Chaves, J. Francisco (José Francisco), 1833-1904

José Francisco Chaves (June 27, 1833 – November 26, 1904) was a nineteenth-century military leader, politician, lawyer and rancher from the New Mexico Territory.

Born in Los Padillas, Nuévo Mexico (now Bernalillo County, New Mexico), he attended schools in St. Louis, Missouri and studied medicine at the New York College of Physicians and Surgeons before engaging in livestock raising in the New Mexico Territory. Chaves’s career in local politics began at the same time he became active in territorial military affairs. In 1859 and 1860, he took part in military expeditions against hostile Navajos, whose attacks on U.S. settlements resulted in approximately 300 deaths and $1.5 million in stolen property. Chaves had been elected to the Ninth Legislative Assembly (1859–1860) as a representative of Valencia County, but because of his military commitment, he served just one term. At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, Chaves served as a major in a volunteer regiment of the First New Mexico Infantry to defend the territory against a Confederate army led by General Henry Sibley. During the war, Chaves served at Fort Union, near Santa Fe, and at Fort Craig. He also fought in the Battle of Valverde and in skirmishes near Albuquerque. Chaves was promoted to a lieutenant colonel for his service.

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