Richard Biddle Roberts
Richard Biddle Roberts | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | August 25, 1825 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. |
| Died | April 19, 1886 (aged 60) Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
| Buried | Allegheny Cemetery, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania |
| Allegiance | United States (Union) |
| Service | U.S. Army (Union Army) |
| Years of service | 1861–1862 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Commands | 1st Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment |
| Battles / wars | Peninsula Campaign Battle of South Mountain Battle of Antietam |
| Other work | Lawyer; U.S. District Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania |
Richard Biddle Roberts (August 25, 1825 – April 19, 1886) was an American lawyer and Union Army officer during the American Civil War. He commanded the 1st Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment through the Peninsula Campaign and the Maryland Campaign, including the actions at South Mountain and Antietam. After resigning his commission in late 1862, he returned to his legal career in Pittsburgh and later practiced in Chicago.
Early life and legal career
[edit]Richard Biddle Roberts was born on August 25, 1825, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He read law under a local attorney and was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar on November 20, 1850.[1] He then opened a private practice in Pittsburgh.
In 1853, Roberts was elected District Attorney of Allegheny County and served until 1856.[2] In April 1857, President James Buchanan appointed him United States District Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, a post he held until the Civil War began.[2]
Civil War service
[edit]Commission and 1st Pennsylvania Reserves
[edit]In early 1861, Roberts accepted a commission as a lieutenant colonel on Governor Andrew Curtin’s staff.[2] In June 1861, he was commissioned colonel of the 1st Pennsylvania Reserve Regiment (initially mustered as the 30th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry).[2] The regiment organized at Camp Wilkins in Pittsburgh and joined the V Corps of the Army of the Potomac.
During the Peninsula Campaign of 1862, Roberts led his regiment through the Siege of Yorktown and at the Battle of Seven Pines, where his men held a key position near Savage’s Station.[3]
South Mountain and Antietam
[edit]During the Maryland Campaign, Roberts’s regiment formed part of Brig. Gen. Joseph Hooker’s division. On September 14, 1862, at the Battle of South Mountain (Turner’s Gap), Roberts personally led his men in a dawn assault up the rocky slopes. Despite heavy musket and artillery fire, the 1st Pennsylvania Reserves broke the Confederate line atop the gap, forcing the enemy to withdraw.[3]
On September 16–17, 1862, at the Battle of Antietam, Roberts again served under Hooker’s division. When Hooker was wounded on September 16, Roberts temporarily assumed command of the division until Brig. Gen. Samuel W. Crawford arrived. Roberts then returned to his regiment and led the 1st Pennsylvania Reserves in holding the West Woods line on the morning of September 17.[3][4]
Roberts resigned his commission on October 26, 1862, and returned to Pennsylvania to resume his duties on Governor Curtin’s staff.[2]
Postbellum career
[edit]After leaving the army, Roberts resumed his law practice in Pittsburgh and remained active in Democratic politics and veterans’ affairs. In 1869, he moved to Chicago, Illinois, where he specialized in railroad and corporate law, representing the Pennsylvania Railroad and the Fort Wayne Railroad.[2]
In Chicago, Roberts served as president of the Chicago Bar Association and, in 1882, was elected president of the Illinois Saint Andrew's Society. A long-time Freemason, he helped establish lodges in both Pittsburgh and Chicago.[2]
Death and legacy
[edit]Richard Biddle Roberts died in Chicago on April 19, 1886, at age 60. He was buried at Allegheny Cemetery in Pittsburgh.[2] He was survived by his wife, Ellen Biddle (McCandless), and two children. His will funded scholarships at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ Bar Association of Allegheny County (1890). List of Members of the Allegheny County Bar. Bar Association of Allegheny County. p. 210.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Jordan, John W. (1893). Colonial and Revolutionary Families of Pennsylvania. Vol. 1. Lewis Publishing. pp. 2325–2330.
- ^ a b c Roberts, Richard Biddle (1887). Report of the 1st Pennsylvania Reserves at South Mountain. Vol. Series I, Volume 19, Part I. Washington, D.C.: United States Government Printing Office. p. 332.
- ^ Eicher, John H.; Davis, David J. (2001). Civil War High Commands. Stanford University Press. p. 337. ISBN 978-0-8047-3641-1.
External links
[edit]- Colonial and Revolutionary Families of Pennsylvania by John W. Jordan (1893) – pp. 2325–2330, Internet Archive
- List of Members of the Allegheny County Bar (1890) – p. 210, Internet Archive