Friday, January 21, 2011

Notes on the Missing

Pennsylvania State Archives card for David Carter,
72nd Pennsylvania (see below)
In an earlier post I listed six members of the 72nd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment who went missing in the West Woods on September 17. I reported on William Butler and made another report on Charles C. Cooper at a later post. On Friday I visited the National Archives to  continue the search for the missing from the 72nd Pennsylvania. I was able to retrieve the records of each of the six but found nothing more than what had been previously known--that on September 17 all went missing in the West Woods. While searching, however, the records revealed the fate on a seventh member of the 72nd who went missing that day and shed light on the whereabouts of another who went missing at a later engagement. Here is the report.

William H. Butler was 20 years old when he enlisted as a Private in Company B on August 10, 1861 in Philadelphia. The Company Muster Roll for September and October 1862 shows him “Missing since battle of Antietam, Sept. 17, 1862. Due Sutler $4.00.” U.S. National Archives, Washington (Hereafter: NARA) Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35022 (Bonefon to Byrnes).

Charles C. Cooper was 22 years old when he enlisted as a Private in Company E on August 10, 1861 in Philadelphia. The Company Muster Roll for September and October 1862 shows him “Wounded at the Battle of Antietam, Md. September 17, 1862.” He was carried in subsequent Company Muster Rolls as “absent, wounded” until January and February 1864 when the clerk entered “Supposed dead. Nothing heard from since battle of Antietam, Sept. 17, 1862.” NARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35024 (Coady to Crossin). As reported on an earlier post, both Butler and Cooper disappear from their family census records after the 1860 enumeration.

Listed but not reported in earlier posts are the following missing.

John H. Cornwall was 21 years old when he enlisted as a Private in Company C on August 10, 1861 in Philadelphia. The Company Muster Roll for September and October 1862 shows him “Missing since battle of Antietam, Sept. 17/62” and he is “dropped” from the roll on the March and April 1863 report. NARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35024 (Coady to Crossin).

Joseph Henry was 25 years old when he enlisted as a Private in Company F on August 10, 1861 in Philadelphia. The Company Muster Roll for September and October 1862 shows him “Missing since battle of Antietam, Sept. 17.” He is carried on the rolls until the Company Muster Out Roll of August 24, 1864 and there is listed as “Wounded & Missing in Action since Sept. 17, 1862.” NARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35030 (Harringan to Himes).”

John J. McCanna was 21 years old when he enlisted as a Private in Company D on August 10, 1861 in Philadelphia. The Company Muster Roll for September and October 1862 shows him “Missing since battle of Antietam, Sept. 17 1862.” The Company Muster Roll for November and December 1862 shows him as “Wounded at Antietam…” but no other mention is made of his condition other than “missing” until he is “Dropped” from the roll in March & April reports. NARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35035 (Martin to McGrittigan).

Theodore Pike was 22 years old when he enlisted as a Private in Company D on August 10, 1861 in Philadelphia. The Company Muster Roll for September and October 1862 shows him “Missing since battle of Antietam, Sept. 17/62.” The roll for March / April 1863 shows that he owed the Sutler $6.00. NNARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35038 (O’Brien to Potts).


David Baxter was 31 years old when he mustered in a Camp Lyon, Philadelphia, Pa on August 10, 1861. Although the muster-out roll dated August 24, 1864 and filed in Philadelphia states that he was “Wounded and Missing in Action since Sept. 17, 1862” a “Record of Death and Internment” in his papers at NARA show that he died on September 30, 1862 of tetanus at the U.S. Army General Hospital Number 5 in Frederick Maryland. He was buried there at grave number 101, Area M. A clerk, Thomas W. Dalton, noted on his “Casualty Sheet” that upon death he had “No effects.” NARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Box 35021 (Baldwin to Boland).

The following entry is for Ferdinand Beideman who was at Antietam with the 72nd Pennsylvania but did not go missing until nearly two years later. I am including him in this list because most published sources still carry him as missing.

Pennsylvania State Archives card for
Ferdinand Beideman, 72nd Pennsylvania
Ferdinand Beideman was 21 years old when he enlisted with the 72nd Pennsylvania, Company F, in Philadelphia. He stood 5 foot 8 and 3/4 inches, was dark complexioned with black eyes and black hair. He listed his occupation as a lumberman. He was with Company F as it fought near the Dunkard Church. He continued with the regiment until he went missing on May 8, 1864 at the Potomac River, Virginia. Most records, including the Pennsylvania State Archives card catalog show him as missing after that date. In fact, he was taken prisoner of war at Spottsylvania Courthouse on May 10, 1864 and confined at Andersonville, Ga. to an unknown date. On December, 11, 1864 he is paroled at Charleston, S.C. and sent to Camp Parole, Maryland on December 17, 1864. By 1878 he has moved to Maryland, where on October 17, 1878 he applied for invalid pension benefits. On December 28, 1894 his wife Susan E. Beideman applied for widow's benefits.  NARA Record Group 94 (Adjutant General’s Office), Civil War (Union) Compiled Military Service Records, Memorandum from Prisoner of War Records, Army of the U.S. Certificate of Disability for Discharge, Box 35021 (Baldwin to Boland); Civil War Pension Index: General Index to Pension Files, 1861-1934 Record for Ferdinand Beideman (retrieved from ancestry.com).
 

6 comments:

Michael O'Brien said...

Jim
Commendable undertaking you've embarked upon.
Thank you! I'm wondering if you might have any names of the fallen from the 34th New York Infantry Regiment at this point? One I'm aware of was Arthur O'Keeffe, Corporal Company B of the 34th. My GGG Uncle Michael S. O'Brien was a fellow B Company Soldier & friend of Arthur's, and I'm sure he was with or near Arthur at the time he fell. According to "God be merciful.." Letters of Arthur O'Keeffe 34th NY 1861-62 (http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3905/is_200003/ai_n8881097/?tag=content;col1), Arthur likely fell on the battlefield and was buried there.

I hope this is of some help in any way.
Best regards,
Michael O'Brien

Jim Buchanan said...

Michael -- Thank you for the post and for information on Michael S. O'Brien and Arthur O'Keefe. I have not done much work on the 34th but intend to. I checked the Western Maryland Historical Library excellent web page on the Antietam Cemetery for O'Keefe and he is not listed among the names for New York. It is, however, a good source of some of those in the 34th at Antietam and I will try to get that on the blog as soon as I can. I hope you can post more on your ancestor and anything on the 34th will be very welcomed.

Jim Buchanan said...

Michael--Here is my list culled from the National Cemetery of those from the 34th buried there--those that are known.

John Adair, Company C
John Beardsley, Company G
James Donohue, Company A
Henry Gilman, Company A
Peter Jollie, Company D
W.H. Lewis, No company listed
Alvey Orcutt, Company E
Chester S. Rhoades, Company H
William Rubbins, Company G
William Salisbury, Company C
J. Smith, No company listed

Michael O'Brien said...

Thank Jim. I'm trying to get more information on my Uncle (service records/pension/widow's pension) from the NY State Archives as well as NARA.

Most of the names listed above appear in the 34th's general roster (save Adair & Smith):

John Beardsley - Age 21. Enlisted May 1, 1861 at Herkimer to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company G June 15, 1861. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

James Donohue - Age 28. Enlisted June 16, 1861 at Albany to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company A same date. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

Henry Gilman - Age 27. Enlisted June 16, 1861 at Albany to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company A same date. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

Peter Jollie (Jolly in roster) - Age 25. Enlisted October 24, 1861 at Champlain to serve an unexpired term of 2 years. Mustered in Company D on same date. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

W.H. Lewis (William) - Age 19. Enlisted August 1, 1861 at Brockett's Bridge to serve an unexpired term of 2 years. Mustered in Company K on August 4, 1861. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

Alvey Orcutt (Alvin) - Age 18. Enlisted May 18, 1861 at Rathbone to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company E on June 15, 1861. Wounded at Fair Oaks, Va. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

Chester S. Rhoades - Age 27. Enlisted May 1, 1861 at Crown Point to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company H on June 15, 1861. Color bearer, killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md. See *.

William Rubbins - Age 18. Enlisted May 1, 1861 at Herkimer to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company G on June 15, 1861. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

William A. Salisbury - Age 19. Enlisted May 1, 1861 at Norway to serve 2 years. Mustered in Company C on June 15, 1861. Killed September 17, 1862, Antietam, Md.

* The Story of Chester S. Rhoades:
Chester S. Rhoades was born in Crown Point, from old revolutionary stock. His father was Judge Levi Rhoades, who was in the battle of Plattsburg. His grandfather was a revolutionary soldier, and his mother's maiden name was Lois Rogers. She had two brothers in the battle of Plattsburg. Her father was also a revolutionary soldier. Chester had three brothers, three of whom served in the war of the rebellion. When the ladies of Crown Point made that flag, they put it in the hands of Chester as the bearer. His mother stepped up to him, threw her arms around his neck, and while the tears were rolling down her cheeks said "Chester, the ladies of Crown Point have put great confidence in you, they have placed that banner in your hands. Go the front bear it aloft, and never turn from the enemy." On the bloody battle-field of Antietam he obeyed the last command of a loving mother; turned, and faced a whole rebel army, with these words: "I will run no farther," and was pierced with seven bullets. His remains lie in the National Cemetery at Antietam. The number of his marker is seven hundred and seventy-eight.

Jim Buchanan said...

Michael--Thank you! for your post. The story of Chester Rhoades is remarkable and moving. I will get a pix of his marker this weekend and post it. I will be down at the Archives on Friday and will see what I can find on Michael S. O'Brien and Arthur O'Keefe. The way the Archives has things organized is by regiment and then alpha by individual, so records are fairly easy to retrieve. As Jim Rosebrock noted in his blog (See South from the North Woods entry for March 6), you never know what you might find in these individual records. Also, thanks for adding detail to the other members of the 34th listed above. There is an account of the recovery of William Salisbury published in "Legacy--The Annals of Herkimer County" Herkimer County Historical Society (No. 2, 1987). I have a note out to the Society requesting permission to post an annotated version of the article.

Michael O'Brien said...

Jim
You are most welcome!
And thank you as well! I would be extremely interested in learning about what info may potentially be in those files.

I do hope that the HCHS grants permission to publish the Salisbury article, it would be most interesting.