1. Horace Capron was an American businessman and agriculturalist, a founder of Laurel, Maryland, a Union officer in the American Civil War, the United States secretary of agriculture under US presidents Andrew Johnson and Ulysses S Grant, and an advisor to Japan's Hokkaido Development Commission.
Horace Capron was born in Attleboro, Massachusetts, the son of Seth Capron and his wife Eunice Mann Capron.
Horace Capron's sister was Louisa Thiers, who in 1925 became the first verified person to reach age 111.
Horace Capron was an officer in the Maryland Militia in the 1830s.
In 1834, Horace Capron married Louisa Victoria Snowden, whose late father Nicholas had owned Montpelier Mansion.
Horace Capron was involved in the mechanization of cotton mills beginning in 1835, having worked in mills from boyhood in Massachusetts and New York.
Horace Capron spent several months in Texas, and then moved to a farm near Hebron, Illinois where his mother Eunice and sister Louisa Thiers had settled and were taking care of his children.
Horace Capron was the oldest cavalry officer in the Union Army.
Horace Capron was appointed lieutenant colonel of the 14th Illinois Cavalry on December 3,1862, and promoted to colonel of the regiment on February 6,1863.
Later, Horace Capron commanded the 2nd Brigade, 2nd Division, XXIII Corps; 1st Brigade, Cavalry, XXIII Corps; Dismounted Brigade, Cavalry Division, XXIII Corps; Cavalry Division, XXIII Corps; 3rd Brigade, Cavalry, XXIII Corps; 5th Division, XXIII Corps; and 1st Brigade, 6th Division, Cavalry Corps, Military Division of the Mississippi.
Horace Capron's brigade was driven off a hill on the left flank by Confederate infantry under James Longstreet.
Horace Capron's brigade consisted of the 14th Illinois, 5th Indiana, and 9th Ohio Cavalry Regiments and the 65th Indiana Mounted Infantry.
Horace Capron reported to John Schofield that the Confederates were "crossing in force".
Horace Capron's brigade was involved in a scuffle with Sul Ross' Confederate brigade that afternoon in the lead up to the Battle of Spring Hill.
Horace Capron was asked by Kuroda Kiyotaka, a vice-chairman of the Hokkaido Development Commission visiting the United States, to be a special advisor to the commission in Hokkaido, Japan.
Horace Capron needed the money, as his son Osmond had been blinded in a hotel fire, and now depended on Horace Capron for support.
Horace Capron spent four years in Hokkaido, suggesting numerous ways that the frontier island could be developed.
Horace Capron introduced large-scale farming with American methods and farming implements, imported seeds for western fruits, vegetables and crops, and introduced livestock, including his favorite Devon and Durham cattle.
Horace Capron established experimental farms, had the land surveyed for mineral deposits and farming opportunities, and recommended water, mill, and road improvements.
Horace Capron contributed to the urban planning for Sapporo city with an American-style grid plan with streets at right-angles to form city blocks.
Horace Capron admired the Ainu of Hokkaido, whom he compared favorably to his experiences with Native Americans.
In 1884, nine years after he departed Japan, Horace Capron was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun for his services in transforming Hokkaido.
Horace Capron was engaged in writing his memoirs during this period.
Horace Capron attended the dedication of the Washington Monument on February 21,1885.
Horace Capron is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery in Georgetown, Washington, DC.