Damian Shiels's Blog, page 4

Invitation, October 19th: Plaque Unveiling to the Andersonville Irish

I am delighted to be able to share the fantastic news with readers that on Thursday 19th October next a memorial plaque will be unveiled at Andersonville National Historic Site to the memory of the Irish Americans who died there and to their families. As many of you know, for quite a while now we have been running the Andersonville Irish Project on this website, an initiative which has to date identified more than 850 Irish Americans who perished at the prison site. Andersonville National Cemetery almost certainly contains more Irish American casualties from the Civil War than any other in America, and as such this marker is particularly appropriate. The realisation of the plaque is due in large measure to the unstinting efforts of Professor Nicholas Allen of the Willson Center for Humanities & Arts at the University of Georgia, the Consulate General of Ireland in Atalanta and the Northern Ireland Bureau. The ongoing cooperation and assistance of the excellent staff at Andersonville National Historic Site has also proved invaluable. As someone who has spent many years working on the impact of the American Civil War on Irish people, this promises to be a particularly special day, particularly given the presence of representatives of the island of Ireland, including Irish Government Minister Darragh O’Brien. The official flyer for the event is shared here- I hope some of you might be able to join us on the day!

[image error]

Photography Focus: Denis F. Burke, Hiding in Plain Sight?

I was recently revisiting Damian Shiels��� article about the amazing stereoview of Thomas Francis Meagher and his Irish Zouaves of Company K, 69th New York State Militia, when I thought I recognized a familiar face among the enlisted ���Zou-Zous.��� Who could forget the equally captivating mugshot of Fenian convict Denis Francis Burke, the former colonel of the 88th New York Infantry of the famous Irish Brigade (discussed by Damian in this article)? I could swear I was looking at the same man! (1)

[image error] Detail from the stereoview of Meagher and members of his Zouave company in 1861. Then-Captain Meagher is seated at right. The private standing at left may be Denis Burke. Left image, J. Paul Getty Trust, right image, New York Public Library.

I scanned through the roster of the 69th Militia, and sure enough, I was able to confirm that Burke was listed as a private in the company. Still not completely convinced, I enlisted the help of Civil War Photo Sleuth���s facial recognition technology. I uploaded the mystery Zouave and two identified images of Burke, and���voila���it came up as a potential match! I���d love to hear if others agree���please feel free to comment here or on Facebook���is Denis Burke the private in the Zouaves photo?

[image error] [image error] Burke and other prominent officers of the Irish Brigade, photographed in 1865. MOLLUS collection via USHEC.

Denis Burke���s career was a remarkable one���even for an Irish Brigade officer. Starting as a private and ending as a brevet brigadier general, he took part in nearly every major battle of the Army of the Potomac from First Bull Run to Appomattox and was twice wounded in action. Arrested in Ireland as a suspected Fenian, Burke provided his own story of emigration and military service in a letter to the U.S. Consul from Dublin���s Mountjoy Prison on 18 March 1866:

The following is my history, which you asked for in your last letter: I was born in the city of Limerick, April 15, 1840, and emigrated to the United States June 13, 1857. I got my naturalization paper January 20, 1860. Was engaged in commercial business in New York, at the house of Grey & Co., 729 Broadway, New York. At the commencement of the war enlisted as a private in the 69th regiment New York State militia, and participated in the battles of Blackburn’s Ford and Bull Run with it. This regiment having enlisted only for three months, I returned with it to New York July 28, 1861, and, after being mustered out, joined the 88th regiment New York volunteers; was promoted two weeks after to second lieutenant by his excellency Governor Morgan. I proceeded with this corps to Virginia December 13, 1861, and participated with it in the following engagements: 1862, Yorktown, Fair Oaks, June 1; Gaines’s Hill, June 26; Savage’s Station, June 27; Peach Orchard, June 28; Glendale and Charles City Crossroads, June 29; Malvern Hill, July 1: Antietam or Sharpsburgh, September 17; Fredericksburg, December 13, where I was severely wounded through the left arm and side. I was promoted to first lieutenant after Malvern Hill, and captain on the battlefield of Antietam. 1863. I here assumed command of the regiment, the field officers being absent on detached duty, and I may add, was never relieved from that responsibility until mustered out; participated in the battles of Chancellorsville May 2 and 3, (was wounded here on the head by a fragment of a shell;) Gettysburg, July 2, 3, and 4; Falling Waters, July 10; Whopping Heights, July 20; Bristoe Station, September 16; Milne Run, November 23; I was then promoted lieutenant colonel, by recommendation of Generals Hancock and Meade. 1864. Wilderness, May 5, 6, and 7; Tod’s Tavern, May 8; Poe River, May 9 ; Spottsylvania, May 12 and 18; Tolapotamea Creek, May 25; Coal Harbor, June 3 and 4; siege of Petersburg, June 16, 17, and 18, and 22; Deep Bottom / and explosion of mine, July 25 ; Ream’s Station, Weldon railroad, August 26; Boydon Plank Road, September 29; assault on Fort Mahon, October 29. At this assault one hundred of my regiment, under my command, were ordered at 12 o’clock at night to demonstrate on the enemy’s centre, and report whether they were enforcing their right, which was pressed by General Hancock. We advanced and stormed one of their strongest works, taking 60 prisoners and spiking four guns. I was, for this affair, breveted colonel in United States volunteers. March 25, 1865, Lee commences to ford his surplus baggage away, and attacked the second corps d’arm��, which repulsed him with great loss; March 30, Haches Run; March 31, Five Forks; April 2, Sunderland Station; April 7, Sailors Creek, capture of Lee’s wagon train; April 9, surrender of the insurgent army under General R. A. Lee.

You can see by this account that I have been engaged in over forty general engagements. I have not counted the minor affairs , as they would fill the whole letter. (2)

Burke was imprisoned at Mountjoy and Kilmainham Gaol for a total of seven months before he was released and allowed to return to New York. An ardent Republican, Burke campaigned for Ulysses S. Grant���s successful bid for U.S. President in 1868. He was also a part owner and assistant editor for both The Emerald and The Irish People, two Irish-American newspapers published in New York City. Burke died in 1893 and is buried at Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, New York.

[image error] Postwar portrait of Denis F. Burke published in Officers of the Army and Navy (Volunteer) who Served in the Civil War, 1893.

References

(1) Shiels, Damian, ���Photography Focus: A Rare Image of Thomas Francis Meagher and the Men of Bull Run, Irish in the American Civil War; Shiels, Damian, ���Face to Face with the Fenians: Mugshots of American Civil War Veterans, Part 1,��� Irish in the American Civil War.

(2) Officers of the Army and Navy (Volunteer) who Served in the Civil War, ed. by William H. Powell; Trial and conviction of American Citizens in Great Britain [for Treason in connection with Fenian movement, 1865. Correspondence].

(3) ���Gen. Denis F. Burke Dead,��� obituary in New York Tribune, New York, NY, 20 Oct. 1893. ���Death of General Denis F. Burke,��� obituary in Freeman’s Journal and National Press, Dublin, 3 Nov. 1893.

Publication News: “The Brave Boy-Lieutenant”

As regular readers will know, Brendan is our resident “photo-sleuth” (among other things!) and regularly makes some fantastic discoveries relating to previously unknown or little-known Irish-related images from the Civil War (and indeed we hope to have some more such content in the near future!). Brendan doesn’t just look at the Irish though. He has just had a new article published in the Autumn 2023 edition of Military Images magazine, edited by Ron Coddington. It looks at the story of Frank N. Sheets of the 29th Indiana Infantry, who lost his life 160 years ago at the Battle of Chickamauga while serving as an aide to Brigadier General Richard W. Johnson. The magazine is subscription based, but is well worth checking out. You can find out more about the issue here. Congrats Brendan!

Video: Campfire Chats- The 69th NYSM and the Battle of Bull Run with Harry Smeltzer, Part 3. Legacy.

The final part of our three-part chat with Harry of Bull Runnings fame on the 69th New York State Militia and the First Battle of Bull Run is now available. If you missed our previous instalments, you can watch Part 1 here and Part 2 here. This final element looks at the aftermath of the battle, the wartime history of the 69th New York State Militia, and their legacy into the 20th and 21st centuries. We hope you enjoy it!

Video: Campfire Chats- The 69th NYSM and the Battle of Bull Run with Harry Smeltzer, Part 2. Battle.

Last week we brought you Part 1 of our Campfire Chat with Harry Smeltzer of Bull Runnings, examining the origins of the Irish 69th New York State Militia and their road towards the First Battle of Bull Run in 1861. This week we share Part 2, which examines the battle itself, and the actions of the 69th on that fateful day. You can catch the chat either via our YouTube page or below. We hope you enjoy it!

Video: Campfire Chats- The 69th NYSM and the Battle of Bull Run with Harry Smeltzer, Part 1. Origins.

For the latest of our Irish American Civil War “Campfire Chats” on YouTube we welcomed long-time friend of the site and expert of all things First Bull Run, Harry Smeltzer. Harry needs little introduction, having maintained the excellent and invaluable Bull Runnings website for many years. We had a long and far-ranging chat with Harry about the famed 69th New York State Militia and it’s role in the battle. Indeed, it was such a good time that we went on for a very long time ���� As a result, we have decided to release the chat in three parts, eahc of which broadly covers the areas we discussed- Part 1: Origins, Part 2: Battle and Part 3: Legacy. We will be putting one video out each week, starting with the first instalment, which you can view below, or via our YouTube page here. We can’t thank Harry enough for his time sharing his expertise- he sure to check out Bull Runnings if you have not already done so. We hope you enjoy the conversation as much as we did!

���Through:��� The Emigrant Hamiltons of Tyrone. Part 4. Skirmishing.

Drill is the basis of the perfection of the soldier as a military machine. Its object is to ensure that, through the habit acquired by constant exercise, a certain action of the soldier shall instantly and almost mechanically follow on a certain word of command spoken by the officer.

[image error]Union soldiers engaged in skirmish drill (Metropolitan Museum of Art)

In February 1862, newly appointed Colonel Charles Adams Johnson may have read these words as he prepared to lead his command, the 25th New York Infantry, in its transition from an undisciplined mob of street toughs into an effective military unit. This excerpt comes from The Theory of War by Sir Patrick Leonard MacDougall, a career British Army officer and veteran of the Crimean War. Johnson owned a copy of this book, which he inscribed with his name and ���Feb. 1862.��� It is now in the possession of my cousin, Aaron S. Hamilton, whose mutual ancestor with me, Irish immigrant William Hamilton, served as a private in Johnson���s regiment. (1)

[image error] The inscribed page in this copy of The Theory of War traces its lineage from Major Alexander M.C. Stetson of the 11th New York Infantry (1st Fire Zouaves) to Colonel Charles A. Johnson of the 25th New York. It is possible Stetson gifted it to Johnson as a gift to celebrate the latter���s commission to colonel. It was subsequently owned by one Lieutenant Richard J. Smith during the Second World War, and now belongs to Lieutenant Colonel Aaron S. Hamilton (Photograph courtesy of Aaron S. Hamilton)

Drill, as emphasized by MacDougall, was certainly a cornerstone of Johnson���s effort to transform the 25th New York Infantry (a.k.a. Union Rangers). The testimony from the court martial trial of the regiment���s previous commander, Colonel James Kerrigan, revealed that the regiment was terribly undisciplined and insufficiently drilled. In fact, it was the unit���s second-in-command, Lieutenant Colonel Henry F. Savage, who led all previous attempts to drill and train the regiment. Kerrigan had been conspicuously absent from such activities. Savage, who had prior experience in the famous 7th New York State Militia, was likely an asset to Johnson from day one. The colonel also had the help of a new slate of company grade officers. The New York Herald reported in February 1862 that Johnson had ���made terrible slaughter among the officers of the regiment,��� compelling 23 of its original officers to resign. Many of these men had been fierce Kerrigan loyalists. They included corrupt city officials, saloon keepers, and others with backgrounds tied to New York street gangs like the Bowery Boys. As I described in the previous article, the men who were appointed to replace them were largely a mix of former enlisted men promoted from the ranks of other New York regiments or from the 25th itself. (2)

Kerrigan���s court martial and the resulting officer purge also affected morale among the rank-and-file, causing an uptick in desertions. In response, Johnson dispatched Captain Archibald Ferguson and several junior officers and enlisted men to New York to recruit new enlistees and round up some of the deserters. He had limited success with both efforts; only a few recruits trickled in to fill the vacancies, and Ferguson had trouble convincing the appropriate authorities to cooperate in the apprehension of deserted soldiers. In a letter dated February 24th, 1862, he complained to Johnson that ���Justices of the Peace [refused] to commit [the deserters], and the commanding officer at Governor���s Island [refused] to receive them.��� Despite these issues, the soldiers who remained in the ranks of the 25th New York seemed to adjust well to their new training regimen. The aforementioned Herald article boasted that, ���There are now few regiments across the river that are finer drilled, and give better promise of courage and efficiency on the field of battle.��� (3)

[image error] Captain Thomas W. Maxwell was promoted in August 1861 to captain of Company H, which included my great great grandfather, William Hamilton. Maxwell, who previously served as sergeant major in the 25th, was born either in Ireland or New York (records vary), was a clerk by trade, and lived in Manhattan���s 14th Ward (U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center)

In March 1862, William Hamilton and his fellow Rangers prepared to face trials that would put their training to the ultimate test. Assigned to Brigadier General Fitz John Porter���s division of the Army of the Potomac, they loaded aboard a steamer and sailed to the vicinity of Fortress Monroe as part of Major General George B. McClellan���s Peninsula Campaign. The move, which included over 121,000 Federal troops, was part of an effort to seize the Confederate capital at Richmond, Virginia by sidestepping the main Confederate forces and advancing up the Virginia Peninsula. The 25th New York first made contact with the Rebels along the Warwick Road on April 5th, 1862. Marching toward Yorktown, Virginia, they moved into position to support an artillery battery that was bombarding the Confederate fortifications defending the city. The Confederates replied in kind, and shells began to fall dangerously close to the New Yorkers. Colonel Johnson soon ordered Companies A and H (the latter including William Hamilton) into the woods in the regiment���s front to determine whether any Rebel troops were nearby. (4)

The two companies, commanded by Captain Shepard Gleason of Company A, most likely advanced in a skirmish line, a loose formation in which soldiers, divided into groups of four ���comrades in battle,��� spaced roughly five paces from each other, advanced while utilizing any available cover along their route. Skirmishers typically served as a first point of contact in advance of a Civil War army���s primary battle lines. They were often used to probe an enemy position, screen advancing troops, and harass and delay enemy movements. The 25th New York employed this formation throughout the war; their training in its usage may have been influenced by Colonel Johnson���s reading of MacDougall���s Theory of War. MacDougall posited that:

Skirmishers require more individual training, intelligence, and self-reliance, than men in close order who fight shoulder to shoulder, whose duty it is to advance, to stand firm, or to retire, by direct command alone. The skirmisher must frequently act on his own judgment: he should know something of the principles of tactics; he should have an eye quick to seize a position whence, sheltered himself, he may annoy his enemy. Although at a review skirmishers advance, retire, or fire, by command; in the heat of action, on broken ground, in a wood, every man must judge for himself and ���fight for his own hand.��� (5)

[image error] Lieutenant Colonel Shepard Gleason, who (as captain of Co. A) commanded the 25th New York���s skirmish line at the Warwick Road. A schoolteacher in Wheatland, New York before the war, Gleason began his service as a sergeant in the 13th New York Infantry before accepting a commission in the 25th in October 1861. He died as a result of exhaustion and sunstroke after a harrowing march in the summer���s heat of June 1863 (New York State Military Museum)

As William Hamilton and his comrades advanced through the ���deep morass and belt of fallen timber��� before them, they came under Confederate small arms fire for the first time. They would certainly have needed to use their training and judgment as they engaged a small contingent of Rebel pickets and drove them through the woods and swamp and back toward the protection of their fortifications. The Yankee skirmishers soon came within full view of the breastworks and the battery positions supporting them, and halted there, providing Johnson with some much-needed intelligence regarding the Confederate positions and a location to reposition the remainder of the regiment from its exposed line near the Warwick Road. Corporal John L. Parker, regimental historian for the nearby 22nd Massachusetts, recalled how the day���s fighting drew to a close: ���The firing ceased after the skirmishers retired. Some one from the fort shouted, ���Good-night, captain!��� and then for the first time we heard the ���rebel yell;��� which sounded quite like the noise made by a crowd of boys rushing out of school. A [Confederate] band struck up ���Dixie��� and the ���Marseillaise.������ Although Colonel Johnson reported that ���the firing on both sides was heavy��� throughout the afternoon, the Rangers were lucky; their regiment did not record a single casualty from the engagement. (6)

[image error] Unidentified New York infantrymen stand on the fortifications near Yorktown, Virginia, 1862 (Library of Congress)

While the soldiers of the 25th had reasons to celebrate their first taste of combat, General McClellan was doing anything but. He anticipated a rapid advance to Richmond, but the stiff resistance he encountered outside Yorktown worried him. Instead of ordering a potentially costly frontal attack on the Confederate works, McClellan ordered his forces to dig in and prepare for a siege. The Rangers and their fellow soldiers spent the better part of a month digging trenches and parallels by night, and performing picket duty in shifts during the daytime. Unbeknownst to McClellan, Confederate Brigadier General John B. Magruder���s small defensive force had actually waged a successful deception campaign that tricked the Union commander into thinking he was facing far more Rebels than he really was. McClellan���s delay allowed Confederate General Joseph E. Johnston time to move his Army of Northern Virginia to the Peninsula. The warfare that was to come was unlike anything either army had encountered to date. The Union Rangers��� trials had only just begun. (7)

Notes and References

Thank you again to Aaron S. Hamilton for help with notes, images, and sources throughout.

(1) MacDougall, Patrick Leonard, Theory of War.

(2) Lowry, Thomas, Tarnished Eagles; ���The Proceedings of the Court Martial in the Case of Colonel Kerrigan,��� New York Daily Herald, 5 Mar 1862; ���The Court Martial on Colonel Kerrigan,��� New York Sun, 18 Dec 1861. ���The Officers of the New York Twenty-fifth Regiment,��� New York Daily Herald, 2 Feb 1862.

(3) ���A Yankee Letter Found Amongst the Spoils,��� Macon Telegraph, 15 July 1862. ���The Officers of the New York Twenty-fifth Regiment,��� New York Daily Herald, 2 Feb 1862.

(4) Sears, Stephen W. To The Gates Of Richmond: The Peninsula Campaign; Johnson, Charles A., ���Report of Col. Charles A. Johnson, Twenty-fifth New York Infantry, of operations April 4���13,��� Official Records of the Rebellion: Volume Eleven, Chapter 23, Part 1���

(5) MacDougall.

(6) Johnson; Parker, John L., Henry Wilson’s Regiment: History of the Twenty-second Massachusetts Infantry, the Second Company Sharpshooters, and the Third Light Battery, in the War of the Rebellion.��

(7) Sears; Parker.

Competitive Citizenship: Post-War Debates between the Welsh and Irish

For our latest post we are delighted to welcome back Aled Jones of Swansea University. An expert on Welsh participation in the Civil War, Aled previously contributed two articles to the site on Welsh native Joshua T. Owen, who led the Irish 69th Pennsylvania during the conflict (you can read them here and here). This time Aled discusses a debate that played out between some of the Welsh and Irish iafter the conflict, in which they argued over each other’s relative attributes and contribution to the war effort. Aled takes up the story:

For thousands of hyphenated Americans, the Civil War was an opportunity to demonstrate the legitimacy of their citizenship by trial of arms. The Irishmen who fought for the Union are a prominent example, but perhaps less well known are the thousands of Welsh-Americans who thrust themselves into combat, determined to earn their status as patriotic veterans.

[image error] Chicago Tribune. (Chicago, Ill.), 11 July 1865.�� Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.

An interesting piece of evidence showing how the Welsh had fought for social acceptance and cultural citizenship can be found in the months following the cessation of hostilities. A prime example of this clamouring for national recognition came in the form of a letter from a Welsh soldier written to the Chicago Daily Tribune, entitled ���The Welsh Nation in America and the War.��� The soldier correspondent, H.O. Rowlands of Waukesha, Wisconsin, began his letter alluding to the obscurity of Welsh contributions to the war effort, largely due to their lack of unit cohesion, instead being scattered throughout the army:

The scarcity of the Welsh in the United States has prevented them from having a conspicuous character as the defenders of the ���Old Flag.��� They were not selfish enough in the beginning of the war to make an effort to constitute a brigade, or a regiment, thoroughly Welsh, to sustain the Union, and whilst their leaders were agitating such a movement, the young heroes of the nation rushed intrepidly to the salvation of their adopted and beloved country, and the blood of hundreds of them has consecrated the altar of Freedom. (1)

It was certainly true that the Welsh didn���t form a distinct regiment let alone a full brigade, which was a source of lamentation for some, but the key detail in his opening paragraph is how the author interpreted the scattered nature of Welsh volunteers. Rowlands viewed this not as a sign of their scarcity in numbers, but rather as a testament to their patriotism for the North and the Union, rushing enthusiastically into any regiment rather than waiting patiently to organize themselves into a Welsh unit. These men he referred to as young heroes, with himself part of that cadre of patriots.

The rest of the letter should be addressed with a certain degree of scepticism, as Rowlands claimed that, ���Their heroism and bravery is to be determined by the promotions of many of them, from company officers to Majors, Colonels and Generals in the Union army.��� Only a handful attained high rank, so this letter was almost certainly intended as a piece of Welsh propaganda, aligning the Welsh to the successful Republican regime. His next words reinforced this clearly:

Politically, the Welsh are almost unanimously Republicans, in that they are religiously dedicated to such principles; of the 70,000 Welsh voters in the United States, 99 per cent of them vote the Republican ticket. In Wisconsin there are about 9,000 Welsh voters, so the victory of the Union ticket depends wholly on them.

It is not clear where his assertion of 70,000 voters came from, although given Alan Conway���s estimation of 120,000 Welsh speakers living in the North prior to the Civil War, this number is not too far-fetched. (2) The fact that he then claimed that the Welsh were responsible for securing Union victory in the Wisconsin elections reinforces how the public perception of the Welsh population as zealous Republicans was continued after the war, further solidifying their legitimacy in the post-war North.

The next section of his letter became more inflammatory, however, providing an insight into the competitiveness between Welsh and Irish. Rowlands stated that, like the Welsh, the Irish fled from their native country to avoid the oppression of British aristocracy, but they ���bound themselves soul and body to defend, to sustain and abet, in their votes and sentiments, the most damnable atrocious and fearful oppression that ever polluted our planet with its heaven-cursed and diabolical principles, to-wit; Southern Slavery.��� (3) Rowlands claimed that there were exceptions, of course, such as the Sheridans, Mulligans and Corcorans, but the rest had been the leaders of the New York riot, harboured traitors and deserters, and disgraced the Union with the manifestation of their treacherous designs. (4)

In a clearly hostile tone, the Welsh soldier evidenced a bias towards the Irish nation as being Copperheads, ergo traitors to the Union, barring those Irish soldiers who served with distinction. He was perhaps influenced by his experiences on active campaign, sharing with many other Union soldiers a hatred of those who opposed an early end to the war, rendering their sacrifices up to that point moot. It also shows how their apparent condoning of slavery was the final nail in the coffin in his view of the Irish, for the true Welsh volunteer was expected to be publicly devoted to the cause of anti-slavery. Furthermore, it highlights an interesting phenomenon of the evolution of hyphenated-identity in something that resembled a competitive citizenship, with Rowlands portraying the Welsh as true Americans because they fought for American principles, whereas he denounced the Irish as mere immigrants.

Unfortunately, yet nevertheless fascinatingly, a few more documents reveal that Welsh hostility to Irish-Americans was not uncommon. For example, a particularly offensive joke appeared in the Dodgeville Chronicle on 10th December 10th 1863:

[image error] Dodgeville Chronicle. ��(Dodgeville, Wis.), 10 Dec. 1863.�� Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.

A soldier���s letter from the Welsh language publication Y Seren Orllewinol (The Western Star) gave another insight as to the bias felt against the Irish. Henry Davis, writing from Baltimore to his brother Edward, described how:

���The greatest fear upon us is that of the Irish. That nation is often found in this place, and as you know they are a deceitful tribe. Last Saturday night they were hurling rocks at us Northern soldiers, but no one was injured. This bodes poorly for the Welshmen in Canton these days.��� (5)

Another prejudice was revealed in a letter received by the Drych (The Mirror) in 1870, where the correspondent was describing the proclivity of Welsh drunkenness in Scranton, Pennsylvania:

���On Main Street there are Welshmen who keep a bar in every other house���Welsh grogshops, whisky holes, gin mills, rum cellars and so on, go to Lackawanna Avenue, Main Street and Hyde Park. There you will see���Welsh singing to shame even the half-civilized Irishmen!��� (6)

Evidently, it was clear that despite holding themselves as liberal, high-minded citizens who fought for the freedom of oppressed negroes in the South, some Welsh-Americans did not share their fraternalism with their Celtic cousins.

Two weeks later, the Tribune published two letters responding to Rowlands���s fire branding, both of which were from anonymous Irishmen. The first proved to be a fairly balanced and surprisingly calm response to Rowlands���s anti-Irish writing. The response immediately tackled Rowlands���s claim that the Welsh were finer patriots due to not forming Welsh regiments, writing: ���While the Irish were selfish enough to form themselves into regiments, brigades and divisions, and fight for their adopted country.��� (7)

This was a subtle yet clear reminder that the Irish vastly outnumbered the Welsh in the army and that they also endured great sacrifices while fighting for their adopted country. Concerning Rowlands���s allegations against the Irish as a nation of secessionists, it was firmly denied, and while acknowledging that there were more ���Secesh��� in proportion to their numbers in the country, their service in the army for the Union cause far outweighed those malcontents, concluding his letter with: ���I would advise the gentleman before he tries to hit the Irishman again, to study the history of the war.��� (8)

In precisely the same manner as the Welsh, the Irish had fought for their adopted country, and earned the same legitimacy of military citizenship. The next correspondent was not so balanced, however, and vehemently counter-attacked Rowlands���s hostility to the Irish nation. Indeed, his words reveal a degree of cultural hostility between Irish and Welsh immigrants that has not been evident in most soldiers���s letters:

[image error] Chicago Tribune. (Chicago, Ill.), 27 July 1865.�� Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers . Library of Congress.

���Mr Rowlands��� attack on the Irish people was uncalled for and unmerited. He writes like a true Welshman. I never yet met a Welshman who did not think that the Welsh people were the greatest in the world. I have, as neighbours, a number of Welshmen, most of whom I esteem very much, but they are the most conceited people in America.��� (9)

His words are full of contradictions. He claimed that he admired his Welsh neighbours in Racine County, where we know there was a sizable population of Welsh speakers, but then described them as the most conceited people in America. It is fascinating to be given an outside perspective of Welsh-Americans, for correspondence from Welsh volunteers has so far shown them to be near immaculate citizens fighting for liberty and an end to slavery. Perhaps this high-mindedness was not an admirable trait to those that lived alongside them. The Irishman���s next words highlight the obscurity of Welsh involvement in the army: ���They tried to fill one company in this county but failed to do so. I have not heard of any Welsh regiments, and I am certain there has been none.��� (10)

Given the proportion of Irish regiments in the Union armed forces and their notoriety in the press, it is understandable how Irish-Americans could be suspicious or unbelieving of Welsh claims to be better patriots, especially after Irish sacrifices at Antietam, Fredericksburg and Gettysburg. Despite his lack of awareness of the extent of Welsh contributions to the war, the writer lauded those ���few Welsh that did volunteer��� who ���fought as well as other American soldiers���, but reminded Rowlands of the greatest traitor to his nation, the ex-president of the Confederacy, Jefferson Davis. (11)

This small excerpt of post-war correspondence is a highly insightful glimpse into how different cultural groups competed with each other about whose involvement was more important ��� showing how fundamental military service was in creating a heightened American nationalism.

References

(1) ���The Welsh Nation in America and the War ��� Letter from a Soldier��� in The Chicago Daily Tribune July 11 1865.

(2) Alan Conway, ���Welshmen in Union Armies���, Civil War History 4 (1958), 143. 143-174.

(3) Ibid.

(4) Ibid.

(5) ���Llythyr o Baltimore��� in Y Seren Orllewinol August 1861.

(6) (Y Drych 1870) in Russell Davies, People, Places and Passions: ���Pain and Pleasure���: A Social History of Wales and the Welsh, 1870-1945, (Cardiff, 2015), p.193.

(7) ���The Welsh and Irish in the War��� in The Chicago Daily Tribune July 27 1865.

(8) Ibid.

(9) ���Another Letter on the Same Subject��� in The Chicago Daily Tribune July 27 1865.

(10) Ibid.

(11) Ibid.

Midleton’s 19th Century American Soldiers & Sailors

As I am on a brief visit back to my former home of Midleton, Co. Cork at present, I thought for our next post we might take a look at some work I have undertaken on local men who served in the American forces. This was research I originally put out on one of the other sites I run, the locally focused Midleton Archaeology & Heritage blog. I hope readers here find it of some interest!

The best known American military link to Midleton comes in the form of John Joseph Coppinger, who eventually rose to the rank of General. You can read some of the previous research I carried out on him at this link, which incidentally led to the naming and theming of a pub in his honour on Midleton’s Main Street! Though Coppinger is certainly Midleton’s most famous “forgotten” American serviceman, he is far from alone. Below is a brief look at just three of many others from the area who entered American military service in the 19th century– one during the American Civil War, another immediately after that conflict, and one who served in both the American West and during the Spanish-American War. 

John Quinn, 16th New York Cavalry, American Civil War

The American Civil War saw more Cork men fight and die in uniform than any other conflict in the county’s history, including the First World War. It is probable that the same is also true for Midleton men, and those from the immediate area. One of a number we have uncovered was John Quinn. John was born in East Cork around 1826. On 25th May 1845 he married 18-year-old Margaret Hennessy in Dromada, Castlemartyr, part of the parish of Midleton.

[image error] Marriage certification for John Quinn and Margaret Hennessy of Castlemartyr in 1845. Margaret supplied this evidence in her claim for an American pension after John’s death (NARA)

The couple went on to have at least two children, Margaret and Michael, both born in the early 1850s. They emigrated to New York and by the eve of the American Civil War were living in city of Troy, probably with other emigrants from East Cork. John enlisted in the 16th New York Cavalry on 10th August 1863 but illness soon caused him to be transferred to the Invalid Corps. He died in Alexandria, Virginia of chronic pneumonia on 11th February 1864. After John’s death, Margaret successfully applied for an American Military Pension based on her husband’s service. John’s resting place can today be found in Alexandria National Cemetery.

[image error] The grave of John Quinn in Alexandria National Cemetery, Virginia (Stan Jett via Find A Grave)

John J. Bransfield, USS Brooklyn, USS Ohio, USS Jaunita, Post Civil War

Born in Midleton, John was a 22-year-old sailmaker when he enlisted in the United States Navy in September 1870. His main service was aboard the famed sloop-of-war USS Brooklyn, and he spent his time deployed with her on her extended visit to Europe and the Mediterranean. John took ill while on the voyage, and while in Toulon, France was deemed unfit for service due to palpitations of the heart. He was discharged on 24th August 1872.

[image error] USS Brooklyn, on which Midleton’s John Bransfield served (United States Navy)

John received a pension for rheumatism and heart disease caused by his service. After leaving the navy he first lived at 140 Prince Street in Boston, and as was common, spent much of his time with other Midleton emigrants. Richard Morgan of Midleton remembered meeting him there when they worked together at the same employment. Eventually John returned to make his home on Midleton’s Main Street, where he spent the remainder of his life. He married Hannah Walsh on 7th November 1879; their son Maurice was born in 1880, and was followed by John in 1882, Dora in 1884 and Mary in 1885. John died in Cork’s North Infirmary on 12th November 1902 during an operation that was attempting to remove his kidney, and was buried in Midleton’s Holy Rosary Cemetery.

[image error] John Bransfield’s Certificate of Baptism from 1851. Supplied as part of his American pension application (NARA) [image error] 1903 Memorandum of Midleton’s John Stanton, Clerk of the Union, relating to the pension application of John Bransfield’s widow Hannah (NARA)

John Leahy, United States Marine Corps, Spanish-American War

John Leahy was born in Aghada around 1864, but his family ultimately made their home at No. 10 William Street (New Cork Road), Midleton. They would later move to No. 15. John had long service in the U.S. military. He was a 20-year-old labourer when he entered the 4th United States Cavalry in New York on 25th November 1887, serving in the American West with Company D. Discharged in 1891, he returned to the military in 1898 at Mare Island, California, when he re-enlisted in the United States Marine Corps. All the while John was sending money home to support his ageing parents in Midleton. During the Spanish-American War of 1898, John took part in some of the major actions of the conflict. He was a participant in the landing at Guantánamo, Cuba on 10th June 1898, the bombardment of Santiago de Cuba on 21st June and 2nd July 1898 and the destruction of Admiral Cervera’s fleet on 3rd July 1898.

[image error] U.S. Marines entrenching in Guantánamo, Cuba in 1898, an operation Midleton’s John Leahy participated in (U.S. Naval History & Heritage Command)

John survived these engagements only to fall ill and die on 7th October 1900. He was interred at the Congressional Cemetery in Washington D.C. His parents William and Ellen, who had partially relied on John’s financial  support, were entitled to seek a U.S. Government pension in Ellen’s name, as William was no longer able to work. She duly applied for it.

[image error] The grave of Midleton’s John Leahy at Congressional Cemetery, Washington D.C. (Historic Congressional Cemetery Archivist via Find A Grave)

When seeking her pension, Ellen wrote from Midleton to the American Bureau of Pensions explaining her circumstances:

…my only outlook now is to look forward to the graciousness of the U.S. Government, as I was almost entirely dependent on my deceased son’s remittances to me, and my husband being unable to work owing to his advanced age, I now sadly miss my son’s remittances, owing to his untimely death in service to his adopted Country.

[image error] Letter written by Ellen Leahy from Midleton to America in support of her pension application based on her son’s U.S. Marine Corps service (NARA)

John wasn’t the only one of the Midleton Leahys in America. In fact his mother Ellen took the time in 1902 to explain to the American Government just where all her children were, and why they couldn’t support her:

(1) Michael Leahy (son) aged 40 years who is a Hospital Steward in [the] United States Army and is at present stationed at Angel Island, California…He is married and doing for himself and family and consequently is no help to me.

(2) Ellen Leahy (daughter) aged 37 years who is presumably in some part of the United States, but as she never writes home I have no account of her.

(3) Margaret Barry (daughter)…is wife of John Barry of Midleton County Cork Ireland. Her age in 1901 was 34 years.

(4) Mary White (daughter)…aged 31 years; wife of John White of Midleton County Cork Ireland.

(5) William Leahy (son); 28 years; is living with me at home.

(6) Kate Leahy (daughter); 26 years; is at present in some part of the United States.

(7) Patrick Leahy (son), 23 years, is living with me at home. [he suffered from fits]

(8) Annie Leahy (daughter), 20 years, is living with me at home.

My husband, William Leahy, aged 74 years is also alive an has never rendered any military or naval service. [he had worked as a labourer until he was 70, but was now too old to work for her support]

The impact of emigration in splitting families apart is readily apparent in Ellen’s account of her children. She and her husband provided lots of additional detail about their lives in their pension application, including the fact that they were renting their home on a weekly basis from Lord Midleton for a sum of one shilling and six pence. Other Midleton residents rallied around the couple to try and help them get a pension; among those who gave statements were Timothy O’Leary of 9 Railway Terrace, and Denis O’Keeffe of No. 19 William Street (New Cork Road). When Ellen herself fell ill, her daughter (and U.S. Marine John’s sister) Hannah Aherne, then living at No. 15 Cork Road, supplied receipts for her medical care to the U.S. Government, which are still preserved in Washington D.C. today. Among them is a bill from Doctor M.P. Desmond, which you can view below.

[image error] Receipt from Dr. Desmond for care of Ellen Leahy on the Cork Road (NARA)

After Ellen’s death on 10th March 1919, Hannah also passed a copy of the funeral expenses on to America, preserving the details of the costs issued by Dr. Patrick D. Moore of 3 Broderick Street for the provision of, among other items, a coffin, bier and horses. Hannah was entitled to be repaid the costs for both her mother’s illness and funeral because Ellen had been a pensioner of the United States– even though she had never visited the country.

[image error] Funeral expenses issued by Patrick D. Moore of 3 Broderick Street, Midleton, preserved in the National Archives, Washington D.C. (NARA)[image error]Hannah Aherne’s 1920 letter to the American Bureau of Pensions seeking a contribution towards her mother’s funeral expenses to which she was entitled as her mother was a U.S. Pensioner (NARA)

The stories of these three men and their families are some of the thousands from East Cork that were created as a result of the mass emigration from the locality in the 19th and 20th centuries. That emigration led many to the service of the United States military, and unfortunately for some, it led to their deaths. 

References

National Archives Pension Files

Find A Grave

U.S. Army Register of Enlistments

New York Muster Roll Database

Video: Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon Voices of the American Civil War

Earlier this year Damian presented an online lecture for Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council as part of their Rippling Effects of The Great Irish Famine Series. The talk primarily explored the stories of emigrants from around the local area, told through the records left behind as a result of the American Civil War. For a number of them, this was the first time they have been discussed. The Council have now made the talk available on their YouTube page (along with the rest of this excellent series, which we highly recommend you check out!). If you are interested in taking a look, you can do so below, or by clicking on this link.