seemingly lost to history, may be the most-photographed dog of the Civil War. Here are his photos in the Library of Congress.

Rufus Ingalls's Coach Dog (LOC).jpg
 
Back
Top