Stephen Decatur Carpenter (May 21, 1818 – December 31, 1862) was a United States military officer from

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and north ...

. He served from 1840 to his death on the last day of 1862, through four major conflicts and one minor conflict.

West Point

He was appointed to the

United States Military Academy The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...

West Point The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known Metonymy, metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a f ...

, serving as a Cadet from July 1, 1836, through graduation on July 1, 1840.

Service in the West

After graduation he served in the

Second Seminole War The Second Seminole War, also known as the Florida War, was a conflict from 1835 to 1842 in Florida between the United States and groups collectively known as Seminoles, consisting of Native Americans in the United States, Native Americans and ...

from 1840–1841, at Fort Snelling, at the confluence of the Mississippi and Minnesota rivers, in the War with Mexico from 1846–1847, and on frontier duty in south and west

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

from 1848–1861, including being wounded in a skirmish with the

Comanches The Comanche or Nʉmʉnʉʉ ( com, Nʉmʉnʉʉ, "the people") are a Native American tribe from the Southern Plains of the present-day United States. Comanche people today belong to the federally recognized Comanche Nation, headquartered in La ...

. On August 20, 1855, he established

Fort Lancaster Fort Lancaster is a former United States Army installation located near Sheffield, Texas. The fort was established in 1855 on the San Antonio–El Paso Road to protect migrants moving toward California through Texas. The US Army occupied Fort Lanc ...

in western Texas to guard the San Antonio-El Paso road. He was the first commander of

Fort Stockton Fort Stockton is a city in and the county seat of Pecos County, Texas, United States. It is located on Interstate 10 in Texas, Interstate 10, future Interstate 14, U.S. Highways U.S. Route 67 (Texas), 67, U.S. Route 285 (Texas), 285, and U.S. R ...

, established at Comanche Springs (in present-day Pecos County, Texas) and served there until December 1860, when he transferred command to the Eighth Infantry.

Civil War

When the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

broke out, he served garrison and staff duty at Key West, Florida, and Indianapolis, Indiana, and combat duty in the Tennessee and Mississippi Campaign with the

Army of the Ohio The Army of the Ohio was the name of two Union armies in the American Civil War. The first army became the Army of the Cumberland and the second army was created in 1863. History 1st Army of the Ohio General Orders No. 97 appointed Maj. Gen. Do ...

. He was killed in action in the

Battle of Stone's River The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was a battle fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the Amer ...

(called the

Battle of Murfreesboro The Battle of Stones River, also known as the Second Battle of Murfreesboro, was a battle fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the Ame ...

in the South) Tennessee on December 31, 1862.Lieut. C. C. Hewitt: ''Nineteenth Regiment of Infantry'', http://www.history.army.mil/books/R&H/R&H-19IN.htm, retrieved June 2009.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carpenter, Stephen Decatur Union Army officers United States Army officers 1818 births 1862 deaths American military personnel of the Indian Wars American military personnel of the Mexican–American War Texas–Indian Wars People from Dover-Foxcroft, Maine Union military personnel killed in the American Civil War