How many military personnel have faced a court martial over the years? While I don't know the answer, I do find it interesting that my 4g-grandpa was under the command of a soldier who lived it, not once, but twice.
In searching for more information on the duties of one of my American Revolution patriot grandpas, I stumbled across an interesting story on his commander.
Just to set the scene, let's go back to the year 1779 and the Second Pennsylvania Regiment. My 4g-grandpa was a private in this company during the Revolution and is mentioned as being present at Valley Forge.
As history has taught us, while there were no battles at Valley Forge, the winter of 1777-78 was a time of hardship for the American patriots. My grandpa is just one of the many who was sick (according to the muster rolls) during his stay there. Much has been written on Valley Forge, and it is fascinating to read the stories.
The Captain of my grandpa's regiment was one Jacob ASHMEAD(1742-1814) who was from Germantown, PA. When he assumed command of the 2nd PA Regiment, he was charged with recruiting soldiers and forming a light infantry company.
During the attack on Stoney Point, the men of the Light Infantry Brigade were to maintain silence. ASHMEAD apparently felt his adrenaline go high, and shouted. For this he faced a court martial and was found guilty of disobeying an order. One of the other leaders on the fateful night at Stoney Point was "Mad" Wayne ANTHONY, who received a medal for the victory of that battle.
ASHMEAD was also later arrested and faced a second court martial for disobeying an order, of which he was acquitted. Interesting in itself as both charges originated with the same man.
In reading the entry which was in the Orderly Book, I find it interesting to note that another officer tried to "excite" the soldiers under ASHMEAD's command and have them not obey the orders. I wonder what reaction my grandpa had. Did he fall in to the trap set by the other officer or did he believe in ASHMEAD and his patriotic zeal for America? While I don't know the answer, and never will, I do know that my grandpa fought under his command. Can I imagine the scene? Sure.
Part of being a family history seeker is to learn all there is about the time and place where ancestors lived. Learning a bit more about my grandpa's commander makes my grandpa come more alive as I imagine his struggles with wondering which was the right course to take with the Continental Army's commanders. Did he stand up and shout support for his commander? I like to think so.
Learn more about Captain Jacob ASHMEAD and his involvement in the Continental Army at the NWTA, the Northwest Territory Alliance. There is a wonderful 2008 article in the NWTA Courier which provides the details of the court martials.
Also of interest is that there is a definite tie between an ASHMEAD family of Germantown from that era and Dr. Benjamin RUSH, who signed the Declaration of Independence. I haven't taken the time to determine how Jacob ties in to Benjamin.
For more reading on Jacob ASHMEAD, go to the Historical Society of PA and look at their collections.
Ahh, genealogy. Those early believers in freedom just make me warm and fuzzy all over.
Sources:
FindaGrave http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=20768108
Moran, Donald, The Storming of Stony Point, Sons of Liberty Chapter, NSSAR, http://www.revolutionarywararchives.org/stonypoint.html
VandePolder, Brian, Captain Jacob Ashmead has a Very Bad Year 1779, NWTA Courier, Sept/Oct 2008, pg 6-7
PA Archives
Orderly Book of Captain Robert Gamble, 1779 http://www.newrivernotes.com/va/gamble1.htm
©2012 AS Eldredge
Ahhh, genealogy. A glimpse of the past shows of what I am made.....
Showing posts with label infantry. Show all posts
Showing posts with label infantry. Show all posts
Monday, May 07, 2012
Thursday, May 05, 2011
Treasure Chest Thursday: Happy 1919 Homecoming for 66 Wounded Heroes
An old photograph taken in 1919 has long been in my possession. This picture says so much and for a long time, it told me so little. One can easily identify a wounded soldier visiting with a woman wearing summer colors. The background appears to be an institution, perhaps a hospital. He has his arm casually leaning on the back of the bench.
Just today, more clues have surfaced and I can start to add more pieces to my family puzzle and to the photograph.
CE Simmons enlisted in the draft for World War I June 1917. He was called to duty and served in Co. C of the 11th Infantry. This unit was shipped overseas in June 1918 to France and participated in 43 days of combat with 348 wounded. Charlie was one of the wounded and was returned to the US.
A Pittsburgh Press article dated February 17, 1919, tells us he, along with 65 other wounded soldiers, arrived at the US General Hospital #24 in Parkview Station. The article says the wounded arrived with the "air of schoolboys on the last day of school" and "were joyful their lives had been spared."
No doubt, they were.
The picture, which I had guessed was taken at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh actually is now confirmed to have been taken at US General Hospital #24. General Hospital #24 was located in Parkview Station on the north bank of the Allegheny River in the old North Side Home and Allegheny Workhouse about 9 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. The old abandoned buildings were rented to the government at a nominal fee and the government spent $205,000 in the reconstruction of the buildings. It opened in October 1918 with 200 beds. During its tenure before closing in July 1, 1919, the hospital's maximum bed size was 856.
By comparing my photo with the photo of the hospital in the Office of Medical History by the US Army Medical Department, the background matches. The lack of coats and the summer color dress give us the impression the weather was nice. Adding the history of the General Hospital #24 to the newspaper article, we can now make an educated guess that the photograph was taken between April and June 1919. Was this when the spark sprung between the young people? Was this when they fell in love?
Their marriage took place in May 1920, so there was adequate time for the relationship to fully develop.
I don't know how long he was in the hospital after part of his leg had been removed, but I do know he returned to the business he and his father had started back in 1915. In 1920, they paid off the loans for the business and cousins had told me he had lived above the store before marrying his fair bride.
Ahh, genealogy. Sparking on the ole Parkview bench. Kind of romantic, don't you think?
Sources:
Domestic United State Military Facilities of the First World War 1917-1919, Robert Swanson, pg 201
http://books.google.com/books?id=sSopqvCeAXQC&pg=PA201&lpg=PA201&dq=parkview+station+pittsburgh+army+hospital&source=bl&ots=rP84MiLo-v&sig=SkjClHtwLidvdsd0wQ0SHt-dfe0&hl=en&ei=38rCTfihIZTBtgeb3bClBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CCwQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=parkview%20station%20pittsburgh%20army%20hospital&f=false
http://history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/wwi/MilitaryHospitalsintheUS/chapter27figure183.jpg
©2011 AS Eldredge
Just today, more clues have surfaced and I can start to add more pieces to my family puzzle and to the photograph.
CE Simmons enlisted in the draft for World War I June 1917. He was called to duty and served in Co. C of the 11th Infantry. This unit was shipped overseas in June 1918 to France and participated in 43 days of combat with 348 wounded. Charlie was one of the wounded and was returned to the US.
A Pittsburgh Press article dated February 17, 1919, tells us he, along with 65 other wounded soldiers, arrived at the US General Hospital #24 in Parkview Station. The article says the wounded arrived with the "air of schoolboys on the last day of school" and "were joyful their lives had been spared."
No doubt, they were.
The picture, which I had guessed was taken at Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh actually is now confirmed to have been taken at US General Hospital #24. General Hospital #24 was located in Parkview Station on the north bank of the Allegheny River in the old North Side Home and Allegheny Workhouse about 9 miles northeast of Pittsburgh. The old abandoned buildings were rented to the government at a nominal fee and the government spent $205,000 in the reconstruction of the buildings. It opened in October 1918 with 200 beds. During its tenure before closing in July 1, 1919, the hospital's maximum bed size was 856.
By comparing my photo with the photo of the hospital in the Office of Medical History by the US Army Medical Department, the background matches. The lack of coats and the summer color dress give us the impression the weather was nice. Adding the history of the General Hospital #24 to the newspaper article, we can now make an educated guess that the photograph was taken between April and June 1919. Was this when the spark sprung between the young people? Was this when they fell in love?
Their marriage took place in May 1920, so there was adequate time for the relationship to fully develop.
I don't know how long he was in the hospital after part of his leg had been removed, but I do know he returned to the business he and his father had started back in 1915. In 1920, they paid off the loans for the business and cousins had told me he had lived above the store before marrying his fair bride.
Ahh, genealogy. Sparking on the ole Parkview bench. Kind of romantic, don't you think?
Sources:
Domestic United State Military Facilities of the First World War 1917-1919, Robert Swanson, pg 201
http://books.google.com/books?id=sSopqvCeAXQC&pg=PA201&lpg=PA201&dq=parkview+station+pittsburgh+army+hospital&source=bl&ots=rP84MiLo-v&sig=SkjClHtwLidvdsd0wQ0SHt-dfe0&hl=en&ei=38rCTfihIZTBtgeb3bClBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CCwQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=parkview%20station%20pittsburgh%20army%20hospital&f=false
http://history.amedd.army.mil/booksdocs/wwi/MilitaryHospitalsintheUS/chapter27figure183.jpg
©2011 AS Eldredge
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
NARA Provides Life to the Dead
Last month, I finally got around to ordering the pension file for one of my Civil War gramps. It seems like I would have done this years ago since I am so deep into learning of the past and my family's role in the history of our land. Well, don't judge me quite so fast on this one.
It wasn't until this year that I stumbled on the little fact that 2g granddpa George was even in the Civil War. He was born in 1834 in Pennsylvania, and was married with a growing family by 1860. For whatever reason, it just didn't occur to me that he would have been in the Civil War. I guess I thought he was too old and settled to go off and fight for the Union.
Guess I was wrong! I really hadn't been looking for him lately as I thought I had found most of what I could locate. On a whim, I decided to go back and check one of the paid sites just to see if there was anything new on several members of the family. While checking on Uncle Addison and a veteran census, I saw the name George W CALDWELL blaring off the page. What?
So, I let my fingers do some walking and found where he had been in a Home for Veterans in Dayton, Ohio. Ohio?
I just had to contact NARA and see what they had. That's a big jump for me as they had nothing on my grandfather from World War I.
Just this week, the small envelope arrived with a CD. In to the computer it went. For the next several days I poured over each and every word. Then, I had to go and research more.
Grandpa George was a volunteer in the PA 102nd Infantry Co. E. Of added interest was the fact his brother-in-law, Ben F HUNNEWELL, was also in the same unit. Anyway, he was down at Fair Oaks when he was discharged with a surgeon's certificate.
First question--- what was Fair Oaks? The Battle of Fair Oaks took place May 31 and June 1, 1862, in Henrico Co, VA. It seems like both sides claimed victory for that battle although they both sustained fairly equal casualties. General Johnston was wounded in this battle. General McClellan is reported to have written to his wife that he was getting tired of all death and suffering of the troops on the battlefield.
Second question-- Was Grandpa George wounded in the battle? Alas, the answer to this one is no. He was moving some heavy rations, and fell on a box which caused some type of internal damage to his kidney. He was in the hospital for three weeks, and then he was discharged.
Grandpa George returned home where he spent the next 40 years or so disabled. He apparently suffered a great deal from that fall and lost the majority of his hearing during the war.
The best part of the pension papers came with the date of his marriage to his lovely bride, Mary Jane HUNNEWELL. Yes! She has always been somewhat of a mystery to me. I knew her name. Her birthdate came from a Bible in the HUNNEWELL family. Her death date is unknown. She disappears after the 1870 census. I suspect she died after the birth of a child. The big confusion with her is I have a letter from my great grandmother in which she writes to the daughter of George and Mary Jane and mentions she had just seen "your" mama. The letter is from the 1890s. Hmmm......
But wait---- there's more to be found in the pension. Grandpa George states that they had 5 children. What? I only knew of 4. More life to be found! And Grandpa George tells where a son of his has moved! And--- all of his children married.
Previously, I only knew of two of the children marrying. So, life continues in the family!
The other "aha" moment in the pension file is the naming of the preacher who married him. By coincidence, it is the same name as the man who his half sister married. Gee, I didn't know he was a preacher. I only knew he was older and died before they had any kids. The lovely widow goes on to marry again- this time a widower who lived across the street from other family members.
Ahh, genealogy. Sometimes the dead can come to life when we explore deeply enough into their lives.
©2010 AS Eldredge
It wasn't until this year that I stumbled on the little fact that 2g granddpa George was even in the Civil War. He was born in 1834 in Pennsylvania, and was married with a growing family by 1860. For whatever reason, it just didn't occur to me that he would have been in the Civil War. I guess I thought he was too old and settled to go off and fight for the Union.
Guess I was wrong! I really hadn't been looking for him lately as I thought I had found most of what I could locate. On a whim, I decided to go back and check one of the paid sites just to see if there was anything new on several members of the family. While checking on Uncle Addison and a veteran census, I saw the name George W CALDWELL blaring off the page. What?
So, I let my fingers do some walking and found where he had been in a Home for Veterans in Dayton, Ohio. Ohio?
I just had to contact NARA and see what they had. That's a big jump for me as they had nothing on my grandfather from World War I.
Just this week, the small envelope arrived with a CD. In to the computer it went. For the next several days I poured over each and every word. Then, I had to go and research more.
Grandpa George was a volunteer in the PA 102nd Infantry Co. E. Of added interest was the fact his brother-in-law, Ben F HUNNEWELL, was also in the same unit. Anyway, he was down at Fair Oaks when he was discharged with a surgeon's certificate.
First question--- what was Fair Oaks? The Battle of Fair Oaks took place May 31 and June 1, 1862, in Henrico Co, VA. It seems like both sides claimed victory for that battle although they both sustained fairly equal casualties. General Johnston was wounded in this battle. General McClellan is reported to have written to his wife that he was getting tired of all death and suffering of the troops on the battlefield.
Second question-- Was Grandpa George wounded in the battle? Alas, the answer to this one is no. He was moving some heavy rations, and fell on a box which caused some type of internal damage to his kidney. He was in the hospital for three weeks, and then he was discharged.
Grandpa George returned home where he spent the next 40 years or so disabled. He apparently suffered a great deal from that fall and lost the majority of his hearing during the war.
The best part of the pension papers came with the date of his marriage to his lovely bride, Mary Jane HUNNEWELL. Yes! She has always been somewhat of a mystery to me. I knew her name. Her birthdate came from a Bible in the HUNNEWELL family. Her death date is unknown. She disappears after the 1870 census. I suspect she died after the birth of a child. The big confusion with her is I have a letter from my great grandmother in which she writes to the daughter of George and Mary Jane and mentions she had just seen "your" mama. The letter is from the 1890s. Hmmm......
But wait---- there's more to be found in the pension. Grandpa George states that they had 5 children. What? I only knew of 4. More life to be found! And Grandpa George tells where a son of his has moved! And--- all of his children married.
Previously, I only knew of two of the children marrying. So, life continues in the family!
The other "aha" moment in the pension file is the naming of the preacher who married him. By coincidence, it is the same name as the man who his half sister married. Gee, I didn't know he was a preacher. I only knew he was older and died before they had any kids. The lovely widow goes on to marry again- this time a widower who lived across the street from other family members.
Ahh, genealogy. Sometimes the dead can come to life when we explore deeply enough into their lives.
©2010 AS Eldredge
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