Civil War Blog

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 5 of 6)

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on February 14, 2013

(Part 5 of 6). St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery is located in Tower City, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, at the corner of East Grand Avenue (U.S. Route 209) and North 4th Street. At the front of the cemetery, along East Grand Avenue, is the Tower City, Porter Township and Rush Township Veterans Memorial, which was previously featured here in a series of posts with each of the name plates of the Civil War veterans from the area. This is the last of the four major cemeteries in the Tower City area that will be examined for Civil War burials. No doubt there are other cemeteries and family cemeteries in the area where Civil War veterans were buried – some still undiscovered – but for now, the presentation of the St. Paul’s Cemetery will complete the photographic tour and brief description of each of the Tower City area veterans’ war service that began months ago and included the area memorial, Greenwood Cemetery in Tower City (5 parts), St. Peter’s U.C.C. Cemetery in Reinerton (3 parts), and the Grace United Evangelical Cemetery in Muir (2 parts).

Research continues on each of the Tower City area veterans and as a result of the analysis of the tombstone inscriptions at St. Paul’s Cemetery, some new information about them has been added to the Civil War Research Project. But, much remains to be discovered. Especially needed are pictures of the veterans and their families, stories, and any other information that would help in an understanding of this generation of Americans who fought to preserve the Union more than 150 years ago. As always, the Project relies on local researchers and family members who are willing to come forward and share information about these men and their families. By sharing the information, we increase our knowledge.

Some of the now-known information about the veterans buried at St. Paul’s Cemetery is presented with the grave marker pictures. Links are provided to where the veteran previously was mentioned in blog post articles, and some of the past-known information is repeated. In addition, new Project file numbers are added. When corresponding by e-mail regarding information available on a specific veteran, it is helpful to use the file number (if known), especially in the many cases where there is more than one veteran with the same name.

Three more veterans’ graves are presented today.

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WILLIAM THOMPSON (? – ?)

Not much is known about the William Thompson whose widow may be buried at St. Paul’s Cemetery in Tower City. No headstone which bears his name has been seen there, with the exception of a stone for an Isabella Thompson, on whose stone it is noted that she was the wife of W. S. Thompson. A small stone in front of Isabella’s stone beard the initials “I. T” and it is at that stone where a G.A.R. star and flag holder has been placed.

In a prior post on this blog, the following was stated:

William Thompson of Tower City was born about 1839 or 1840 in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, the son of Alexander Thompson (1805-1873), an immigrant from Scotland who emigrated to America in 1828 to engage in various pursuits including flour milling, lumbering and mining. William Thompson‘s mother was the first wife of Alexander, Isabella Stoddart Pennman (1816-1851). He was one of nine children and his brother Alexander F. Thompson (1845-1925) was featured in yesterday’s post on this blog. After the death of William’s mother, Alexander Thompson (1805-1873) re-married and with his 2nd wife, Mary Bast, fathered another large family, giving William about ten more siblings.

William Thompson enrolled in the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company G, at Lykens, Dauphin Co., Pennsylvania, on 23 September 1861, and then traveled to Pottsville, where he was mustered into service.

The record at the Pennsylvania Archives indicates that William Thompson died at Frederick, Maryland, on 18 December 1862. The cause of death is not stated in the Pennsylvania Archives’ Veterans’ Card File. The registers for this company and regiment do not record his death, probably because a few years later, the records were transferred to the 95th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company G, when the companies were consolidated. All those who served the duration of the war were later transferred to the 95th Pennsylvania Infantry. The handwritten notation on the Veterans’ File Card (above) was placed there by someone doing later research on William Thompson and was not part of the original indexing project conducted at the Archives.

Burial took place in the Antietam National Cemetery, in Section 26, Lot E, Grave 480, and a “military-issue” grave marker was placed on his burial plot….

After William”s death, his father Alexander Thompson (1805-1873) and step-mother Mary [Bast] Thompson continued to have children, one of whom, born about 1866, was named Abraham Lincoln Thompson, after the martyred president.

No Pension Index Card has been located for William Thompson. This may indicate that he was never married and left no minor children. His mother would have been eligible for a pension, if his death was war-related, and if she had no other means of support. However, William’s mother had died before the war and his father had re-married. The step-mother could make no claim as a result of William’s sacrifice.

It is possible that there are a number of errors in the above, previously presented information.

If William Thompson, the husband of Isabella Thompson who is buried at St. Paul’s in Tower City, died during the Civil War, then there must be another person with the same name, since, in the 1890 census for Tower City, there is a William Thompson who is alive and who claimed service in the 39th Pennsylvania Infantry (Emergency of 1863):

Click on document to enlarge.

The name in the 1890 census for Tower City was first reported as William K. Thompson and then changed to William W. Thompson, and the dates of service in this emergency militia regiment are given as 29 June 1863 to 6 August 1863. A David P. Thompson appears as the next name on the sheet, a possible relation, who served as a 1st Lieutenant in the same emergency regiment. That David P. Thompson also served in the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry and appears to have been discharged in December 1862 – a few days after the death of the William Thompson who was also in the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry.

William W. Thompson was suffering from “chronic piles” (hemorrhoids) in 1890, which he attributed to his Civil War service. No pension record has been located for this William W. Thompson, which would be consistent with the requirement that at least three months service was needed in order to qualify, the emergency militia only serving for about six weeks.

A final confusing factor resulting from the information on the stone of Isabella Thompson at St. Paul’s Cemetery is her birth date of 15 July 1863 and the fact that she died at the age of 21 on 24 December 1884. While it would not be that unusual for a Civil War veteran to take a bride much younger than he, it is a curious fact that his bride would have been born in the middle of his brief Civil War service.

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GEORGE W. WAGNER (? – ?)

G. W. Wagner is buried in St. Paul’s Cemetery with a headstone that reads, Company I, 84th Pennsylvania Infantry. There is a G.A.R. star-flag holder in front of the stone.

On 14 January 1870, an application was made to the Pension Bureau for the support of minor children on behalf of their father, George Wagner, who had served in Company I of the 84th Pennsylvania Infantry (in addition to the 81st Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I), with his death date given as 25 October 1863 in Schuylkill County. It has to be presumed that this is the same G. W. Wagner who is buried in the St. Paul’s Cemetery in Tower City, with the marker indicating service in the 84th Pennsylvania Infantry. The pension for minors’ support was granted. The Pension Index Card shown above is from Fold3.

If George Wagner served in the 84th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I, (or in the 81st Pennsylvania Infantry,, Company I) he was not located in the Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Cards (Pennsylvania Archives), in Bates, or in the Registers of Pennsylvania Volunteers (Pennsylvania Archives). His name was located in the database entitled “U.S. Civil War Soldiers, 1861-1865,” available on Ancestry.com, and the alternate names of George Wagoner and George Waggoner were given. These alternate spellings were also not found in the the previously mentioned sources.

Since G. W. Wagner who is buried in St. Paul’s Cemetery has a government-issued headstone, a search was made for the application and the following was located:

Curiously, there is a different date of death on the application – 6 May 1864. Left with conflicting information and several dead ends in trying to locate additional military information, the information thus found is presented here in the hope that a reader will come forward with the correct death date and enlighten the record of the veteran who is buried in St. Paul’s Cemetery in Tower City as G. W. Wagner, who served in Company I of the 84th Pennsylvania Infantry.

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HENRY M. WITMER (1834-1885)

This could be another case of more than one person with the same name. The Henry Wittmer (or Henry Witmer) who is buried in the St. Paul Cemetery in Tower City, served in the 177th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I and has been previously presented here in a discussion of the honorably discharged veterans from that regiment and company. In addition, the Henry Witmer, who appears to be the same person, was the subject of a prior post.

Henry Witmer (above) is recognized on the Tower City Veterans’ Memorial.

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Concludes tomorrow…

To access other parts of this series on St. Paul’s Cemetery, click here.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | 2 Comments »
Tags: Cemetery, G.A.R., Lykens Borough, Muir, Porter Township, Reinerton, Rush Township, Tower City

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 4 of 6)

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on February 13, 2013

(Part 4 of 6). St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery is located in Tower City, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, at the corner of East Grand Avenue (U.S. Route 209) and North 4th Street. At the front of the cemetery, along East Grand Avenue, is the Tower City, Porter Township and Rush Township Veterans Memorial, which was previously featured here in a series of posts with each of the name plates of the Civil War veterans from the area. This is the last of the four major cemeteries in the Tower City area that will be examined for Civil War burials. No doubt there are other cemeteries and family cemeteries in the area where Civil War veterans were buried – some still undiscovered – but for now, the presentation of the St. Paul’s Cemetery will complete the photographic tour and brief description of each of the Tower City area veterans’ war service that began months ago and included the area memorial, Greenwood Cemetery in Tower City (5 parts), St. Peter’s U.C.C. Cemetery in Reinerton (3 parts), and the Grace United Evangelical Cemetery in Muir (2 parts).

Three more veterans’ graves are presented today.

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CHRISTIAN SEIBERT (c. 1817-1882)

CHRISTIAN SEIBERT (c. 1817-1882), an immigrant from Germany, served in the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company B, as a Private, from 23 September 1861 until his transfer to the Veteran Reserve Corps on 29 October 1863. He had enrolled in the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry at Pine Grove, Schuylkill County, and was mustered in at Pottsville. Christian was married three times. His wives names were: Amanda Magdalena Alspach, Catherine Roemer, and Maria Anna Harman. When he died, he was buried at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery, Tower City.

With the discovery of the grave marker of Christian Seibert in the St. Paul’s Cemetery, his exact date of death can now be established as 6 Mar 1882. However, the date of birth on the stone, 12 February 1820, is in question because another record for this veteran points to a birth year of 1817.

The Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Card (from the Pennsylvania Archives, and shown above) states that Christian claimed to be 44 years old at the time of his enrollment in 1861, indicating a birth year of 1817. Thus, he was an “old man” by the age of most of the volunteers, and presenting himself older than he actually was, doesn’t make sense.

In research done by Connie [Fox] Seibert, and presented on Findagrave in 2011, Christian Seibert is said to have arrived in Baltimore aboard the Copernicus in 1844 at the age of 24. She concluded, based on a newspaper report from Bremen, Germany, that the Copernicus had rescued the captain and crew of the Peace when it sank on 13 May 1844 in an ice field en-route to St. Lawrence from Bremen, and that Christian was one of those rescued.

Also in research done by examining the pension files of Christian Seibert by Connie [Fox] Seibert, affidavits were seen that stated that Christian always walked with a limp and needed a cane and this could have been a result of wounds received, perhaps at Antietam. Following that campaign, he spent time in the U.S. General Hospital in Washington, D.C., before being transferred to the Veteran Reserve Corps. More information is needed to confirm the nature of his confinement in the Washington hospital. Was he wounded or did he contract a disease?

A check of a Civil War diary kept by Henry Keiser, also of the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry, and from Lykens Borough, did not produce the name Christian Seibert, although dozens of names of members of this regiment are included in the diary, especially when they were sick, wounded or killed.

Following the war, Christian Seibert purchased a farm in the area near Tremont and he appears in the 1880 census for Porter Township, age 60, as a farmer, and living with his third wife Amanda, age 38, and their young sons, John H. Seibert, age 6, and George E. Seibert, age 4 months.

Another unanswered question concerns the appointed guardian of the minor children of Christian Seibert (see Pension Index Card, shown above, from Ancestry.com), Henry K. Updegrave who is named as a Civil War veteran at his graveside, but his regiment of service has still not been determined. See: Civil War Veteran Burials in Greenwood Cemetery, Tower City – Part 4 of 5 and Tower City – Porter Township Centennial – Civil War Veterans List. Henry K. Updegrave appears to have been an important figure in the G.A.R. at Tower City, but at this writing, his relationship with Amanda Seibert and her minor children, other than acting as guardian, and his regiment and company of Civil War service, has still not been determined. Finally, it should be noted from this Pension Index Card, that no pension was awarded, leaving the open question of who supported the children in their minority and what happened to them.

Christian Seibert was a relatively common name in the Civil War period and post-war period and several persons of this name have been located in the records – some who lived into the 20th century. But it is clear from the research done on the Christian Seibert who lived in the Tower City area and is buried at St. Paul’s Cemetery, that he is the one who served in the 96th Pennsylvania Infantry.

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JOHN W. STROHECKER (c. 1842-1890)

JOHN W. STROHECKER (c. 1842-1890) is one of two persons who enrolled in the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company A, with the same initials, “J.W.” In most cases, both of these veterans are listed only by their initials in the records making it difficult to separate their experiences and information. This one had a first name of John and a wife named Mary. Mary had just become a widow at the time of the 1890 census, John having died on 19 July 1890. Mary gave “consumption” as the cause of death, which she attributed to his war service. At the time of enlistment, John W. Strohecker was a laborer residing in Wiconisco. He is buried in Tower City.

According to the Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Card available from the Pennsylvania Archives, John W. Strohecker enrolled in the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company A, as a Private, on 25 February 1864, at Harrisburg. At the time of his enrollment, he declared himself for be 22 years old (indicating a possible birth year of 1842), stood 5 foot, 9 inches tall, had a dark complexion, dark hair and blue eyes, resided in Wiconisco, and was employed as a laborer. He was mustered into service at the same place on the next day. According to the history of the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, battles that John W. Strohecker would have participated in included: the Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, Petersburg, Weldon Railroad, and Popular Springs Church, all in Virginia. Specific information is not available at this writing on the role of John W. Strohecker in each of those battles. After the final assault on Petersburg, in mid-April 1865, the regiment was ordered to Washington where it remained through June, after which it was sent to Gettysburg on 4 July 1865 for the cornerstone ceremonies for the National Monument being erected there, and thence to Georgetown, where it was mustered out of service on 30 July 1865.

The application for a “government-issue” headstone for John W. Strohecker is shown above (from Ancestry.com) and gives his date of death as 19 February 1890, as well as his rank, regiment and company, the latter of which appears on the stone at the St. Paul’s Cemetery.

Shortly after the death of her husband, Mary Strohecker applied for widow’s benefits, which she received and collected until her death. The Pension Index Card (shown above, from Ancestry.com) does not indicate that John W. Strohecker ever applied for an invalid pension.

At this time, a genealogical connection has not been established between John W. Strohecker [File CW#S338] and Joel W. Strohecker (the other “J. W.” in the same regiment and company). Joel W. Strohecker [File: CW#S337] is buried in Pillow Union Cemetery, Northumberland County.

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GEORGE K. STROUD (1839-1920)

GEORGE K. STROUD (1839-1920), also known as George K. Stoud, George K. Stoudt, and “Pappy” Stroud or “Pappy” Stoudt, served in the 93rd Pennsylvania Infantry, Company C, from 22 October 1861 through 28 October 1864. He was wounded at the Wilderness, Virginia, 5 May 1864. At the time of his entry into the regiment, he was a shoemaker who was living in Lebanon County (see Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Card, Pennsylvania Archives, shown below). He was 28 years old, stood just over 5 foot, 7 inches tall, had black hair, hazel eyes, and a light complexion.

George K. Stroud‘s wife’s name was Caroline. In 1890, while living in Tower City, he reported his service-related disability as a hearing loss.

George died on 12 June 1920 is buried in St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery, Tower City. Pension benefits ended at his death; at the time the time he was a widower (Pension Index Card, shown above, from Ancestry.com). On the last line of text on his stone, the company and regiment is noted.

The portrait of George K. Stroud is from the Tower City Centennial Book.

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Continued tomorrow…

To access other parts of this series on St. Paul’s Cemetery, click here.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 4 of 6)
Tags: Cemetery, G.A.R., Muir, Pillow, Pine Grove, Porter Township, Reinerton, Tower City, Tremont, Wiconisco

On the March: 50th PA at the Battle of South Mountain

Posted By Jake Wynn on February 11, 2013

A sketch of the fight on South Mountain

Background

My post yesterday briefly discussed the occupation of the city of Frederick, Maryland by Union forces during mid-September 1862. As Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia moved westward to execute its movements in places like Hagerstown and Harpers Ferry, the Union army began to make chase. Union commander George McClellan sought to defeat Lee’s army while it remained piecemeal, scattered throughout western Maryland and Virginia. Between the two armies lay South Mountain, a steep, rocky ridge that rose hundreds of feet above the surrounding farmland.

South Mountain, as viewed from nearby Catoctin Mountain

Several roads snake through gaps in the mountain. This is where Lee decided to make an attempt to prevent the Union army from breaking through into the valley beyond. Special Orders 191, dictated by Lee earlier in September, meant that his army was spread across a wide area and highly vulnerable. In this effort, Confederate troops would defend 3 strategic gaps in South Mountain. Turner’s Gap, through which the National Road winded across South Mountain, was the furthest gap to the north. Fox’s Gap, home to the Old Sharpsburg Road, is about a mile south of Turner’s. The third, Crampton’s Gap, lies about 6 miles further south. If a decisive victory could be achieved by the Union army, then complete destruction of Lee’s army could be at hand. September 14, 1862 would be a day for much potential and risk, but in battle the larger strokes of strategy conducted by great generals can be outdone by lowliest of men. It would mark a day of death and destruction, but also of heroics that would rival any of that during the Civil War.

The 50th Pennsylvania

The 50th was camped near Middletown on the night of September 13, 1862, about 4 miles from South Mountain. On the morning of Sunday, the 14th, the Pennsylvania men would begin preparations to march westward towards the slope.

Union soldiers marching through Middletown on their way to battle

Above them stood the towering Lamb’s Knoll at 1,758 feet. The men of the IX Corps, under the leadership of General Jesse Reno, were marched up the Old Sharpsburg Road, towards Fox’s Gap. Although you cannot tell today, the slopes of Fox’s Gap were largely clear at the time, either from agriculture or logging. It is likely that the men streaming up towards Fox’s Gap could see what was awaiting them at the summit. Several regiments from North Carolina and a Confederate battery commanded the top of the mountain. As the men of the IX Corps began to march up the slopes, the battery opened up and sent shells screaming through the brisk morning air. The long, exposed climb would have shattered more than a few nerves, as Lt. Samuel K. Schwenk of the 50th observed that they “marched forward under fire of shell and grape and canister.” Charles Brown, a corporal in Company C, noted that “All of the Rebel batteries were directing their fire on the road.” If the climb were not enough, the consistent pounding of artillery in their front were to make the first few moments on the battlefield quite miserable.

The Old Sharpsburg Road today

Ahead of them, a nasty scrape had already begun with Ohio men from the General Jacob Cox’s Kanawha Division. They were beaten back, and the men of Colonel Benjamin Christ‘s brigade, including the 50th, 28th Massachusetts, 79th New York and the rookie 17th Michigan stepped forward next. They were initially charged with defending a battery which had become the focus of Confederate fire. Christ utilized the 79th New York and 17th Michigan to stabilize the lines and stave off disaster.

Colonel Benjamin Christ

The next stage of the battle saw the 50th’s fellow brigade units in the thick of battle. The IX Corps began a full scale assault against the top of the mountain. Christ’s brigade was focused primarily on the area directly around the Sharpsburg Road, in the area around a homestead of a farmer named Daniel Wise. The 17th Michigan, the rookie regiment, took the brunt of the action but forced the Confederates back from their perch behind a stone wall. Of their effort, Corporal Brown said, “They had never been in action before, and they came right up the road. I believe the rebels killed half of them before they got to the top of the mountain. The balance of this regiment was brave and they went for the rebels and drove them off the top.” The 17th Michigan attained the nickname of “Stonewall Regiment” from their heroic and deadly work in Fox’s Gap.

The remains of the stone wall that the 17th’s attack focused on.

The view from behind the stone wall, across which the 17th attacked.

But as the fighting continued in and around Fox’s Gap, the 50th Pennsylvania was not among its fellow regiments. It is absent from the after action reports of the attack not because of some mistake, but because they were needed elsewhere. General Orlando Wilcox, commander of the First Division of the IX Corps, ordered the 50th Pennsylvania and the 8th Michigan to assist General Cox in holding the flank. They were deemed to more valuable in holding the Union lines together, as they had already been tested in battle. So as the battle raged to their right, the 50th lie in wait in case of a sudden and unexpected Confederate counterattack which never fully materialized. The 50th fired several volleys into a half-hearted attempt to turn the Union flank, and succeeded in brushing off the blow.

Brigadier General Orlando Wilcox

While a few men were wounded in the battle, only one, Private Partial Kennedy of Co. K, would later succumb to his wounds in a Frederick hospital in October.

The 50th held up well under fire and proved its worth as good as “two ordinary regiments.” Having its first real baptism of fire a few weeks earlier at Second Manassas, the regiment was given the good fortune of holding a far flank which never faced a serious threat. Had they been in the thick of things, alongside the 17th Michigan perhaps, then their mettle would have surely been tested. But as it were, the regiment survived to face an even larger battle only a few days later along the banks of the Antietam Creek.

Notes:

A great read on this subject is a book titled: Our Boys Did Nobly: Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, Soldiers at the Battles of South Mountain and Antietam by Antietam Park Ranger and historian John Hoptak. He is also the author of a book that covers the Battle of South Mountain from a wider perspective titled The Battle of South Mountain. His blog about the 48th Pennsylvania is also a great read and can be found at http://48thpennsylvania.blogspot.com/.

Our Boys Did Nobly

The Battle of South Mountain

Other posts on regiments from the Lykens Valley area during the Battle of South Mountain are coming soon! In the next few weeks I hope to cover several more units during the critical, yet overshadowed battle that preceded Antietam.

Category: Events, Research, Stories | Comments Off on On the March: 50th PA at the Battle of South Mountain
Tags: Regiments

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 3 of 6)

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on February 9, 2013

(Part 3 of 6). St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery is located in Tower City, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, at the corner of East Grand Avenue (U.S. Route 209) and North 4th Street. At the front of the cemetery, along East Grand Avenue, is the Tower City, Porter Township and Rush Township Veterans Memorial, which was previously featured here in a series of posts with each of the name plates of the Civil War veterans from the area. This is the last of the four major cemeteries in the Tower City area that will be examined for Civil War burials. No doubt there are other cemeteries and family cemeteries in the area where Civil War veterans were buried – some still undiscovered – but for now, the presentation of the St. Paul’s Cemetery will complete the photographic tour and brief description of each of the Tower City area veterans’ war service that began months ago and included the area memorial, Greenwood Cemetery in Tower City (5 parts), St. Peter’s U.C.C. Cemetery in Reinerton (3 parts), and the Grace United Evangelical Cemetery in Muir (2 parts).

Three more veterans’ graves are presented today.

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JONATHAN MILLER (about 1824-1890)

Very little is known about Jonathan Miller (c. 1824-1890) except that he served in the 39th Pennsylvania Infantry (Emergency of 1863), Company H, as a Private, from 1 July 1863 to 2 August 1863. The application for “government issue” headstone (above) gives his date of death as 9 February 1890. A handwritten notation on his Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Card (from Pennsylvania Archives, card not shown) states that he was 49 years old at time of his muster-in at Harrisburg, which would give an approximate birth year of 1824. No Miller widow was found in the 1890 census for the area of and around Tower City and his service was too short to expect that a pension application will be discovered. One of the difficulties in researching this veteran is that he could have gone by the name of John, and there are quite a few John Miller‘s in the Project who have yet to be completely identified.

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PETER RHOADS (c. 1831 -1897)

The various possible spellings of the name of this veteran are: Peter Rhoads, Peter Roads, Peter Rhodes, and Peter Rhoades. With the discovery of this stone for Peter Roads, a death date of 28 January 1897 has been established. A search of the Pension Index Cards available from Ancestry.com produced a Peter Rhodes who served in the 6th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company G. A widow’s pension application for Elizabeth Rhodes was filed on 27 February 1897, making it likely that the Peter Roads who is buried at St. Paul’s Church Cemetery in Tower City is a match with the veteran who served in the 6th Pennsylvania Infantry. The Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Card from the Pennsylvania Archives (not shown) gives the information that Peter Rhodes resided in Llewellyn, Schuylkill County, at the time of enlistment, was 30 years old (born about 1831), and was an engineer.

Click on document to enlarge.

The portion of the 1880 census, shown above, locates the family in Tower City, with Peter Rhodes, age 48 (born about 1832) working as an engineer, wife Elizabeth Rhodes, age 45 (born about 1835), and son George Rhodes, age 3 (born about 1877). There are two additional sons in the household, but with different surnames: Lincoln Reign, age 14, and William Wood, age 12, both working as slate pickers. The latter two sons could possibly be Elizabeth’s sons via previous marriages.

When Peter Rhodes applied for his invalid pension in 1890, he stated that his only service was in the 6th Pennsylvania Infantry. In the 1890 census for Tower City, a Peter Rhder has been found who claimed service as a Private in the 174th Pennsylvania Infantry. No company was given and no person has been located in the 174th Pennsylvania Infantry with a similar name. It is possible that Peter Rhder is the same person as the Peter Rhodes who was living in Tower City in 1880 – but the regiment is not a match with the pension record. For now, the Civil War Research Project is keeping them as two separate persons. The file for the Peter Rhodes who is buried at St. Paul’s Cemetery is [File: CW#R074]. The file for the Peter Rhder who is named in the 1890 census is [File: CW#R072].

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SAMUEL SCHWENK (c. 1844-1879).

SAMUEL SCHWENK (c. 1848-1879) is one of two people with the same name from Pennsylvania. The Samuel Schwenk named on the Tower City Memorial died before 1890 and his widow, Angeline S. Schwenk, was living in Tower City at the time of that census. She reported that her husband served in the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I, as a Private, for a period of 9 months. However, the Pension Index Card indicates that Angeline was the widow of Samuel Schwenk who served in the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company C., without the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry mentioned. The other Samuel Schwenk was Brigadier General Samuel Klinger Schwenk, who died in 1915 in New York City, and was on the headquarters staff of the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry. According to Angeline, her husband died of “catharr” [probably catarrh].

Angeline S. Schwenk is buried in St. Paul’s Church Cemetery in Tower City, next to her husband Samuel Schwenk, whose “government-issue” headstone clearly states that he served in the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company C, with no mention of the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry.

Partial clarification of this confusion can be found by examining the Pennsylvania Veterans’ Index Cards at the Pennsylvania Archives. There are two cards for the 18-year old Samuel Schwenk who was a farmer and served as a Private. One card shows that he enrolled at Schuylkill County on 15 October 1862 and was mustered into service in the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry on the 3 November 1862, Company I at Harrisburg. A notation at the bottom of that card points to the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry. On the card for the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, Samuel Schwenk was credited with mustering in on 3 November 1862 at Harrisburg. This second card gives more descriptive information about him including his height of 5 foot, 6 inches, dark eyes, dark hair and dark complexion. The remark at the bottom of the card states that he was a recruit who entered into service in the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry, Company C, on 27 July 1863 and re-enlisting in Company C, 50th Pennsylvania Infantry, on 22 February 1864. The card for the 151st Pennsylvania Infantry states that he mustered out of that regiment on 27 July 1863 while the card for the 50th Pennsylvania Infantry states he mustered out on 30 July 1865. The cards do not explain why the transfer was made. The 151st Pennsylvania Infantry was at Gettysburg, but not during the time Samuel Schwenk was a member of it; therefore his name does not appear on the Pennsylvania Gettysburg Memorial. The 50th Pennsylvania Infantry was not at the Battle of Gettysburg and was in the area of Vicksburg, Mississippi at that time.

Another piece of confusion regarding this Samuel Schwenk is his year of birth, which in some records is given as 1848. The military enrollment records give his age as 18, which would mean a year of birth of about 1844. While it was not uncommon for volunteers to lie about their age, he could have been only 14 when he enlisted rather than the 18 that he claimed.

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To be continued next week….

To access other parts of this series on St. Paul’s Cemetery, click here.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 3 of 6)
Tags: Cemetery, Muir, Porter Township, Reinerton, Rush Township, Tower City

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 2 of 6)

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on February 8, 2013

(Part 2 of 6). St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery is located in Tower City, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, at the corner of East Grand Avenue (U.S. Route 209) and North 4th Street. At the front of the cemetery, along East Grand Avenue, is the Tower City, Porter Township and Rush Township Veterans Memorial, which was previously featured here in a series of posts with each of the name plates of the Civil War veterans from the area. This is the last of the four major cemeteries in the Tower City area that will be examined for Civil War burials. No doubt there are other cemeteries and family cemeteries in the area where Civil War veterans were buried – some still undiscovered – but for now, the presentation of the St. Paul’s Cemetery will complete the photographic tour and brief description of each of the Tower City area veterans’ war service that began months ago and included the area memorial, Greenwood Cemetery in Tower City (5 parts), St. Peter’s U.C.C. Cemetery in Reinerton (3 parts), and the Grace United Evangelical Cemetery in Muir (2 parts).

Some of the now-known information about the veterans buried at St. Paul’s Cemetery is presented with the grave marker pictures. Links are provided to where the veteran previously was mentioned in blog post articles, and some of the past-known information is repeated. In addition, new Project file numbers are added. When correspondingby e-mail regarding information available on a specific veteran, it is helpful to use the file number (if known), especially in the many cases where there is more than one veteran with the same name.

Three veterans’ graves are presented today.

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JACOB GAMBER (1833-1890)

JACOB GAMBER (1833-1890) is also found as Jacob Gamper. He was the son of Jacob Gamber and Magdalena [Miles] Gamber.

During the Civil War, he served in the 51st Pennsylvania Infantry, Company B, as a Private. After being drafted on 16 September 1864, he was mustered into service on 27 September 1864 at Harrisburg. He was discharged by a General Order (G. O.) which arrived by telegram on 17 May 1865.

In 1880, Jacob Gamber reported to the census that he was 46 years old and a former coal miner. Two of his sons, living at home, were working as laborers in the coal mines.

The application for the headstone is shown above, which includes Jacob’s death date of 15 May 1890. He is buried in St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery in Tower City. Carved into the “government-supplied” grave marker is the regiment number and company. His widow, Anna Mary [Schaumber] Gamber (1837-1916), was living in Tower City in 1890, Jacob having died just before that census was taken. His service, which was in the 51st Pennsylvania Infantry, Company B, as a Private, resulted in him being “ruptured,” which was reported in the 1890 record.

Jacob Gamber made application for an invalid pension on 20 February 1890, but due to the slowness of the bureaucracy, he died before he could be awarded benefits. His widow Ann M. [Schaumber] Gamber applied in July 1890 and she was successful in getting benefits, which she received until she died in 1916. She is buried with her husband in St. Paul’s Cemetery in Tower City.

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BENJAMIN HAUTZ (1844-1924)

BENJAMIN HAUTZ (1844-1924) or Benjamin Houtz as he is also known, served in the Emergency Force of 1863, designated the 39th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company H, as a Private. His service dates were from 29 June 1863 through 2 August 1863. His name is also found in the records as “Benneville Houtz” among other combinations. He was married to a woman named Jennie and the records show that the couple had at least six children: St. Clair Hautz; Charles Hautz; Reno Hautz; Elizabeth Hautz; Jennie Hautz; and Edwin Hautz.

In the 1870 and 1880 censuses, Benjamin was living in Porter Township and working as a coal miner. Benjamin Houtz died on 17 February 1924. He is buried in the St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City. His service time was too short (less than three months) for him to apply for a pension.

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CHARLES MAURER (1837-1907)

CHARLES MAURER (1837-1907) enrolled at Llewellyn, Schuylkill County, in the 6th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company G, as a Private, and was mustered in at Harrisburg on 22 April 1861. He served until his discharge on 26 July 1861. At the time of his joining the army, he was a laborer who was living at Donaldson, Schuylkill County. Charles married a woman named Hannah and when he died on 5 January 1907 was buried at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church Cemetery, Tower City.

In 1880, Charles was living in Pine Grove Township and working as a laborer. In 1890, he had moved to Tower City, and by 1900, he was a widower, living in Porter Township and working as a coal miner.

Charles Maurer was a late pension applicant, not submitting his paper work until late 1896, over six years after his wife Hannah died (see Pension Index Card, above, from Ancestry.com). He was awarded an invalid pension, which he collected until his death in 1907.

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Continued tomorrow….

To access other parts of this series on St. Paul’s Cemetery, click here.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 2 of 6)
Tags: Cemetery, Donaldson, Muir, Pine Grove Township, Porter Township, Reinerton, Rush Township, Tower City

Civil War Blog

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 5 of 6)

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 4 of 6)

On the March: 50th PA at the Battle of South Mountain

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 3 of 6)

Civil War Veteran Burials at St. Paul’s Cemetery, Tower City (Part 2 of 6)

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