Captain Allyn K. Capron (24 June 1871 – 24 June 1898) was the first

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

officer to die in the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (cloc ...

Before Cuba

Allyn Kissam Capron was the first son of Agnes Kissam and Allyn Capron, an 1867 graduate of 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 ...

. The younger Capron was born on 24 June 1871 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York City, where his father was serving as an Army officer at

Fort Hamilton Fort Hamilton is a United States Army installation in the southwestern corner of the New York City borough of Brooklyn, surrounded by the communities of Bay Ridge and Dyker Heights. It is one of several posts that are part of the region which i ...

. He was unsuccessful in obtaining an appointment to the Military Academy for himself, so he enlisted as private in 1890 and rose rapidly through the ranks as: * Private, Corporal and Sergeant,

4th U.S. Cavalry The 4th Cavalry Regiment is a United States Army cavalry regiment, whose lineage is traced back to the mid-19th century. It was one of the most effective units of the Army against American Indians on the Texas frontier. Today, the regiment ex ...

, 20 Oct 1890–1893 * Second Lieutenant, 5th U.S. Infantry, 7 Oct 1893 * Transferred to 7th Cavalry, 30 Nov 1894, became Lieutenant * Captain. 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry, 10 May 1898 Capron married Lillian Morris on 12 August 1896. When the Spanish–American War broke out, Capron raised a troop of

Rough Riders The Rough Riders was a nickname given to the 1st United States Volunteer Cavalry, one of three such regiments raised in 1898 for the Spanish–American War and the only one to see combat. The United States Army was small, understaffed, and di ...

from the Old West (now Oklahoma) to serve as volunteer cavalry in Cuba.

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. ( ; October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), often referred to as Teddy or by his initials, T. R., was an American politician, statesman, soldier, conservationist, naturalist, historian, and writer who served as the 26t ...

later wrote of Capron:

Battle and death

General

William R. Shafter William Rufus Shafter (October 16, 1835 – November 12, 1906) was a Union Army officer during the American Civil War who received America's highest military decoration, the Medal of Honor, for his actions at the Battle of Fair Oaks & Darbyto ...

's corps of American soldiers arrived in Cuba after the declarations of war in 1898. Capron's regiment was commanded by Colonel

Leonard Wood Leonard Wood (October 9, 1860 – August 7, 1927) was a United States Army major general, physician, and public official. He served as the Chief of Staff of the United States Army, Military Governor of Cuba, and Governor-General of the Philipp ...

and Lieutenant Colonel (later President)

. Colonel Wood granted Capron's request to lead the vanguard, ordering Capron to take his advance guard up a hill at Las Guasimas. The forward unit of Capron's troop, commanded by Sergeant

Hamilton Fish II Hamilton Fish II (April 17, 1849 – January 15, 1936) was an American lawyer and politician who served as Speaker of the New York State Assembly and a member of the United States House of Representatives. Early life Fish was born in Albany, N ...

, ran into Spanish gunfire on the hill. Capron rode up and found a dead Cuban scout and Sergeant Fish lying in the middle of the road. Bringing up his troops and leading them in action, Capron lay down to fire at the Spanish soldiers and was shot through the space between the left shoulder and neck with the bullet passing through the lungs and exiting out the right area in the waist. Brought to the rear by a Rough Rider, Capron died on 24 June 1898. He was highly praised by his commanders, including Roosevelt and was awarded a posthumous Silver Star in 1925. His widow Lillian received the decoration. After his body was returned to the United States, Capron was buried at

Arlington National Cemetery Arlington National Cemetery is one of two national cemeteries run by the United States Army. Nearly 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington, Virginia. There are about 30 funerals conducted on weekdays and 7 held on Sa ...

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county is situated in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from the District of Columbia, of which it was once a part. The county ...

on 27 July 1898. His wife was interred beside him after her death in 1937.Burial Detail: Capron, Lillian (Section 1, Grave 289)
– ANC Explorer

References

External links

at ArlingtonCemetery.net, an unofficial website {{DEFAULTSORT:Capron, Allyn Kissam 1871 births 1898 deaths Military personnel from Brooklyn United States Army soldiers Military personnel from New York (state) United States Army officers Rough Riders American military personnel killed in the Spanish–American War Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Recipients of the Silver Star