James Wolfe Ripley was born on December 10, 1794, in Windham County, Connecticut, to Ralph and Eunice Ripley. He graduated from West Point in 1814 and became a 2^nd lieutenant of artillery in the United States Army. He served in the War of 1812 and the Seminole War and commanded the federal forces in Charleston Harbor during the nullification crisis.

 

He served as superintendent of the Springfield Armory from 1842 until 1854, when the government transferred him to the Watertown Arsenal. He earned a series of promotions during the antebellum era, and by 1860, he was serving as a lieutenant colonel. He was promoted to colonel in April 1861 and then to brigadier general in August 1861, and he served as the 5^th Chief of Ordnance of the United States Army. He was replaced in September 1863 and spent the next several years inspecting fortifications along the New England coast. He died in Hartford, Connecticut, on March 16, 1870.

 

Image: James Wolfe Ripley (courtesy Wikicommons)

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