Alexander Oswald Brodie Alexander Oswald Brodie ( November 13 , 1849 – May 10 , 1918 ) was an American military officer and engineer . Earning his initial reputation during the Indian wars , he came to prominence for his service with the Rough Riders during the Spanish – American War . His friendship with Theodore Roosevelt then lead to Brodie being appointed Governor of Arizona Territory from 1902 to 1905 . Background . Brodie was born to Joseph and Margaret ( Brown ) Brodie near Edwards , New York , in late 1849 , the second of four children . By age 13 he was a student in a boarding school in Canton , New York operated by St . Lawrence University . Brodie received an appointment to the United States Military Academy in 1866 and upon graduation was commissioned a Second Lieutenant in the First Cavalry on June 15 , 1870 . As a newly commissioned officer , Brodie was assigned to Camp Apache where he participated in General George Crook ' s campaign in Arizona Territory . During this assignment there were several events of note . On June 21 , 1871 , Brodie and a group of five troopers were ambushed by a numerically superior band of Apaches . The young lieutenant managed his groups ammunition supply over the course of an eight hour fight , and returned safely to camp after nightfall . As result of his efforts that day , Brodie received a personal commendation from the Secretary of War . During another incident he and one other soldier pursued and captured a band of Apache that had escaped from the San Carlos Apache Indian Reservation . After finding the group , the band ' s leader threatened to kill Brodie . Brodie responding by shooting the chief . After seeing this exchange the rest of the band returned peacefully to the reservation . In August 1874 , he was assigned to Fort Walla Walla , Washington where he participated in the campaign against Chief Joseph and his band of Nez Perce . Following this , Brodie served at Benicia Arsenal , California and Fort Colville , Washington before being promoted to First Lieutenant on May 25 , 1876 . Around the time of his promotion , Brodie married Kate Reynolds of Walla Walla , Washington . His wife and newborn daughter died during childbirth in August or September 1877 , and Brodie resigned his commission on September 30 , 1877 . After leaving the military , Brodie worked as a cattleman in Kansas and miner in Dakota Territory before enlisting in the U . S . Cavalry at Jefferson Barracks , Missouri in August 1883 . His enlistment returned him to Arizona Territory where he was discharged in February 1884 . Remaining in the territory , Brodie established a permanent residence in Prescott while working around the territory as a civil and mining engineer . From 1887 till 1890 he worked as superintendent and chief engineer of the Walnut Grove Dam on the Hassayampa River north of Wickenburg . As the dam was nearing completion , in February 1890 , a flood caused the dam to collapse , causing 70 deaths and millions of dollars in damage . Brodie himself was held innocent of wrongdoing in the failure as he had publicly called for higher construction standards on the project . In 1891 , Brodie was appointed commander of the Arizona Territorial National Guard by Governor John N . Irwin , a position he held till May 1892 . On December 15 , 1892 , Brodie married Mary Louise Hanlon . The second Mrs . Brodie was a survivor of the Walnut Grove Dam failure who had lost her entire family during the flooding . The couple had two sons with the first dying in 1896 and the second being born in 1898 . Politically , Brodie served as Yavapai County recorder from 1893 till 1895 . and was the Republican nominee for Territorial delegate in 1898 when he returned to the territory as a war hero . Spanish - American War . On March 3 , 1898 , with the outbreak of war between Spain and the United States appearing likely , Brodie sent telegraphs to President William McKinley and Governor Myron H . McCord seeking permission to raise a volunteer regiment of cavalry . With the start of the Spanish – American War the Rough Riders were formed and Arizona Territory allocated a quota of 170 men . Brodie was appointed as Senior Regimental Officer at the rank of major on April 25 , 1898 . Following training in San Antonio , Texas , Brodie ' s unit was deployed to Cuba . On June 24 , 1898 , during the Battle of Las Guasimas , he was wounded by a bullet in his right wrist . Initially refusing to leave the battle , Major Brodie was eventually forced from the field by pain and blood loss . He was evacuated from Cuba and treated in the hospital at Fort Wadsworth , New York . After recovering from his wound , Brodie returned to the Rough Riders on August 11 , 1898 and being promoted to Lieutenant colonel succeeded Theodore Roosevelt as unit commander . Brodie himself mustered out on September 15 , 1898 and returned to Arizona Territory to work as a mining engineer . Governorship . Following the resignation of Oakes Murphy as Governor of Arizona Territory , Brodie was nominated for the position and sworn into office on July 1 , 1902 . His first several months were spent appointing new officials and organizing his administration . An action of note prior to the convening of the 22nd Arizona Territorial Legislature was the pardon of Pearl Hart on moral grounds . At the time , the outlaw was the only female at the Yuma Territorial Prison and her presence was causing disruptions as guards and other prisoners vied for her attentions . The December 1902 pardon was made on the condition that Hart leave the territory , a condition she quickly fulfilled . Another display of the new Governor ' s ethical stance was his refusal to use a US $ 750 discretionary fund which was available for his personal use . Brodie considered the legislative appropriation which created the fund illegal as it had no oversight provisions to prevent misuse . With the start of the 22nd Legislature in January 1903 , Brodie requested several changes to the territorial tax code . The first change he asked for was increasing the tax rates for mining operations which the Governor felt were not paying a fair share in comparison to other parts of the territorial economy . He also proposed an exemption from taxation of 10 years for new railroads and 9 years for hydroelectric dam s to encourage additional transportation and electrical generation capabilities within the territory . Other changes to mining operations were the establishment of an eight - hour day for mine workers , with railroad workers receiving a limit of 16 consecutive hours of work , and outlawing the practice of paying miners in company scrip redeemable only at the company store . Brodie also requested the pay for the governor ' s secretary be increased from US $ 125 to US $ 150 / year . Other legislation coming from the session were laws requiring the licensing of dentists and physicians , requiring schools to fly the United States flag during hours the school was in session , expanding the facilities of the territorial insane asylum , and authorizing school districts with 1 , 000 or more residents to hire music and art instructors . Brodie also took unpopular stances on two of the session ' s bills . The first stance was opposition to a bill granting women the right to vote . Brodie , who personally supported women ' s suffrage , opposed this bill on the basis that it was not permitted under the limitations of the Arizona Organic Act . The second unpopular stance was endorsing a bill supporting joint statehood with New Mexico . Between legislative sessions , Brodie was responsible for expanding the size of the Arizona Rangers from fourteen to twenty - six men . This was followed by him selecting the site for Roosevelt Dam . At the beginning of the 1905 legislative session , the Governor announced the results of a two year study on possible joint statehood with New Mexico , finding the residents of Arizona strongly opposed such an action , and appealed to the legislature to oppose such a merger . After hearing the appeal the legislature memorandized the U . S . Congress expressing their opposition to joint statehood . Brodie ' s address to the session repeated his request to the previous session for tax reform . He also requested laws to deal with the " growing evil of wife desertion " and for creation of a sanatorium to treat the growing numbers of people suffering from tuberculosis migrating to the territory . Brodie announced his resignation as governor on February 14 , 1905 . As a token of their esteem the Democratically controlled legislature presented the Republican governor a ceremonial saber . After office . Following his resignation as Governor , Brodie returned to the U . S . Army at the rank of Major . After serving briefly in the War Department ' s record and pension office , he was assigned to the Philippines serving on a board overseeing the Friar lands dispute . In 1907 he was made adjutant general of the Department of the Dakotas and in 1911 was transferred to the Department of California to perform the same job . Bordie was promoted to colonel in 1912 and retired from the military in 1913 . Brodie moved to Haddonfield , New Jersey , where he settled at Greenfield Hall . Brodie died on May 10 , 1918 , and was buried in Arlington National Cemetery .