Francis Barretto Spinola
Encyclopedia
Francis Barretto Spinola (March 19, 1821 – April 14, 1891) was the first Portuguese American
to be elected to the United States House of Representatives
, serving as a representative from New York
from 1887 to 1891. He also served as a general in the Union Army
during the American Civil War
.
, Long Island, New York. He attended Quaker Hill Academy in Dutchess County
and then passed the bar exam before establishing a law practice in Brooklyn. He was elected alderman of the Second Ward in Brooklyn in 1846 and 1847, and was reelected in 1849 and served for four years. By 1854, when he joined a special force known as "Special Police" to keep order in the streets of New York, he was already one of the "most respected and influential citizens" of the city. Politically a Democrat
, he was a member of the New York State Assembly
in 1855. He then served as a member of the New York State Senate
from the 3rd District between 1858 and 1861, and was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention
in 1860.
He was commissioner of New York Harbor
when the Civil War erupted. Spinola joined the volunteer army in a New York regiment and was commissioned as an officer. He was appointed brigadier general
of Volunteers on October 2, 1862. He commanded two relief efforts to lift the Confederate siege of Washington, NC
. In July/October 1862 he recruited and organized a brigade of four regiments, known as Spinola's Empire Brigade.
Spinola assumed command of the New York "Excelsior Brigade
" (the Second Brigade, Second Division, Third Army Corps
), on July 11, 1863, following the Battle of Gettysburg
as the Army of the Potomac
strove to fill open command slots created by battle casualties. Spinola's brigade led the Union troops on July 23 at the Battle of Wapping Heights near Warrenton, Virginia
, suffering 18 men killed, including two officers. Spinola was wounded in the fighting, along with dozens of his men. He was honorably discharged from the service in August 1865.
Following the war, Spinola was a banker and insurance agent, and became an influential figure among the rapidly growing Italian immigrant community in the New York City area. He was a U.S. Representative from New York's 10th District from 1887 to 1891, and died in office in Washington, D.C.
. He was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery
in Brooklyn, New York.
Spinola had his country seat at Crane Neck, Long Island. It was menaced by a fire in 1887.
His estate, valued at over $1,000,000 in 1897, was left to his wife (d. 1896), and a nephew, Ferdinand McKee. In 1897 his sister Annie Douglass contested his will.
–1873), daughter of Captain John Phelan (1747, Waterford, Ireland - 14 Sep 1827, Baltimore, Maryland), who served in the American Revolutionary War
, and his wife Susanna Davis (b. Long Island
, d. 1857). João Leandro Spinola married Eliza Phelan in 18 Jun 1808, at Trinity Church parish, New York.
Frank W. Alduino, in his book Sons of Garibaldi in blue and gray: Italians in the American Civil War (p. 180), refers his father John as a "prosperous farmer and oysterman" who migrated to the United States from Madeira Island, Portugal, whose family had originally hailed from the city of Genoa. The Spinolas, of noble Genoese
origin, moved into Madeira Island in the late 15th, early 16th century, as merchants. John Leander Spinola is recorded travelling between Funchal
and New York on board of the brig
Pomona in 1821. He is also recorded travelling to Havana
and Rio Grande
. He was buried in the Meadow Avenue of Green-Wood Cemetery
, Brooklyn, New York.
His grandfather John Phelan was a lieutenant in Wigglesworth's 13th Massachusetts Regiment
, and his grand uncles Edward and Patrick were respectively captain and lieutenant at the same time. He was a member of the Order of the Cincinnati. His grand uncle Phillip Phelan joined the American forces during the Revolution War, where he served as lieutenant, and died at the Battle of Eutaw Springs
in 22 May 1781. John Phelan's mother was Mary Heron Phelan, from Waterford, Ireland. One of her descendants, Mrs. Regina M. Knott, was one of the earliest members of the Daughters of the American Revolution
.
He had an older brother, John Leander Spinola (b. 1818) who worked as a druggist, an younger brother, Douglas A. Spinola (b. 1830), an older sister, Angelina Spinola, seamistress (b. 1814), and two younger sisters, Ann Eliza (b. 1829) and Louisa (b. 1825).
Gen. Spinola provided for his sister Ann Douglass until his death in 1891. She supported herself teaching music until her eyesight failed, and by 1903, with over seventy years of age, she was living on charity, on an allowance of $120 a year by the Society of the Cincinnati
. This motivated a newspaper article, pleading for help and referring her family, the Spinolas, as New York aristocrats, a "distinguished family".
Gen. Francis Spinola married Elizabeth Nancy Glazebrook, from Kings, Saratoga, New York
, at 7 May 1855, in New York City. Eliza N. Spinola, as she was known, survived her husband for five years, dying in 1896.
Portuguese American
Portuguese Americans are citizens of the United States whose ancestry originates in the southwest European nation of Portugal, including the offshore island groups of the Azores and Madeira....
to be elected to the United States House of Representatives
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is one of the two Houses of the United States Congress, the bicameral legislature which also includes the Senate.The composition and powers of the House are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, serving as a representative from New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
from 1887 to 1891. He also served as a general in the Union Army
Union Army
The Union Army was the land force that fought for the Union during the American Civil War. It was also known as the Federal Army, the U.S. Army, the Northern Army and the National Army...
during the American Civil War
American Civil War
The American Civil War was a civil war fought in the United States of America. In response to the election of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, 11 southern slave states declared their secession from the United States and formed the Confederate States of America ; the other 25...
.
Biography
Spinola was born in Oil Field, near Stony Brook, Suffolk CountySuffolk County, New York
Suffolk County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York on the eastern portion of Long Island. As of the 2010 census, the population was 1,493,350. It was named for the county of Suffolk in England, from which its earliest settlers came...
, Long Island, New York. He attended Quaker Hill Academy in Dutchess County
Dutchess County, New York
Dutchess County is a county located in the U.S. state of New York, in the state's Mid-Hudson Region of the Hudson Valley. The 2010 census lists the population as 297,488...
and then passed the bar exam before establishing a law practice in Brooklyn. He was elected alderman of the Second Ward in Brooklyn in 1846 and 1847, and was reelected in 1849 and served for four years. By 1854, when he joined a special force known as "Special Police" to keep order in the streets of New York, he was already one of the "most respected and influential citizens" of the city. Politically a Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
, he was a member of the New York State Assembly
New York State Assembly
The New York State Assembly is the lower house of the New York State Legislature. The Assembly is composed of 150 members representing an equal number of districts, with each district having an average population of 128,652...
in 1855. He then served as a member of the New York State Senate
New York State Senate
The New York State Senate is one of two houses in the New York State Legislature and has members each elected to two-year terms. There are no limits on the number of terms one may serve...
from the 3rd District between 1858 and 1861, and was a delegate to the Democratic National Convention
Democratic National Convention
The Democratic National Convention is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 national convention...
in 1860.
He was commissioner of New York Harbor
New York Harbor
New York Harbor refers to the waterways of the estuary near the mouth of the Hudson River that empty into New York Bay. It is one of the largest natural harbors in the world. Although the U.S. Board of Geographic Names does not use the term, New York Harbor has important historical, governmental,...
when the Civil War erupted. Spinola joined the volunteer army in a New York regiment and was commissioned as an officer. He was appointed brigadier general
Brigadier general (United States)
A brigadier general in the United States Army, Air Force, and Marine Corps, is a one-star general officer, with the pay grade of O-7. Brigadier general ranks above a colonel and below major general. Brigadier general is equivalent to the rank of rear admiral in the other uniformed...
of Volunteers on October 2, 1862. He commanded two relief efforts to lift the Confederate siege of Washington, NC
Battle of Washington
The Battle of Washington took place from March 30 to April 19, 1863, in Beaufort County, North Carolina, as part of Confederate Lt. Gen. James Longstreet's Tidewater operations during the American Civil War.-Background:...
. In July/October 1862 he recruited and organized a brigade of four regiments, known as Spinola's Empire Brigade.
Spinola assumed command of the New York "Excelsior Brigade
Excelsior Brigade
The Excelsior Brigade was a military unit in the Union Army during the American Civil War. Comprising primarily infantry regiments raised in the state of New York primarily by former U.S...
" (the Second Brigade, Second Division, Third Army Corps
III Corps (ACW)
There were four formations in the Union Army designated as III Corps during the American Civil War.Three were short-lived:*In the Army of Virginia:**Irvin McDowell ;**James B...
), on July 11, 1863, following the Battle of Gettysburg
Battle of Gettysburg
The Battle of Gettysburg , was fought July 1–3, 1863, in and around the town of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The battle with the largest number of casualties in the American Civil War, it is often described as the war's turning point. Union Maj. Gen. George Gordon Meade's Army of the Potomac...
as the Army of the Potomac
Army of the Potomac
The Army of the Potomac was the major Union Army in the Eastern Theater of the American Civil War.-History:The Army of the Potomac was created in 1861, but was then only the size of a corps . Its nucleus was called the Army of Northeastern Virginia, under Brig. Gen...
strove to fill open command slots created by battle casualties. Spinola's brigade led the Union troops on July 23 at the Battle of Wapping Heights near Warrenton, Virginia
Warrenton, Virginia
Warrenton is a town in Fauquier County, Virginia, United States. The population was 6,670 at the 2000 census, and 14,634 at the 2010 estimate. It is the county seat of Fauquier County. Public schools in the town include Fauquier High School, Warrenton Middle School, Taylor Middle School and two...
, suffering 18 men killed, including two officers. Spinola was wounded in the fighting, along with dozens of his men. He was honorably discharged from the service in August 1865.
Following the war, Spinola was a banker and insurance agent, and became an influential figure among the rapidly growing Italian immigrant community in the New York City area. He was a U.S. Representative from New York's 10th District from 1887 to 1891, and died in office in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
. He was buried at Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery was founded in 1838 as a rural cemetery in Brooklyn, Kings County , New York. It was granted National Historic Landmark status in 2006 by the U.S. Department of the Interior.-History:...
in Brooklyn, New York.
Spinola had his country seat at Crane Neck, Long Island. It was menaced by a fire in 1887.
His estate, valued at over $1,000,000 in 1897, was left to his wife (d. 1896), and a nephew, Ferdinand McKee. In 1897 his sister Annie Douglass contested his will.
Family
Francis Barretto Spinola was the son of João Leandro Spinola (b. 1782, Madeira Island), later Anglicised as John Leander Spinola, a Portuguese merchant from Madeira Island, and Elizabeth Phelan (1790, Long IslandLong Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
–1873), daughter of Captain John Phelan (1747, Waterford, Ireland - 14 Sep 1827, Baltimore, Maryland), who served in the American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War
The American Revolutionary War , the American War of Independence, or simply the Revolutionary War, began as a war between the Kingdom of Great Britain and thirteen British colonies in North America, and ended in a global war between several European great powers.The war was the result of the...
, and his wife Susanna Davis (b. Long Island
Long Island
Long Island is an island located in the southeast part of the U.S. state of New York, just east of Manhattan. Stretching northeast into the Atlantic Ocean, Long Island contains four counties, two of which are boroughs of New York City , and two of which are mainly suburban...
, d. 1857). João Leandro Spinola married Eliza Phelan in 18 Jun 1808, at Trinity Church parish, New York.
Frank W. Alduino, in his book Sons of Garibaldi in blue and gray: Italians in the American Civil War (p. 180), refers his father John as a "prosperous farmer and oysterman" who migrated to the United States from Madeira Island, Portugal, whose family had originally hailed from the city of Genoa. The Spinolas, of noble Genoese
Republic of Genoa
The Most Serene Republic of Genoa |Ligurian]]: Repúbrica de Zêna) was an independent state from 1005 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast, as well as Corsica from 1347 to 1768, and numerous other territories throughout the Mediterranean....
origin, moved into Madeira Island in the late 15th, early 16th century, as merchants. John Leander Spinola is recorded travelling between Funchal
Funchal
Funchal is the largest city, the municipal seat and the capital of Portugal's Autonomous Region of Madeira. The city has a population of 112,015 and has been the capital of Madeira for more than five centuries.-Etymology:...
and New York on board of the brig
Brig
A brig is a sailing vessel with two square-rigged masts. During the Age of Sail, brigs were seen as fast and manoeuvrable and were used as both naval warships and merchant vessels. They were especially popular in the 18th and early 19th centuries...
Pomona in 1821. He is also recorded travelling to Havana
Havana
Havana is the capital city, province, major port, and leading commercial centre of Cuba. The city proper has a population of 2.1 million inhabitants, and it spans a total of — making it the largest city in the Caribbean region, and the most populous...
and Rio Grande
Rio Grande
The Rio Grande is a river that flows from southwestern Colorado in the United States to the Gulf of Mexico. Along the way it forms part of the Mexico – United States border. Its length varies as its course changes...
. He was buried in the Meadow Avenue of Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery
Green-Wood Cemetery was founded in 1838 as a rural cemetery in Brooklyn, Kings County , New York. It was granted National Historic Landmark status in 2006 by the U.S. Department of the Interior.-History:...
, Brooklyn, New York.
His grandfather John Phelan was a lieutenant in Wigglesworth's 13th Massachusetts Regiment
13th Massachusetts Regiment
The 13th Massachusetts Regiment was first raised on July 11, 1776 as the 6th Continental Regiment under Colonel Edward Wigglesworth and was manned with troops raised primarily from Essex, York, and Cumberland Counties. It was first known as Wigglesworth's State Regiment. An additional battalion was...
, and his grand uncles Edward and Patrick were respectively captain and lieutenant at the same time. He was a member of the Order of the Cincinnati. His grand uncle Phillip Phelan joined the American forces during the Revolution War, where he served as lieutenant, and died at the Battle of Eutaw Springs
Battle of Eutaw Springs
The Battle of Eutaw Springs was a battle of the American Revolutionary War, and was the last major engagement of the war in the Carolinas.-Background:...
in 22 May 1781. John Phelan's mother was Mary Heron Phelan, from Waterford, Ireland. One of her descendants, Mrs. Regina M. Knott, was one of the earliest members of the Daughters of the American Revolution
Daughters of the American Revolution
The Daughters of the American Revolution is a lineage-based membership organization for women who are descended from a person involved in United States' independence....
.
He had an older brother, John Leander Spinola (b. 1818) who worked as a druggist, an younger brother, Douglas A. Spinola (b. 1830), an older sister, Angelina Spinola, seamistress (b. 1814), and two younger sisters, Ann Eliza (b. 1829) and Louisa (b. 1825).
Gen. Spinola provided for his sister Ann Douglass until his death in 1891. She supported herself teaching music until her eyesight failed, and by 1903, with over seventy years of age, she was living on charity, on an allowance of $120 a year by the Society of the Cincinnati
Society of the Cincinnati
The Society of the Cincinnati is a historical organization with branches in the United States and France founded in 1783 to preserve the ideals and fellowship of the American Revolutionary War officers and to pressure the government to honor pledges it had made to officers who fought for American...
. This motivated a newspaper article, pleading for help and referring her family, the Spinolas, as New York aristocrats, a "distinguished family".
Gen. Francis Spinola married Elizabeth Nancy Glazebrook, from Kings, Saratoga, New York
Saratoga, New York
Saratoga is a town in Saratoga County, New York, United States. The population was 5,141 at the 2000 census. It is also the commonly used, but not official, name for the neighboring and much more populous city, Saratoga Springs. The major village in the town of Saratoga is Schuylerville which is...
, at 7 May 1855, in New York City. Eliza N. Spinola, as she was known, survived her husband for five years, dying in 1896.
See also
- List of American Civil War generals