Anson Mills
Encyclopedia
Anson Mills was a United States Army
officer, surveyor, inventor, and entrepreneur. Engaged in south Texas as a land surveyor and civil engineer, he both named and laid out the city of El Paso, Texas
. Mills also invented a woven cartridge belt which late in life made his fortune.
Mills was born on a farm near Thorntown, Indiana
, the first of nine children to a father and mother of Quaker ancestry but with no particular interest in religion. As a young man, Mills worked on the farm but also became a practiced carpenter and weaver. In 1855, he entered West Point but in 1857 was dismissed for "deficiency in mathematics." Too embarrassed to return home, he taught school in McKinney, Texas
and then moved on to El Paso to work as a surveyor, which included drawing up the original plat of the town.
When the Civil War broke out in 1861, he accepted a commission as a first lieutenant in a regular infantry regiment of the U. S. Army. His service was undistinguished, but he appeared at Shiloh
(although he saw little action) and in the Murfreesboro
, Chickamauga
, Atlanta, and Nashville campaigns. He rose to the rank of captain by the end of the war. From 1865 to 1893, Mills remained on duty with the Army, mostly engaged in campaigns against Indians
, notably at the Battle of the Rosebud
and the Battle of Slim Buttes
(1876) where he led cavalry under the command of George Crook
. Mills rose gradually to the rank of colonel and was appointed brigadier-general in 1897 when he was placed on the retired list.
Shortly after the Civil War, Mills began to improve the regulation cartridge belt by attempting to weave the whole belt in one piece without sewing. The improved belt was adopted by the U. S. Army, but the numbers needed by the frontier army were small. At the commencement of the Spanish-American War
, Mills and his associates expanded their factory to produce a thousand belts a day, but the quick conclusion of the war left Mills practically bankrupt. Nevertheless, after giving some belts to Canadian troops headed for the Boer War
, Mills soon received orders from the British government, and his success was assured. Having made a small fortune by 1905, Mills sold his interest.
In 1894, Mills was appointed a member of the International Boundary Commission that sought to settle cases involving the border with Mexico, including the Chamizal dispute
(not finally concluded until 1963). While still a member of the commission, Mills had constructed the reinforced concrete
Anson Mills Building
in El Paso, which was completed in 1911.
Mills married Hannah Cassel of Zanesville, Ohio
in 1868; they had three children, only one of which, a daughter, survived to maturity. Although generally conservative in his political views, Mills supported women's suffrage
and prohibition
and had indistinct religious beliefs. Mills completed and privately published an autobiography, My Story, in 1918. He retired from the boundary commission in 1914 and died in Washington, D.C., on November 5, 1924.
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
officer, surveyor, inventor, and entrepreneur. Engaged in south Texas as a land surveyor and civil engineer, he both named and laid out the city of El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
. Mills also invented a woven cartridge belt which late in life made his fortune.
Mills was born on a farm near Thorntown, Indiana
Thorntown, Indiana
Thorntown is a town in Sugar Creek Township, Boone County, Indiana, United States. The population was 1,562 at the 2000 census. Thorntown is located in northwestern Boone City, about halfway between Lafayette and Indianapolis.-Geography:...
, the first of nine children to a father and mother of Quaker ancestry but with no particular interest in religion. As a young man, Mills worked on the farm but also became a practiced carpenter and weaver. In 1855, he entered West Point but in 1857 was dismissed for "deficiency in mathematics." Too embarrassed to return home, he taught school in McKinney, Texas
McKinney, Texas
McKinney is a city in and the county seat of Collin County, Texas, United States, and the second in population to Plano. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the city's 2010 population was 131,117 The Census Bureau listed McKinney as the nation's fastest growing city from 2000 to 2003 and again in...
and then moved on to El Paso to work as a surveyor, which included drawing up the original plat of the town.
When the Civil War broke out in 1861, he accepted a commission as a first lieutenant in a regular infantry regiment of the U. S. Army. His service was undistinguished, but he appeared at Shiloh
Battle of Shiloh
The Battle of Shiloh, also known as the Battle of Pittsburg Landing, was a major battle in the Western Theater of the American Civil War, fought April 6–7, 1862, in southwestern Tennessee. A Union army under Maj. Gen. Ulysses S. Grant had moved via the Tennessee River deep into Tennessee and...
(although he saw little action) and in the Murfreesboro
Battle of Stones River
The Battle of Stones River or Second Battle of Murfreesboro , was fought from December 31, 1862, to January 2, 1863, in Middle Tennessee, as the culmination of the Stones River Campaign in the Western Theater of the American Civil War...
, Chickamauga
Battle of Chickamauga
The Battle of Chickamauga, fought September 19–20, 1863, marked the end of a Union offensive in southeastern Tennessee and northwestern Georgia called the Chickamauga Campaign...
, Atlanta, and Nashville campaigns. He rose to the rank of captain by the end of the war. From 1865 to 1893, Mills remained on duty with the Army, mostly engaged in campaigns against Indians
Indigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
, notably at the Battle of the Rosebud
Battle of the Rosebud
The Battle of the Rosebud occurred June 17, 1876, in the Montana Territory between the United States Army and a force of Lakota Native Americans during the Black Hills War...
and the Battle of Slim Buttes
Battle of Slim Buttes
The Battle of Slim Buttes was fought on September 9–10, 1876, in the Great Sioux Reservation between the United States Army and Miniconjou Sioux during the Great Sioux War of 1876...
(1876) where he led cavalry under the command of George Crook
George Crook
George R. Crook was a career United States Army officer, most noted for his distinguished service during the American Civil War and the Indian Wars.-Early life:...
. Mills rose gradually to the rank of colonel and was appointed brigadier-general in 1897 when he was placed on the retired list.
Shortly after the Civil War, Mills began to improve the regulation cartridge belt by attempting to weave the whole belt in one piece without sewing. The improved belt was adopted by the U. S. Army, but the numbers needed by the frontier army were small. At the commencement of the Spanish-American War
Spanish-American War
The Spanish–American War was a conflict in 1898 between Spain and the United States, effectively the result of American intervention in the ongoing Cuban War of Independence...
, Mills and his associates expanded their factory to produce a thousand belts a day, but the quick conclusion of the war left Mills practically bankrupt. Nevertheless, after giving some belts to Canadian troops headed for the Boer War
Boer War
The Boer Wars were two wars fought between the British Empire and the two independent Boer republics, the Oranje Vrijstaat and the Republiek van Transvaal ....
, Mills soon received orders from the British government, and his success was assured. Having made a small fortune by 1905, Mills sold his interest.
In 1894, Mills was appointed a member of the International Boundary Commission that sought to settle cases involving the border with Mexico, including the Chamizal dispute
Chamizal dispute
The Chamizal dispute was a border conflict over about on the U.S.-Mexico border between El Paso, Texas, and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua. It was caused by differences between the bed of the Rio Grande as surveyed in 1852 and the present channel of the river....
(not finally concluded until 1963). While still a member of the commission, Mills had constructed the reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete
Reinforced concrete is concrete in which reinforcement bars , reinforcement grids, plates or fibers have been incorporated to strengthen the concrete in tension. It was invented by French gardener Joseph Monier in 1849 and patented in 1867. The term Ferro Concrete refers only to concrete that is...
Anson Mills Building
Anson Mills Building
The Anson Mills Building is an historic building located at 303 North Oregon Street in El Paso, Texas. The Building stands on the original site of the 1832 Ponce de León ranch. Anson Mills hired Henry C. Trost of the Trost & Trost architectural firm to design and construct the building. Trost was...
in El Paso, which was completed in 1911.
Mills married Hannah Cassel of Zanesville, Ohio
Zanesville, Ohio
Zanesville is a city in and the county seat of Muskingum County, Ohio, United States. The population was 25,586 at the 2000 census.Zanesville was named after Ebenezer Zane, who had constructed Zane's Trace, a pioneer road through present-day Ohio...
in 1868; they had three children, only one of which, a daughter, survived to maturity. Although generally conservative in his political views, Mills supported women's suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
and prohibition
Prohibition
Prohibition of alcohol, often referred to simply as prohibition, is the practice of prohibiting the manufacture, transportation, import, export, sale, and consumption of alcohol and alcoholic beverages. The term can also apply to the periods in the histories of the countries during which the...
and had indistinct religious beliefs. Mills completed and privately published an autobiography, My Story, in 1918. He retired from the boundary commission in 1914 and died in Washington, D.C., on November 5, 1924.
Further reading
- Anson Mills, My Story, 2nd ed. (Washington, DC: privately published, 1921).
- Handbook of Texas Online
- Arlington National Cemetery website
- "Chronology of the Life of Anson Mills"