Henry Rodney Adair (1882–1916) was an American cavalry officer. He is most notable for his participation in the Battle of Carrizal of the Pancho Villa Expedition.

Biography

Adair was born in

Astoria, Oregon Astoria is a port city and the seat of Clatsop County, Oregon, United States. Founded in 1811, Astoria is the oldest city in the state and was the first permanent American settlement west of the Rocky Mountains. The county is the northwest corne ...

, on April 13, 1882. He was a part of a prominent Oregon pioneer family.Lewis A. McArthur and

Lewis L. McArthur ''Oregon Geographic Names'' is a compilation of the origin and meaning of place names in the U.S. state of Oregon, published by the Oregon Historical Society. The book was originally published in 1928. It was compiled and edited by Lewis A. McArt ...

, ''

Oregon Geographic Names ''Oregon Geographic Names'' is a compilation of the origin and meaning of place names in the U.S. state of Oregon, published by the Oregon Historical Society. The book was originally published in 1928. It was compiled and edited by Lewis A. McArth ...

''. Seventh Edition. Portland: Oregon Historical Society Press, 2003; pg. 140. He graduated from West Point on June 15, 1904, and served in various areas of the U.S. and overseas, including the Philippines as Adair served in

Fort William McKinley Fort Andres Bonifacio (formerly named Fort William McKinley) is the site of the national headquarters of the Philippine Army (Headquarters Philippine Army or HPA) located in Metro Manila, Philippines. It is located near the national headquarter ...

from May 1908 until May 1909. He served with the

10th Cavalry Regiment The 10th Cavalry Regiment is a unit of the United States Army. Formed as a segregated African-American unit, the 10th Cavalry was one of the original "Buffalo Soldier" regiments in the post–Civil War Regular Army. It served in combat during t ...

from the outset of his career with periodic duties in other areas of the U.S., including

Fort Ethan Allen Fort Ethan Allen was a United States Army installation in Vermont, named for American Revolutionary War figure Ethan Allen. Established as a cavalry post in 1894 and closed in 1944, today it is the center of a designated national historic distric ...

in Colchester, Vermont, from 1909 to 1913, then the Regiment was transferred to

Fort Huachuca Fort Huachuca is a United States Army installation, established on 3 March 1877 as Camp Huachuca. The garrison is now under the command of the United States Army Installation Management Command. It is in Cochise County in southeast Arizona, appr ...

, Arizona. He served there and along the Mexican Border until 1914 in response to the

Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...

, then back to Fort Riley from 1914 to 1915, and returned to Arizona in 1915 until 1916.U.S. Army Service Tribute , TWS Roll of Honor
/ref> He was a famous horseman and polo player, traveling to Canada, Egypt and

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in this capacity while serving in the cavalry. He was promoted to 1st lieutenant on June 26, 1911. In the late spring of 1916, he served with C Troop, 10th Cavalry Regiment, with Captain

Charles T. Boyd Charles Trumbull Boyd was an American captain who was most notable for his service and death in the Battle of Carrizal in the Mexican Revolution. Biography Boyd was born in Sperry on October 29, 1870. He would study in the United States Military ...

in General Pershing's " Punitive Expedition to Mexico" in search of Pancho Villa and his troops who had recently raided across the Border into New Mexico. He served from March 16 until his death on June 21, 1916, on this campaign. The last task of the expedition was to scout around

Villa Ahumada Ahumada is one of the 67 municipalities of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Villa Ahumada. The municipality covers an area of 17,131.5 km². As of 2010, the municipality had a total population of 11,457, down from 11,727 ...

, Chihuahua, Mexico "to recon in the vicinity of the Santa Domingo Ranch" and avoid any confrontation with the

Carrancistas This is a list of factions in the Mexican Revolution. Carrancistas Revolutionary followers of Venustiano Carranza from 1913 to 1914, and thereafter the Government army from 1914 until his death in 1920. In 1915, an insurgent group known as th ...

. This was about 60 miles east of

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where the main U.S. Army camp was set. However, it was at

Carrizal, Chihuahua Ahumada is one of the 67 municipalities of Chihuahua, in northern Mexico. The municipal seat lies at Villa Ahumada. The municipality covers an area of 17,131.5 km². As of 2010, the municipality had a total population of 11,457, down from 11,727 ...

that the American troops came face to face with a much larger force of Carranza's Mexican troops, and a confrontation began. He was killed during the ensuing Battle of Carrizal in a hail of gunfire from the Carrancistas. Adair would later be buried in River View Cemetery in Portland, Oregon.

Legacy

Camp Adair in Oregon is named after Henry R. Adair as he was a native of Astoria.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Adair, Henry Rodney 1882 births 1916 deaths United States Army officers People of the Mexican Revolution Military personnel from Oregon People from Astoria, Oregon American military personnel killed in action Burials at River View Cemetery (Portland, Oregon) United States Military Academy alumni