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

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

officer to die in the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

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), commonly known as West Point, is a United States service academies, United States service academy in West Point, New York that educates cadets for service as Officer_(armed_forces)#United_States, comm ...

. The younger Capron was born on 24 June 1871 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, 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 ...

. 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 exis ...

, 20 Oct 1890–1893 * Second Lieutenant,

5th U.S. Infantry The 5th Infantry Regiment (nicknamed the "Bobcats") is an infantry regiment of the United States Army that traces its origins to 1808. Origins: War of 1812 The 5th Infantry Regiment was created by an Act of United States Congress, Congress of ...

, 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 diso ...

from the Old West (now

Oklahoma Oklahoma ( ; Choctaw language, Choctaw: , ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Texas to the south and west, Kansas to the north, Missouri to the northea ...

) to serve as volunteer cavalry in Cuba.

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

later wrote of Capron:

Battle and death

General William R. Shafter'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, List of colonial governors of Cuba, Military Governor of Cuba, ...

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, Ne ...

, 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 The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

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 the largest cemetery in the United States National Cemetery System, one of two maintained by the United States Army. More than 400,000 people are buried in its 639 acres (259 ha) in Arlington County, Virginia. ...

Arlington, Virginia Arlington County, or simply Arlington, is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Virginia. The county is located in Northern Virginia on the southwestern bank of the Potomac River directly across from Washington, D.C., the nati ...

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