Norman Gasbarro | June 20, 2011
A recent donation of two large size portraits to the Gratz Historical Society has re-opened the question, “Who is John Hess?” Originally, the name of John Hess was added to the list of veterans from the Lykens Valley area because the name appears on the Millersburg Civil War Monument. Since no other John Hess was […]
Norman Gasbarro | June 19, 2011
This is the second part in a series on Civil War Gratz. This post focuses on the first public school in Gratz which was on Lot #11. The 1862 map of Gratz has a space marked “S.H.” where the school house existed. Most records indicate that there was a free public school located on Lot […]
Norman Gasbarro | June 17, 2011
St. Michael’s Lutheran Church, located in Klingerstown, Schuylkill County, Pennsylvania, has a relatively new cemetery for the Lykens Valley area, the first recorded burial being recorded there in 1894, the same year the church was built. It was that of Barbara [Wiest] Klinger (1832-1894), the wife of David S. Klinger (1827-1916). The church is located […]
Norman Gasbarro | June 8, 2011
Returning Civil War veterans, undoubtedly impressed with the pomp and music provided by regimental or brigade bands during their wartime experience, brought the experience home with them. There was a rapid growth of town and village bands in the post-war period. There is an account of an early band in Gratz in 1856, the Umholtz […]
Norman Gasbarro | May 2, 2011
Click on picture to enlarge From 1863 to 1865, four drafts took place in the United States. The draft call of 1863 required registration of eligible men between the ages of 20 and 45, divided into two classes as described below in the Ancestry.com data base, U.S. Civil War Draft Registration Records, 1863-1865: This […]
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