Tag: 1st New Mexico Cavalry

A few days ago, I wrote about discovering my first ancestor who fought in the U.S. Civil War — my Mexican-born 2nd great grandfather Francisco Jimenez [Jimenes] (1841-1911). I found this information through his Civil War Pension Index card on Ancestry.com, which indicated that Francisco served in the 1st New Mexico Cavalry — when New Mexico was still a U.S. Territory, that also included present-day Arizona.

I did a little more digging this week, and found additional records that corroborate Francisco’s service in the Civil War and in the 1st New Mexico Cavalry.

The versions of Francisco’s Civil War Pension Index cards that Fold3 has on file look identical to the one available on Ancestry, but include a bit different information. The Fold3 cards do not include the name of Francisco’s widow, Clara Salas, who applied for his pension after his death. The application numbers and date of filing match up with the card on Ancestry, although Fold3 shows a 3rd date of filing — 1907, due to invalid status. The Fold3 versions note a date of death for Francisco, 18 May 1911. They also provide a bit more information about Francisco’s military service (although still no actual dates of service) — he served in Company H and in Company L, both with the 1st New Mexico Cavalry. The Ancestry version only identifies the regiment, not the specific companies.

I was also able to find Francisco Jimenes on the Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System (CWSS) available online through the National Park Service. The CWSS entry notes the same regiment and company numbers that were identified on the pension index cards. What is nice here is that the CWSS provides some new information, his rank when enlisted (Wagoner) and rank when his service ended (Private).

Interestingly, the CWSS lists another Francisco Jimenes [Jimenez, Jemines] in Company H of the 1st New Mexico Cavalary. This Francisco Jimenes is only listed in Company H (not L), entered service at the rank of Private and left at the rank of Bugler. It is very possible this is my same Francisco, but it is also likely this is someone else with the same name. I guess this is just one more puzzle for me to investigate.

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Although I have been a history buff my entire life, and majored in history in college, studying the American Civil War never held much interest for me. Mainly, because I have lived in California my entire life — a state that did not actively participate in the war. No Civil War battles took place here. But my disinterest was also due to not being aware of any ancestors that fought in the Civil War. Both sides of my family primarily immigrated to the U.S. after the Civil War — from Mexico, Ireland, England, Scotland, and Canada. It wasn’t until I married my husband Jeff and started researching his family history that I found ancestor connections to the Civil War.

So what a pleasant surprise it is to finally discover a Civil War soldier ancestor of my own! And even more of a surprise to find that this ancestor is Mexican-born!

To add a bit more complexity to this surprise, this Civil War ancestor is from a family line that I only learned about less than 2 years ago — the maternal line of my paternal grandmother, Rosie Salas (b. 1923). I have mentioned before that Rosie did not raise my father and was never really a part of our lives, so Dad knows almost nothing about Rosie’s childhood or her family history. It wasn’t until May 2013 that I discovered the names of her parents, and their New Mexico origins.

My first identified Civil War veteran ancestor is my 2nd great grandfather Francisco Jimenez [Jimenes] (1841-1911).

About Francisco Jimenez

According to 1900 and 1910 U.S. Census records, Francisco was born in Mexico in April of 1841. He immigrated to the United States in 1852 or 1853 as an 11 or 12 year old boy. I don’t find a trace of Francisco again until his 27 November 1879 post-Civil War marriage to Clara Salas in Belen, Valencia County, New Mexico. Francisco was 38 years old at the time of this marriage; his wife Clara was just 16 years old. Clara and Francisco went on to have at least 6 children together, including my great grandmother Victoria J. Jimenez (1890-1940). They spent their lives in New Mexico, primarily in Grant County. Francisco died on 18 May 1911 at the age of 70. He would never know his granddaughter (my grandmother) Rosie, who was born after his death.

Civil War Service

Francisco Jimenez served with the 1st New Mexico Cavalry, who fought on behalf of the Union. This is confirmed on his Civil War Pension Index card. His dates of service and places of service are not noted. The index card lists his wife Clara Salas as his dependent and widow. Francisco’s pension was first applied for in 1898 — while Francisco was still living — due to the applicant (I assume, Francisco himself) becoming an invalid. His pension was once again applied for on 21 June 1911, one month after his death, by Francisco’s widow Clara.

Now the hunt begins to find more details about my 2nd great grandfather’s Civil War service!

New Mexico did not become a state until after Francisco’s death, on 6 January 1912. During Francisco’s life there and Civil War service with the 1st New Mexico Calvary, New Mexico was a U.S. Territory.

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