Damian Shiels's Blog, page 39

‘I Am Not Long For This World': An Irish-American Soldier Says Goodbye to His Family

The last post on the site examined a mother’s desperate attempts to contact her wounded son. Equally poignant are those letters, occasionally included in the files, which impart a soldier’s final words to his family from his deathbed. On 23rd February 1864, George Carl of the 7th Ohio Infantry sat by the bed of William Brophy of the 29th Pennsylvania, in the Union General Hospital at Bridgeport, Alabama. William’s end was near, and both men knew it. The soldier was suffering from chronic diarrhea, a cause of death that was listed for thousands of soldiers during the war. Unable to write himself, William dictated a letter to George, addressing his last thoughts to his wife back home in Philadelphia. (1)

A hospital ward in a convalescent camp near Alexandria (Library of Congress)

Although William Brophy is recorded as being born in England in the 1860 Census, there is little doubt that he was a member of the Irish-American community. Quite a number of pension files demonstrate earlier Irish emigration to England and Scotland prior to the ultimate move to the United States. William’s wife Bridget (née Mulhall) had been born in Ireland, and all the affidavits associated with the pension claim were provided by individuals bearing Irish surnames. The couple had been married at St. James Church, Philadelphia on 14th February 1858. It appears that William had been married previously, as he had two sons whose birth pre-dated the union; Andrew born on 13th July 1851 and Michael born on the 12th March 1854. Bridget gave birth to a daughter, Mary Ann, on the 3rd October 1861. Mary Ann had not yet arrived into the world when 32-year-old William marched off to war. He had enlisted in Company D of the 29th Pennsylvania Infantry on 8th July 1861. (2)

William saw long and arduous service with the regiment over the course of the next few years, surviving a number of engagements. But by February 1864 illness looked certain to have done for him. Here is the letter he dictated to George Carl in Bridgeport during those final days:

Bridgeport, Alabama

February 23th /64

Dear Wife

With a sad heart that I write you this morning as it may be the last you ever will hear from me as I feal that I am not long for this world. but it greaves me much that I am not at home whare I could see all your loving faces once more before I leave this troublesome world but as it is gods will to take me away from you I hope that I may be better of in the better land. I hope that god may spare me a little longer but I thaught that I would write so as to have them ready at any moment if any thing should happen

well Dear Wife in regard to that money that James McMinon [owed?] it will not be long before it is dew and I hope that it will be of youse to you as I dont never expect to be thare again but if not in this world I hope in the next whare we will part no more

Well in regard to my backpay and bounty you can get someone to collect it for you as it will be of some youse to you give my love to my children and tell them of their father and to my brother and all friends and that I did not forget them

But I must close for the presant and maby for the last time in this world but hope that god may spare me a little longer but if not I will bid you all fare well hoping to meat you all in heavan

From your

Dear Husband Wm Brophy (3)

George Carl added the following note to the letter three days later, indicated William’s fate, which had befallen him the previous day:

February the 26 1864

Mrs Brophy

Sory to relate that your husbond Wm Brophy died yesterday and is buried hear at Bridgeport

Any information you may want I will give frely as far as I can

No More

George K. Carl

Writer

If you wish to write to me direct to George K. Carl, Co. G. 7. Ohio Regiment, 1st brigade, 2nd Division, 12th Army Corps, Bridgeport Alabamy (4)

When William died very few men from his unit were nearby. Those soldiers of the 29th Pennsylvania who had elected to re-enlist as veteran volunteers had left Bridgeport the previous December, heading home to enjoy their veteran furlough. As William lay dying in the General Hospital in Bridgeport, the majority of his comrades were back in Philadelphia with their loved ones. George Carl, the good Samaritan who wrote the letter for William and informed Bridget of his death, survived his war service. Bridget, who wasn’t yet 30-years-old when her husband died, re-married in 1867, wedding Irish laborer William Donnelly. William Brophy’s children would be unable to hold on to their father’s final words as a keepsake; the letter was submitted by Bridget to the Pension Office in order to claim a pension based on her husband’s service. After the war William’s body was moved to Chattanooga Military Cemetery, where he lies in Section H, Grave 11006. (5)

Chattanooga National Cemetery, where William Brophy is buried (Hal Jespersen)

*None of my work on pensions would be possible without the exceptional effort currently taking place in the National Archives to digitize this material and make it available online via Fold3. A team from NARA supported by volunteers are consistently adding to this treasure trove of historical information. To learn more about their work you can watch a video by clicking here.

(1) William Brophy Widow’s Pension File; (2) 1860 US Census, William Brophy Widow’s Pension File, Bates 1869: 515; (3) William Brophy Widow’s Pension File; (4) Ibid.; (5) Bates 1869: 500, William Brophy Widow’s Pension File;

References

William Brophy Widow’s Pension File WC112561

1860 US Federal Census

Bates, Samuel P. 1869. History of the Pennsylvania Volunteers 1861-5

Hal Jespersen Images

Filed under: Pennsylvania Tagged: 29th Pennsylvania Infantry, 7th Ohio Infantry, Alabama Civil War, Irish American Civil War, Irish Diaspora, Last Letter From the Front, National Archive Pension Files, US National Archives

‘For God Sake Dear Son Write To Me': An Irish Mother’s Desperate Plea in the Summer of 1864

I have come across hundreds of letters written by Irish people during the American Civil War in the Widows and Dependents Pension Files. In reading each one, I always do so in the awareness that the story ultimately did not have a happy ending- in every case the soldier died as a result of his service. I recently came across one particularly poignant note, a mere five lines in length, written by an Irish mother to her son in the summer of 1864. The brief and emotional passage captures the anxiety, desperation and hope she was feeling when she created it. (1)

Soldiers of the 170th New York Infantry, Corcoran’s Irish Legion during the Civil War (Library of Congress)

The author of the note was Anna Heron, a woman on whom we have precious little information. We know she was married to Jeremiah Heron in Ireland around November 1839; her husband passed away in August 1854. Jeremiah’s death apparently left her reliant on the support of her son John, who paid her a significant portion of his wages each week. On 10th September 1862 the then 21-year-old enlisted in the 170th New York Infantry, one of the regiments in Corcorcan’s Irish Legion. John’s surname was variously spelt Heron, Herron, Herrin and even Ahern, and it was under ‘Ahern’ that he was recorded on the rosters of Company G of the 170th. On 24th May 1864, during the Overland Campaign, the 170th New York was sent across the North Anna River where they became locked in a desperate fight with Confederate infantry, particularly men of the 43rd North Carolina. At times the fighting was hand to hand- one Rebel later remembered that his unit ‘killed a great many Yankees, and our side lost some killed.’ John Heron was not killed in the action, but he was carried wounded from the field, having suffered a gunshot wound to the leg. Anna learned that John was wounded- either a comrade wrote to her with the news or she saw him mentioned in the newspaper casualty lists. But after this she heard nothing more. On 27th June, clearly desperate, she sent her son this pleading letter:

New York June 27 1864

My dear Son i rite you these few lines hoping to find you in good health as this leaves me in trouble about you_Dear son i rote to you twice and i recieved no answer yet and if you are alive i hope you will rite to me_dear son aint you got any one to rite for you_dear son i expected you in New York the rest of your regiment came to New York that was wounded_for god sake dear son write to me

no more at present from your affectionate mother

Mrs. A. Heron

direct your letter to 662 Water St New York (2)

Captured within Anna Heron’s five lines are the weeks of sickening anxiety she must have felt. Over a month had elapsed since John had been wounded at the North Anna. Did she fruitlessly search for her son among the wounded men of the regiment as they trickled back to New York? Her note contains the hope, however faint, that the reason John had not written was that there was no-one in his hospital who could write the letter for him. Any such hopes were dashed only a few days later, when the note was returned to her. On the other side of the paper a Hospital Clerk had written this all too brief message:

Washington Hall Branch

2 Div Gen Hospital

Alexandria Va June 29th 64

John E Herron died at this Hospital June 8 1864 with gunshot wound in left knee and was buried in this City in good order. (3)

An image exposed by Irish photographer Timothy O’Sullivan of Union troops entrenched on the northern side of the North Anna on 25th May 1864. The day before John Heron had been shot on the south side of the river (Library of Congress)

*None of my work on pensions would be possible without the exceptional effort currently taking place in the National Archives to digitize this material and make it available online via Fold3. A team from NARA supported by volunteers are consistently adding to this treasure trove of historical information. To learn more about their work you can watch a video by clicking here.

(1) John Ahern Dependent Mother’s Pension File; (2) NYAG Roster: 301, Rhea 2005: 348, John Ahern Dependent Mother’s Pension File; (3) John Ahern Dependent Mother’s Pension File.

References & Further Reading

John Ahern Dependent Mother’s Pension File WC85933

New York Adjutant General, 1905. Roster of the 170th New York Infantry

Rhea, Gordon 2005. To the North Anna River: Grant and Lee , May 13-25, 1864

Civil War Trust Battle of North Anna Page

Filed under: 170th New York, Battle of North Anna, Corcoran's Irish Legion, New York Tagged: 170th New York Infantry, Battle of North Anna, Corcoran's Irish Legion, Dependent Mother's Pension, Irish American Civil War, Irish Legion North Anna, Irish Women at War, Women and War

Hearing the Irish Accent of a Merrimac Victim Across 150 Years

On 8th March 1862, the Confederate Ironclad CSS Virginia (formerly the Merrimack) steamed out of Norfolk, Virginia to attack the Federal fleet in Hampton Roads. The resulting two-day encounter remains one of the most famous naval engagements in history. One Yankee sailor would later recall how an awful silence descended over the men of the Union fleet, and ‘not a word was spoken’ as they watched the Virginia’s approach. This was hardly surprising given that they were preparing to meet the ironclad in largely wooden ships. One of their number was Sergeant James Leahy, from Co. Limerick. A member of the 99th New York Infantry, he had been co-opted along with a number of his comrades to serve as a Seaman aboard the USS Congress. A few months before, James had written home to his wife, discussing events at the front and telling her not to worry about him. James’s letter is fascinating as he wrote much of it phonetically, allowing us to ‘hear’ much of his strong Irish accent across the passage of more than 150 years. On the 9th March 1862, the day after James first saw the CSS Virginia, the USS Monitor would arrive at Hampton Roads, sparking the first battle between ironclad vessels in the history of the world. James was not there to see it. He had been killed in action the day before, a victim of the Rebel ironclad’s merciless demonstration of a new age in naval power. (1)

The USS Congress, aboard which James Leahy lost his life (U.S. Naval Historical Center)

James was described as being 27 years old when he died in 1862. He was 5 feet 7 or 8 inches tall, with a light complexion, brown hair and eyes that his wife Joanna described as being ‘nearer blue’ than gray. He and Joanna Moylan had married on 31st August 1854 in Charlestown, Massachusetts and had two children, William (b. 1855) and Ellen (b. 1859). James had mustered in as a Corporal in Company I of the 99th New York on 6th August 1861, later being promoted Sergeant and transferred to Company D. The 99th were organised with the intention of putting them on gunboats to cruise the Atlantic coast, and were variously known as the ‘Union Coast Guard’, ‘Bartlett’s Naval Brigade’ and the ‘Lincoln Divers.’ In March 1862 Company D were assigned to the USS Congress, a move that would have fatal consequences for James Leahy. (2)

In applying for a widow’s pension, Joanna included a letter written to her by her husband from Hampton in October 1861. The letter itself is written on patriotic notepaper, headed with an image of Elmer Ellsworth, who had been shot and killed that May having torn down a Confederate flag which had been visible from Washington D.C. The letter appears to have been written by James himself rather than by an intermediary. What is fascinating about the document is his phonetic style. In other words James was writing the words the way he said them. In so doing, he has preserved elements of his clearly strong Irish accent for us. This permeates the document, even to the spelling of his own surname, which he writes as ‘Laehy’ (also how it appears in the roster). The spelling elsewhere, including in his pension file is ‘Leahey’ and today would be spelt ‘Leahy.’ However, to this day the surname is pronounced ‘Laehy’ in many rural areas. Other examples abound in his writing: ‘letter’ becomes ‘lether’, ‘severe’ is ‘sevear’, ‘getting’ is ‘gething’, ‘minute’ is ‘minit’, ‘better’ is ‘bether’, ‘here’ is ‘heir’, ‘reason’ is ‘resein’, ‘expedition’ is ‘expodision’, ‘worse’ is ‘warse’, ‘leave’ is ‘lave’, ‘tent’ is ‘tint’, ‘soldier’ is ‘solger’, and ‘deal’ is ‘dail.’ Many such pronunciations are still commonly heard in Co. Limerick today. James’s letter is produced below in its original form in full. It is followed by a second transcription in a more reader-friendly format. (3)

The start of James Leahy’s letter, with patriotic image (Fold3/National Archives)

Hampton October the 25 ’61

Dear Wife

It was with the greatist of plesure i reseived your lether this four noon bit i am sory that Nely is sick but i hope it wont be very sevear and i am well pleased that you are gething the relief for it will be sow much help tow you now i am satisfiead tow gow trow  harship as long as you have a nuff tow get a long with now dear wife dont let every think troble you for we must have hopse in the battle feld as well as out of it as for being propeard we ar propard at any minit tow see our enemy the thouths of batle is nothing tow ous now it is like a second nature dear wife i want you tow keep up your corige and not let small trifles troble you and you will be bether of as for my self every thing goese on well with me heir i have now resein tow complain

Now dear wife i sopose you woud like tow now how things is gething on heir we have a large army heir at presant and we expect that a expodision will leave heir soon their is a great many man of warse leaving heir at presant our boyes is very ansous for a skermus & with the enemy we may be cald of in the in the [sic.] espidision but we dow not now as yet whether we shall gow or not but if you dont hapin tow get a lether from me every week dow not be [im] patent for we may lave heir at any thime and i may not have a chanse tow writh for a week or sow sow dow not be uneasey my health is very good and my eyes is as well as ever in fact i am stouter and stronger now than you ever see me my duty is not near sow hard on me now as it had being sow i have now reson tow complain we find the wether gething rather cold tow live in tints sow it is un comfortabell for us now and we dont now whin we will get in bether quarters a solger has tow stand a great dail of harship in war times but the esecitmint kipes him up now dear wife i will finish by sinding my love to you and the childen

James Laehy

Direct your lether as before

James Laehy (4)

‘The Cumberland and Merrimac’ sung by Tim Eriksen recounts the destruction of the Cumberland by the Rebel ironclad. James Leahy would have witnessed the events described in this song, only moments before the Confederate vessel turned on his own ship, ultimately killing him.

Hampton October the 25th ’61

Dear Wife

It was with the greatest of pleasure I received your letter this forenoon but I am sorry that Nely is sick but I hope it won’t be very severe and I am well pleased that you are getting the relief for it will be so much help to you now I am satisfied to go through hardship as long as you have enough to get along with. Now dear Wife don’t let everything trouble you for we must have hopes in the battlefield as well as out of it for being prepared, we are prepared at any minute to see our enemy the thought of battle is nothing to us now it is like a second nature. Dear Wife I want you to keep your courage and not let small trifles trouble you and you will be better off, as for myself everything goes on well with me here I have no reason to complain.

Now Dear Wife I suppose you would like to know how things is getting on here, we have a large army here at present and we expect that a expedition will leave here soon there is a great many Man O’Wars leaving here at present our boys is very anxious for a skirmish with the enemy, we may be called of in the expedition but we do not know as yet whether we shall go or not but if you don’t happen to get a letter from me every week do not be impatient for we may leave here at any time and I may not have a chance to write for a week or so. So do not be uneasy by health is very good and ny eyes is as well as ever, in fact I am stouter and stronger now that you ever seen my. My duty is not hear so hard on me now as it had been, so I have no reason to complain. We find the weather getting rather cold to live in tents so it is uncomfortable for us now and we don’t know when we will get in better quarters. A soldier has to stand a great deal of hardship in war times but the excitement keeps him up. Now Dear Wife I will finish by sending my love to you and the children.

James Laehy (5)

The CSS Virginia, formerly the Merrimack, which fired the salvo that killed James Leahy (U.S. Naval Historical Center)

At about 2pm on 8th March Sergeant James Leahy would have witnessed the CSS Virginia crash into the USS Cumberland with her ram, in so doing dooming the Union vessel. As the Rebel ironclad wrenched herself free from its first stricken victim, it turned its sights on James and the USS Congress. Realising she could not hope to face the Virginia, the Congress ran herself aground on a shoal to avoid being rammed. However, the Virginia simply maneuvered into position to bring her guns to bear on the Congress, and began to rake her with fire. By the time the Yankee ship struck their colors at 4pm, James Leahy was dead. The Virginia moved on to her next target. The following day the Union ironclad USS Monitor fought the CSS Virginia to a draw, and the famed Rebel vessel would be intentionally destroyed to prevent her capture the following May. (6)

James’s wife Joanna received her pension, but it was stopped in 1873 when she re-married in Charlestown. She had again chosen a fellow Irish emigrant as her spouse- stonecutter Patrick Cooney. When Patrick died in 1897, Joanna once again returned to the service of her first husband for her support, and her pension was reactivated. She continued to receive it until her own death in  on 16th June 1916. She was laid to rest in St. Patrick’s Cemetery in Brockton, Massachusetts, more than 54 years after her first husband had lost his life. Her efforts to secure a pension meant that more than 150 years later, something of James’s voice can still be heard across the generations. (7)

The USS Monitor and CSS Virginia do battle the day after James Leahy’s death (Library of Congress)

*None of my work on pensions would be possible without the exceptional effort currently taking place in the National Archives to digitize this material and make it available online via Fold3. A team from NARA supported by volunteers are consistently adding to this treasure trove of historical information. To learn more about their work you can watch a video by clicking here.

(1) James Leahey Widow’s Pension File, Civil War Trust, Alger 1899: 688; (2) James Leahey Widow’s Pension File, Roster: 1297; (3) James Leahey Widow’s Pension File; (4) Ibid.; (5) Ibid.; (6) Civil War Trust; (7) James Leahey Widow’s Pension File;

 References & Further Reading

James Leahey Widow’s Pension File WC2537

Roster of the 99th New York Infantry

New York State Military Museum 99th New York Infantry Page

Civil War Trust Battle of Hampton Roads Page

Alger, Frank Stedman 1899. The ‘Congress’ and the ‘Merrimac’, The New England Magazine, Volume 25, Issue 6, February 1899

Filed under: Battle of Hampton Roads, Limerick, Massachusetts Tagged: CSS Virginia, Forgotten Irish, Irish American Civil War, Irish Diaspora, Limerick Veterans, Merrimac, USS Cincinnati, USS Monitor

Medal of Honor: Boatswain’s Mate Patrick Murphy, U.S.S. Metacomet

It has been a while since the site has looked at one of the Irish-born Medal of Honor recipients from the American Civil War. Issues regarding recording of nativity means there is, as yet, no definitive total number for Irish-born men who earned this award during the conflict. Each time I investigate the figure evidence emerges which adds further names to the list. You can explore the names of 146 of the men I have compiled here; since it was last updated I have come across more probable Irish-born recipients. Today’s guest post looks at one of the naval recipients of the award, Waterford’s Patrick Murphy- a man who after the war would become embroiled in events surrounding the Fenian Invasion of Canada. The post author is James Doherty, a Waterford native who has carried out extensive research on that city’s military past and Waterford involvement in conflicts such as the American Civil War. James has been at the forefront of efforts to see Irishmen and women impacted by the American Civil War recognised in Ireland, and also played a key role in the creation of the 1848 Tricolour Celebration events in Waterford City.

Boatswain’s Mate Patrick Murphy (Erie Maritime Museum)

Patrick Murphy was born in the City of Waterford, Ireland on 15th January 1823 and was baptised in St Patricks Church three days later. The City of Waterford in that era was a thriving port and it was no surprise that the young Murphy took up a career as a sailor. At the age of fourteen Murphy joined the merchant trade and after several years joined the British Navy, serving on-board the HMS Montreal. (1)

1844 saw Murphy in Erie, Pennsylvania where the United States government were commissioning the USS Michigan to patrol the Great Lakes. Murphy gained employment during the construction stage of the Michigan and was employed as a seaman when she put to sea. In naval terms Murphy would have been considered a plankowner. A plankowner is a member of the crew who served on a ship when it was first commissioned. Being with the ship from the start gave the crew members bragging rights in that they ‘owned’ one of the main planks on the deck of the vessel. Historically in US naval tradition the plankowner or his widow could petition the Navy for a piece of the deck planking when the vessel was decommissioned.

Murphy was injured in 1849 while the Michigan was firing a salute for the visiting US Vice President Millard Fillmore. The Michigan had only one gun mounted, meaning that the same gun had to be rapidly fired in succession to affect the salute. This practice had worked satisfactorily the previous week when a salute was fired for the President, Zachary Taylor. However on this occasion, on the eleventh shot, the sponger missed a spark causing a premature explosion. Murphy was serving as gun captain and was injured in the blast. The two Boatswain’s Mates serving the cannon, Peter Gilbert and John Robertson, were not so lucky, and were killed in the blast. (2)

With the outbreak of the Civil War Murphy served on the USS Metacomet. June 1864 saw the Metacomet under Commander Jouett join the West Gulf Blockading Squadron, capturing the British registered blockade runner Donegal in early June. In an effort to deny the port of Mobile Bay to the Confederacy a Union fleet under Admiral Farragut entered the estuary on the 5th August, with 17 Union ships engaging the smaller Confederate force. The Confederate ram Tennessee fought against overwhelming odds but was eventually forced to strike its colours. (3)

It was at Mobile Bay that Murphy would join the ranks of over a hundred and forty Irish Born combatants that would be awarded the Medal of Honour. Murphy was serving as Boatswain’s Mate during the engagement and his Medal of Honour Citation read as follows: during action against rebel forts and gunboats and with the ram Tennessee in Mobile Bay, 5th August 1864. Despite damage to his ship and the loss of several men on board as enemy fire raked her decks. Murphy performed his duties with skill and courage during throughout a ferocious 2 hour battle which resulted in the surrender of the rebel ram Tennessee and the damage and destruction of batteries at Fort Morgan. (4)

Murphy had married his wife Bridget in 1845 and after the Civil War ended he returned to Erie. They had two sons; William died in infancy and James would later become an actor in Cleveland. Murphy had developed his own stake in the mercantile trade before the conflict, purchasing a schooner called the William Adair in 1853. He continued his interest in trade whilst serving in border patrol aboard the Michigan after the war.

It was his service on the Michigan in 1866 that provided another notable event in Murphy’s life. 1866 saw the ill-conceived and ill-fated Fenian invasion of Canada. The Fenians hoped to take part of Canada and use it as a bargaining chip with the British Government to secure the independence of Ireland. Although the plan seemed far-fetched on the ground the Fenians had many advantages. They were well armed and veterans of the Civil War and the enemy they opposed (mainly Canadian militia) had never fired a shot in anger. Their plan was that a force of over a 1000 men would cross into Canada and take and hold ground near the town of Ridgeway.

The night of May 31st saw the first wave of Fenian troops cross the Niagara River in small boats. Only one obstacle stood in their way- the formidable USS Michigan. The captain of the Michigan was Commander Andrew Bryson who was under strict orders to prevent a diplomatic incident by stopping any Fenian incursion into Canada. Commander Bryson was aware of the build-up of Fenians on his side of the Niagara and the ship had a full head of steam up on the night of the 31st. As the Fenians started to cross the river Bryson gave orders to get under way. However the Fenians had disabled the Michigan in the simplest way possible. Its assistant engineer James Kelley’s sympathies lay with the Fenian cause and he had enticed Murphy into a drinking spree. Murphy was the Michigan’s pilot and Bryson wouldn’t put into the lakes without the now insensible Murphy. (5)

It was 3pm the next day before the steamer finally set sail, preventing Fenian reinforcements from crossing the Niagara. After a brief skirmish the Fenian raid fizzled out and its commanders realised the situation was hopeless. Its leaders faced arrest and the Michigan escorted the rank and file Fenians back across the Niagara River. The level of Murphy’s complicity in delaying Michigan’s departure is impossible to ascertain. This blemish on his military record didn’t seem to affect his career however, as he was awarded his Medal of Honor in 1870. Murphy retired from the Navy in 1885 and was an active member of the GAR. Boatswain Patrick Murphy passed away on 1st December 1896.

In 2009 Murphy’s grave was re-dedicated and given the appropriate Medal of Honor marker. The Battle of Ridgeway and the life of Patrick Murphy are remembered in the Erie Maritime Museum. Thanks to LindaBolla of the Maritime Museum for help in preparing this article.

The grave of Patrick Murphy, Medal of Honor Recipient (Erie Maritime Museum)

(1) Nelsons Biographical Dictionary (Erie); (2) Guardian of the Great Lakes by Bradley Rogers; (3) Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships; (4) Medal of Honor Recipients 1863-1973 (US Government) (5) Against the Grain (The Fenian Invasion) Timothy Bohen;

References

Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships Online.

Bohen, Timothy 2012. Against the Grain: The History of Buffalo’s First Ward.

Nelson, S.B. 1896. Nelson’s Biographical Dictionary and Historical Reference Book of Erie County, Pennsylvania.

Rogers, Bradley A. 1996. Guardian of the Great Lakes: The U.S. Paddle Frigate Michigan.

United States Government 1973. Medal of Honor Recipients 1863-1973.

Filed under: Battle of Mobile Bay, Medal of Honor, Pennsylvania, Waterford Tagged: Fenian Invasion of Canada, Irish American Civil War, Irish Diaspora, James Doherty, Patrick Murphy Medal of Honor, USS Metacomet, Waterford American Civil War, Waterford Veterans

‘One of Our Brave Men Twice Wounded': An Image of Corporal William Kelleher, 125th New York Infantry

In the first of a couple of guest posts coming up on the blog, friend of the site Brendan Hamilton brings us the story behind a fascinating image of a young wounded Irishman. Brendan has spent a lot of time looking at images of wounded Irish soldiers and also researching the 25th New York Infantry. Today he tells us about Corporal William Kelleher, a young veteran of the 125th New York who had his image exposed just as the war was coming to a close. Brendan takes up the story:

The National Museum of Health and Medicine has an incredible gallery of Civil War related photographs posted on Flickr, some of which Damian has discussed on this site before (See Looking into the Face of a Dying Irish Soldier). Most of the images were taken as records of soldiers’ wounds, treatment, and progress, to be documented for educational purposes. But the significance of these images goes far beyond the field of medical history. These are the veterans of America’s bloodiest war, preserved for posterity displaying the injuries they sustained on the battlefield. Among these men are multiple Irish immigrants, as corroborating census and muster roll records reveal.

Corporal William Kelleher displays his wound (National Museum of Health & Medicine)

One photograph that I find really striking is this image of Corporal William Kellaher of Co C of the 125th New York Infantry. Kellaher sits before the camera, casually holding up his right forearm to reveal a gaping gunshot wound. He’s just a freckle-faced kid, and yet, one can tell just by looking in his eyes that this is no frightened child witnessing the horrors of war for the first time. The fact that Kellaher is a veteran at this point seems obvious. He hides the pain of his injury well; there may even be a sense of pride evidenced in the young corporal’s set jaw with its near smirk. This is his ‘red badge of courage.’ It is not even his first.

Kellaher (whose names also appears as ‘Keleher,’ ‘Kelleher,’ and ‘Kelcher’ in the records) enlisted in the 125th New York at Lansingburgh, NY on July 24, 1862. The muster roll abstract records his age as 18, his birthplace Ireland, and occupation brush maker. He was 5’8”, with blue eyes, brown hair, and a fair complexion. The 1860 US Census shows him living in Lansinburgh in July 1860 (as ‘William Keeler’), living with and working as an apprentice brush maker to 25-year-old John Keeler, possibly an older brother. His age is 14, which would mean he was actually about 16 at the time of his enlistment, and may have lied about his age in order to be admitted. Despite his youth, Kellaher was appointed to the rank of corporal from the time of his date of muster, August 27, 1862. (1)

The 125th New York was primarily organized in Rensselaer County, NY. It left the state on August 31, 1862, under the command of Colonel George L. Willard, and proceeded to Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia. Its first engagement came against Confederate troops of Major General Thomas J. ‘Stonewall’ Jackson, who besieged the city in mid-September. On September 15, Colonel Dixon S. Miles, commanding the 12,000-man garrison, surrendered his entire force after finding it completely surrounded by Jackson, who had also posted Confederate artillery at strategic positions along the heights above the city. Fortunately, Kellaher and his comrades were quickly paroled, but had to spend a few months at Camp Douglas, Chicago, awaiting their official exchange. They were then ordered to Virginia and served in the defenses of Washington until June 24, 1863, when they joined the II Corps of the Army of the Potomac just in time for the Gettysburg campaign. (2)

At Gettysburg, the 125th finally got the chance to clear their name after the disaster of Harper’s Ferry, which, while it had not actually been their fault, nonetheless tainted their image in the eyes of other soldiers in the Army of Potomac. On the second day of the battle, they took part in a counterattack against General William Barksdale’s Mississippi brigade, halting the Confederate advance that had routed much of the III Corps. The 125th lost over a hundred men, as well as Colonel Willard (then commanding the brigade), in less than half an hour of fighting. The next day, the survivors of the regiment found themselves behind the stone wall facing Pickett’s Charge. Again they played a critical role in marking the high tide of the Confederate hopes in the battle. When all was said and done, they’d lost 139 men out of about 500 engaged. William Kellaher appears to have survived unscathed. (3)

Charge of the 111th, 125th and 126th N.Y. Volunteers at Gettysburg (Regimental History)

The 125th was again engaged at the battles of Auburn, Bristoe Station, and the Wilderness. Corporal Kellaher, a veteran by this point, received his first combat wound at Spotsylvania, in the savage fight for the Mule Shoe Salient. It is unclear exactly when he returned to duty, but his muster roll abstract shows he was present for duty as early as August 1864, during the Petersburg Campaign. His final wound, the one he is displaying in this photograph, occurred near the end of the war—either at Hatcher’s Run on March 31, 1865, or in his regiment’s last major engagement—the final assault upon the Confederate defenses of Petersburg and the Battle of Sutherland Station on April 2. The regiment’s commander in the latter attack, Captain John Quay—himself an Irish immigrant—was among Kellaher’s comrades killed in that battle. The confusion as to when Kellaher was wounded stems from conflicting records. The regimental roster and muster roll abstracts indicate April 2, while the National Museum of Health and Medicine’s record and the 125th’s regimental history state March 31. (4)

Charge of the regiment at Sutherland Station (Regimental History)

Corporal William Kellaher was admitted to Harewood Hospital in Washington, D.C. On April 5 and placed under the care of Dr. Reed B. Bontecou. The description accompanying his photograph records can be read below:

Description which accompanied the Kelleher image (National Museum of Health & Medicine)

I have so far been unable to find where in Ireland Kellaher was born, or much detail of what became of him after the war. A pension record in his name indicates that he left behind a widow, Anna, who filed for his pension in 1908. He was mentioned in the 125th New York’s regimental history, which even included a portrait of him as an older man. The author, Chaplain Ezra D. Simons, recalled Kellaher as ‘one of our brave men twice wounded.’ (5)

An image of William Kelleher in later life (Regimental History)

(1) William Kellaher’s Muster Roll Abstract, 1860 US Federal Census; (2) A Regimental History: The One Hundred and Twenty-fifth New York State Volunteers (1888); (3) A Regimental History: The One Hundred and Twenty-fifth New York State Volunteers (1888); (4) 125th New York’s regimental roster, William Kellaher’s Muster Roll Abstract, National Museum of Health and Medicine, A Regimental History: The One Hundred and Twenty-fifth New York State Volunteers (1888); (5) A Regimental History: The One Hundred and Twenty-fifth New York State Volunteers (1888)

References

National Museum of Health and Medicine, gallery of Civil War-related images on Flickr.com

New York State Archives, Cultural Education Center, Albany, New York; New York Civil War Muster Roll Abstracts, 1861-1900; Archive Collection #: 13775-83; Box #: 516; Roll #: 172

Year: 1860; Census Place: Lansingburgh, Rensselaer, New York; Roll: M653_849; Page: 909; Image: 368; Family History Library Film: 803849

125th New York Infantry, Regimental Roster

Simons, Ezra D. A Regimental History: The One Hundred and Twenty-fifth New York State Volunteers. New York: Judson, 1888.

Filed under: Battle of Petersburg, New York Tagged: 125th New York Infantry, Battle of Gettysburg, Brendan Hamilton, Forgotten Irish, Irish American Civil War, National Museum of Health & Medicine, Photographs of Wounded Soldiers, Wounded Irish Soldiers

The #ForgottenIrish of Co. Dublin

The latest #ForgottenIrish story looking at Co. Dublin is now available on Storify. Tens of thousands of Dubliners were impacted by the American Civil War, both in Ireland and America. Its consequences stayed with many until well into the twentieth century. This is the seventh county to be examined, joining  Cork, Kerry, Donegal, Galway, Cavan and Sligo. Ireland has thus far chosen not to remember or commemorate the in excess of 200,000 men and their families who were caught up in this conflict. These Storify pieces offer just a handful of their stories. You can read the Dublin Storify by clicking here.

Filed under: Digital Arts and Humanities, Dublin Tagged: Civil War Pensioners, Commander Stephen Rowan, Deansgrange Cemetery, Dublin American Civil War, General Charles Ducat, Glasnevin Civil War, Irish American Civil War, Manchester Martyrs

‘He Was Never Seen or Heard From After': Dealing with Disappearance at the Battle of the Crater

In July 1865 the State Census came to the town of Westfield, Massachusetts. One of the community recorded there was Abby Sullivan, who was described as a 42 year-old Irish woman. Abby was also recorded as married, but in July 1865 she must have felt in limbo. For she was a wife without a husband; Abby had not heard from her spouse, Jerry, in almost 12 months. He had last been seen on 30th July 1864, when he had disappeared into the smoke and carnage of the infamous Crater at Petersburg. By 1865, Abby felt sure Jerry was dead- her problem was that in order to get a pension, she had to prove it. (1)

Alfred Waud’s sketch of powder for the mine being carried down the covered way while under fire (Library of Congress)

At 4.44am on 30th July, 1864, 8,000 pounds of gunpowder buried in a mine below Rebel positions at Petersburg erupted into the sky- taking 352 Confederates with it. By all accounts, it was one of the most remarkable sights of the war. The detonation created a crater 130 feet long, 60 feet wide and 30 feet deep. Lying nearby were the men of the 57th Massachusetts Infantry, part of the 1st Brigade of James Ledlie’s 1st Division of the IX Corps. They had been designated to participate in the attack that was to follow the explosion. Among the 100 or so men of the regiment who witnessed that awesome spectacle was Jerry Sullivan. With him was Second Lieutenant John Anderson, who described what they saw:

‘Suddenly there came a heavy rumble that made the ground tremble, followed by a deep boom; quickly jumping to our feet we saw a black mountain of earth and smoke rising, carrying cannon, caissons, camp equipage and human bodies in one confused mass, about two hundred feet in the air, where it poised for a second, and as it settled back, looked as if it would bury the troops which were formed for the charge.’ (2)

While Jerry and his comrades gazed on, Union artillery roared into life, and the men of the 57th surged forward. What they met at the edge of the Crater stunned them. Anderson continues:

‘Upon reaching the scene of the explosion the picture presented was one of death and confused destruction, which for the moment, seemed to paralyze our own men. There were mangled, human bodies scattered among the ruins; men partly buried, some with heads sticking out, still alive, and pleading to be extricated from their painful positions, arms and legs were seen protruding and wriggling in silent appeal for the release of the buried bodies to which they belonged.’ (3)

Jerry Sullivan and the other men of the 57th Massachusetts descended into the Crater. It had been intended that their division would push on to secure the crest beyond, but this never happened. Instead they remained where they were, and by the time they sought to push deeper into the Confederate lines the Rebels had recovered. The Crater now became a killing ground for the Federal troops. As more and more Union troops were thrown into the attack, the depression filled with additional troops, so that it was almost impossible to move:

‘The musketry fire, which at first was scattering, was constantly increasing, with deadly effect. The crest in our front was now occupied by a strong force, while the batteries stationed there were delivering a raking fire…Our own troops were so crowded that only those who stood in front could use their arms to advantage.’

As the day wore on there was little improvement in their circumstances:

‘Every attempt to move forward to the crest was repulsed and the troops driven back again to the crater...charge succeeded charge until the enemy effected a lodgement within a few feet of our men who still held the ruined fort, so near we could almost reach each other with the bayonet. We had no semblance of an organization. Whites and blacks [referring to the USCT Regiments who played a major role in the battle] were squeezed so tightly together that there was hardly standing room. Even many of those killed were held in a standing position until jostled to the ground. The dead were being trodden upon and the wounded trampled to death. No pen can accurately portray the awful horrors of that scene of carnage.’ (4)

The Battle of the Crater was a disastrous failure. When the 57th Massachusetts Infantry eventually staggered back to their own lines through a hail of Confederate fire, they had lost six of their seven officers and 45 out of 91 enlisted men. One of the ‘missing’ was Jerry Sullivan. (5)

Alfred Waud’s sketch of the explosion of the Petersburg mine on 30th July 1864 (Library of Congress)

Jerry Sullivan and Abby Flynn were not young when they had married. Both had been in their late thirties when the Reverend Gallagher declared them man and wife in Springfield, Massachusetts on 24th July 1860. Jerry worked as a laborer, and the couple made their home in Westfield. The couple had no children, and it was likely simple economics that prompted Jerry to enlist, aged 44, on 22nd December 1863. He mustered into the 54th Massachusetts the following January. His short military career came to an end on 30th July 1864. After that date, it is simply stated that there is ‘no further record.’ (6)

The fact that there was no absolute confirmation of Jerry’s fate presented a major problem for Abby as she went in search of a widow’s pension. It was a difficulty that thousands of widow’s and dependents faced, particularly where men had disappeared during battle, or had been swallowed up as Prisoners of War. The pension bureau required that Abby provide some evidence as to Jerry’s fate, in order to guard against potential fraud. The best way that she could do this was by talking to former comrades of her husband, and ask them to provide statements. On 17th August 1866, Lieutenant-Colonel J.M. Tucker of the 57th Massachusetts gave the following affidavit:

I hereby certify on honor that I well knew Jerry Sullivan late a Private of Co ”B” 57th Regt. Mass. Vols. That he with other members of his Company and Regiment went in to the action at the blowing up of the mine at near Petersburg Va. July 30, 1864 and that to the best of my knowledge and belief he was then and there killed at that time and in that action.

I further certify that I have no interest in this case.

J.M. Tucker

Late Lieut. Col.

57th Regt. Mass. Vols. (7)

Abby was able to go one better on 11th October 1866, when Edmund Pyne, a friend of her husband’s in the regiment, gave a more detailed account of Jerry’s movements on the day of the Battle of the Crater. Pyne also recounted his efforts to locate him, and spoke of the Irishman’s character:

I Edmund Pine of Southwick Hampden County, Massachusetts, lately a private Co “F” 57 Regt. Mass. Vols. being duly sworn depose and say that I have been well acquainted with Jeremiah Sullivan, called frequently Jerry Sullivan formerly of Westfield in said County & a private in Co. “B” 57th Regt. Mass. Vols. and with Abigail Sullivan of said Westfield, his wife, for four or five years. That I was present & engaged in the action of July 30th 1864; that I saw said Jerry while the Regiment was under arms and awaiting orders for the attack at the “Crater” near Petersburgh, Va. on said July 30th 1864 & he was there in line under arms with his Co. & Regt.; that I made inquiries for said Jerry immediately after said Regiment came out of this said action, & I could not learn that he had been seen after he went into said action. I made inquiries frequently while I remained in service for said Jerry after that time among his acquaintances and friends in the said Co. & Regt. & I know that he was never seen or heard from after said action, & I know from what I heard said that it was the universal opinion among the officers & the men who knew him that said Jerry was killed in said action on July 30th 1864. I have no doubt that such was the fact- I have frequently seen said Abigail since my discharge I live within a few miles of said Jerry’s former place of residence, & I know that said Jerry has never been seen or heard of there by any one of his acquaintances or relations since July 30th 1864 to very best knowledge & belief- & I know that he was a good citizen & an industrious man & I know of no reason why, if living, he should not return to said Westfield to his family & friends. I have no interest whatever in this application for a pension.

Edmond Pyne (8)

Abby’s pension was approved in May 1867, backdated to the date of Jerry’s disappearance. She would continue to receive it for the next 35 years, until her own death in 1903. Her husband was one of many men who went off to war only to disappear forever into the smoke of battle. His ultimate fate that day will likely never be known. (9)

The Crater as it appeared in 1865 (Photographic History of the Civil War)

*None of my work on pensions would be possible without the exceptional effort currently taking place in the National Archives to digitize this material and make it available online via Fold3. A team from NARA supported by volunteers are consistently adding to this treasure trove of historical information. To learn more about their work you can watch a video by clicking here.

(1) Massachusetts State Census 1855, Jerry Sullivan Widow’s Pension File; (2) Civil War Trust Battle of the Crater, Anderson 1896: 176; (3) Anderson 1896: 177; (4) Ibid: 180-1; (5) Ibid: 187; (6) Jerry Sullivan Widow’s Pension File, Massachusetts AG 1932: 829; (7) Jerry Sullivan Widow’s Pension File; (8) Ibid.; (9) Ibid.;

References and Further Reading

Civil War Trust Battle of the Crater Page

Petersburg National Battlefield Park

Jerry Sullivan Widow’s Pension File WC94515

Ancestry.com. Massachusetts, State Census, 1865 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2014.

Anderson, John 1896. The Fifty-Seventh Regiment of Massachusetts Volunteers in the War of the Rebellion.

Massachusetts Adjutant General 1932. Massachusetts Soldiers, Sailors and Marines in the Civil War. Volume 4.

Filed under: Battle of The Crater, Massachusetts Tagged: 57th Massachusetts Infantry, Ambrose Burnside, Battle of the Crater, Irish American, Irish American Civil War, Missing in Action, Siege of Petersburg, Underground Warfare

‘A Deep Blow to Your Heart': Patrick Clooney’s Newly Uncovered Description of the Irish Brigade at Fair Oaks

On 16th September 1862, 33-year-old Ann Dunnigan appeared before an Albany judge to begin the process of claiming a widow’s pension. Her husband Patrick had been mortally wounded in the Irish Brigade’s first major engagement- the Battle of Fair Oaks, Virginia- on 1st June 1862. As part of her evidence, Ann handed over a detailed letter she had received regarding her husband’s demise. It had been written by his former Captain, Waterford native Patrick Clooney. The very next day, at Antietam, Maryland, Patrick Clooney met his own death, performing deeds that have since passed into legend. Across more than 150 years Clooney’s words of comfort for Ann, and his description of that first battle at Fair Oaks, have lain in the widow’s pension file of Corporal Patrick Dunnigan. As far as I am aware, this is the first time they have appeared in print. (1)

The Battle of Fair Oaks by Currier & Ives (Library of Congress)

Captain Patrick Clooney was one of a group of Irish officers in the Union army who had also served in Italy during the Papal Wars. But it remains Clooney’s actions on 17th September 1862 at Antietam for which he is best remembered. One eyewitness described his final moments that day, as the Irish Brigade advanced into the withering fire being thrown at them by Confederates in the Sunken Road- ever afterwards known as ‘Bloody Lane':

‘…the enemy’s fire still tells upon our ranks- many a brave fellow goes down unnamed to his doom. Captain Clooney receives a bullet through the knee: the pain is torturing, terrible. The proud phrenzy of the fight is upon him. Friends and comrades entreat him to go to the rear and have his wound dressed. He does not hear or heed them. He seizes the colors and hobbles along on one leg, waving the green flag that he loves so well far in front of the line. Almost more than most men he revels in the grandeur of a battle; the whirring of the bullets is music to his ears. In the position described, exulting in the triumph of the day, two musket balls strike him; one enters his brain, the other his heart, and he falls dead.’ (2)

Antietam Battlefield. The Confederates held the Sunken Lane to the left of the image, with the Irish Brigade advancing from right to left across the field. It was in the vicinity of this field that Patrick Clooney died (Damian Shiels)

Following Clooney’s death, eulogies of his life expounded how of all the ‘gallant dead and living, none more strongly exemplified the dash and desperate valor of the true Celtic soldier than did Clooney.’ His actions at Fair Oaks were also recalled: ‘He is remembered at Fair Oaks, when the regiment held a splendid position in the railway cut, as mounting the embankment, bearing the green flag of the regiment in his hands, and waving it defiantly in the face and fire of the enemy, who were drawn up in the belt of timber on the other side of a small garden.’ This is the very action that Clooney describes in his own words in the letter below. Today the Waterford man is commemorated by a memorial erected by friends and admirers in his native Ballybricken, Waterford and through contemporary artworks such as Bradley Schmehl’s ‘Captain Clooney’s Charge.’ (3)

Ann Dunnigan (née Donnelly), who submitted the letter to support her pension claim on the day prior to Clooney’s death, had married Patrick Dunnigan on 15th August 1855 in St. John’s Church, Albany. Their first child, Samuel, was born on 9th December 1856. Patrick enlisted in the 88th New York on 15th October 1861 at the age of 34. By the time of Fair Oaks he had been promoted to Corporal. The couple’s second child, Annie, arrived on 14th March 1862, less than three months before her father’s death- it is virtually certain he never saw her. By 1870 Ann was working as a tailoress, supporting Samuel and a then 75-year-old man, James Donnelly, who was probably her father. By then her young daughter Annie had followed her father to the grave- she died as an infant, sometime before 1866. Ann Dunnigan would receive the pension that Patrick Clooney’s letter helped her to secure for almost four decades, until her own death in 1900. (4)

Captain Patrick Clooney Memorial (front left) in Ballybricken Churchyard, Waterford

Head Quarters 88th Regt. “Irish Brigade”

On the Battlefield June 2nd 1862.

Mrs. Dunigan,

Madame,

With feelings of the deepest commiseration I addres this note to you to communicate what I know will be a deep blow to your heart and a source of affliction to you for ever- namely the death of your husband Patrick Dunnigan which was occasioned by wounds received in bloody action of yesterday (June 1st Sunday) words of mine fail to express to you the deep sorrow which has seized hold of all who were acquainted with. I mourn him as a brave and gallant soldier who following me as I bore the Green flag of the Regt triumphant in my hands at the head of the Collumn fell nobely fighting by my side. May your sorrows be a little eased and the dark now pierceing your soul be withdrawn by the recollection of his honesty- his calmness- his nobility of soul- and finaly his last noble efforts beside the flags of his native and adopted fatherland. His comrades mourn the fellowship of one who in life never amongst us had known a foe.

I may as well be minute as I can be in describeing how he came by his death- several lines of battle had been formed in front of us and were of themselves sufficient to drive back the enemy. The entire of the Division (Richardsons) being on the ground. The day before (Saturday May 31st) the rebels had advanced in great force and drove back Gen Caseys Division. Reinforcements were immediately ordered up and hence it was that our Brigade with General Meagher at its head was ordered to the front. On the night of Saturday we reached the battlefield and bivouacked thereon that night- the fields around us were strewn here and there with killed and wounded soldiers some of them friends others enemies. At erly dawn on the morning of yesterday (Sunday June 1st) we were aroused from our chill slumbers and in a few moments afterwards our skirmishers were thrown forward through the woods in front and flank where some brisk fireing took place. We were in collumn by Division in rear of our line of battle and were protecting the artillery upon its right. Soon heavy fireing was heard and dense clouds of smoke rose from the woods upon our left. We deployed into line and fronted the enemy. Brisk fireing and skirmishing continuing all the time- the 69th Regt Irish Brigade was formed in line upon our right and the whole line of battle swept into the woods to meet the enemy- the advance was interrupted owing to the nature of the ground and the 88th Regt flanked by the left through the denslly wooded grove- upon nearing the plain outside the wood I was ordered to carry the Colors to the front of the Collumn and head its advance- raising the green flag and the Stars and Stripes over us we passed forward and marched by fileing to the right out upon the clear fields when the enemy opened a heavy fire upon us and nearly caused the head of the Collumn to waver- when dashing forward into the plaine we were enabled to form line. It was while following the Colors of the Regt in the thickest of the fire and flood of lead that your gallant husband fell fighting by my side- a rifle bullet haveing pierced his right leg passing through his right leg and through.

He was conveyed to our hospital where I went to visit him and had the doctors treat him as well as possible. He appeared to me to be extreamly exhausted as he no doubt was and he spoke very little to anyone save to myself to whom he chatted freely- the continuance of the fight compelled me to take command of my company and towards morning (June 2nd) he ceased to live. In his pocket which had been opened by my lieutenant (O’Brien) were the following effects which he has handed to me- viz a ten (10) Dollar bill- a pen knife ink bottle a piece of a latter you had written him and from which I learned your address- some heads of pipes- a pencil case tobacco. The 10 Dollars I herewith enclose to you at the same time assuring you of the deep sympathy I feel for you in this your bereavement.

Accept Madame the assurance

with which I remain yours most respectfully

Patrick Felan Clooney

Capt Co E 88th Regt N.Y.V. Irish Brigade

(In the field 7 miles from Richmond)

[you will excuse this penship as I had to write with my heart? pen- P.F.C.]

[you may do anything you like with this letter if it may please your friends P.F.C.] (5)

‘Captain Clooney’s Charge’, Antietam by Bradley Schmehl (Reproduced on the site with permission, obtained by Robert Doyle)

*None of my work on pensions would be possible without the exceptional effort currently taking place in the National Archives to digitize this material and make it available online via Fold3. A team from NARA supported by volunteers are consistently adding to this treasure trove of historical information. To learn more about their work you can watch a video by clicking here.

(1) Patrick Dunnigan Widow’s Pension File; (2) New York Irish American 18th October 1862; (3) Ibid.; (4) Patrick Dunnigan Widow’s Pension File, New York Adjutant General, 1870 Census; (5) Patrick Dunnigan Widow’s Pension File:

References

Patrick Dunnigan Widow’s Pension File WC954.

New York Irish-American Weekly 18th October 1862. Antietam- The Dead of the Brigade.

New York Adjutant-General 1893. Annual Report of the Adjutant-General of the State of New York, Volume 31.

1870 U.S. Federal Census.

Filed under: 88th New York, Battle of Antietam, Battle of Fair Oaks, Irish Brigade, New York, Waterford Tagged: 88th New York Infantry, Forgotten Irish, Irish American Civil War, Irish Brigade, Irish Brigade Antietam, Irish Brigade Fair Oaks, Patrick Clooney, Waterford Veterans

How Many Irish Fought in the American Civil War?

As I have often noted on this site, the American Civil War is the only conflict in the Irish experience which compares with World War One in terms of scale. But just how many Irish served during the conflict? Relatively little detailed modern research has taken place to establish this, and it is undoubtedly a topic that is in need of substantial detailed study. In an effort to move towards a more accurate figure I have examined some of the most recent figures presented by scholars examining specific forces and arms of service, and combined these with (I hope) reasonable extrapolations for the remainder of the military. The results suggest that Irish-born numbers were substantially greater than is often assumed, and that the figures are a lot more comparable with those of World War One than we might think.

Attempting to accurately (in so far as is possible) examine the number of Irish-born men who served in the American Civil War has been a longstanding goal. I am far from the first to look at this, and indeed it is a topic that has been raised a number of times on the site. I must particularly acknowledge the efforts to highlight this issue by blogger Lisdoon Varna, who has drawn attention to the potential underestimation of Irish numbers in this post on his own blog, and suggested alternative figures. The nature of the records kept during the American Civil War means that we will never be able to go beyond estimates for the total number of Irish in service, but there is no escaping the need for a detailed and thorough examination into establishing figures for Irish involvement. This post is primarily intended to highlight a potential need to raise our estimates, and to stimulate discussion and debate. Each of the headings below explores one aspect of the issue surrounding the total numbers of Irish-born men, with each of the resultant figures being brought together at the end of the post to put forward a suggested total. It is my view that this figure is in all likelihood relatively accurate.

Irish in the Confederacy

We are fortunate that Professor David Gleeson has recently undertaken the most detailed review of the Irish in the Confederacy yet produced, which includes an attempt to accurately estimate the numbers of Irish who served the South during the war. The figure he arrives at is c. 20,000 men; although dwarfed in comparison to Irish service in the Federal forces, such a total would in fact represent the enlistment of just over 50% of those Irishmen of military age in the South, a proportion which significantly exceeds that seen in the North. (1)

Irish in the Union- The Current Figures

Given the fact that the overwhelming majority of Irish served the North during the war, it is no surprise that the key to putting forward a total figure is fundamentally a question of how many Irish served in the Union forces. The most commonly cited figure here is c. 150,000; this is the number I give in my own publication Irish in the American Civil War and it is put forward in numerous other works which address the topic. Some make clear the important distinction that this is a figure for the Union army, rather than the Union forces as a whole. Crucially however, it is often the case that the figure of 150,000 is incorrectly cited as representing the total number of Irish who fought for the North, rather than just in the army. In fact, the figure of 150,000 not only underestimates the total number of Irish who fought for the Union, it also underestimates the total number who served in the army. To understand why this is not the case it is necessary to review the analysis on which this 150,000 figure is based. (2)

Investigations in the Military and Anthropological Statistics of American Soldiers

The figure of 150,000 Irish in the Union army has its origins in Benjamin Apthorp Gould’s Investigations in the Military and Anthropological Statistics of American Soldiers, published in 1869. This remarkable piece of work gathered together vast amounts of data relating to volunteer enlistment during the Civil War and presented the statistics under a range of themes. Interestingly, one of the central figures in gathering the information ultimately used in Gould’s work was Irishman T.J. O’Connell, a graduate of U.C.D. and Chief Clerk at the Sanitary Commission’s Statistical Bureau between 1863 and 1865. Gould arrived at a figure of 144,221 for the total number of Irish in the volunteer service during the American Civil War. The methodology he employed to achieve this (at least to the untrained eye) appears reasonable. What is significant is what he omitted. Gould clearly notes in the publication that his figure represents volunteers in the Union army from a selected number of states. It excluded members of the navy, members of the regular army (aside from those who had started service in volunteer units) and also the 92,000 volunteers from California, Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico, Utah and Washington Territory. If we accept the figure of 144,221 as a baseline, we then need to assess the potential level of Irish service among those excluded categories in order to produce a more accurate total figure for Irish participation in the war. (3)

Irish in the Union Navy

Michael Bennett has produced the best work on ordinary servicemen in the Union navy. He gives the enlistment figures in the Union navy between 1861 and 1865 as 118,044 men. As he points out, Irishmen were proportionately more numerous in the naval service when compared with the army. His statistical sample suggested that 20% of the entire Union navy were Irish-born. If we accept this, it gives us a figure of c. 23,608 Irish sailors to add to Apthorp Gould’s baseline figure. (4)

Irish Volunteers from California & the Territories

Apthorp Gould excluded these 92,000 volunteers primarily because, by and large, they did not have an active role in the major fighting theaters. However, these men did serve during the American Civil War; for example many were engaged in operations against Native American populations between 1861-65. Also a number of units from such locations had strong Irish contingents, e.g. the 3rd California Infantry. It would seem reasonable to assign a proportional figure of Irish among their ranks equal to that which Apthorp Gould found for the states he examined. His figure of 144,221 represents slightly over 7% of the total number of white volunteer soldiers he cites in his study area, namely 2,018,200. Taking 7% of the 92,000 excluded volunteers we arrive at a figure of 6,440 to be added to our total. (5)

Irish Soldiers in the Regular Army

Attempting to establish the numbers of Irish in the regular army during the American Civil War is more difficult (I would be pleased to hear from any readers who are aware of research into this area). Those recruits who may have initially served in volunteer regiments before joining the regulars are presumably accounted for in Apthorp Gould’s baseline figures. Not accounted for are those Irish who were in the regular army at the start of the war and those who enlisted directly into the regulars during the conflict. What is known is that the regular army traditionally proved extremely attractive to Irishmen. For example, when the war began at Fort Sumter, South Carolina, Irish-born soldiers outnumbered those American-born within the fort. Although it almost certainly results in an underestimate of Irish numbers, it is deemed prudent to examine figures based solely on regular army numbers prior to the outbreak of the Civil War in April 1861. A total of 16,403 men were on the rolls of the regular army on 1st January 1861. It has been estimated that during the 1850s up to 60% of the regular army was made up of Irish soldiers. If, for the sake of argument, we take a figure of c. 40% Irish-born in the regulars at the start of the war, this gives us an additional figure of 6,561 men to add to our total. (6)

Irish-Americans- The Great Imponderable

Of course the one large group of ‘Irish’ that cannot be included in the total figure are those Irish-Americans not born in Ireland. This is unfortunate, as there was perhaps no war in the Irish experience where so many men not physically born in Ireland so closely identified themselves as Irish. As a result our total figure cannot include men like Peter Welsh, who’s American Civil War letters are among the most commonly cited with regard to the Irish participation in the conflict (to such an extent that is sometimes erroneously assumed he was born in Ireland); nor does it include the likes of James A. Mulligan, the Irish New Yorker who raised the 23rd Illinois ‘Irish Brigade.’ Although not everyone born into Irish-American communities regarded their Irishness as intrinsically important (Phil Sheridan would seem a case in point), there were nonetheless many thousands of men who cannot be included in the total who likely viewed themselves as much Irish as American.

The Irish in the American Civil War- A Revised Figure?

Where then does this leave us in terms of a total figure for Irish service in the American Civil War? A recapitulation of the figures is given in tabular format below:

Confederate
20,000


Apthorp Gould Union Volunteers
144,221


Union Navy
23,608


California & Territories Volunteers
6,440


Regular Army, April 1861
6,561


TOTAL
200,830

This suggests that the number of Irish-born men who served during the American Civil War was in excess of 200,000. Even this figure excludes some men- for example those members of militia units who served for 90 days at the beginning of the war but did not subsequently re-enlist (this would include, for example, some of the 69th New York State Militia who fought at Bull Run). Also the issue with regard to regular troops who enlisted during the conflict needs further work. This analysis is very much a preliminary estimation, designed to stimulate discussion. I am eager to hear reader’s thoughts on any and all of the proposed numbers and to hear of any other information that can be brought to bear with regard to this question.

The probability that in or around 200,000 Irish-born men (not to mention those Irish-Americans not born in Ireland) fought in the American Civil War raises interesting questions with regard to the status of the conflict’s memory in Ireland. If these figures are accurate, than the American Civil War much more closely rivals World War One as the largest conflict Irish people have experienced (in terms of numbers who served). Of course, one must remember that World War One drew on a significantly smaller relative population. This accepted, there is the potential that more Irish people from the area that now constitutes the Republic of Ireland served in the American Civil War than World War One. And for many of those counties who saw the highest levels of emigration resulting from the Famine, we can say that the American Civil War was undoubtedly the largest conflict in their people’s experience. So when we look at counties like Cork (which saw in excess of 146,000 people emigrant between 1851 and 1860), we can safely say that more Corkmen fought and more Corkmen died in the American Civil War than in any other conflict in history. Such realities make the apathy with which Ireland has treated (and continues to treat) the exploration, examination, education and remembrance of this topic all the more stark. (7)

(1) Gleeson 2013: 60. (2) Shiels 2013, for an example citing the figure of 150,000 as the number for the Irish in the Union Army, see Ural, The Harp and The Eagle, 2006: 2; (3) Gould 1869: viii, 26, 27, 2; (4) Bennett 2004: 5, 9; (5) Gould 1869: 27; (6) Newell & Shrader 2011: 3 ,Ural 2006: 33; (7) Miller 1985: 570;

References

Bennett, Michael J. 2004. Union Jacks: Yankee Sailors in the Civil War.

Bruce, Susannah Ural 2006. The Harp and the Eagle: Irish-American Volunteers and the Union Army, 1861- 1865.

Gleeson, David T. 2013. The Green and the Gray: The Irish in the Confederate States of America.

Gould, Benjamin Apthorp 1869. Investigations in the Military and Anthropological Statistics of American Soldiers. 

Miller, Kerby A. 1985. Emigrants and Exiles: Ireland and the Irish Exodus to North America.

Newell, Clayton R. & Shrader, Charles R. 2011. Of Duty Well and Faithfully Done: A History of the Regular Army in the Civil War.

Shiels, Damian 2013. The Irish in the American Civil War.

Filed under: Discussion and Debate Tagged: Forgotten Irish, How Many Irish Fought in the Civil War, Ireland and the American Civil War, Irish American Civil War, Irish in America, Irish in the Confederate Army, Irish in the Union Army, Irish in the Union Navy

In Search of Con: The Remarkable Story of the Hunt for the ‘Idiot’ Boy Sold into Service

In late 1863, details of a sensational case began to emerge throughout the newspapers of the Union. It was a story that would be told and retold for decades to come, and was ever after remembered by all who had come into contact with the particulars. At its centre was an intellectually disabled ‘idiot’ boy from Co. Limerick, who had been stolen from a New York Almshouse and sold into the Federal Army. For months his frantic mother would haunt the Union forces like a spectre, searching relentlessly for her son. The case would eventually involve figures such as the Mayor of Troy, the Governor of New York, Secretary of War Edwin Stanton and Lafayette Baker of the Secret Service. The most notable individual to take a personal interest though was President Abraham Lincoln. The remarkable events seem almost the stuff of fiction, but they are undoubtedly some of the most compelling and heartrending of the Irish experience of the American Civil War.

A Sketch of Con Garvin and his Mother Catharine Garvin in the Troy Record of 1965, by artist Robert W. Daley (www.newspapers.com)

Virtually all the contemporary documentation referring to Cornelius Garvin called him an ‘idiot.’ This was a term used in the 19th century to refer to someone with an intellectual disability. The precise nature of Cornelius (or Con’s) disorder is not known, but whatever it was, one of the way’s in which it appears to have impacted him was that he was easily led, and was quick to do what others told him. Con was born in Limerick in about the year 1845 to Matthew and Catharine Garvin. They had married in Grange, Co. Limerick around the year 1838 and following emigration through Liverpool in 1850 they had settled in Troy, New York. They didn’t stay long before heading west to Chicago, where they spent five years before returning to Troy around 1855. It was here that Matthew passed away, dying in 1860. (1)

Despite his disabilities it appears that Con, at least for some years, was able to contribute towards his own upkeep. His mother would later claim the he worked on the docks earning between $1 and $2 per day, and also had at one time been employed in Orr’s Paper Manufacturers. In 1861 Con was supposedly earning $1.25 per day piling lumber, and part of his earnings were used by Catharine every Saturday to buy provisions for the family at John Warr’s ‘Choice Wines, Teas and Family Store’ on 278 River Street in the city. Much of the information regarding Con’s working life was provided by Catharine or deponents making statements on her behalf many years later, when she was seeking to demonstrate that her son had contributed towards her upkeep. With that in mind it may be that she exaggerated the extent of Con’s contributions, as by 1863 she was unable to care for him and had to place him, presumably temporarily, in the Rensselaer County Almhouse (also sometimes referred to as the Rensselaer House of Industry). It was clearly not an easy decision for Catharine to make, and she took every opportunity to go and visit her son. Then, one day in September 1863, as Catharine arrived to see Con, she was greeted with shocking and extremely upsetting news- her boy had disappeared. (2)

The disappearance of the ‘idiot boy’ Con Garvin soon became a media sensation, as did Catharine’s desperate efforts to find him. Rensselaer County officials stepped in to help with the search. It quickly became apparent that the young man had fallen foul of unscrupulous substitute brokers, who had effectively ‘sold’ Con into the Federal army in order to receive the financial bounty then available. By November articles seeking his whereabouts were being placed in newspapers around the north. On the 19th of that month Washington D.C.’s National Republican, describing Con as about 18-years-old, with dark hair and eyes, reported that he had been ‘decoyed from the House of Industry’ in Troy and enlisted in the 52nd New York Volunteers. The information they had suggested that he had strayed away from the regiment on it’s way from New York to Washington and could not be found by either the officers or his mother, who had ‘twice traversed the route to find him.’ The National Republican felt that he was ‘doubtless in some institution for idiots or insane persons in Washington, Baltimore, or Philadelphia.’ They were wrong. (3)

Catharine Garvin became increasingly desperate as the months passed and there was still no word of Con. Then she received a report that he had been seen at Mitchell’s Station, Virginia in United States uniform, suggesting he was still in the army. It appears that her time was thereafter spent searching the faces of the Army of the Potomac for Con; a search broken only by brief returns to Troy or Washington D.C., where she stayed just long enough to earn sufficient money to continue her search or to appeal for the administration’s support. It was said that as she made her way around the troops, she ‘carried always in her apron a large number of letters, and other memoranda, from prominent officers and others, given to aid her…’ Apparently although she was illiterate, she was always able to place her hand on the correct document as she required it, and having finished her story would often leave for the next regiment saying: ‘My poor Con; I must go and find him!’. Meanwhile word of the outrage was spreading countrywide, and it began to be suggested that it had been those entrusted with Con’s care who had so betrayed him. In March 1864 the following Information Wanted advertisement was run:

INFORMATION WANTED of the whereabouts of Cornelius Garvin, a lunatic, and late an inmate of the County House at Troy, New York, from which he was taken in September last, and sold for a substitute by John Ar[i]s, the keeper of said place. He is five feet seven inches high, black eyes, black hair and dark complexion. Supposed to be a member of the 52d New York State Volunteers. Any information sent to Mrs. Garvin, at Troy, New York, will be thankfully received by his distressed mother.

Some other states in the Union were quick to capitalise on the story, which was particularly damaging to New York, as it suggested that underhand techniques were being employed in order to fill the state’s manpower quota for the army. On 16th March 1864 the Cleveland Morning Leader in Ohio ran the story under the headline ‘How New York Fills Her Quota’, stating that Con’s fate was an ‘illustration of the manner in which the State of New York is filling her quota. It ought to attract the attention of the War Department.’ By April 1864 the mayors of Troy and New York, no doubt influenced by both the pleas of Catharine Garvin and the terrible publicity surrounding the incident, joined the hunt for Con. They offered a $100 reward for any information on him. It was now clear that he had been ‘taken from the county house in Troy and sold in New York City for a substitute in the 52d New York Volunteers.’ (4)

Time was fast running out for Catharine to locate Con before the start of the Union offensive. The Overland Campaign finally commenced on 4th May, and Catharine found herself wandering through Federal hospitals in search of news. On 16th May, while searching Queens Street Hospital in Alexandria, Catharine encountered Corporal Townsell J. Chapman (recorded in the rosters as Townsend) of the 52nd New York. He had been wounded at Spotsylvania on 10th May, and gave the following statement:

Queens Street Hostal

Virginia May 16th 1864

I certify that I have seen Cornelius Garvin in the 52d N.Y.V. ten days ago in Company I. Capt George Digen gave him a different name so that his mother could not get him when she was at the Regt last Winter I being at the same Regt in Company H. Signed

Townsell J Chapman

Finally there appeared to be some solid information. Con was still in the 52nd New York, but was under an assumed name. Chapman was also suggesting that there was complicity on the part of Con’s Captain, who had intentionally concealed the young man when his mother came looking for him. Catharine must have hoped that her boy would be more fortunate than Corporal Chapman; the 24-year-old died of his wounds in Alexandria on 29th July. (5)

By now Catharine and her plight had attracted the attention of the most powerful man in America. Abraham Lincoln took a personal interest in the case. Five days after Chapman gave his statement, the President reportedly wrote the following note:

Washington, May 21, 1864

There is reason to believe that this Cornelius Garvin is an idiot, and that he is kept in the Fifty-second New-York Regiment, concealed and denied, to avoid an exposé of guilty parties. Will the Secretary of War please have the thing probed?

A. LINCOLN

On the same day that Lincoln wrote this, yet another member of the 52nd New York reported seeing Con. The First Lieutenant of Company I, William Von Richenstein, stated that he had seen ‘the son of Catharine Garevan [sic.] at the camp of 52 Regt some fourteen days ago.’ This statement, coming from an officer, placed Con in the ranks at the start of the Overland Campaign. (6)

The result of Lincoln’s directive to Secretary of War Edwin Stanton was the appointment to the case of Lafayette C. Baker, commander of the Union’s Intelligence Service. Baker first dispatched a Detective Officer to Troy to investigate the Almshouse and the circumstances of Con’s disappearance in order to establish some leads. But as May turned to June, Catharine was still wandering the Union camps. Following the Battle of Cold Harbor she managed to meet with the Surgeon of the 52nd New York. He told her what was undoubtedly the last thing she wanted to hear- Con had been killed in action at the Battle of Spotsylvania. However, how was she to know if this information was accurate? (7)

Catharine, no doubt rocked by what the Surgeon had told her, decided to return home. By then she had become a familiar site to many soldiers at the front. One wrote home in 1864, describing a review of the Second Corps:

‘As Hancock’s corps was filing past Grant’s Headquarters- a magnificent sight, calculated to stir the blood- I espied near the Commanding General a sight not very common here,- the form of a woman. The face seemed familiar, and on looking closely I discovered that it was Mrs. Garvin, in search of her son.’ (8)

Back in New York the State Governor Horatio Seymour was now also taking an active part in the case. On 13th June he wrote to District Attorney Colby in Rensselaer County instructing him to ‘make a thorough investigation of the case of Cornelius Garvin, sold as a substitute into the Fifty-Second New York Volunteers; and, if possible, bring the guilty parties to justice.’ A few days later news that Con might have been killed reached home. The Troy Daily Times ran with a headline ‘Con Garvin Dead’ on 20th June. Catharine had reached Troy that morning carrying an ‘autograph letter from the President of the United States.’ The newspaper related how the efforts of Governor Seymour, British Consul Archibald and Mayor Thorn had all been invoked in the search, but in vain: ‘Mrs. Garvin, the devoted mother, will no longer search camp and regiment for her idiot boy. Con is dead…Poor Con will no longer excite the sollicitude of his mother; but she now announces her purpose of living for vengeance. So that although the hero of the strange story is dead, it is probable that his name will still be kept before the public by his untiring mother. True it is: O, woman, in our hours of ease. Uncertain, coy, and hard to please: When pain and anguish cloud the brow; A ministering angel, thou!’ (9)

Despite the prospect that Con was dead, investigations ploughed ahead. Colonel Ludlow of General Dix’s staff was in Troy in July 1864 investigating it, and consulted ‘with persons who have heretofore been cognisant of the case.’ By now the story had crossed the Atlantic, where it was being reported by newspapers like The Dublin Evening Mail. Whatever occurred over the summer months, there appears to have been a revival of some hope through the end of 1864 and into 1865 that Con might be alive. The extent to which Catharine shared these hopes is unclear. On 3rd June 1865 Lafayette Baker wrote to Mayor Thorn in Troy saying that he believed the boy was still alive and yet to be found. He determined to ‘spare neither time or means in prosecuting my investigations, with a view to bring to speedy justice all those engaged in this inhuman and diabolical outrage’. In July 1865 the New York Irish American was still running Information Wanted pieces, supposedly at the behest of Catharine, hoping to reveal new information on Con. On the 29th July they reported that the 52nd New York had now been mustered out of service, ‘the idiot not being present.’ They appealed to former members of the regiment for details on the Irish boy, who had apparently had the nickname of ‘Watches’ or ‘Watchless’ in the army. (10)

But a piece of evidence that had emerged in March 1865 seemed to finally confirm Con’s fate- and it was this version of events that Catharine eventually accepted as the truth. On 14th of that month in the U.S. General Hospital in Albany, New York, Private Frederick Rolf of Con’s company provided the following statement:

‘I, Frederick Rolf, private of Co. I, 52d Regiment, N.Y.V., do hereby certify that I was acquainted with Cornelius Garvin, a private of Co. I, 52d Regiment N.Y.V., and that I saw him engaged with the enemy in the fight of 18th day of May, 1864, at the battle of Spottsylvania, Va.; also that I saw him when he was struck with a ball which took effect in the head, that I saw him carried to the rear, and that I know the wound to have been mortal.’ (11)

By the end of 1865 there was no longer any doubt that Con Garvin had died in service. The roster entry for ‘Charles Becker’, the supposed alias under which he had been enlisted, states that he was captured in action at Spotsylvania on 18th May and subsequently died of disease at Andersonville on 1st August 1864. Both versions of Con’s fate are included in his mother’s pension file, but Catharine (and indeed the balance of evidence) suggests that the disabled Limerick man died on the field at Spotsylvania, even as his mother searched the camps and hospitals for him. (12)

The story of Cornelius Garvin would remain famed for many years. The New York Times recalled it fifty years later in an 1894 article, as did the Troy Record in 1965. It was still fresh in American Civil War veteran Thomas Livermore’s mind decades after the war. In his Days and Events 1860-1866 published in 1920, he remembered the ‘singular case’ which he investigated and ‘which became one of the traditions in the War Department.’ Livermore had been told to investigate the case by Winfield Scott Hancock when Catharine had first arrived at Second Corp Headquarters looking for Con. He remembered how Catharine had twice gone to Washington to obtain letters and endorsements before returning to the Corps to search for her son, and that by the end her papers ‘bore nearly seventy endorsements of officers, from the President down, all of whom forwarded her mission.’ Livermore’s account of Catharine’s search appears to be inaccurate and unkind- if anything adding further pathos to the story. He recalled it as follows:

‘I took the picture of her son which she had and went down to the regiment [the 52nd New York]. The commander said that he never had seen the boy, and that probably he had been drowned on the way out; that his mother had not been satisfied with his assurance that her son was not in the regiment in 1863, but had haunted his camp, and often paced up and down his line peering into the faces of the men until she became intolerable; and asked what could any one suppose he wanted an idiot in his regiment for. I made sufficient search to find that the boy was not there, and reported the fact, and also that the woman’s conduct indicated her mind was unsettled, and recommended that she be sent back to Washington, which was done. In 1865 I began telling this story in General Breck’s presence, when he said “Cornelius Garvin.” That was the boy’s name, and as I have said his story was well known in the War Department, as this shows.’ (13)

What actually happened to Con? The best account comes from Lafayette Baker in his book A History of the Secret Service published in 1867. In a section devoted to the incident, he expressed little doubt as to the true course of events. By the time of his writing, Baker was sure the boy had died in the army. His investigation had ascertained that following his taking from the Almshouse, Con had been enlisted, sent to Riker’s Island and then to the 52nd New York. He had been identified at Mitchell’s Station and again at Mine Run, but Captain Degner who commanded Con’s company, ‘attempted to intimidate, by threats of punishment, those privates of his company who were disposed to assist Mrs. Garvin and others engaged in the investigation.’ Baker’s investigator in Troy reached the conclusion that the Superintendent of the Rensselaer Almshouse had been complicit in Con’s abduction, though the evidence was not sufficient to prove it beyond doubt. Baker also felt Captain Degner was complicit, as when the 52nd New York returned home he had him arrested for questioning. Although the guilt of the two men seems likely, I have found no record of any charges being brought against either. (14)

As for Catharine, she spent many years living in Troy, returning occasionally to Limerick before seemingly settling back in Ireland permanently in 1890. She lived variously in Ballygrennan and Balline in the east of the county, with the post office address for her pension given as Bruff. She reportedly died in Co. Limerick in 1896. It seems unlikely she ever fully recovered from her harrowing wartime experiences. An interesting postscript to the tragic story appeared in the Troy Record of 1965, when it was reported that a D.J. Ryan of the Cork Examiner newspaper in Ireland had written to Mayor Ahern of Troy in the 1940s to say that he was a relative of Catharine Garvin. Ryan had many of her Civil War papers including a handwritten letter to her from Abraham Lincoln, which he was trying to sell. It is not known what became of this material. If any readers have any additional information as to the Cornelius Garvin case, or indeed information as to the whereabouts of these papers, I would be extremely eager to hear from you, either in the form of a comment below or to irishamericancivilwar@gmail.com via email. (15)

*None of my work on pensions would be possible without the exceptional effort currently taking place in the National Archives to digitize this material and make it available online via Fold3. A team from NARA supported by volunteers are consistently adding to this treasure trove of historical information. To learn more about their work you can watch a video by clicking here.

(1) Cornelius Garvin Pension File, The ‘Garvin’ spelling of the surname was also sometimes interchanged with ‘Gavin’. Although Catherine recorded her marriage as 1838 in Grange, a Church Marriage Record on RootsIreland.ie of 30th July 1843 for Knocklong & Glenbrohane, Co. Limerick recording the union of Matthew Garvin and Catherine Madden may also relate to the couple; (2) Cornelius Garvin Pension File; (3) Ibid., National Republican 19th November 1863; (4) Cornelius Garvin Pension File, Morning Leader 16th March 1864, Baker 1867: 448, Evening Union 18th April 1864; (5) Cornelius Garvin Pension File, NYAG: 284; (6) New York Times 29th April 1894, Cornelius Garvin Pension File; (7) Troy Daily Times 12th July 1865, Cornelius Garvin Pension File; (8) Troy Daily Times 20th June 1864; (9) Ohio Plain Dealer 30th June 1864, Troy Daily Times 20th June 1864; (10) Troy Daily Times 1st July 1864, The Dublin Evening Mail 16th July 1864, Troy Daily Times 12th July 1865, New York Irish American Weekly 29th July 1865; (11) Cornelius Garvin Pension File; (12) NYAG: 259, Cornelius Garvin Pension File; (13) Livermore 1920: 400-1; (14) Baker 1867: 447-451; (15) Cornelius Garvin Pension File, Troy Record 18th December 1965;

References

Cornelius Garvin (Gavin) Dependent Mother’s Pension File WC78263.

RootsIreland.ie Marriage Records.

New York Adjutant General. Annual Report of the Adjutant General of the State of New York for the year 1900.Washington DC National Republican 19th November 1863. A Boy Missing.

Cleveland Morning Leader 16th March 1864.

Washington DC Evening Union 18th April 1864.

Troy Daily Times 20th June 1864.

Ohio Plain Dealer 30th June 1864.

Troy Daily Times 1st July 1864.

Troy Daily Times 12th July 1865.

The Dublin Evening Mail 16th July 1864.

New York Irish American Weekly 29th July 1865.

New York Times 29th April 1894.

The Troy Record 18th December 1965.

Baker, Lafayette C. 1867. History of the United States Secret Service.

Livermore, Thomas L. 1920. Days and Events, 1860-1866.

Filed under: Limerick, New York Tagged: 52nd New York, Abraham Lincoln, Garvins of Limerick, Idiot Boy Con Garvin, Illegal Recruitment, Irish American Civil War, Limerick Veterans, Rensselaer County Almshouse