Damian Shiels's Blog, page 3

Podcast: The Irish Brigade and Irish at Antietam

In advance of St. Patrick’s Day I joined John Banks and Tom McMillan of the Antietam and Beyond Podcast to chat about the Irish Brigade and other Irish at Antietam, and Irish participation in the Civil War more generally. It was a really enjoyable chat- you can find it wherever you got your podcasts, by searching for Antietam and Beyond, or by visiting the podcast site here. John and Tom need little introduction; John runs the John Banks’ Civil War Blog (see his most recent publication is A Civil War Roadtrip of a Lifetime) while Tom has also authored multiple history books, and his latest is Our Flag Was Still There. I have been greatly enjoying their Antietam podcast so far, it is well worth checking out their past episodes. I hope you enjoy it!

“He took my Hand in His and Bid Me a Last Farewell”: A Limerick Emigrant Dies from Cholera, 1867

A previous StoryMap post on the site explored the devastating toll the 1866-67 Cholera epidemic took on immigrant and African American families connected with the Regular army (you can read that here). In this post, we take a look at a letter that emerged as a result of that wave of death which struck the army’s ranks. It was written to Irish woman Mary Duggan from Fort Hays, Kansas in 1867 to inform her of the circumstances by which her son Daniel, a Corporal in the 5th United States Infantry, had lost his battle with the disease.

The Duggan family had emigrated to New York from Co. Limerick in July 1857, Dan’s father Gordon having died during the Famine years. In the United States they made their home at 53 East Broadway on Manhattan. Dan was a slater and plasterer by trade, but between the Panic of 1857 and the Civil War he struggled to get regular work, able only to secure occasional labouring positions. It was apparently this that led him to enlist. His 5th regiment served out the Civil War in New Mexico, where they were involved in some of the most westerly fighting to take place during the conflict. In 1867 they were moved to Kansas in order to protect new settlers moving into the west. It was during the journey that Dan fell ill.

[image error]The stone blockhouse at Fort Hays, Kansas (IVeGoneAway via Wikipedia)

Fort Hays K.S. 

November 17th 1867

Mrs Mary Duggan

Maddam I received your welcome letter of Novb 7th last and was glad to receive a note from the mother of my friend Danial Duggan who departed this life August 8th 1867 at Fort Wallace Kansas after a long march from New Mexico and was in good health all the time up to the day he took sick he died with Cholera after suffering 4 hours only. He died without a Clergy Man as did a great manny more of my old friends the same day and next day. I attended to Dan untill he died he departed this life with a good will after a fue remarks I made to him in those words so cheering as I thought: Dan you are a Roman Catholic and put your Trust in God and he said he would, asking me to remember him to his dear mother and sister. So saying he took my hand in his and bid me a last farewell. His old company interd him the next day with the honour due to a good soldier. May he rest in peace amen. 

Mrs Duggan I gave my captain $60 of dollars that Danial gave me the day be took sick it will be sent to you by express there are also comming to him $127 and 36 cts clothing mony, $75 bounty one month and 8 days Corporals pay propper and 8.36 dollars back pay all this you can obtain by getting some one to write to the Adjutant General of the Army.��

Please Mam answer back soon

And I remain your obedient friend

Denis Byrne

1st Sergt Company G 5th US Inf

There are a number of interesting elements to the letter. As we have seen countless times, it was a fellow Irish American who took it upon himself to inform Dan’s mother as to his fate- a marker of how tight knit these ethnic groups tended to be in service. Denis also does his best to reassure Dan’s mother that–despite the absence of a priest to administer last rites–he had a “good death.” The passage where Denis describes Dan’s final moments is particularly poignant. The wider Duggan pension file also provides us with an interesting insight into working-class letter curation. The family reported that this letter was the only one that survived, and that the other correspondence Dan had sent home had been destroyed. This was a common occurrence among poorer families, who could not keep lots of personal possessions, and often were only partially literate. That is one of the reasons there is a relative dearth of correspondence from working-class Civil War soldiers and sailors–and one of the reasons the pension files are such an invaluable resource.��

[image error]The grave of Daniel Duggan at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas (Walter Schley via Find A Grave)

Appeal: Seeking Information on Leitrim Civil War Servicemen

As regular readers will be aware we are pretty fond of a map here on Irish in the American Civil War. One of our previous initiatives was the Mapping Donegal Veterans project, which plotted American Civil War links to that county onto an interactive map. It generated a lot of online and media interest, and many requests for us to add other Irish counties to the list. I am pleased to say we are now hoping to do so, thanks to the efforts of University of Limerick Master’s in history student Ben Wrafter. Ben is focusing his efforts on Co. Leitrim, and is appealing to our readers to help him.

Ben is writing a thesis concentrating on the impact of the American Civil War on Leitrim people and is eager to hear from any of the community who know of any. His emphasis is on those who also experienced the Famine- people born before 1835 who emigrated between 1847/8 and 1864 who fought in the conflict are of particular interest. To date approximately 135 men have been identified by previous researchers who were born in Leitrim and who fought in the American Civil War. Of these 43 have were born before 1835. Ben is particularly interested in the following information:

What was the nature of the lives of these men in Ireland before they emigrated to America.What districts of Leitrim were they born in.What were their family circumstances.What form of employment did they or their parents have while they lived in Ireland.When did the emigrate to America.What ports did they leave from in Ireland and arrive at in America.Did the emigrate on their own or in families.What were their circumstances in America when they arrived.
a. Where did they live.
b. What type of employment did they have,
c. Did they Marry and have family.
d. Why did they join the army.

We are very pleased to be helping Ben out with this project, and hope to share some of his results with readers in due time. If anyone feels they have information which might help, you can contact Ben at benwrafter@gmail.com or Damian Shiels at shielsheritage[at]gmail.com.

Video: Dedication of the Irish Memorial at Andersonville National Historic Site

The recent dedication of the memorial at Andersonville was a historic event. As well as remembering the impact of the prison on Irish emigrants and their families, it was the first time that an American Civil War related memorial was unveiled by the Government of Ireland, acting in partnership with the Northern Ireland Bureau. In December Andersonville National Historic Site, who filmed the dedication ceremony, uploaded the video of the event to their YouTube Channel, so now it is possible for everyone to experience the import and emotion of the day. You can watch the video below. The running order of speakers and time they appear in the video is as follows:

Andersonville National Historic Site Superintendent Gia Wagner (0.00)

Consul General of Ireland in Atlanta Caoimhe N�� Chonch��ir (1.27)

Mayor Lee Kinnamon of Americus, Georgia (2.50)

Mrs Allyson Drynnan, Field Representative of Congressman Sandford Bishop (6.24)

Deputy Director Eamonn McConville, Northern Ireland Bureau (9.10)

Damian Shiels, Irish in the American Civil War (11.20)

Minister for Housing, Local Government & Heritage Darragh O’Brien (21.44)

Professor Nicholas Allen, Willson Center for Humanities & Arts, University of Georgia (29.27)

Chickamauga Spotlight: Company C, 38th Illinois Infantry- An Irish Labouring Gang at War?

One of the notable outcomes of our ongoing Andersonville Irish Project is the identification of concentrations of Irish servicemen in non-ethnic regiments, including largely Irish companies. A lot more work is needed on such Irish company level formations, exploring how they formed and what they experienced during service. Indeed, we currently don’t even have sufficient data to identify just how many such companies existed across the U.S. military during the American Civil War. One particularly interesting example has come to light due to the nativity of Battle of Chickamauga POWs identified at Andersonville. It comes in the form of Company C of the 38th Illinois Infantry, ostensibly formed of men from Champaign and Fayette Counties. However, the makeup and origins of the company raises the possibility that some of its men may not have been permanent residents in that part of Illinois, but were instead there in 1861 for labouring work.

The 38th Illinois Infantry was organised at Camp Butler, Illinois in September 1861. The regiment’s first Colonel was William Passmore Carlin, who would rise to generalship and divisional command before war’s end. By the time the Battle of Chickamauga came round in September 1863 the regiment had already seen hard service, most particularly at Stones River, Tennessee, where they lost 177 casualties. They entered the Chickamauga battlefield reduced to a strength of just 301 men, a figure further reduced on 19th September when they were heavily engaged in the vicinity of the Viniard Field. The following day they were among those unfortunate units positioned south of the Brotherton Field who suffered significant losses following the Confederate breakthrough. It was during this fighting of the 20th that the majority of the men of the 38th who became prisoners fell into enemy hands. During their two days at Chickamauga the 38th Illinois lost 15 men killed, 87 wounded, and 78 missing.

[image error] 38th Illinois Monument, Viniard Field, Chickamauga National Battlefield (Damian Shiels).

Within Company C of the 38th Illinois, thirteen men lost their lives as a direct result of the Chickamauga fight. Five were killed or mortally wounded during the battle itself, while another eight subsequently perished as POWs at Andersonville and Danville. One of these men was born in England and another in the United States- the remaining eleven were all from Ireland. Added to this, all bar one of the enlisted fatalities of Company C had been recorded as a “laborer” at the the time of their enlistment. The strong Irish character and labouring background of these men prompts a closer look at Company C. Regular readers may be familiar with a previous foray into the story of one of it’s men- Paddy Nojeen Gallagher from Arranmore Island in Co. Donegal. Paddy was also taken prisoner at Chickamauga, surviving to eventually return home to his place of origin off the Irish coast (you can view a talk about Paddy and his experiences delivered on Arranmore Island here). Work on Paddy’s story revealed he had little connection with Fayette County, despite having enlisted in Vandalia. But what of the other men of Company C?

[image error]The house Paddy Nojeen Gallagher lived in after he returned to Arranmore Island, and where he died in 1920. He had enlisted in Vandalia, Illinois in August 1861 and served in Company C of the 38th Illinois. Captured at Chickamauga in September 1863, he survived Andersonville Prison to eventually return to his home island (Damian Shiels).

An analysis of Company C indicates that by September 1863 there were a little over 60 officers and men on the roster, though it seems probable as few as half of them were physically present at Chickamauga. The company were led into the engagement by Captain Thomas Cole. An Irish-born Saloon Keeper based out of Champaign City, Illinois, he had commanded the company for most of its existence, taking over from French-native Captain Theodore Rodrig at the beginning of November 1861. Thomas was an interesting character. Around 36-years-old at Chickamauga, after the war allegations would emerge that he had abandoned his family in Ireland in 1857, and that Elizabeth, the woman he claimed to be his wife on arrival in America, had in fact eloped with him. Worse, it was alleged the pair had stolen American remittances from a Co. Westmeath Post Office, where Elizabeth worked and where Thomas was the Mail Coach driver. It is difficult to determine the veracity of the allegations (although there is some compelling evidence to support it, Elizabeth appears to have won a case to maintain her pension against a rival claim from Ireland, despite an intervention against her by a Westmeath clergyman). The reason the issue came to the surface at all was due to Thomas’s fate at Chickamauga- he had been mortally wounded leading his men on 19th September, dying the same day. During the next day’s fight the company was commanded by 31-year-old James Mullen, who had been First Lieutenant coming into the engagement. Another Irishman, he had been a Section Boss based in Pulaski County when he first enlisted in 1861.

[image error] The grave of Captain Thomas Cole of Company C at Chattanooga National Cemetery (82 VFL via Find A Grave).

Outside the officers, it is apparent that labourers-and Irish labourers in particular- utterly dominated the outfit. The bulk had joined in Vandalia, Fayette County in August 1861, although some were also recorded as residing in Urbana, Champaign County. Of the 61 enlisted men still being formally listed as part of the Company in September 1863, 78.5% were labourers. More than 62% of the surviving enlisted men had been born in Ireland and more than 67% were immigrants. Although the Adjutant General’s report recorded a lot of the men as locally resident, very few of them are identifiable in Fayette or Champaign Counties in the 1860 Census. The potential that many of the men may have been transient residents in the company’s catchment area, or at least very new arrivals, is also reflected in some of the early pension claims made by the widows and families of Company C fatalities. Among them, only the pension for Captain Cole was claimed at an address within Fayette or Champaign Counties. The others were spread further afield through Illinois, Michigan and St. Louis, Missouri. A lot of the men in Company C were single, despite the fact that their make-up was not especially young- by September 1863 there were more men over 30 than under it among their ranks (See Figure 1). All of this suggests the possibility that at least some of the men may have been part of labouring or works gangs who had happened to be employed in the Company’s recruitment area in 1861. If that was the case, it is tempting to think that Lieutenant Mullen’s connections as a Section Boss may have played a role in bringing so many labourers into the company.

[image error] Figure 1. Approximate ages of men still being recorded as part of Company C by 1863. Many of them were over 30-years-old (Damian Shiels).

Aside from raising questions about the men’s initial path into the military, the available information on Company C allows us an unusually detailed glimpse at the Irish origins of many of the soldier’s in September 1863. What emerges is the dominance of immigrants from Ireland’s southernmost province, Munster, where almost 50% of the Irish-born men came from. Tipperary, with five identified representatives, was the most represented county. Another 25% came from Ireland’s northernmost province, Ulster (Among them was the aforementioned Paddy Nojeen Gallagher, who had one other Donegal man in the ranks for company in late 1863, Edward Slaven).

PROVINCEPERCENTAGEMunster48.5%Ulster24.5%Leinster15%Connacht12%The Province of origin and % representation of Irish-born men recorded as being members of Company C, 38th Illinois in 1863 (Damian Shiels).

I hope to carry out more detailed work on Company C of the 38th Illinois to reveal more about the men who served in its ranks. It also fits the bill to serve as a case study to explore the origins, experience and aftermath of an Irish company serving in a non-ethnic regiment, particularly given the potential labouring origins of many of its men. To that end I hope to begin pulling together some more primary source material to facilitate such an examination, potentially juxtaposing it with analysis of another more overtly “Irish” company in non-ethnic regimental service. In the meantime, I will keep you apprised of progress on that front, and in the meantime if any readers have insights into the Company’s formation (or indeed its men/service), I would be most eager to hear from you.

38th Illinois Infantry Company C Dead resulting from the Battle of Chickamauga

Captain Thomas Cole, Pass of Kilbride, Co. Westmeath, Mortally Wounded 19 September.

Corporal James Hayes, Bandon, Co. Cork, Killed in Action 20 September.

Private Arthur McCarthy, Co. Down, Killed in Action 20 September.

Private John Comfort, Co. Tipperary, Missing in Action 19/20 September.

Private John Holland, Co. Clare, Mortally Wounded in Action 19 September.

Corporal Patrick Kinney, Co. Galway, Died a POW.

Private John Hester, Ireland, Died a POW.

Private Michael Kennedy, Co. Kilkenny, Died a POW.

Private Michael Jordan, Co. Clare, Died a POW.

Private Patrick Fitzpatrick, Co. Cavan, Died a POW.

Private Peter Lynch, Co. Cavan, Died a POW.

Private Isaac Branch, England, Died a POW.

Private Finaldo Logan, Ohio, Died a POW.

References

Illinois Adjutant General’s Report, 38th Illinois Infantry.

Illinois Civil War Muster & Descriptive Rolls.

Civil War Widow’s & Dependent Pensions.

History of Fayette County, Illinois.

Official Records of the War of the Rebellion.

StoryMap: A Walk Among Storied Tombstones-Marietta National Cemetery

The latest StoryMap from my recent Civil War related trip to Georgia and Tennessee is now live. This one is the latest installment of the “Storied Tombstones” series, which explores Irish graves in National Cemeteries. Those in Marietta relate to soldiers who died in the 1864 Atlanta Campaign. The StoryMap, which has images and audio, traces a number of them back to their communities of origin in America, Ireland and England. You can view the StoryMap by clicking here.

Podcast: The Irish in Andersonville- The Deadliest Place in America

Recently I joined Fin of the Irish History Podcast to discuss the Andersonville Irish Project and the memorial plaque to the Irish unveiled at Andersonville National Historic Site. The episode is now available through all the usual podcast hosts, and you can also listen to it by clicking here. It was a really interesting discussion, I hope you enjoy it!

StoryMap: In the Footsteps of Chicago’s Irish Legion, Chattanooga, 1863

I have recently returned from Georgia and Tennessee where I was on the trail of Irish in the American Civil War. A lot of my posts over the next period will relate to that trip. One of the opportunities I had while there was to join Chickamauga & Chattanooga National Military Park Historian James Ogden for a tour of sites relating to “Chicago’s Irish Legion”-the 90th Illinois Infantry- during the Battle of Missionary Ridge. Jim’s expertise is breathtaking, and it was a great privilege to be able to spend a few hours in his company on the battlefield. I have completed a StoryMap Tour of the day so that readers can virtually follow in our footsteps through images and video. To view the StoryMap, click on this link.

Andersonville Irish Project: The First 850- Service

Earlier this week, to mark the major upcoming Irish event at Andersonville National Historic Site we shared the first of our new project infographics, which explored the demographics of the first 850 men we have identified. You can check that out here. Now we are sharing the second infographic, which more closely examines the service of the Andersonville Irish- details such as where they enlisted, who they served with, and when they died. To explore the infographic in detail, just click on the image below to enlarge it. Remember you can find it and more Andersonville Irish content over at the Project Page.

[image error] The Andersonville Irish: The First 850 – Service. Click image to enlarge.

Andersonville Irish Project: The First 850- Demographics

Last week we brought you the big news of the upcoming 19th October event at the Andersonville National Historic Site, when a plaque will be unveiled to commemorate the Irish American dead of Andersonville and their families (more on that here). To mark the occasion we have prepared two new project infographics, each of which examines some of the key facts and figures relating to the first 850 Andersonville Irish identified. This post shares the first, which examines the demographics of the 850. To explore the infographic in more detail just click on the image below. Remember too that you can check out the full Andersonville Irish database of 850 men as well as the interactive map of Ireland charting where hundreds of them were from over at the Project Page. The second infographic will be released later this week.

[image error] The Andersonville Irish: The First 850 – Demographics. Click image to enlarge.