Waldo, Chauncey and William Potter....heroes of the Civil War

Sometimes a little research has to be done in order to find one's ancestral pathway.  In doing so, I have discovered so many fascinating and interesting facts about family and who I am descended from.  My great grandmother was Laura Potter Peak, and she is a relative of Waldo, Chauncey, and William Potter; the three men who served in the 76th Artillery Unit during the Civil War.  Of the three only one survived, Chauncey. William died early, from disease when the unit arrived in Washington DC, Waldo, died of a battle wound.  I thought it would be interesting to read of Waldo's journey through his words in his letters home. They are found www.bpmlegal.com/75/potter.   Godspeed.

Waldo Potter, age 18, born 1844, a farmer, enlisted September 20, 1861, at Union Valley, to serve three years; mustered in as private, Co. A, October 4, 1861; discharged for disability, December 3, 1862, at New York City. Re-enlisted at Norwich, and mustered in as private, Co. G, 2nd New York Heavy Artillery, January 4, 1864; wounded by a ball in left shoulder June 10, 1864, at Cold Harbor; wounded June 15, 1864 contusion to left foot, thigh and left shoulder by shell; wounded July 3, 1864 contusion to left foot by shell; wounded, gun shot wound right thigh, in action April 7th 1865 near City Point, Va.; Died April 7, 1865 from wound.
Fanny H. and Joel Potter, married May 3rd, 1835 at Taylor, NY, were the parents of Waldo, Alburtus, and Almira. They lived in Town of Taylor, Cortland County, NY.
The following letters were found in Waldo's mother pension application file in the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

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Philadelphia               
July 11/62

Dear parents
I now take my pen in hand to inform you that I am a going to my regiment to morrow and when you write you may direct to the regiment I have about $80 that I want to send to you and I dast not send it by mail for it mint get lost so I think that I will take it with me and send it home by uncle chancey when he gits his discharge I am in some what of a hury excuse all mistakes rite soon your truly         
Waldo Potter          
HO for           DIXIE
I thought that I would put in a few dollars and if Chancy come I will send the rest by him.
         W. Potter
(Chancy is Chauncey Potter, age 35, enlisted September 20, 1861, at Union Valley, to serve three years; mustered in Co. A, 76th NY Vol Inf, October 4, 1861; discharged for disability, September 23, 1862, at Washington, D.C.)  

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      Washington
Sept 26 1862

Dear parents
I have just received a letter from you and was glad to hear from you and to hear that you was all well as could be exected under the circumstances I thought that I would send you ten dollars now and I exect to get two months pay more now in a short time and then I can send more I would send you more this time iff I had not got to buy me a pair of boots and a pair of shirts and a few other things but I would rather go without a sent in my pocket than have you want or get in to any trouble I tell you what it is from pas and mother's boy and mean to be to I wish you would rite and let me know how much I have sent home for I lost my memoirandum and how old I shal be next January and when my birth day is
I am no better as yet but soon hope I shal be I have got the diarrhoea I am so that I sit up all day but am very week and have no appitite Doctor george from Cortland has ben here to see me twice the first time he brout me some fried cakes and he sayed that they came all the way from cortland Oh was they not good I do believe that the poorest med in the world would be good iff it came from Cortland the next time he came he brought me some of the nicest butter in the world for it came from Cortland to
If I should tell you how poorly we lived here you would not know what to say tell Almiry I will answer her part of the letter when I get the answer from the one I rote Frank is not killed I do not think for there is a sargeant here of his company and he sayed that he was prety badly wounded but he thought he would recover and that is all I can hear from him some tell one thing and some another george Culver was seen struck and died at Culpeper or near there and was buried between Culpeper and South Mountain peace go with him good by for this time from you ever loving son Waldo Potter
 These two bills have ben with me through all of Virginia

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 Washington
October 4th 1862

Dear parents
I have just receiving you fine and ever welcome letter but I was some what surprised to hear that almira was sick by some means or other I did not get the answer to the one I rote to her mother brothers and sister I should like to see you once again but the lord only knows whether I ever shall or not iff we meet not on this world I trust that we shal in an other
I can not get my discharge but I think that I shal get my pay soon and it might be I could get a short furlow what do you think of it Let me know next time you rite never be afraid of asking me to send you mony for it gives me pleasure to send it to you when I have it I have got a plenty by me and more to I have got some over 15 dollars with me now and should you want any dont be afraid to send for it excuse my bad riting for my pen is not good
your ever loving son
Waldo Potter
Tell albertus to rite and to plant these seeds in the spring for they are bell pair sene one as big as your two fists the pair Come from Vermont
I send you a book      it cost me 20 read it       one and all       to remember        me        W. P.

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Fort C F Smith              
March 11, 1864

Folks at home
I rite you from my head quarters we got here las monsday we came on the water to alexandria and from there on foot we are on the Virginia Side in arlington heights every thing is bustley here we have baracks to sleep in and good straw ticks and good grube in our mess room we have earthen dishes to eat out of every thing is Clean and neat I am in Co. G and Dock mery arth and gorge thay are in Co E they ar in another Fort about a quarter of a mile from here I am well and tuff as a buck
give Jim the Directions and till him to rite for I rote him first            
Waldo              Potter      Direct to
I sent 50 dolars by express       From Alexandria       Have you got it or        Haint you      It is warm and nice here      How is it at home       General Potter
Directions       Fort C.F. Smith       Co. G, 2 NY Heavy Artilery        Washington,          D.C.       Care C F Smith       Co G 2 N.Y. Heavy Artilery

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Mount Pleasant hospital
June 15th 1864

Dear beloved parents   
It is with pleasure that I now have the power to rite you a few more lines you may be some what surprised when you hear of my being in the hospital I will tell you why I am here
I am wounded in three places by a mortar shell but not dangerously I was lying with the rest of the company before the breastworks Charles murray and garett Brown lay one on one side and one on the other the shell burst rite over me and piece struck me on the sholder one in the groins and one on the top of my foot my foot is the worst of any it like to have spoilt that mold on my foot iff it had I should have ben mad
the doctor thinks that some of the boans are cracked them in my foot but I can hable round some yet it is my left foot left shoulder and left groin I am some stiff
I tell you one thing it saved me from and that is a long march for the army moved the same night it was the 11 day of June I got them letters you rote the day before it was the first male our regiment had get since they left the forts
our regiment has ben farely badly cut up for we had 1700 men and now we number only 800 men one thing I have not got vary money and iff you will send me two or three dollars send it dont trust any more for I might not get it
I have been in six diverent fights and one skirmish and that was as bad as a fight and five out of the six we charged rite up to the rebels breast works rite in the mouth of their cannon and we took them every time but twice and then we did not know when to stop for the rebs say that them heavy arty felows dont know when they are whiped the greatest wonder is that I got out alive I have got two ball holes through my coat and one through my pants
I can not stand it to rite eny more now rite all of you and all of the news for I am anxious to hear from you good by for this time
from your son Waldo Potter.
          Direct to          Waldo Potter        Mount Pleasant Hospital          Washington D.C

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Camp near Petersburg Va.
March 12th 1865

Dear parents   
I now take a few moments to rite you in answer to your ever welcome letter witch I got yestarday from well and I am glad that you Mother is so mutch better I hope this will find you still on the recovery I have been payed off and I will send some money in this letter I have got a plenty of stamps now the sutler sent to Washington and got some I will send 75 dollars in this one it will pay for your new haus I am all most a fraid to send it but I may loose it or get it stolen if I keep it by me you can do with it as you see fitt I will have 100 more to send home it will make 175 in all and I hope it will get home all safe it will make over 899 dollars I want to make it as bigh as 1200 iff I can and I guess that I can some of the boys got over 200 and now they have not got a sent they have gambled it a weigh I may send the rest before I get an answer from this iff I do I shal put it in to a letter to mira as berties the weather is getting some warm here now and it is spring with us it is not quite spring with you yet I do not know of any more so good by for now rite and let me know how you like you new home good by for now from
you ever loving son              Waldo Potter

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These letters were transcribed by B. Conrad Bush, 1940 Reading Road, West Falls, NY, 14170; e-mail Bushresear@aol.com; from original letters found at the National Archive, Washington, DC.

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The Living Dead......

Okay, I've asked the question many times and still haven't gotten a satisfactory answer:  What's the dif between the undead and the living dead?  I mean really if they are walking around how can they even be dead or undead?  See what I mean.  Now I'm not talking about just zombies here, but many will think that.  No,  I mean zombies are described in voodoo as being a corpse which has been reanimated through the use of magic ( a bit of necromancy), but zombies are also individuals who are under hypnotism, that is they move about and respond to orders but have no conscious thought or will.  So in the first case we can say a zombie is the undead.  However, what about the individual who is under hypnosis?  They aren't dead, but are not in control of their body or mind.  Kind of creepy, huh?  Think about it.  You are going along, minding your own business and somewhere, somehow, someone hypnotized you.  Some sort of suggestion is imprinted in your unconscious mind, when it is triggered, suddenly you are gone and the hypnotic suggestion or order takes over.  There may be even a suggestion which says you will not remember the action you will doing or are doing.  You, as an individual no longer exists.  You are at the power and will of the one who planted the hypnotic suggestion.  Your unconscious mind has taken over and you are at the mercy of the hypnotist.  Guess what? At this point, you could be considered the living dead!
Wow!  Doing whatever someone else wants you to do!  From taking out the garbage ( okay, but, someone might like that) to committing a crime.  Imagine, how you would feel when you come out of hypnosis and everyone around you claimed you did something.  Personally, I know I would freak out and tell them I didn't do it.  I would have to see proof!  That's right, I'm a Doubting Thomas right down to the core.  But, here comes the really creepy stuff, what happens to you when you see the evidence?  Talk about an overload in the mind.  A crashing computer of the major sort!  No memory of it, your memory was wiped, no idea of how you did something, or even how you got to where ever!  Yep, definitely the living dead!  You're alive, but you are dead as well....like I said creepy.
Okay, so I think I answered my own question about the difference between the undead and the living dead.  Oh and by the way, when the zombie apocalypse arrives, remember I will be out there with a baseball bat, so if you're not a member of the undead, make sure you let me know!  And if you are a part of the living dead....well, I'll make sure to have plenty of evidence of what you did, for this isn't Vegas!  Have fun and go enjoy a zombie movie or play a zombie game!  LOL!!!

Music of My Life

Music.  One word, but wow, all sorts of different thoughts, images, sounds, and events pop up in my mind.  You see I was surrounded by music from birth.  Mom loved listening to the radio, Dad was in chorus and band when he was in high school and he listened to the radio when milking the cows.  My big sister owned our record player and my big brother sang a lot.  My maternal grandfather was always whistling and Gram, well, she loved her record player. Yeah, I grew up with music and I know, a lot of people did; but is one of your earliest memories is singing:  "Jimmy cracked corn and I don't care"  at the top of your voice?  It is mine. Oh and "three blind mice"...I was well on my life's musical journey.  As a matter of fact, music would and still does fill my life.  By the time I graduated high school, music had a deep hold on me.  You know what I mean!  Certain songs bring up memories, and you sing along with them.
Yeah, I loved music.  Then something happened...it's hard to explain, but I lost my love and in doing so, I lost a huge part of me.  Music suddenly annoyed me.  It seemed to be harsh, metallic, and fake.  The music in my life was filled with lost, depression, and anger.  There was no escape from its joyless sounds. I stopped listening, singing, humming, and whistling.  No life, no hope, no joy.  Just the blaring, squawking, and chaotic sounds of an uncaring world.
Yeah, wonderful.  A loss soul wandering through life with no compass to guide me.  Fun times.  Watching others, seeing their joy, their hardships, their hopes, their lives filled with music throughout it all.  Not for me. It was gone.  Music, the center of my life, lost and me, a wraith filled with darkness.  You see, this is what happened to me when depression took me into its grip.  My counselor told me to stop holding in my anger...so much anger and no way to release it.  Death seemed like a great alternative....So many deep, dark images and thoughts...all through my early twenties; raging within myself; blaming myself; losing to the darkness at times; fighting back to see a pinpoint of light; never hearing the music of life; yet, straining to listen.  The funny thing is I didn't do what a lot of people do who suffer from mental illness, I didn't do illegal drugs, no drinking, so stupid things...no I withdrew from life instead.  You know the scene in Twilight: New Moon, where Bella just sits in her room coiled in a fetus position for several months...that was me. That movie really portrayed what I felt and thought during my dark silent time.  I went through the motions of life, but didn't really live.  I put on a front for my friends and family...they knew I was different, but didn't know how.  I dated, did all that stuff...but no one could break through the wall I had put up around me.  No one. Yeah, lovely.
Finally, change.  A window opened and light descended upon me.  I heard something....something magical, something with rhythm., something beautiful.  I listened and heard the music of a red wing blackbird.  Weird, right?  Not for me, that type of bird is one I love to hear to this day for it's song is what brought me back to life.  After that, a robin, a seagull, the chattering of squirrels, the laughter of children, music to my ears and my life.  A rainbow filled the sky and filled my heart and mind with music.  The fantastic sounds of Glenn Miller, Duke Ellington, and Harry James!  The sultry voices of Rosemary Clooney and Arethra Franklin.  The beautiful harmony of the Andrew Sisters and believe it or not, Reo Speedwagon.  Prince, Madonna, Phil Collins, Lionel Richie, Honeydrippers, and Simple MInds were all a part of my renewal.  A rebirth into life, a changed and more adult love for the music which sparked my soul back into my mind and heart; and with this a new outlook on the world and myself.
Oh, I would still battle the darkness many more times. My depression is a part of me, but now I understand that it's hold is due to chemical imbalances in my brain which are treatable with the right medicines and people I surround myself with.  The depression is genetic, and my daughter suffers from it now.  She too, descended into a darkness and with time, care, medicine, and love, she is back in the light as well.  It is an illness which many hide or never talk about, but its out there and can grip anyone in its hands, but there is help.
For me, it was the music of my life which brought me back.  I still flounder at times, there are days when music is annoying to me, but then I find the right actions to bring my serotonin levels back up and the beauty of a mockingbird is mine to here.  The cries of blue jays and the chirp of cardinals fill the air and movement of cicadas legs are a joy to hear.  The back beat of jazz is music I love and when I think back, jazz was pretty much the major influence of my life.  From Louie Armstrong to Brian Culberston, jazz is a fixed part of me.  Yeah, the music of my life, so thanks for being a part of it and enjoy some music....how about Lady Gaga singing "Orange Colored Sky" ....enjoy!

EDDIE RABBITT - "YOU CAN'T RUN FROM LOVE"

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A Wandering MInd Comes Full Circle

it's one of those moments when I can't think of anything to say.  Hard to believe, I know, but I am actually unable to think up something to write about.  One of the authors that I grew up loving, Mary Stewart, once wrote, "that if you are unable to think of something to write, just write anything".  So this is what I'm dong, writing about anything that pops in my head.  Should be fun, huh?
Hmmmmm.  you know, my husband is great.  He always makes me laugh and his own laughter is contagious.  I've been in one part of a store and find him just by listening to his laughter; when I would find him, the people around him would be laughing as well!  He is truly a blessing to me for I am quite a serious person.  He is my soul mate; the yin to my yang.
Now my daughter is a gift which I treasure.  She is so compassionate and works hard at understanding what it is like to walk in the shoes of someone else.  She fills our life with joy and has brought so much love that it is amazing.  I am so glad that she is my daughter and my friend.  It makes me wonder how many others mothers feel this way about their children.  Many do, I know that but I always wonder about the ones who don't seem to care.  You know, the ones who kick their children out at the age of 18.  The ones who say they can't wait to get rid of their children.  I always wonder why?  Why do you feel that way?  Is it because you never wanted to have children and felt forced into it by society?  I just don't get it.  But then again, maybe I'm not suppose to.  Maybe it's the way they were brought up.  Maybe it's some sort of coming of age ritual.  For me though, family is very important.  It's how I was brought up.  Family was what would be there for you when everyone else dumps you.  Sad but true.
How many times have things go wrong and you find yourself alone?  Well, not alone, there is usually a few people there.  Members of the family and the closest of friends. Sometimes it isn't even a close friend, it's someone who is compassionate and cares about what you are going through. Why?  Maybe they've been through it before and understands exactly how you feel.  Maybe they just want to help and be the shoulder to lean on.
Yeah, lots of things on my mind.  Like, I wonder who is going to win the stage tomorrow in the Tour de France; why are members of the GOP wanting to turn back the hands of time and live in the 1950s again; who will be the champion for civil rights, and why do people have so much hate in them.  I think that is the thought that bothers me the most, the hate.  So much hate being spewed around.  Hate toward races, hate toward the LGBT community, hate between the Liberal and Conservatives; hate toward women; hate, hate, HATE!  Yes, way to much hate.  The saddest part to me is the hate being instigated and indoctrinated into its members by religious organizations.  An incredibly sad and horrific serpent winding and slithering its way through people by hiding behind the words of God, bending and twisting them to feed the frenzy they cause.  Hate is a terrible emotion, but that is all it is.  An emotion, based upon fear and anger.  Two other emotions which once formulated bend to the will of their master, Hate.
 I know, I've written about it before, but it fascinates me.  Not hate in itself, but how it comes into being.  The knowledge that we, ourselves, create it through our own fears and anger.  That we teach this same fear and anger to our children in order to keep hate a festering wound which never heals.  But it can heal;  through hope; through love; through understanding; through education; through learning; through listening; and most importantly through facing our own hatred, anger, and fear.  It takes courage to that, but many already have.  Some are famous for taking a stand against hate:  Ghandi, Frederick Douglas, Martin Luther King, Jr., Susan B. Anthony, Benjamin Franklin, Mary Dyer, Catarina Sforza, Leonardo di Vinci, Martin Luther, Mohammed, Jesus Christ, Bhudda, and so many others.  There are millions more who are not famous, but they stand up and deny hate to pass through them.  These are the everyday people who are you and me.  Yeah, us, we can stop the hate by saying as Gandalf did in The Fellowship:  "You Shall Not Pass".  If you need a more biblical inspiration  how about Jesus saying Get behind me, Satan".  Yeah, tell hate to take a hike and get out there and show love.
Hmmmm.  Seems like there is quite a bit to write about.  You know I love my family, they are full of fun and laughter which comes from love.  Have a great night!.

MACKLEMORE & RYAN LEWIS - SAME LOVE feat. MARY LAMBERT (OFFICIAL VIDEO)

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Sunday Fundays

Ahhh, Sundays!  A day of enjoyment with family and close friends.  You see this is the memory of Sundays I have from childhood.  A lazy day beginning with a delicious breakfast, the funny pages, and then either having cousins come over for a Sunday dinner or going to either the cousins' house or grandparents' house for the family dinner.  Then it was play time.  Baseball was always played in the summer down in the field by the creek at our house.  I was too little to play, but I would watch my big sister and brother and older cousins play.  Cheering them on when they got a hit and watching great catches!  During the fall it was soccer  and football!  Every so often I could play that! Being small I could squeeze through the the charging bodies!  Winter time!  Oh yeah, sledding!  We all enjoyed that and when my brother was old enough, he bought a Polaris snowmobile and would drive it all the while pulling us on the toboggan behind it! Yes, Sundays were wonderful.
 Today, they still are.  For quite awhile we attended a church and pretty much spent half a day there with our church family.  Youth group was always fun and we enjoyed being with the kids in it.  Now, no more church, but an even better time for us.  We spend the day together and have fun.  Sometimes we go to the beach; swimming, building sand castles, soaking in the sun, and fighting with sea gulls who want to steal our food!  Other times we go to the nature park and go hiking; walking through the woods with our dogs, listening to the sounds of nature and enjoying its peacefulness.  Rainy Sundays are filled with video games, reading, movies, and board games. A day of just being together.  The zoo and aquarium are fantastic places to go to; as is going to the movies!  Especially in the summer months; although, we save the zoo for winter and fall months.
Yes, Sundays are fundays and when you spend them with the people you love they are holidays filled with fun and laughter.  So today being Sunday;  have fun, laugh, play, sing, dance, and just enjoy for tomorrow "Manic Monday" begins and we will wish it was Sunday again.  Enjoy!

A Woman and Her Unenviable Task: Elizabeth Thorn

On July 1st, 1863 the Battle of Gettysburg began. By July 4th the battle was over, the Southern Army in retreat; and a victorious Northern Army taking care of their wounded, their prisoners, and celebrating the defeat of the South at Gettysburg and Vicksburg. But what about the people of Gettysburg? The fields surrounding the hamlet were covered with dead soldiers and horses. Crops had been destroyed and homes from which the owners had fled were found to have been looted. One of these homeowners was Elizabeth Thorn. She and her husband were the caretakers of Evergreen Cemetery and lived in the gatehouse with her parents and their three sons. Her husband was with the 138th Pennsylvania and was at Harper's Ferry and Washington,D.C. when the Battle of Gettysburg took place unable to help defend his home and town. Instead, Elizabeth, her parents, and her three young sons were forced to flee their homes as rebels flooded the area. By the way, Elizabeth was six months pregnant at the time. Here is her actual account of what occurred on those chaotic and horrifying days
 "

The battle was on Wednesday, the 1st of July, and it was on the Friday before (June 26) that I first saw the rebels. As the rebels came to Gettysburg, we were all scared and wished for them to go. Six of them came up the Baltimore Pike. Before they came into the Cemetery they fired off their revolvers to scare the people. They chased the people out and the men ran and jumped over fences...I was a piece away from the house...When they rode into the Cemetery I was scared, as I was afraid they had fired after my mother. I fainted from fright, but finally reached the house...They said we should not be afraid of them, they were not going to hurt us like the yankeys did their ladies. They rode around the house on the pavement to the window, and asked for bread and butter and buttermilk...My mother went and got them all she had for them and just then a rebel rode up the pike and had another horse beside his. The ones who were eating said to him: "Oh, you have another one." and the one who came up the pike said: "yes, the -- -- shot at me, but he did not hit me, and I shot at him and blowed him down like nothing, and here I got his horse and he lays down the pike." (The man whom the rebel had killed was Sandoe, who had composed a company in Gettysburg.) He turned around to me (and) asked me: Is that a good horse over there?" It was our neighbor's horse, and I said "No, it ain't. It is a healthy enough horse, but he is very slow in his motions." Well, it would not suit. I knew if the horse was gone the people could not do anything, so I helped them. Soon they sent to different places where they destroyed the telegraph and the railroads. Evening came on and they had destroyed a good many of the cars, and burned the bridge and seven cars on it. This was the Rock Creek Bridge. We could see the cars drop down from Cemetery Hill. Next morning we heard that there was a small battle at York. Everywhere they destroyed all they could. We were trying to feed them all we could. I had baked in the morning and had the bread in the oven. They were hungry and smelled the bread. I took a butcher knife and stood before the oven and cut this hot bread for them as fast as I could. When I had six loaves cut up I said I would have to keep one loaf for my family, but as they still begged for more I cut up every loaf for them. We had all the glasses and tins and cups and tubs and every- thing outside filled with water. All the time our little boys were pumping and carrying water to fill the tubs. They handed water to the soldiers and worked and helped this way until their poor little hands were blistered, and their bread I had given away on Friday. Nobody felt like work any more, and on Wednesday morning they came with big forces, and the battle begun above Gettys- burg, near the Springs Hotel in the morning early on Wednesday. (On July 1) As I went upstairs so often I saw them come in on the ridge near McMillan's house, near where the Springs Hotel now is they came and got more help. While they were fighting on the ridge the Union soldiers came from all directions. When our men lost and the rebels had driven them more this way, they put their cannons on Cemetery Hill and throw some shells over toward Coon Town. And as they fired towards the direction of the Poor House they were firing at our own men, but they did not know it, and I heard them say this amongst themselves, that they did not know it.
 So at last they came to the Cemetery House and wanted a man to go along out with them (a young boy was there about thirteen years, and I thought he was too young, and my father was too old) I offered myself to go along. He refused at first, but I thought there was danger all around, and said I wasn't afraid so he said "Come on." We walked through flax, and then through a piece of oats, and then we stood in a wheat field. They all held against me coming through the field, but as he said I was all right, and it did not matter, why they gave three cheers and the band played a little piece, and then I walked a little past a tree to where I could see the two roads. I showed him the Harrisburg Road, the York Pike, and the Hunterstown Road. It was with one of General Howard's men that I went. Then he took me back home. He said, "They will commence very heavy firing now, walk on the other side of my horse." And so as soon as I jumped on our porch he went back again. I wanted to go upstairs once more to see if our men gained, but when I came on the stairway a shell had cut in the window frame, then jumped a little, then went through the ceiling, so I would not go up any more... Soon one of General Howard's men came and ordered me to have supper for Gen. Howard. I complained I had no bread, for I had given it all away in the morning. But I said I could make cakes, and he said they were good enough for war times. They did not come for so long, it was near twelve o'clock. It was Gen. Howard, Gen. Sickles, and Gen. Slocum. The house was so full of soldiers that the boys had to lay on the floor in the kitchen, on feather beds. And as they saw the children lying there, they said it was very sad. After they had had some supper and I found they were going to leave I asked them if they thought I should leave the house in the night. Gen. Howard rubbed his forehead and said: "Leave the house? Leave the house?" Then he looked towards the others and said: "Comrades, I say stay." Then he said we should take our best things and pack them up and in two hours he would send two men to carry them to the cellar. Then he smiled and said: "I guess you call all best." But I said: "Some I call better than others." He said they would begin hard fighting about day-break, near four o'clock, and then we should go to the cellar. About two hours after they left the men came and took the things to the cellar. Gen. Howard said: "When I give you orders to leave the house, don't study about it, but go right away." About four o'clock we went to the cellar. There were seventeen of us (other civilians)...We were in the cellar about two or three hours. The noise of the cannonading was terrible. At last the door flew open and someone said: "This family is commanded by Gen. Howard to leave this house and get as far in ten minutes as possible. Take nothing up but the children and go." 
They said we should keep (to) the pike, where the soldiers could see us, and that would save us. When we were a little way down the pike a shell bursted back of us, and none of us were killed, but we commenced to walk faster. We went down the pike one and one half miles when we began to feel weak and sick, we were so hungry, for we had eaten nothing that day before we were so scared when the battle commenced. So we went into a farm house to buy bread...but the bread was doughey and we could not eat it. Later we stopped at a farm house, -Musser's. We did not feel like going farther as it was full of soldiers and army wagons and provision wagons. Near midnight (July 2), when everything was quiet, my father and I undertook to walk home to the Cemetery house. As we left the (Musser) house we had to pass through a room where the Union soldiers were sleeping, lying in two rows, with only one candle to light the whole room. About the middle of one row a man raised himself on his elbow and motioned me to come to him, my father signaled I should go to him, and he took a picture out of his pocket and on it was three little boys, and he said they were his, and they were just little boys like mine, and would I please let him have my little boys sleep near him, and could he have the little one close to him, and the others near him? And so, he took them and had them lying by him. When we got on the pike we had an awful lot of trouble to get up, because the guard was not going to let us through. But as they listened to what I had to say-- that we wanted to look after our things in the cemetery house--they let us pass. We had fat hogs and we wanted to look after them. When we got to the stable we could hear the wounded men holler and go on, laying around the house,--in the cellar too, and there is where we had carried our good things, that Gen. Howard had told us to leave there. We could not get near the house for wounded and dead. They had been brought there from the first day's fight. My father went to the pig pen and said: "The pigs are gone." My father got a man to take us into the cellar where six wounded men were, and they had our bed clothes all around. We went to the cellar thinking we could get a pillow and quilt, but all I could find was my mother's shawl and no pillow. The poor wounded men were crying and goin on so that we did not want anything then. They called their wives and children to come and wet their tongues. Then we went down the pike again. We had no trouble with the guards going back. And when we came again to the farmhouse we picked up our little boys out of the soldier's arms, and got ourselves ready, and about three o'clock in the morning we started on another journey, and went down the pike to the White church, and then it was daylight, and we stopped a little bit there and saw some of our neighbors; then we went into a big farmhouse. 
We wanted water but there was none to be got, the pumps were all broken, and we were tired and hungry again, and still had nothing to eat. They had there a big wagon shed where they brought the wounded and took off their limbs, and threw them into the corn crib, and when they had a two horse load they hauled them away. Another lady and myself went upstairs in the house to where our officers were. We rapped at the balcony door and an officer came out and asked us what we wished. I told him I lived in the Cemetery House and we were driven away from home and had nothing to eat or drink, and we thought we would lay in complaint. He laughed and said: "You want to live on the army then?" Then he asked me if I knew Jenny Wade. I told him I did, and he said she was killed, and he asked me if I knew Maria Bennet, and he said she was killed (but that was not true). Then he wrote an order on the----to go to the provision wagon a mile away. We went over and we got our aprons full of coffee, sugar, and hard-tack. (I have some of that coffee and sugar yet.) When we got back we hunted for milk in the cellar and we found two crocks full. I opened a crock. The woman with me could not see, so she got her hand in the soft soap. We took one crock of milk up to our sick people and we hid the other one. But they wanted it soon, and when we came in the cellar again somebody else had found it and we had none. But we found the woman's yeast and we bought flour and we baked bread that night. The woman had gone away and had taken the family to Littletown. (Hen. Beitler lived there.) Then he came home and asked us what we were going to do. And he said he had a barrel of flour nailed in a closet and he would take this barrel out and give it to us on the garret where we were, and so he did. He got a man to help and rolled the barrel upstairs. We were to watch this part and he to give us a dollars worth. So when we had bread in the morning the soldiers found it out. Some came and threw down a dollar for a loaf, and another three dollars. Monday (July 6) we had no bread to give them and they were so hungry they could not wait. We hid two loaves, but we baked the next night again.
 The house was full of soldiers. In daytime we were watching the sick and wounded, and they were calling for water and screaming all the time. We saw some of our furniture going on some of our wagons down the pike, and my boys wanted me to go out and stop it. We stayed at this farmhouse, I believe three nights and then we went home. We were down the country four days and the fifth (July 7) we went home. On the way home we met Mr. McConaughy. He was the president of the Cemetery at that time and he said to me: "Hurry on home, there is more work for you than you are able to do." 

So we hurried on home. When we looked at the house I could only say "O my!" There were no window glass in the whole house. Some of the frames were knocked beside the pump shed. I went to the cellar to look for the good things I had put there on the first night. One chest was packed with good German linen, others packed with other good things,--everything was gone, but three featherbeds and they were full of blood and mud. After I had dragged them out of the cellar I asked an officer who was riding by, if I would ever get any pay for things spoiled like this. He asked me what it was, and I told him bed clothes that were in the cellar, and he said in a very short way: "No!" So as soon as the pump was fixed I sent for three women and we washed for four days before we got them clean. 
Then I got a note from the president of the Cemetery, and he said: "Mrs. Thorn, it is made out that we will bury the the soldiers in our Cemetery for a while, so you go for that piece of ground and commence sticking off lots and graves as fast as you can make them." Well, you may know how I felt, my husband in the army, my father an aged man. Yet for all the foul air we two started in. I stuck off the graves and while my father finished one, I had another one started. This lasted for days, until the boys sent word, if I couldn't get help at all I should telegraph to some of my friends to come and help me. Two came, but one only stayed two days, then got deathly sick and left. The other stayed five days, then he went away very sick, and I had to pay their fare here and very good wages for their work. By that time we had forty graves done. And then father and I had to dig on harder again. They kept on burying the soldiers until they had the National Cemetery ready, and in that time we buried one hundred five soldiers. In front of this house there were fifteen dead horses and beside the Cemetery there were nineteen in that field. So you may know it was only excitement that helped me to do all the work, with all that stench. And in three months after I had a dear little baby. But it was not very strong, and from that time on my health failed and for years I was a very sickly woman. In my older days my health has been better, but those hard days have always told on my life. "   
 By the way, Elizabeth buried 102 soldiers by herself and her aged father; receiving nothing more than the amount her husband would have been paid for not even a month of work. And this statue was just put in place in honor of Elizabeth Thorn and the other women who helped and did all they could during the Battle of Gettysburg in November, 2002. That's right 140 years later! Wow! Something is sure wrong about that! 

Why do I care? Simple, this is an example of what individuals do when they step up to the plate and begin to rebuild. It has been done through out all of American history; the simple actions of one or two persons can make a difference. In this case it is a 6 month pregnant woman whom the detail of burying dead soldiers was her job. How many Americans of the past few decades and even today would say that that was not a woman's work? Elizabeth Thorn didn't stop. It had to be done and she did it. How about us 150 years later? Would we care about whether it is a man or a woman burying the dead? Or any other job which has to be done? For some the answer will be yes. For others, it is who is available to get the work done. Hey, it's better for all if someone just does the job than worrying about which gender should do it! Just something to think about....

 Work Cited
 www.americancivilwar.50megs.com/stories

FIREWORKS and the 4th of JULY

Ahhh! Tomorrow Americans will be celebrating with hot dogs and hamburgers; barbecued chicken and ribs; apple pies and ice cream sundaes; and yes, FIREWORKS! It is truly a day of fun! Baseball games, parades, decorated bicycles, and in some towns carnival rides. Patriotism reigns supreme and everybody jumps on the bandwagon. We know how to celebrate the most important day in the history of the United States. "Always have and always will"! We shout. Actually, we haven't always celebrated the 4th of July. As a matter of fact for the first 15 years or so, citizens of the United States didn't celebrate it at all. Instead, in true American fashion, we argued about the Declaration of Independence. Yes, argued. The two party system in the 1790s fought bitterly over it. The Democratic Republicans (yes, that was what they were called) loved Thomas Jefferson and the Declaration which he wrote. In contrast, the Federalists felt it was too French and way too anti-British. As a matter of fact, second President of the United States, John Adams, wrote in a letter bemoaning the fact that Americans were not interested in their history; this is after he wrote of the Declaration when it was first signed that the citizens of this new country would celebrate with fireworks! Wow! What a difference! Here in the 21st century, we enjoy the 4th of July; but, in the beginning period of the country it was controversial and ignored. Then something happened. On July 4th, 1826, both John Adams and Thomas Jefferson died within hours of each other. Copies of the Declaration of Independence were printed and circulated during the 1820s and 1830s. The Federalist political party fall apart and the people of this nation began to pay attention to their history. Finally, in 1870 Congress declared the 4th of July a national holiday. The parties and celebrations became more fully evolved and now it is an American standard for grilling, watermelon eating contests, and fireworks. It's a shame that John Adams didn't see this in his life time, but I have no doubt that he, Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, John Hancock, and the other members of the Continental Congress who voted that day to declare independence from Great Britain are celebrating with us as well and the fireworks they watch are ours as we remember the men and women of the Revolutionary War and the sacrifices they made in pursuit of the freedoms we take for granted today.

With a "Rebel Yell" the Battle was Won - By the North

An important battle occurred today. It took place in a sleepy little hamlet in the hills of Pennsylvania. The fighting was fierce and when it was finished after 3 days, it was the most costly one to ever be fought on United States soil. From July 1 - 3, 1863 the small community of Gettysburg with a population of 2400 would play host to a carnage which resulted in as many as 51.000 casualties. This includes almost 8,000 dead; over 27,000 wounded; and over 11,000 missing. This astronomical figure is amazing for only 1 person from Gettysburg itself was killed. A woman named, Jennie Wade, killed by a stray bullet while baking bread, according to legend. The Civil War of the United States had been in full force since 1861, but now, this battle would be a proving ground. A decision was going to made with the outcome of this one battle and it was going to be fought on Northern soil for the first time since the war began. This was important and the combatants knew it. Along the roads from the South marched the Southern Army with General Robert E. Lee in command. Between the Confederates and Washington prowled the Northern Army, commanded by George Meade,when suddenly they met in a wheat field just outside of Gettysburg. Here skirmishes were fought and suddenly 25,000 men from the South and 20,000 from the North met to begin a fight lasting 3 days. The men of New York and Vermont were a part of this first collision. This would include ancestors of mine and the great- great- great grandfather of my husband. By July 2nd, the fighting had spread across Little Round Top through Devil's Den while escalating at Culp's Hill and Cemetery Hill. The cannons laid down heavy fire, thundering across the rolling hills which surrounded the town. Infantryman screamed and shouted as cannon fire burst around them. Horses screamed from the punishing barrage as they were struck and all around were the cries of the wounded and dying. Barns were confiscated and turned into makeshift surgeries. Outside of them a growing pile of limbs were tossed as the wounded were brought in and legs and arms were amputated. The stench of burnt flesh spread across the fields and the townspeople remained hidden inside their homes. On July 3rd, Lee attacked again. The Confederate fired between 150 and 175 cannons at Cemetery Ridge where the Union forces lined up against them. After a short time, Union cannons started firing back and thunder rolled across the valley as the two forces used whatever means they had to intimidate the other. Suddenly, 12,000 Confederate infantrymen rose under the command of Major General George Pickett and screaming their "Rebel Yell" began a charge toward Union lines which was over a mile away. Union cannon barrages and snipers began picking away the Rebels. Heat exhaustion and obstacles such as fences slowed the Confederate advance. Again, the sounds of horses and men screaming from this filled the air and when the infantrymen finally began hand to hand combat the fighting was fierce for the outcome would prove who the eventual winner of the war would be. As the battle ended, Lee was forced to retreat with a medical wagon train filled with wounded that was 17 miles long. Although, the North fell back at times from the force of the Confederates, they persevered and "Held the line" and finally drove the Confederates back. July 4th, 1863 fell on the sounds of screams, moans, and cries from the wounded and dying. An informal truce occurred between the two sides as they gathered their wounded and buried as many men as they could. In the end, over 8000 men were quickly buried and over 3000 horse carcasses burnt outside Gettysburg due to the heat of the summer. However, the townspeople became very ill due to the stench which filled their air. General Lee began his retreat to Virginia, along with a medical wagon train filled with wounded which stretched for 17 miles. In a campaign which was suppose to be his finest hour, Lee was handed his most devastating loss. One third of his officers were dead, wounded, missing, or prisoners. The Army of Virginia would never regain its former glory. On top of this, word was received that General Ulysses S. Grant of the Union had defeated the Confederates at Vicksburg. The war would last another two years, but the North had found victories and confidence in their Army. The hamlet of Gettysburg would never be the same. Nor would the Union when it was finally reunited; but the government which began as an experiment was now known as the "government by the people, for the people, of the people" by President Abraham Lincoln. This is why these first three days of July are so important. This country endured a civil war of catastrophic events and the Battle of Gettysburg was its most devastating. Yet, the United States endured, learned, and grew to become the country it is today. A land of freedoms for ALL and a democracy which instills the hopes of indentured people everywhere; and though we have our problems and different ideals when that day of truce, July 4th, arrives, with it comes the importance of that day from our Revolutionary forefathers that freedom shall ring across this nation and the people of the United States of America will endure all obstacles which try to remove our liberties from us.

Grey Skies and Silver Linings: Go Forth and Discover

Another day of rain. Another day of grey skies, thunder, and watching the roads in the community flood. Yes, it's raining again. I can look at it from the point of view that is depressing and be filled with cabin fever; or I can enjoy the time the rain is giving me for stopping and well, smelling the roses. Today has been a great day. I've cleaned out a closet and rid myself and my husband of junk we haven't looked at or used in years. It was a wonderful feeling to be gone with it! Yet, getting rid of it allowed us to find other things. Like the photo albums my husband's mother put together. My daughter and husband enjoyed looking at this treasure of childhood memories for him and seeing her dad and grandmother young and full of happiness. A grandmother who died from cancer when my daughter was only 12 years old. A great day, indeed! I found a photo of my sister with her 6 month old daughter. Her first born child. The smiles were contagious! And the outfits and hairstyles....oh yes, outrageous! I had to call my sister and tell her what I found! We wound up talking about our Grandmother Peak and how she always told my sister to put the dates on photos. You've got it! The picture didn't have a date on it! We joked about how we should have listened to Gram and do what she said; but we were young and thought "We'll never forget". Guess what? We did! Yes, it's another day of rain. A day of finding memories and enjoying laughing about the photos. Grey skies and thunder; the telling of stories and robust bursts of guffaws as we shared the tales of our childhood and youth with our grown daughter. Depressing and cabin fever or finding treasures and sharing them. It's our pick in the journey we tread. I think I'll go get rid of some more junk and discover the joys of life as well! Have fun with the rain and grey skies and remember to look for the silver lining! It's there waiting for us to find! Be safe all!