Lewis E. Carpenter enlisted on September 20, 1861 in Auburn, NY at the age of 45, and was commissioned 1^st Lieutenant of Company G, 75^th New York Infantry on November 26, 1861 and appointed Regimental Quartermaster the same day [i] (note the non-regulation quartermaster shoulder boards in the photo above).  On July 21, 1862 he was promoted Major of the Regiment, and appointed Chief Quartermaster of the Reserve Brigade under General Weitzel, 19^th Corps in Louisiana.  In July 1863, Major Carpenter was granted leave to travel to New York with a fund taken up by the Regiment to purchase a presentation sword at Tiffany’s as a testimonial of the men’s esteem for General Weitzel on news of his promotion to Major General and transfer to Virginia [ii].  In October 1863 he was appointed Assistant Quartermaster for the Department of the Gulf under General Banks in New Orleans.  He served as Quartermaster for the Union forces under General Dana during the Rio Grande Campaign into Texas from November 2, 1863 through January 1, 1864, and remained in the Quartermaster’s Department in New Orleans through July 1864 (major duties were to transport subsistence materials for the troops and obtain cotton for the Union) [iii].  Major Carpenter resigned his commission on July 11, 1864 having never re-joined the Regiment in Virginia, and returned home to Auburn.

Lieutenant Colonel Babcock (75^th New York Infantry) described Lewis Carpenter as “a rough, ungraceful body a little under medium height, light hair and sandy beard, a full face broken into by the loss of an arch in the bridge of his nose, pertain to my friend L.E.C.  He is thoroughly acquainted with the literature and practices of the sporting world, has visited London, Paris and San Francisco, but has never shed his awkward manners. Yet he is a true gentleman and an honest man, and kindliness warms his face and polishes his ways.  Modest even to bashfulness, any encroachment on his rights, or an act of meanness or oppression brings a self-asserting jerk to his head which must not be trifled with.  He will not be outdone if he can help it, but is shrewd and cautious, and rarely commits himself rashly to anything.  Friendly to reforms, he is too timid to be a reformer, but shines as a genial comrade and a faithful man.” [iv]