Wm. J. Brady signed Document dated 1847 - Autographs

Mortgage document signed by Wm. J. Brady, Mayor of New York City. Big blue seal. Some paper loss at fold.

William J. Brady (August 16, 1829 – April 1, 1878) was an Irish-born American soldier, politician, and corrupt law enforcement officer who served as the sheriff of Lincoln County during the Lincoln County Wars in New Mexico, United States. He was murdered in an ambush, aged 48, by the Lincoln County Regulators and Billy the Kid. 

Soon after his arrival in New York in July 1851, Brady enlisted in the U.S. Army. Military records reveal Brady to have been five feet eight inches tall, with brown hair, blue eyes, and a fair complexion. He gave his occupation as a farmer from Cavan, Ireland. Brady was assigned to Company F, First Regiment Mounted Rifles, under the overall command of Colonel William Wing Loring. He spent the next five years stationed at Fort McIntosh, near San Antonio, Texas, where he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. Upon his reenlistment in 1856, Brady's commanding officer, Captain Andrew Porter, praised him as, "A faithful and excellent soldier and honest and sober man." Sgt. Brady was transferred to Fort Craig, New Mexico, where he served in combat against both the Apache and the Navajo.

In 1859, Sgt. Brady was assigned to the garrison at Fort Union, which was vulnerable to attacks by the Comanche and Kiowa. Upon arrival there, however, Brady led several patrols that helped map the area, but did not encounter either tribe or experience combat.

In January 1861, as the outbreak of the American Civil War grew increasingly imminent, Colonel Andrew Porter, Sgt. Brady, and the majority of the Fort Union garrison were transferred to Fort Craig, in order to defend New Mexico Territory from invasion by Texas-based units of the Confederate Army.

Brady's term of enlistment expired and he was honorably discharged at Fort Craig on March 2, 1861. In Brady's file, Colonel Porter wrote, "Excellent: a brave man and an honest and gallant soldier. He has enjoyed this character during two enlistments in my company." Read more at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_J._Brady

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