Early Life and Military Career
Hazen was born in West Hartford, Vermont, but moved to Ohio at the age of three. He spent his boyhood in the town of Hiram and formed a close personal friendship with future President James A. Garfield. He graduated from the United States Military Academy, in 1855, and was commissioned a second lieutenant in the 4th U.S. Infantry. Before the Civil War, he served primarily in the Pacific Northwest and Texas, where he was wounded severely on November 3, 1859, during a fight with the Comanches along the Llano River. He was absent on sick leave until 1861.
Read more about this topic: William Babcock Hazen
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