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Gratz During the Civil War – Cemeteries (Part 4)
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on February 11, 2012
Click on picture to enlarge.
Gratz Union Cemetery (Simeon’s). This is part 4 of the 33rd post on Gratz During the Civil War. In the days of the Civil War, three separate burial areas were designated – one for the Evangelical Church, one for the German Reformed Church, and one for the Lutheran Church. The church located here was a “Union” church and housed the Lutheran and German Reformed congregations. The Samuel’s Evangelical Church was located on Market Street and was the subject of a previous post in this “Walking Tour Series.” Each part will note the Civil War burials in the current sections of the Gratz Union Cemetery, without reference to their religious affiliation. In some cases, the religious distinctions were blurred and congregants were not necessarily buried in the appropriate section of their church membership.
A key was provided to identify who was buried in each numbered grave:
Not all the graves noted by the veterans were from the Civil War period and not all the Civil War graves in the cemetery are noted on the map. The omissions may be due to the family not wishing military association for their loved one or the veteran himself may have hidden the fact that he was a veteran. There were various reasons why this was done including a religious opposition to war or because the person was a deserter.
For the purpose of this cemetery guide, only the graves that were noted by the veterans’ organization will be included at this time. Additional names can be added later when military service can be confirmed.
Starting at the southernmost section of the cemetery, and working back from the road, the current section and row number is given followed by the name of the veteran and some basic information. For some of the veterans, a prior post will give more information, but for many, information is still being sought including pictures, copies of the military and pension records, and genealogies.
SECTION ONE – NORTH – continuing toward the street….
40. David Taylor (1830-1899) – Row 11
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41. Jeremiah Fisher (1823-1884) – Row 10
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42. Jacob Ritzman (1794-1857) – Not Civil War
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43. Leonard Reedy (1776-1837) not Civil War. Sons were veterans.
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44. Error in Marking of Graves
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SECTION TWO – NORTH
45. Charles Shade – World War I
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46. Thomas Umholtz – World War I
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47. Thomas Kissinger – World War I
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48. Henry Huntzinger – World War I
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49. Banawell Hand (1843-1907) – Row 19
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50. Josiah Umholtz (1845-1894) – Row 14
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The remaining numbers are marked “American Legion” indicating World War I service.
This concludes the graves that were regularly honored by the veterans. As stated, previously, not all the Civil War veteran graves were noted on the map and they will be added as soon as they are confirmed.
Comments are invited by readers.
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