Joseph Ridgeway Taylor Coates (died September 21, 1921) was an American lawyer and politician from Pennsylvania who served as mayor of Chester, Pennsylvania, from 1887 to 1893. He was an officer in the Pennsylvania Reserves infantry division of the Union Army in the American Civil War and served in some of the key battles of the war.

Military service

In 1861 Coates was mustered in as a 1st lieutenant to the

1st Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment The 1st Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment, also known as the 30th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, was a regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It was a part of the famed Pennsylvania Reserve division in the Army of the Potomac f ...

, also known as the 30th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry, Company C. Recruited out of Chester, Company C was first known as the "Keystone Guards" and then known for a time as the "Slifer Phalanx". Coates and Company C served at the

Battle of Mechanicsville The Battle of Beaver Dam Creek, also known as the Battle of Mechanicsville or Ellerson's Mill, took place on June 26, 1862, in Hanover County, Virginia, was the first major engagement of the Seven Days Battles during the Peninsula Campaign of th ...

, the Battle of New Market,

Second Battle of Bull Run The Second Battle of Bull Run or Battle of Second Manassas was fought August 28–30, 1862, in Prince William County, Virginia, as part of the American Civil War. It was the culmination of the Northern Virginia Campaign waged by Confederate ...

, the

Battle of Antietam The Battle of Antietam (), or Battle of Sharpsburg particularly in the Southern United States, was a battle of the American Civil War fought on September 17, 1862, between Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia and Union G ...

, the

Battle of Fredericksburg The Battle of Fredericksburg was fought December 11–15, 1862, in and around Fredericksburg, Virginia, in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War. The combat, between the Union Army of the Potomac commanded by Maj. Gen. Ambrose Burnsi ...

, the Battle of Gettysburg, the Battle of Bristoe Station and the Battle of Bethesda Church. Coates was promoted from 1st lieutenant to captain in 1862 and to Major by brevet in 1864. On June 13, 1864, Coates was mustered out with the company.

Career

Coates was a member of the Delaware County bar. He served as

Postmaster A postmaster is the head of an individual post office, responsible for all postal activities in a specific post office. When a postmaster is responsible for an entire mail distribution organization (usually sponsored by a national government), ...

of the Chester Post Office from 1865 to 1869 and as mayor of Chester from 1887 to 1893. He was succeeded as mayor by

John B. Hinkson John Baker Hinkson (October 2, 1840 - May 22, 1901) was an American lawyer, businessman and politician from Pennsylvania who served as a Democratic Party (United States), Democratic mayor of Chester, Pennsylvania, Chester from 1893 to 1896. Earl ...

. He died on September 21, 1921, and was interred at Chester Rural Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coates, Joseph R.T. 1921 deaths 19th-century mayors of places in Pennsylvania Burials at Chester Rural Cemetery Mayors of Chester, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania lawyers Pennsylvania postmasters Pennsylvania Reserves People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War Union Army officers Year of birth missing

Military service

Career

See also

References