Edward Ephraim Cross
| Edward E. Cross | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Born |
April 22, 1832 Lancaster, New Hampshire |
| Died | July 3, 1863 (aged 31) Gettysburg, Pennsylvania |
| Place of burial | Lancaster, New Hampshire |
| Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
| Service/ |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1860–63 |
| Rank |
 Colonel
|
| Commands held | 5th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry |
| Battles/wars | |
Edward Ephraim Cross (April 22, 1832 – July 3, 1863) was a newspaperman and an officer in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
Cross was born in Lancaster, New Hampshire, son of Ephram and Abigail (Everett) Cross; attended the common school and academy at Lancaster. When he was fifteen years old, he began writing as a printer for a local newspaper, the Coos Democrat. He later moved from New Hampshire to Cincinnati, Ohio, where he worked as a printer for the Cincinnati Times. He demonstrated writing skills and became a reporter for the newspaper, serving for a while as the paper's Washington correspondent. In 1854, he canvassed Ohio for the American (Know-Nothing) Party; was the Washington correspondent for the Cincinnati Times during teo sessions of Congress and also wrote articles for other newspapers including the New York Herald.
On July 27, 1858, he left Cincinnati for Tubac, Arizona Territory, with the last contingent of the Santa Rita Silver Mining Company.
Cross invested in a series of mines and then established the territory's first newspaper, the Weekly Arizonian. He also served at times in the United States Army as a scout during occasional expeditions against the Apache. In 1860, he crossed the border into Mexico to command a Sonoran army garrison supporting the insurgency of Benito Juárez.
On August 5, 1860, Colonel Cross, assigned to Fort Buchanan, presided a meeting of irate miners, at the ranch of Henry Theodore Titus, who demanded protection from depredations committed by Sonoran bandits. Cross enumerated the atrocities committed and paid a tribute of respect to the victims.
At the outset of the Civil War, he was commissioned as colonel of the 5th New Hampshire Volunteer Infantry. He led his regiment in the first division II Corps, establishing a reputation as one of the hardest-fighting, toughest officers in the army. Serving with distinction in the Battle of Seven Pines (where he fell wounded) and the Seven Days Battles, he again was wounded at the Battle of Antietam. Cross also led his regiment at the Battle of Fredericksburg and the Battle of Chancellorsville. At Chancellorsville he briefly led an ad hoc fifth brigade in the 1st Division, II Corps.
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