Civil War Blog

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 9, 2011

Soldiers’ Monument Park Association

The largest and most impressive monument recognizing the achievements and valor of the men who served in the Civil War from the western parts of Schyulkill County (in the areas adjacent to Upper Dauphin County), is the Soldiers’ Monument of Schuylkill County, located in the Borough of Pottsville.  Although Pottsville is located just outside the triangular area of study for the Civil War Research Project, many men from Gratz and the surrounding communities in the Lykens Valley area and the area across the Mahantongo Mountain in Northumberland County enlisted in Pottsville and joined the regiments that were organized there.  When the monument was dedicated, many of these same men and their families joined their comrades from Schuylkill County in the festivities that were held there in 1897.

Over the next few days, the posts on this blog will focus on the proposal for the monument and its construction and dedication.  The story will told through the words of Schuylkill County historian Joseph H. Zerber and the newspapers of the time.

On 15 June 1887, a meeting of the soldiers and sailors, of Schuylkill County. was held in Pottsville when the imposing monument, which occupies the center of Garfield Square, was proposed to perpetuate and keep green the memory of their heroic deeds for all generations to come….

It was decided to apply to Court for a charter or the new organization and Capt. S. R. Russel, Capt.John A. Schweers and Capt. John T. Boyle were named a committee to make proper acknowledgment before the County Recorder, under the Act of Assembly of 1874, and its supplement.  The term of the Association was made perpetual. A constitution and bylaws were framed….

It was on 18 July 2887, that the next meeting of the Association was held. The charter, granted by the Court, was presented and accepted.  The constitution and by-laws were formally adopted.  A committee of ways and means to finance the monument proposition, was named….

Though several sites were proposed for the monument, some favoring the grounds surrounding the court house and others a location in one of the local cemeteries, it was finally decided to place it in Garfield Square.  Permission to do this was procured from the Borough Council by a committee.

Information for this post was taken from Joseph H. Zerber, History of Pottsville and Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, pages 97-104.

Category: Memorials | Comments Off on Soldiers’ Monument of Schuylkill County – Proposal
Tags: Monument

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 8, 2011

This is the eleventh in a series of posts on Gratz during the Civil War. The original house on Lot #85 on the north side of Market Street was built about 1832 at the time the land was conveyed to John Welker (1784-1854).

The earliest found picture of the house is shown above and is from the mid-twentieth century.  The original shape of the house was retained through subsequent renovations which included the addition of a porch.  The outbuilding, seen at left rear, is probably the barn that was added by John Welker.

John Welker was a weaver and operated his business from this site.  John was one of the trustees of the group that helped establish Samuel’s Lutheran and Reformed Church on Lot #18 on the south side of Market Street in 1846.  John Welker owned Lot #85 and the buildings on it throughout his life, and on his death from the flu in 1854, his son-in-law Henry C. Hoffman (1804-1875, a native of Ohio)  took up residence there.  In 1859, the property was sold at public auction in 1859 to Benneville Kissinger (1830-1880).

Records of the Welker family contain many conflicts.  However, it can be determined that Sarah Welker (1818-1884) was the daughter of John Welker who married Henry C. Hoffman (1804-1875).  It also can be determined that one of John’s sons, Jonas Welker (1809-1888) had three sons who served in the Civil War:  William Welker (1835-1922), Josiah Welker (1837-1926), and Benjamin Welker (1849-1926).  These grandchildren of John Welker would have been associated with this property in the pre-Civil War years.

William Welker (1835-1922) served in the 130th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company H from 12 August 1862 through muster out on 21 May 1863.  He then joined the regular Army as part of the 16th United States Infantry, Company F, where he served from 29 March 1864 though the post-war period until 29 March 1867.  William married Elizabeth Shoop and had about 11 children with her.  He worked as a laborer, a farmer and a coal miner.  He is buried in St. Peter’s (Hoffman’s) Cemetery in Lykens Township.

Josiah Welker (1837-1926) served in the 36th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company C, for the Emergency of 1863 (from 4 July 1863 through 4 August 1863).  He later joined the 200th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company F, as a Private, and began service 23 August 1864 but was unaccounted for when the regiment mustered out.   He married Catherine Spayd and had six children with her.  Josiah worked as a sawyer, a farmer, and a grocer man.  He is buried in Mt. Pleasant Cemetery, Middle Paxton Township, Dauphin County.

Benjamin Welker (1849-1922) served in the 200th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company F, as a Private.  From his age, it appears that he lied in order to enlist  early, 29 August 1864.  Within a short time after his enlistment, he deserted but was caught.  The penalty could not have been too severe because he received an honorable discharge with his company on 30 May 1865.  Benjamin married Elizabeth Gunderman and with her had seven children.  He worked as a peddler, a carpenter, a laborer, a farmer, and finally as a hotel owner in Wiconisco.  He is buried in Fairview Cemetery in Williamstown.

The Welker family undoubtedly had other connections to the Civil War and research is still being done to determine all the veterans in this extended family.  For now, it is believed that those mentioned above, were the only ones directly connected with this property.

After the death of John Welker in 1854, the conveyance of the property to Benneville Kissinger was made and for the actual Civil War years, it was in his possession.  Benneville was a stone mason.  The tax records for 1865 list the owner as Margaret Kissinger.  Margaret was the mother of Benneville and was born Margaret Hawk.

In 1876, the property was sold to Benjamin Guise (1806-1884), a farmer in Lykens Township who raised livestock.  He was married to Margaret Umholtz (1810-1896).  Additional Civil War connections with this house can be made through the Guise or Gise family.

Sarah Gise (1845-1934), the daughter of Benjamin and Margaret, was first married to George Garber (1843-1873) who served in the 25th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company D, as a Private from 18 April 1861 through 26 July 1861; in the 36th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company C, as a sergeant, from 4 July 1863 through 11 August 1863; and the 210th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company H, as a 1st Lieutenant, from 14 September 1864 through 30 May 1865.  After George died in 1873, Sarah moved into the house on Lot #85 owned by her father and opened a business selling sundries, sewing supplies, and children’s shoes.    Later she married Benjamin Evitts (1822-1909), a tailor, and Civil War veteran of the 177th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I, of which he was the Captain.  Benjamin Evitts moved into the house and operated his tailor business from one of the outbuildings.  For additional information on Capt. Evitts see previous posts:   Pennsylvania Drafted Militia and the Draft of 1862 and Peace Cemetery, Berrysburg.

Sarah’s twin sister, Mary Gise (1845-1934) married Jacob Shiro (1843-1920), a German immigrant who took up farming in Lykens Township and was a merchant and dealer of implements in Gratz.  Shiro first served under Capt. Evitts in the 177th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I, as a Private, and then joined the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry, Company G, as a Private and served from 14 march 1865 through 25 June 1865.  He was mustered out at New Bern, North Carolina.  When Capt. Evitts lived in the house on this lot, Shiro was probably a frequent visitor there.

Joseph D. Gise (1834-1908) was the older brother of Sarah and Mary.  He served in the 177th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company I, as a 2nd Lieutenant, also under Capt. Evitts who would later become his brother-in-law.  Joseph married Elizabeth Witmer of Pillow and had three children, one of whom became an attorney and another who became a school teacher, both in Schuylkill Haven.  Joseph worked first as a laborer, but then attended an academy in Union County and became a school teacher in Lykens Township. He also had a long career representing the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in the 14th Congressional District, of which Gratz was a part.  Later, in retirement, he purchased a farm in Lykens Township and raised livestock.  He is buried in Gratz Union Cemetery.

Additional information is sought on the Civil War veterans indicated as well as any others associated with this property.  Readers are invited to contribute.

Some of the information for this post was taken from the book A Comprehensive History of the Town of Gratz Pennsylvania.

Category: Research, Stories | Comments Off on Gratz During the Civil War – Kissinger House
Tags: Evitts family, Gise family, Gratz Borough, Guise family, Gunderman family, Hawk family, Kissinger family, Lykens Township, Pillow, Shoop family, Spayd family, Umholtz family, Walking Tour, Welker family, Wiconisco, Williamastown, Witmer family

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 7, 2011

DEATH OF JOHN WERNER

LYKENS – The many friends at this place of John Werner, proprietor of the Union House, Tower City, were shocked to hear of his death, which occurred Tuesday evening at 9 o’clock [12 February 1901].  Mr. Werner and wife visited the Big Run hotel, a few miles west of town, last Friday, for the purchase of which he was negotiating; in fact the deal had been consumated, but for some reason Mr. Werner failed to take possession at the time specified, and it was on business in regard to this matter, that the trip was made.  On returning home that evening he retired early as he was suffering from an attack of the grip.  The next day he grew worse, and the case gradually developed into pneumonia.  On Tuesday evening, Dr. W. J. Smith of this place was sent for but before the party sent for the doctor could find him word was received that Mr. Werner had died.

John Werner was a native of the kingdom of Wurtemberg, Germany, and was born at Reittlinger on the 22nd of August, 1842.  He came to America 38 years ago and located at Pottsville.  At the age of 24, Sept. 5, 1864, he enlisted as a private in Company H, 210th Pennsylvania Volunteers, and was discharged on May 30, 1865, by reason of expiration of term of enlistment.  Sometime during the rebellion he came to Lykens and engaged in mining.  He married Fietta Koch shortly after coming here, and the union resulted in the birth of eight children, all of whom are living except one girl.  The funeral will be held on Sunday at 1 p.m.  Interment at Odd Fellows cemetery, this place.  Services will be held at the residence of the deceased by Rev. Bond of Tower City.

Mr. Werner for many years was engaged in the restaurant business at this place, and was very popular.  About six years ago he moved from this place to Elizabethville where he kept the Red Tavern for about a year, and from there moved to Riverside, opposite Danville, where he was engaged in the hotel business about one year.  On October, 1899, he rented the Union House at Tower City, which place he conducted at the time of his death.  He was a member of Lykens Conclave, No. 109, I.O.H., and carried an endowment of $1,000.  He was also a member of Heilner Post, No. 232, G.A.R., of this place.  Besides his wife and children he is survived by one brother, Jacob Werner of Main street, this place.

From the Lykens Standard, 15 February 1901.

FUNERAL OF JOHN WERNER

LYKENS – The funeral of John Werner of Tower City, who died at that place Tuesday, Feb. 12, [1901], of grip and pneumonia, was held last Sunday.  Services were conducted at the house by Rev. W. F. Bond, pastor of the Lutheran church of that place, after which the body was brought to Lykens for burial by special train leaving Tower City at 1:15 p.p. and arriving at the Williams Valley depot at the foot of Market street at 2:30 p.m.  [—] relatives and friends from Lykens [—] train carried many friends from Tower City, and on its arrival here were met by Heilner Post, No. 232, G.A.R., Lykens Conclave, No. 109, I.O.H., and a host of friends, after which the cortege proceeded to Odd Fellows’ cemetery where services were conducted by Rev. W. F. Bond and Lykens Conclave I.O.H.  The pallbearers were selected from the members of the Heptasophs and consisted of the following:  Louis Wewntzler, Herman F. Braener, Edgar S. Rettinger, H.H. Tallman, H.H. Gemberling, and Henry Bowman.  Those present from a distance were Harry Werner and family, Richard McClure and family, John Werner, Jr., Stephen Troub, Minersville; Susie Werner, Philadelphia; Mrs. Herman Werner and son, St. Clair; Jacob Hartsline and family, George Reiff, Mrs. Hull, Pottsville; William Forney, Danville; Philip Koch and wife, Gratz.

The floral tributes consisted of a sheaf of wheat from Susie Werner, a pillow from the widow, a sheaf of wheat from Heilner Relief Corps, and handsome bouquets from the children.

he family desires us to thank the neighbors and friends for the many acts of kindness shown to them in their sad bereavement.

From the Lykens Standard, 22 February 1901.

Pennsylvania Veterans’ File Card for John Werner [named as John Warner] for the 210th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company H.  From:  Pennsylvania Archives.

Lykens G.A.R. Monument naming John Warner [same as John Werner] as a Charter Member of Heilner Post, G.A.R., Lykens, Dauphin County, Pennsylvania. Name appears at bottom of last column.  [Click on picture to enlarge].

Pension Index Card needed to locate the pension application records of John Werner and his widow, Fietta [Koch] Werner, at the National Archives.  Note that there was no application for John Werner but that his widow applied after this death and she eventually received a pension as noted by the certificate number.  From:  Ancestry.com.

Additional information is sought on John Werner – particularly military records or family pictures.

Category: Research, Resources, Stories | Comments Off on Death and Funeral of John Werner
Tags: Big Run, Elizabethville, G.A.R., Gratz Borough, Koch family, Lykens Borough, Regiments, Tower City, Warner family, Werner family, Williams Township

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 6, 2011

This is the tenth in a series of posts on Gratz during the Civil War. The original house on Lot #66 on the south side of Market Street was built before 1838.  In 1838, a property transaction was made whereupon Conrad Schreffler, a blue dyer, who had been in Gratz for about 20 years, obtained the house and land.  But actual possession was never taken and within a short time, the property was conveyed to Solomon Laudenslager and Schrerffler moved to Ohio; Laudenslager owned it from 1838 to 1845.  Between 1845 and 1850, it was owned by John Salada and John Bower (1791-1847).  In 1850, it was purchased by John Alspach (1780-1864) who retained ownership through most of the Civil War years.

The above picture is from the late twentieth century and no earlier pictures of the house have been yet located.  Its basic appearance is probably similar to the original construction, minus the porch.

Not much is known about John Alspach except that his children were grown and had their own families when he moved here.  One of his sons, Jacob Alspach (1805-1894), married Sarah Erdman (1814-1879).  Sarah’s sister, Esther Erdman married Philip McKinney who died young in 1846 leaving Esther with a small child, Philip McKinney (1845-1906), whereupon Jacob and Sarah invited Esther and her son to move in with them.  Although this extended Jacob Alspach family did not live at the house on Lot #66, they undoubtedly visited the John Alspach‘s who lived there and the young Philip McKinney was most likely welcomed as an “adopted” grandchild.

Philip McKinney (1845-1906) is the only person with a Civil War military connection thus far identified in any way with this house.  Philip served in the 103rd Pennsylvania Infantry, Company G, as a Private, from 14 March 1865 through 25 June 1865, and spent much of his service time in North Carolina with other members of his company, most of which were from the Gratz area.

Philip McKinney was a laborer and farmer and spent most of his post-war years in Lykens Township.  He married Katie Klinger (1849-1892) and together they had eight children.  He is buried in Pomfret Manor Cemetery, Sunbury, Northumberland County, Pennsylvania.

When John Alspach died in 1864, his will stated that his daughter Rebecca Alspach (1819-1902) should be allowed to purchase the house and property, which the heirs conveyed to her in December 1964.  Rebecca was married to Jacob Buffington (1818-1885) and she and her husband moved into the house and raised their only child there, Mary Buffington, who later married Jacob McNoldy.  Rebecca’s situation was strange for the times in that she had been married to Jacob Buffington in 1842, but deserted him in 1846.  Jacob was a sarsaparilla bottler in Gratz and received a divorce decree in 1849 and in 1850, Rebecca was living with her parents at this house.  But by 1858, Rebecca and Jacob had apparently settled their differences, re-united in marriage, and were the parents of Mary.

After Jacob’s death in 1885, Rebecca, who had retained title to the house throughout her later years with Jacob, conveyed the title to her daughter Mary, but Rebecca continued to live there until her death in 1902.  Rebecca’s daughter Mary and son-in-law Jacob McNoldy lived in the house and raised a son William there.  Jacob McNoldy operated a cabinetmaking business in a shop in an outbuilding in the rear.  Later, William McNoldy, who was a hunchback, opened a photography studio in the outbuilding.  The outbuilding is no longer there.

Some of the information for this post was taken from the book A Comprehensive History of the Town of Gratz Pennsylvania.

Category: Research, Stories | Comments Off on Gratz During the Civil War – Rebecca Alspach Buffington House
Tags: Alspach family, Buffington family, Gratz Borough, Klinger family, Laudenslager family, McKinney family, McNoldy family, Salada family, Schreffler family, Walking Tour

Posted By Norman Gasbarro on September 5, 2011

The Robert C. “Pete” Wiscount Veteran’s Memorial Park is located on the south side of the main street (Route 209) of Tremont, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania.

The dedicatory plaque reads:

Robert C. “Pete” Wiscount Veteran’s Memorial Park

This park, built on the site of the Tremont Hardware, was erected through Pete’s vision, leadership, and dedication.  His commitment to his town, his country, and those who served, will be remembered here.  Presented by his family, 12 August 2006.

The inscription on the veteran’s monument reads:

This place of honor is dedicated to all those from the Tremont area who served and will serve our country.  We recognize their devotion to duty and the sacrifices they made to protect our freedoms.

The planter bed around the main monument contains flag holders and flags which represent all the branches of the armed forces and all the wars in which Tremont residents fought. There are two G.A.R. Star-Flag Holders representing the Civil War veterans.

A walk leading to the centerpiece monument is edged with memorial bricks contributed by family and friends of individual veterans.

One brick is for Civil War veteran John M. Brown.

John M. Brown was born 29 December 1836 in Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, the son of John Brown and Sarah [Maurer] Brown.  In July 1861, he enlisted as a Private in the 48th Pennsylvania Infantry, Company K, also known as the Wilder Guards.  With his term of service over on 31 December 1863, he re-enlisted on 1 January 1864 as a Corporal.  On 16 June 1865 he was promoted to Sergeant and on 17 July 1865 he was mustered out with his company.  At the time of his enlistment in 1861 he gave his occupation as pump maker.  During the war, John married Rebecca Zerbe of Schuylkill County and together they had six known children:  John H. Brown, born 1862; Sarah M. Brown, born 1864; Charles Brown, born 1866; Mary S. Brown, born 1868; Isabella Brown, born 1870; and Jeremiah Brown, born 1872.  After the war, John M. Brown became a farmer in Schuylkill County.  He died on 19 April 1914 and is buried in Hetzel’s Church Cemetery in Pine Grove, Pennsylvania.

Category: Memorials | Comments Off on Robert C. “Pete” Wiscount Veteran’s Memorial Park, Tremont
Tags: Brown family, Maurer family, Monument, Regiments, Tremont, Zerbe family