I have a genealogical soft spot in my heart for veterans. In my research, as I started finding more and more veterans in various branches of my tree. I began trying to keep track of them all. Sometimes this meant finding out as much as I could about their service. In doing so, I most often found that one war or another was involved.
I have a keen interest specifically in the American Civil War, so when I found my first ancestor who served, I dove right in. I used all of the typical records to home in on his Regiment, then sent away for his pension records, military service records and Carded Medical records. While waiting for those to come, I found that the Original Records, or O.R. as they are often called, were online. These are very interesting and include reports that commanding officers had to write say, after a battle. I also read many books that described, in general, a soldier's experience and books about the specific battles that my ancestor fought in. Once I had all of the information that I could find, I began writing his story. I was able to make it less dry than just dates and places. My 3rd great grandfather, John B. Amos, enlisted as a Private into the 55th Pa Infantry and was promoted up to Lieutenant by the end of the war. He served his 3 years and reenlisted. During this time, he was in the deep south on the South Carolina coast and then into Virginia, where most of the fighting was happening. He was in a few better known battles and was wounded twice. His second wound was received at Cold Harbor in the infamous charge on June 3, 1864 and may very well have been one of the wounded who had to wait 4 days to be retrieved from the battlefield. He experienced being in an Army General Hospital and, in a brush with the Secret Service, was falsely accused of consorting with counterfeiters and in custody for a time. His regiment was at Appomattox for the surrender, but he missed it because he was still recovering from his wounds. He was able to rejoin his regiment in time to muster out with them in 1865. After the war, he doggedly applied over and over to receive a veteran's pension for his wounds and received it each time. Through all of this conflict, he was able to raise 10 of his 12 children to adulthood and was known to be an "honest, kind hearted man and had many friends".
Another Civil War ancestor belongs to my husband. His 2nd great grandfather, William Harvey Gray, enlisted several times. First, into a 3 month regiment just 4 days after Fort Sumpter was fired upon. His 2nd enlistment was into the 4th PA Reserves, this time for 3 years. The 4th participated in various battles and then fought for 2 days at Antietam in 1862. After spending almost two years of fighting in eastern Virginia, the 4th was transferred to West Virginia. In the summer of 1864, William reenlisted and his company was reorganized and attached to the 54th Pa Volunteer Infantry. In mid-October of 1864, William's luck ran out. After avoiding being wounded throughout his service, he was captured in a surprise attack at Cedar Creek. Through his pension records, he is able to tell how the prisoners were held in a tobacco warehouse in Richmond before being sent to the Salisbury Prison camp in North Carolina. He spent most of the winter there without shelter and sparse food. Fortunately, William was exchanged through a parole agreement in Feb 1865 and was sent to Camp Parole in Annapolis, MD. While there, William was given a 30 day furlough and headed for home. He made it to within 80 miles of home in northeast PA and was so ill from being emaciated and suffering with typhoid that he had to stop his journey to receive medical care. He was waylaid for 6 or 7 weeks. He did recovered enough to continue home and then rejoined his regiment in time to muster out in May 1865. William also pursued his veteran's pension and was approved. William married and had 3 sons.
Some soldiers just couldn't handle the conflict of war. The 17 year old ancestor of a friend of mine, enlisted in Union Army in 1864 and just 3 short months later deserted.
Others make the military their life. My maternal grandmother's family is privileged to have a recipient of the Medal of Honor as a 1st cousin 2 times removed to my grandmother. Brig Gen Abraham Kerns Arnold was born in 1837in Bedford, Pa and became a career Army cavalry officer after graduating from West Point in 1859. He was assigned to a post in the Western Plains until the Civil War. Then while he was in command of the 5th Cavalry as a Captain during the Civil War, he performed the action that would later be the reason for the Medal of Honor to be awarded to him. On May 7,1864, at the Battle of Todds Tavern in Virginia, Abraham led "a gallant charge against a superior force of the enemy, extricated his command from a perilous position in which it had been ordered". After the war, he was posted back to the Western Plains and later in Cuba for the Spanish American War. He retired in 1901 and passed a few months later.
One soldier did not survive his conflict. My Dad's cousin, James W Heacock, was a paratrooper with the 502nd Parachute Infantry Regiment. He was among the men who parachuted into France for D-Day. He was wounded that same day and died a week later at age 19.
James W Heacock
Conflicts often affect a soldier in negative ways. My father in law, Gary Sinton, was a nosegunner in a B24 in the Pacific during WW2. He enlisted in the Army Air Corps in 1944 and served until the war was over. He would never talk about his experiences other than to mention one date in particular, and only the date and place name. July 28, 1945, the Battle at Kure Bay. After some research into the battle, I found that Gary's squadron participated in the air offensive from Okinawa to bomb the Japanese mainland. The Air Medal was awarded to him and his squadron for this action.
These are just a few of the stories of conflict in our family's history. I just want to thank them for their sacrifices and their service.
Please give credit and post a link to my blog if you intend to use any of the information written here. My blog posts are © Ann M Sinton 2022. All rights reserved.
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