There was a strong military bent in the family, as one brother, Franklin Townsend was Adjutant General of New York from 1869 to 1873, and another, Robert served in the U.S. Navy, both on the side of the Union.

[1] Frederick attended The Albany Academy and Bartlett Collegiate School at Poughkeepsie, New York and was graduated from Union College, which he entered at age 15, with an A.B.

[4] He was appointed by Governor John Alsop King in 1857 Adjutant general of the state of New York, leading Townsend to end his law practice.

[7] He was appointed by President Abraham Lincoln major in the 18th U.S. Infantry on August 19, 1861, and served under Generals Don Carlos Buell and William Rosecrans.

On April 30 he took part in the Siege of Corinth and in the Battle of Perryville, Kentucky on October 8, 1862, which has been called one of the bloodiest of the Civil War given the number of soldiers engaged.

[10] In 1867 after a leave of absence in Europe, he was made acting assistant inspector general of the department of California from which he inspected all the government posts in Arizona.

[5] Townsend was a member of a number of military organizations including: He was nominated by the 1880 Republican state convention to serve as a presidential elector, and he cast his vote for James A. Garfield on November 9, 1880.

Together they had children: Townsend died from lung disease at the Wayside Inn in Lake Luzerne, New York on September 11, 1897,[10][13] and is buried at the Albany Rural Cemetery.