Samuel Ryan Curtis
| Samuel Ryan Curtis | |
|---|---|
Samuel R. Curtis in 1862
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Iowa's 1st district |
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In office March 4, 1857 – August 4, 1861 |
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| Preceded by | Augustus Hall |
| Succeeded by | James F. Wilson |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
February 3, 1805 Champlain, New York |
| Died | December 26, 1866 (aged 61) Council Bluffs, Iowa |
| Political party | Republican |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |
United States of America Union |
| Service/branch |
United States Army Union Army |
| Years of service | 1831–1832, 1846–1847, 1861–1865 |
| Rank |
 Major General
|
| Commands |
2nd Iowa Infantry Army of the Southwest Department of the Missouri Army of the Border |
| Battles/wars | |
Mexican-American War
American Civil War
Samuel Ryan Curtis (February 3, 1805 – December 26, 1866) was an American military officer, and one of the first Republicans elected to Congress. He was most famous for his role as a Union Army general in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civil War, especially for his victories at the Battles of Pea Ridge in 1862 and Westport in 1864.
Born near Champlain, New York, Curtis graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1831. He entered the Engineer Corps and was stationed at Fort Gibson in present-day Oklahoma before resigning from the Army in 1832. He moved to Ohio, where he was a lawyer and took several other civilian jobs. During the Mexican-American War, he was appointed a colonel and served as military governor of several occupied cities.
After the war, he moved to Iowa, and became the mayor of Keokuk in 1856. In 1856 he was elected as a Republican to represent Iowa's 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives. Curtis and Timothy Davis (elected the same day to represent Iowa's 2nd congressional district) were the first Iowa Republicans elected to serve in the U.S. House. Curtis was re-elected in 1858 and 1860.
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