1st Arizona Volunteer Infantry
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| 1st Arizona Volunteer Infantry | |
|---|---|
| Active | Sept. 2, 1865 – Nov. 7, 1866 |
| Country | United States |
| Allegiance | United States Volunteers |
| Branch | Infantry |
| Type | Mounted infantry |
| Role | Counterinsurgency |
| Size | Five companies; ten officers and 333 enlisted |
| Engagements | Apache Wars |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Colonel William H. Garvin, Territorial adjutant general |
1st Arizona Volunteer Infantry was an infantry regiment in federal service from Arizona Territory that served under special provisions during the Apache Wars in 1865–1866. The regiment was primarily raised among the native and indigenous population of Arizona, Mexicans, Maricopas, and Pima. It was thwarted by the US Army, and disbanded when the federal government refused to continue funding.
After the end American Civil War, the last troops of the California Column returned to California. Due to the ongoing Apache Wars, the need for a local fighting force still existed. The territorial legislature discussed the feasibility of creating a corps of territorial rangers, but the project died because its cost were approximated to be ten time as large as the annual tax revenue of the Territory.[1] Already in 1864, governor John Noble Goodwin had been authorized to raise a regiment of volunteer infantry for three years or for the duration of the war. No troops had, however, been raised during the war.[2] Approval for raising this regiment after the end of the war was given by the War Department in the Spring of 1865 because of the Indian menace, and about 350 men were recruited and mustered into federal service between Sept. 2 and Nov. 3, 1865.[3]
Organization
Colonel William H. Garvin was appointed adjutant general and the immediate superior of the regimental organization.[4] The regiment would primarily be raised among the native and indigenous population of Arizona, Mexicans, Maricopas, and Pima, and be organized into six companies. Company D was, however, never organized.[5]
| Company | Officers | Recruitment area | Ethnicity of the enlisted men |
|---|---|---|---|
| A | First Lieutenant Primitivo Cervantes | Yavapai County, Mohave County, northern Yuma County | 28 Mexicans, many from Sonora; 7 Europeans and Americans |
| B | Captain Juan Chevereah First Lieutenant Thomas Ewing (commanding officer) Second Lieutenant Charles Riedt | Gila Valley and central Arizona | 103 Maricopas |
| C | Captain J. Ross Browne (detached service) Captain John N. Coster (detached service) First Lieutenant John D. Walker (commanding officer) Second Lieutenant William A. Hancock, | 94 Pima | |
| D | - - | Tucson area | never recruited |
| E | Captain Hiram S. Washburn First Lieutenant John M. Ver Mehr (detached service) Second Lieutenant Manuel Gallegos | southern Pima County | 97 Mexicans, of which all but one was born in Sonora; at least 28 also lived there when recruited |
| F | Second Lieutenant Oscar F. Hutton | Mining region east of Tubac | 32 Mexicans, of which all but one was born in Sonora |
| Source: | [6] | ||