Maj. James W. Ripley became superintendent of the Springfield Armory in 1841 and soon initiated an ambitious building program. The first structure to be completed was the Commanding Officer’s Quarters. He had demolished an earlier Commanding Officer‘s House on the site where the new Main Arsenal was to be built. To replace it, he constructed a fine new CO.’s residence, begun in 1845 and completed in 1847. There were many who opposed Ripley’s reforms of the Armory and he faced much controversy during his tenure. Some considered his new residence to be too extravagant. A series of investigations led to a military court of inquiry in which a major complaint was that he was wasting government funds, but Ripley was eventually exonerated. The house is now used as administrative offices for the Springfield Armory National Historic Site.