This sword was received by General Andrew A. Humphreys when he was a member of the Army Corps of Topographical Engineers starting in 1838 and is part of an archive of items from members of the Humphreys family that have never before been offered for sale. Per "Ames Sword Company, 1829-1935" on page 51, only thirty-seven officers were in the Topographical Engineers in 1839 when these swords were introduced indicating very few of these swords would have been made. The sword measures 39 inches overall with a 34 inch quill-back blade featuring fine etched martial and oak leaf patterns including a likeness of Tecumseh, "N.P. Ames/Cutler/Springfield" on the right, and "United States Corps of/Topographical Engineers on the left. The hilt is gilded brass with border molding lines, a triple branched guard, star designs on the quillion, a wire wrapped sharkskin grip, and a later added long brass ferrule with oak leaf decoration and "CBM" at the base of the grip and guard. The iron scabbard has a brass Columbian shield at the top with "T.E." (Topographical Engineers) in Gothic letters at the top and a brass shield on the obverse with "N.P. AMES/CUTLER/SPRINGFIELD." Andrew Atkinson Humphreys (1810-1883) was born in Philadelphia. His father and paternal grandfather were both shipbuilders for the U.S. Navy. His grandfather designed the Navy's first six frigates when the Navy was recreated in the 1790s, including the famed U.S.S. Constitution, and is considered the "father of the U.S. Navy." A letter to him from famed silversmith and Revolutionary War hero Paul Revere is in a following lot. His father designed the U.S.S. Pennsylvania, the largest and most powerful U.S. Navy sailing ship ever built. Humphreys' father secured him a place at West Point where he graduated in the class of 1831. Though not a shipbuilder, he shared his father's and grandfather's gift for engineering. In the 2nd Seminole War, he briefly served in the 2nd Artillery Regiment in the Second Seminole War but resigned after he became severely ill with what has been presumed to have been yellow fever. He then briefly worked as a civil engineer under Major Hartman Bache before rejoining the Army as a member of the newly created Army Corps of Topographical Engineers as a first lieutenant on July 7, 1838. Shortly after this, he would have received this sword. He worked on surveys, harbor improvements, bridge building, and as an assistant in the Bureau of Topographical Engineers in Washington. In 1843, he helped prepare the designs for the expansion of the nation’s capital. In 1844, he was assistant in charge of the Coast Survey office where he remained until 1849. Beginning in 1850, he began a decade long study of the Mississippi River and its delta which ultimately resulted in "Report Upon the Physics and Hydraulics of the Mississippi River" in 1861 which he published with his assistant and later aide-de-camp in the Civil War, Henry L. Abbot. He also worked closely with Secretary of War Jefferson Davis who assigned him to lead the Pacific Railway Surveys of the 1850s which consisted of a massive expedition of engineers, scientists, and soldiers and was charged with finding the best route for the Transcontinental Railroad. The report from that endeavor totaled some thirteen volumes. These two massive undertakings established him as one of the nation's top scientists and gained him international recognition and membership in the American Philosophical Society. Despite not being a Republican and his ties to the Confederacy via his well-known friendship with Jefferson Davis and a brother in the Confederate Navy, Humphreys remained with the Union Army and served in various roles including as chief of staff to General Meade and commander of multiple units including the 2nd Division in the III Corps and the II Corps. In 1866, he held the rank of brigadier general and was appointed chief of the Army Corps of Engineers for thirteen years during which he established the Army's engineering school at Willets Point, New York, and again oversaw surveys of the West as well as various other improvements. He was also on the Washington Monument Commission, the Lighthouse Board, and the commission responsible for exploring options for what ultimately became the famous Panama Canal. He retired in 1879 with the permanent rank of brigadier general and subsequently wrote histories of the campaigns in Virginia. He died in the nation's capital at the age of 73 after having served his country for over five decades. Included is a signed affidavit from the consignor explaining how this item was passed down through the Humphreys family.