Civil War Blog

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on May 10, 2016

The following message was forwarded to The Civil War Blog by Barry Stocker, regular contributor of information on Civil War soldiers from the Klingerstown, Schuylkill County, area.

I found an interesting story about some Confederate POW’s used by an Iron Baron by the name of Grubb. They died while being used for slave labor in Manada Gap, Dauphin County and are buried there.  Copy this link… http://www.civilwaralbum.com/misc2/manadagap1.htm

At the web link information is given about the use of the prisoners as wood cutters to feed the pig iron furnaces, that they lived in wooden worker shacks, and that they all died during the war.  There is speculation about how they died and whether they all died at the same time – disease? explosion?  etc.  There is also information given about the possibility of more Confederate soldiers buried near the Old Hanover Cemetery a distance away.

It is a known fact that some prisoners of war were held at Camp Curtin, a short distance away from the Manada Furnace, and is possible that some of these prisoners were used by the Grubb family in some kind of arrangement with the government.  Camp Curtin was not equipped to handle large numbers of prisoners, especially at the time of Lee’s invasion of Pennsylvania in June-July 1863, so it may have been a natural solution to “contract” some of them to area industries.

Information is sought on these “unknown” prisoners and the pig iron operation that they supposedly were supplied to as prison labor.

Please add comments to this post or send the information by e-mail.

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One photograph of the grave site is down-linked from the URL noted above.  There are three other photographs at the web site.

Unknown Confederate soldiers grave, Dauphin County, PA, about 20 miles NE of Harrisburg. The following is from notes by George Nagel of the Camp Curtin Historical Society:
 
According to local historian LeRoy Lingle, of East Hanover Township, the Confederate soldiers were prisoners-of-war from Harrisburg’s Camp Curtin, who were being used as laborers at the nearby Manada Furnace, a local industry located along Manada Creek. Apparently the furnace owners, the Grubb family, used prisoners as wood cutters to feed the busy furnace that turned out many tons of pig iron. The soldiers lived near the furnace in wooden shacks, according to Lingle, and died during the war . He believes that they died at about the same time, and that their burial site is only the most well known of local Confederate burials. Up to a dozen more prisoners, he says, are buried near the original site of the worker’s shacks, the stone foundations of which can still be seen. Still more Confederates may be buried near the Old Hanover Cemetery only a few miles away. All died during the war, before they could be released to return home. This explanation has been correlated by other local historians. All other details about the Confederate laborers remain scarce. Their names, cause of death, and dates of death are all mysteries. One story tells of a furnace explosion that killed the three unidentified soldiers. Another story claims yellow fever claimed up to 15 Confederate laborers. Small pox is mentioned in yet a third story. If they did all die at about the same time, then disease is a plausible explanation, rather than one catastrophic explosion. If they had all died in an explosion, then it would probably also be likely that they would all have been buried together, rather than in different locations. They well may have been captured at the battle of Gettysburg.

http://www.civilwaralbum.com/misc2/2004/manadagapcem3.jpg

Category: Queries | Comments Off on Confederate Veterans Buried in Dauphin County?
Tags: Klingerstown

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on May 9, 2016

The Harrisburg Telegraph reported the tragic death of John M. Hughes, prominent hosiery mill owner of Williamstown on 29 July 1898:

CRUSHED BY THE WHEELS

The Frightful Death of a Williamstown Mill Owner

It was a frightful accident which befell John M. Hughes, of the firm of Hughes and Hoffman, proprietor of the Williamstown Hosiery and Underwear Factory, and one of the most prominent residents of the upper end of the county, about 7:20 this morning.  He had gone to the Williamstown Station to see his daughter off to the seashore and was in the act of alighting from the train after bidding her an affectionate goodbye. when he slipped from the platform of the car and fell beneath the wheels of the moving train, which passed over his chest and one arm, killing him almost instantly before the horrified witnesses of the affair could raise a hand to save him.  The train was stopped , and when the daughter on board in anticipation of a pleasant vacation at the seashore had the sad news broken to her she gave vent to expressions of grief that were pitiful to hear.  Mr. Hughes was about 50 years of age and leaves a wife and two children, a son and a daughter.  He had been a miner in his earlier years and was a resident of that locality for twenty years or more.  Mr. Hughes was a gallant cavalryman in the Civil War.  Coroner Krause was notified.

The next day, the Coroner released his report on Hughes’ death:

Railroad Company Not Responsible

Coroner Krause returned this morning from Williamstown, where he spent last evening investigating the cause of death the death of John M. Hughes, who was killed yesterday morning at the Williams’ Valley Railroad Depot.  No blame is attached to the railroad company.

In August, the will of John M. Hughes was probated:

The will of John M. Hughes, of Williamstown, has been admitted to probate.  His widow is named as executrix and the estate of $8000 or $10,000 goes to Mrs. Hughes and the two children.

The Civil War service mention in the death notice of John M. Hughes, was as a Private in Company K of the 11th Pennsylvania Cavalry.

According to information on the file card at the Pennsylvania Archives (shown above), John M. Hughes enrolled on 28 April 1862 and Fort Monroe, Virginia, and was mustered into service there on the same day.  Fort Monroe was one of the few areas in the Eastern part of Virginia that remained in Union control throughout the entire war.

His honorable discharge was received on 1 May 1865.

John M. Hughes applied for a pension on 11 February 1884, which he was awarded, and collected until his death.  (Above card from Fold3).

On 14 September 1898, the widow, Mercy [Blacker] Hughes applied for benefits based on her husband’s service, which she received and collected until her death in 1917.

On 5 March 1917, the Harrisburg Evening News posted Mercy’s obituary:

MRS. MERCY HUGHES

Mrs. Mercy Hughes, widow of John M. Hughes, of Williamstown, died Saturday at the residence of her daughter, Mrs. Cora E. Stoey, 524 North Tenth Street.  She was 77 years old.  The body will be taken to Lykens Wednesday evening at 7:30 o’clock for burial.

The death certificate of Mercy [Blacker] Hughes was found on Ancestry.com:

The death certificate notes that Mercy was born in England 0n 5 February 1840 to John Blacker and Mary [Millet] Blacker.  She died in Harrisburg at the home of her daughter and she is buried in the Methodist Episcopal Cemetery in Williamstown, not in Lykens as the obituary states.

Additional information is sought about John M. Hughes.  After the Civil War, where did he live and work?  His son, William Hughes was born in Illinois in 1873, but his daughter Cora Hughes was born in Pennsylvania in 1877.  How and why did he go from a miner to the proprietor of a hosiery factory?  Are there pictures of him and his family?  Are there pictures of the hosiery factory in Williamstown?  And, is there a picture of the railroad depot where he met his tragic death?

Please add comments to this post or send the information via e-mail.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on John M. Hughes – Hosiery Mill Owner Crushed to Death in Williamstown
Tags: Lykens Borough, Railroad, Williamstown

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on May 6, 2016

Jacob Zerby, Civil war veteran of the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry, died on 19 November 1913.  His death was reported in the Harrisburg Telegraph of the next day:

Elizabethville — Jacob Zerby, a member of Sherman’s Cavalry during his famous march “to the sea,” died of the infirmities of old age yesterday after a year’s illness at his home in Franklin Street.  Deceased was one of the first blacksmiths at the beginning of the Swab Wagon Works.  He served during most of the Civil War and always was proud of being able to serve his country and to participate in many of the important battles of the war.  He was 77 years old and was survived by a widow.

The local newspaper, the Elizabethville Echo, also reported his death, summarized as follows:

Jacob Zerby died 19 November.  He was born 4 March 1837, a son of John Zerby and Barbara [Dietrich] Zerby.  He enlisted in the Civil War with Captain Savage.  He was a blacksmith in the service.  He was married 6 January 1867, to Angeline Rowe, daughter of Daniel Rowe and Susan [Frantz] Rowe, by Rev. Jeremiah Schindel.  He was a blacksmith, employed by Swab Wagon.  They had no children, but adopted George H. Rowe of Millersburg.

Some military records give Jacob’s surname as Zarber, as does the Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Card (shown above) from the Pennsylvania Archives.  Jacob enlisted on 17 September 1861 at Berrysburg, Dauphin County, and was mustered into service in the 9th Pennsylvania Cavalry, Company B, as a Farrier, on 7 October 1861, along with many other who were from the Lykens Valley area who were in the same company.  At the time of his enlistment, he said he was 22 years old, but it is more likely he was 24.  He was tall at 6 foot, 1 inch in height.  He had dark complexion, hazel eyes and dark hair.  And, he was blacksmith who resided in Dauphin County, where he was also born.

On 1 January 1864, he re-enlisted at Mossy Creek, Tennessee, and was promoted to blacksmith on 1 May 1985, the rank at which he was discharged on 18 July 1865.

Jacob Zerby died on 19 November 1913 in Elizabethville, as was reported on his Pension Index Card, shown above from Fold3.  He first applied for a pension on 21 September 1889, which he received and collected until his death.  His widow, Angeline [Rowe] Zerby, then applied for benefits on 28 November 1913, which she received until her death on 24 April 1936.

On 4 May 1936, the Harrisburg Evening News reported the following:

WILL PROBATED

In her will, probated in the Courthouse today, Mrs. Angeline Zerby, late of Elizabethville, directs that $100 and her silverware be given to Florence E. H. Lehr and that the residue of her $700 estate be given to George H. Row, who are also named executors.   Both beneficiaries live in Elizabethville.

George Henry Row, was born 13 March 1872 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the son of Adam Row (also a Civil War soldier) and Sarah Viola [Keener] Row.  Adam was the brother of Mrs. Angeline Zerby, and therefore George was the nephew of Jacob and Angeline Zerby.  In 1880, at age of 8, George was living with the Zerby family in Washington Township and was named as a “servant”in the census.  In 1896, George H. Row married Orpha Della Schreiber, and together they had at least six children.  For most of their married life together they lived in Millersburg, but George did live in Elizabethville at the time of his aunt’s death in 1936.  George died in 1945 in Elizabethville and is buried at Maple Grove Cemetery in Elizabethville.  While one of the obituaries of Jacob Zerby indicates that George was an adopted son, no evidence has been seen of a formal adoption.  Nevertheless, he appears to have been raised by the Zerby’s who didn’t have any children of their own.

Florence Lehr, one of the beneficiaries of Angeline Zerby, was born Florence Hoffner, 7 March 1895, the daughter of John Hoffner and Susanna [Snyder] Hoffner.  She married Paul Lehr of Elizabethville.  At this writing, not much is known about her or if she was related to Angeline Zerby or was just a friend.  Florence died in 1972 and is buried at Maple Grove Cemetery in Elizabethville.

Angeline [Row] Zerby had a sister Susanne Row, who married William Keiper.  One of Susanne’s children, Weston Keiper, a nephew of the Zerby’s, was executed by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania for the murder of Charles W. Ryan, a Civil War veteran, during the Halifax Bank Robbery of 1901.  Weston Keiper and George Henry Row were first cousins.

For his service in the Civil War, Jacob Zerby is recognized on the Lykens G.A.R. Monument, as a veteran who was not a member of the Heilner Post.

Jacob Zerby and Angeline [Row] Zerby (sometimes referred to as Engaline) are buried at Maple Grove Cemetery in Elizabethville.

Another photograph of Jacob Zerby, taken later in life, was obtained from a family member:

Jacob Zerby will be included in the Elizabethville Area Bicentennial List of Civil War Veterans, being prepared for the celebration to take place in 2017.  Additional information about him will be appreciated by the committee preparing for the Bicentennial and can be added to this post or sent via e-mail.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on Jacob Zerby of Elizabethville – Cavalryman and Blacksmith
Tags: Elizabethville, G.A.R., Lykens Borough, Millersburg, Washington Township

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on May 5, 2016

A listing of the April 2016 posts on The Civil War Blog with direct links.

March 2016 Posts

Civil War Railroad Structures of Elizabethville

Selected Items from the Pension Files of Mrs. Daniel Williard

Henry H. Weaver – Died in War at Jeffersonville, Indiana

Gen. George McClellan’s Philadelphia Home – Historical Marker

Civil War Railroad Structures of Lykens

John H. Herring – Died in California, 1912

The “Mad Stone” Melarkey – Another Supernatural Story of the Civil War

Civil War Railroad Structures of Millersburg

Cornelius A. Hochlander – Emergency Man from Wiconisco

Elias Herber – Buried at Allentown or Red Cross?

Smaller Civil War Railroad Stations En Route on the Lykens Valley Railroad

Two Men Named George Hinkle

Different American History Books – For the North and For the South

Daniel Hoy of Tremont – 17th Pennsylvania Cavalry

Marks Hornet – African American Soldier from Elizabethville

Obituary of Henry Lichtley – Claimed To Be One of First Trained at Camp Curtin

Heister Clymer – White Supremacist Candidate for Governor, 1866

Two Tragic Veteran Deaths of 1924

Update on Hiram Groff – Captured at Gettysburg, Then Parolled

Fatal Mine Accidents at Short Mountain Colliery, 1878-1903

Category: Overviews | Comments Off on April 2016 Posts
Tags: Table of Contents

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on May 4, 2016

The Mount Carmel Item published the obituary of Henry Hoover on 5 March 1912:

DEATH OF NEWSPAPERMAN

Henry Hoover, senior proprietor of the News Publishing Company, of Shamokin, died at his home in Shamokin this morning at three o’clock from a complication of diseases.  He had been ill for the last several months.  He was 73 years old and is survived by a widow and two sons, Frank Hoover and Curtis Hoover.

Mr. Hoover moved to Shamokin from Ashland 23 years ago and established the Shamokin News, which though hard work and the assistance of his two sons steadily grew in size, circulation and prominence until today it is one of the most influential newspapers in the county.

Mr. Hoover is well-known throughout the county, both as a newspaperman and a citizen.  He was a Civil War veteran, did active service as a soldier, and has a brilliant war record.

A brief sketch of the life of Henry Hoover is included in the Northumberland County Biographical Annals, p. 282:

HENRY HOOVER, business manager of the News Publishing Company, of Shamokin, publishers of the Shamokin Daily News, has been a resident of that borough for over twenty years and in the latter part of 1893 founded the Daily News, with which he has continued his association to the present.

Mr. Hoover was born in 1834 in Shamokin Township, Northumberland County, where his parents, John Hoover and Mary Hoover, were pioneer settlers, moving thither from Berks County, Pennsylvania, in 1811.  He was one of a family of sixteen children.  Working on a farm until he reached the age of seventeen.  Mr. Hoover subsequently learned the trade of coachmaking at Catawissa and followed it until his enlistment in the Union Army in 1862.  He became a Private in the 5th Pennsylvania Cavalry, with which he served until the close of the war, the regiment being attached to the Army of the James until March, 1865, when it joined Sheridan’s Cavalry Division, Army of the Potomac.  Mr. Hoover was wounded in the engagement near the Albemarle Sound, North Carolina, in October, 1863.  After the war he located at Ashland, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, where he was engaged in business until 1888, the year of his removal to Shamokin, where he has become recognized as a substantial and valuable citizen.

On 14 December 1893, in association with his son, J. F. Hoover, he founded the Shamokin Daily News, of which J. F. Hoover is managing editor.  In 1902, C. C. Hoover, another son of Henry Hoover, became a partner of his father and brother, acting as circulation manager of the News. They do business as the News Publishing Company.  A printing plant, for book, commercial and job work, is successfully maintained.  The location is at the corner of Lincoln and Liberty Streets, Shamokin.

On 30 December 1866, Mr. Henry Hoover married Mary E. Bindley, of Pottsville, Pennsylvania.

Henry Hoover‘s Civil War service is documented in several documents, presented below:

He enrolled in the 5th Pennsylvania Cavalry, Company C, as a Private on 15 September 1862 at Philadelphia, and was mustered into service on the same day and at the same place.  He gave his age as 28, his occupation as wheeelwright and his residence as Ashland, Schuylkill County.  He served until his discharge, which was by General Order, on 19 May 1865.

On 11 April 1883, Henry Hoover applied for a disability pension based on his service in Company C of the 5th Pennsylvania Cavalry.  He received the pension, which he collected until his death which occurred on 5 March 1912.  His widow, Mary E. [Bindley] Hoover then applied for benefits, which she received and collected until her death.  The above Pension Index Card is from Fold3.  The complete pension application file should be available from the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

The Pennsylvania Veterans’ Burial Card (shown above from Ancestry.com), indicates that Henry Hoover is buried at the Odd Fellows’ Cemetery in Pottsville and confirms his birth and death years, his dates of service and his regiment and company of service.  A picture of his grave marker was not available at the time of the writing of this blog post, but some additional information about him is available at his Findagrave Memorial.

Click on document to enlarge.

In the 1890 Veterans’ Census for Shamokin [one page shown above, from Ancestry.com), Henry Hoover gave his regiment, company and dates of service [line 37] and then noted that the disability that he incurred was “chronic piles and ankle disabled.”

Finally, the Military Index Card, also known as “General Index Card,” references the exact name, regiment and company under which the military index record cards are filed at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.  These cards contain a variety of information such as summaries from the actual muster sheets which were compiled every two months, records of hospital stays, prisoner of war records, enlistment and discharge papers, etc.  In the case of Henry Hoover, consultation of these cards will give more information about the injury and the treatment of the injury that he received near Albemarle Sound in October 1863.  The above card is from Fold3, but the summary information is also found on Ancestry.com in the database entitled, “United States Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1861,” and on the database found on the National Park Service site.

Additional information is sought about this veteran who had an illustrious career as a newspaperman and publisher. In particular, a picture of him is desired!  Please add comments to this post or send pictures and documents via e-mail attachment.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on Henry Hoover – Cavalryman and Publisher
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