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Henry Dietrich – 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry – Who Was He?
Posted By Norman Gasbarro on January 28, 2019
Henry Dietrich, or Henry Dietrick as he is sometimes found in the records, enrolled in the 10th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company F, as a Private on 26 April 1861, at Lykens, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania, He was mustered into service at Harrisburg and served the duration of his three-month enlistment and was honorably discharged on 31 July 1861. At the time of his enlistment he claimed to be 24 years old and stated that he resided in Millersburg, Dauphin County, and was working as a clerk.
As with many of the Lykens Valley young men who served in the 10th Pennsylvania Infantry, Henry Dietrich then re-enlisted in another regiment with a longer term of service. On 14 September 1861, at Lykens, he enrolled in the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry, and on 7 October 1861, he reported to Harrisburg to be mustered in to Company B, as a Private. By this time he was 25 years old, claimed his residence was Dauphin County, and his occupation was still clerk. A physical description was provided which included a height of 5 foot 7 inches, light hair, a fair complexion, and hazel eyes. Within three days of muster, he was promoted to the rank of Sergeant. The card from the Pennsylvania Archives (above) states that he was not on the muster out roll. Note: The Pennsylvania Civil War Project gives the promotion rank as “Quarter Master Sergeant” and spells the surname “Deitrich.”
On 17 October 1916, from Pennsylvania, Bridget Dietrich applied for widow’s benefits based on the service of Henry Dietrich in the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry, Company B. The service in the 10th Pennsylvania Infantry was not mentioned. Also there was no reference to Henry having applied. Bridget received the pension. The Pension Index Card (above) is from Ancestry.com. Strangely, there is no Pension Index Card for a Henry Dietrich in Fold3 where the cards are filed by regiment and company.
Attempts to locate a Bridget Dietrich in the 1910 Census have thus far been unsuccessful.
Attempts to locate Henry Dietrich in population censuses after the Civil War have also been unsuccessful
If Henry Dietrich was still alive in 1890, he could not be located in the 1890 Veterans’ Census, and neither could a widow named Bridget Dietrich.
In the 1860 census, one possibility that has not been fully explored is that the Henry Dietrich who served in the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry is the same person who was a common school teacher in Selinsgrove, Snyder County, Pennsylvania, and living with his parents John Dietrick and Sarah Dietrick.
A difficulty in tracing this Henry Dietrich is that there are many variations of the surname, including abbreviated forms such as Deets, Deeter, Dieter, etc.
The answer to what were the genealogical roots of Henry Dietrich as well as what happened to him after the war, may possibly be found in the military and pension records available from the National Archives. Those records were not consulted for this blog post because of the expense of obtaining them
If any reader can shed light on this individual – perhaps someone who has copies of the military or pension records can share them here?
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