Lorenzo I. Sitgreaves (March 15, 1810 – May 14, 1888) was a U.S. Army officer from

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

who led the 1851

Sitgreaves Expedition The Sitgreaves Expedition Down the Zuni and Colorado Rivers in 1851 was a combined American scientific and military mission to explore the Zuni River, the Little Colorado River and the Colorado River in 1851. Setting out from northern New Mexico ...

down the Zuñi and Colorado rivers.

Early life and career

Lorenzo I. Sitgreaves was born on March 15, 1810, in

Easton, Pennsylvania Easton is a city in, and the county seat of, Northampton County, Pennsylvania, United States. The city's population was 28,127 as of the 2020 census. Easton is located at the confluence of the Lehigh River, a river that joins the Delaware R ...

, the son of Mary (née Kemper) and

Samuel Sitgreaves Samuel Sitgreaves (March 16, 1764April 4, 1827) was a United States representative from Pennsylvania. Early life and education Sitgreaves was born in Philadelphia in the Province of Pennsylvania. He pursued classical studies, studied law, wa ...

. His mother was born to Daniel Kemper, a colonel in the

American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. He was a cadet at 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, New York, from July 1, 1827, to July 1, 1832, when he graduated 25th in his class of 45. He was appointed Brevet 2nd Lieutenant of the 1st Regiment of Artillery, July 1, 1832. He served on the Black Hawk Expedition of 1832, but not at the seat of war. Later that year he served in the garrison at the Bellona Arsenal in

Chesterfield County, Virginia Chesterfield County is located just south of Richmond in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The county's borders are primarily defined by the James River to the north and the Appomattox River to the south. Its county seat is Chesterfield Court H ...

, and from 1832 to 1833 in a garrison in the

Creek Nation The Muscogee Nation, or Muscogee (Creek) Nation, is a federally recognized Native American tribe based in the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The nation descends from the historic Muscogee Confederacy, a large group of indigenous peoples of the South ...

, until he was promoted Second Lieutenant, 1st Artillery, September 30, 1833. Transferred, he served in garrison at

Fort Monroe Fort Monroe, managed by partnership between the Fort Monroe Authority for the Commonwealth of Virginia, the National Park Service as the Fort Monroe National Monument, and the City of Hampton, is a former military installation in Hampton, Virgi ...

, Virginia, in 1833-34, then from 1834-36 again in the Creek Nation, until he resigned his commission on August 31, 1836.''George W. Cullum's Biographical Register of the Officers and Graduates of the United States Military Academy at West Point, New York, since its establishment in 1802'', Vol. I of Three, 1891, pp. 518-519: "Lorenzo Sitgreaves"
/ref> From 1836 to 1838, he was a civil engineer.

Corps of Topographical Engineers

Sitgreaves was again appointed a 2nd Lieutenant in the

Corps of Topographical Engineers The U.S. Army Corps of Topographical Engineers was a branch of the United States Army authorized on 4 July 1838. It consisted only of officers who were handpicked from West Point and was used for mapping and the design and construction of federal ...

on July 7, 1838. As Assistant Topographic Engineer he served in the construction of roads in

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

from 1839‑40, and on a survey of Sault Ste. Marie, 1840-41 during which he was promoted to 1st Lieutenant, Corps of Topographic Engineers, July 18, 1840. He then served as an Assistant Topographic Engineer in surveying the U.S. border with

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...

in 1841 and near

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

in 1841-42. In 1842-43 he served as an assistant in the Topographical Bureau in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

Returning to the field from 1843–44, he was Assistant Topographic Engineer in the improvement of the

Hudson River The Hudson River is a river that flows from north to south primarily through eastern New York. It originates in the Adirondack Mountains of Upstate New York and flows southward through the Hudson Valley to the New York Harbor between N ...

, and in the 1844-45 survey of the harbor of Portsmouth, New Hampshire, and of the reefs of

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in 1845-46. During the

Mexican–American War The Mexican–American War, also known in the United States as the Mexican War and in Mexico as the (''United States intervention in Mexico''), was an armed conflict between the United States and Mexico from 1846 to 1848. It followed the 1 ...

, Sitgreaves marched with Gen. John E. Wool from

San Antonio ("Cradle of Freedom") , image_map = , mapsize = 220px , map_caption = Interactive map of San Antonio , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = United States , subdivision_type1= State , subdivision_name1 = Texas , subdivision_t ...

through Chihuahua in the fall of 1846, and helped map the route and the region. He fought in the

Battle of Buena Vista The Battle of Buena Vista (February 22–23, 1847), known as the Battle of La Angostura in Mexico, and sometimes as Battle of Buena Vista/La Angostura, was a battle of the Mexican–American War. It was fought between the US invading forces, l ...

, February 22–23, 1847, for which he was promoted to Brevet Captain on February 23, 1847, for "Gallant and Meritorious Conduct" in the battle. When peace returned, he was put in charge of the Boundary Survey of the Creek Indian Territory in 1849 and then again was Assistant in the Topographical Bureau, at Washington, D.C., in 1850. In 1851, Brevet Captain Sitgreaves led an expedition down the

Zuni River The Zuni (Zuñi) River is a tributary of the Little Colorado River in the southwestern United States. It has its origin in Cibola County, New Mexico, in the Zuñi Mountains at the Continental Divide. The river flows off the western slopes of the ...

and westward to the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

, with John G. Parke his second in command and Antoine Leroux as his guide. This expedition was the first systematic survey of the area of the upper region of New Mexico Territory between Zuñi Pueblo and the Colorado River, in search of a route to

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

.Thrapp, Dan L., ''Encyclopedia of Frontier Biography, In Three Volumes, Vol.III P - Z, Index''; University of Nebraska Press, A. H. Clark Co., Glendale, 1988, p.1313 The trip took from September 4 to November 30, 1851, between Zuñi and the

Yuma Crossing Yuma Crossing is a site in Arizona and California that is significant for its association with transportation and communication across the Colorado River. It connected New Spain and Las Californias in the Spanish Colonial period in and also durin ...

. Following the expedition, he spent most of 1852 preparing a report on the expedition, which was published in 1853.Report of an Expedition Down the Zuñi and Colorado Rivers, Captain L. Sitgreaves, Corps Topographical Engineers, Robert Armstrong, Public Printer, Washington, 1853
/ref> Soon afterward, on March 3, 1853, he was promoted to Captain, Corps of Topographical Engineers, after 14 years of continuous service in the Corps. Sitgreaves married Lucy Ann Jesup, daughter of Thomas S. Jesup, on February 28, 1854. They had two daughters: Mary Jesup and Lucy. He served as Light-House Inspector, 11th District (

Detroit, Michigan Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at ...

), from December 21, 1852, to December 11, 1856, and as Light-House Engineer in the 5th District (

Baltimore Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

), from May 15, 1857, to August 8, 1859. He was on a sick leave of absence from August 1859 to 1861. Recalled at the start of the

Civil War A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

, he served as Mustering Officer at

Albany, New York Albany ( ) is the capital of the U.S. state of New York, also the seat and largest city of Albany County. Albany is on the west bank of the Hudson River, about south of its confluence with the Mohawk River, and about north of New York C ...

, in 1861-62, then as Superintendent of Volunteer Recruiting Service and Disbursing Officer at

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

from April 20, 1863, to October 20, 1864. During this time he was promoted to Major, Corps of Topographical Engineers, on March 3, 1863, and to Lieutenant‑Colonel, Corps of Engineers, on April 22, 1864. He conducted the inspection of the temporary defenses in

Kansas Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to th ...

and

Nebraska Nebraska () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Kansas to the south; Colorado to the sout ...

from October 25, 1864, to July 1865.

Later life

When the Civil War ended, Sitgreaves was placed in charge of the harbor improvements on Lake Michigan, from August 3, 1865, to June 11, 1866. Sitgreaves retired from active service on July 10, 1866, for "Disability, resulting from Long and Faithful Service, and Disease contracted in the Line of Duty." In March 1867, Sitgreaves was appointed as a commissioner to settle Ohio and Indiana war claims. Sitgreaves died at his home on May 14, 1888, at his house at 1300 N Street in Washington, D.C., and was buried there at Oak Hill Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sitgreaves, Lorenzo United States Military Academy alumni Explorers of Arizona American explorers American topographers People from Northampton County, Pennsylvania 1810 births People of Pennsylvania in the American Civil War 1881 deaths United States Army Corps of Topographical Engineers Burials at Oak Hill Cemetery (Washington, D.C.)