David Alcott Peloubet was born on May 14, 1828, in Catskill, New York, to Joseph and Betsey Peloubet. He married Sarah Augusta McCoy on June 27, 1849, and they had at least three children: John, born around 1850; Delia, born around 1851; and Sarah, born around 1857.  They lived in Warren, Rhode Island, and he earned a living as a jeweler. By 1860, he owned $300 of personal property.

 

When the Civil War began, he expressed devotion to the Union cause. In May 1861, he insisted that “truth & justice will prevail and our country flag will still wave or the land of the Free & Brave.” He felt certain that “the state of Rhode Island will be proud…that she sent so gallant & patriotic sons to do battle for her Country’s Flag.” He received a commission as a captain in Company E of the 65^th New York Infantry in September 1861. The regiment took part in the siege of Yorktown, the Battle of Seven Pines, the Seven Days’ Battles, and the Battle of Antietam. He was wounded at Antietam, and he was discharged for disability on November 7, 1862.

 

He returned to the Union army the following year, receiving a commission as a major in the 33^rd New Jersey Infantry in September 1863. The regiment took part in the Battle of Missionary Ridge, and he resigned on August 8, 1864.

 

He settled in Jersey City, New Jersey, after the war. His wife probably died in the 1860s, and he married Phebe H. Harper. He resumed his work as a jeweler, and by 1870, he owned $800 of personal property. He supported the Republican Party, and he was elected police justice of Hudson County, New Jersey, in 1879. He also served in the New Jersey legislature in the 1880s. He applied for a federal pension in August 1883 and eventually secured one.  He died in Jersey City on October 9, 1895.

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