Civil War historians suggested a thread where posters could talk about their soldier ancestors, their battles, and anything else interesting concerning the worst war in American history.

Here are my own great great grandfathers who fought for the Union.

Jabez Izzard--- served in the 29th, 42nd, and 87th Indiana Volunteer Infantry. Enlisted at age 48, in 1861. Served until 1865, was at battles of Shiloh, Chickamauga, Peachtree Creek and others. Lost an arm and a leg. Awarded Distinguished Service. Monument to the 29th Infantry raised at Shiloh Battlefield Park--my own kin responsible for the raising of this monument.
My favorite CW ancestor.

William Harding---151st Indiana Regiment, served as a musician.

William Manning Voorhis---83rd Regiment, Ohio Infantry. Served at Vicksburg and elsewhere. Promoted to Sgt; turned down commission as Captain.

Cornelius Cullins--159th REgiment, Ohio (National Guard)

Arza B. Spencer--12th Regiment, Indiana Calvary

I am related to Stonewall jackson on my grandmothers side.

Felix Grundy Petty - Corporal - 6th Regiment Tennessee Calvary (Wheelers)

If you read where these guys rode to/from, you can see why they were called "the leatherbutts"

http://www.rootsweb.com/~tngiles/cvlwar/cavalry.htm (http://www.rootsweb.com/%7Etngiles/cvlwar/cavalry.htm)

I see there's a James Henry Petty who was a fellow cavalryman with Felix Petty, OP. Were they brothers, or cousins?
Maybe even father and son.

Anyone who thinks they may have an ancestor who served should check out this website:

http://www.itd.nps.gov/cwss/

....from the National Park Service. There's over 6 million names online and it should give you a regiment if you have a name.

Once you get the regiment ( and the site will give you some info about the regiment too), go to any good-sized library which should have your own state's Adjutant General's report for even more information.

Later on I will post a photo of the monument for the 29th Indiana at Shiloh.

I see there's a James Henry Petty who was a fellow cavalryman with Felix Petty, OP. Were they brothers, or cousins?
Maybe even father and son.

Not father/son that much I know. I'm guessing brothers or cousins. Will still have to wait to get info from my mom. I have some more gg grandfathers that served in S. Georgia and Northern Alabama also, again I need first names (not much of a geneologist... or have a good memory anymore).

Seems at least one of our "kin" may have fought against each other... glad neither one had the other in the cross-hairs. :)

as far as i know i had only one ancestor that fought in the civil war. he was on the northern side. no stories about it. he must have not talked about it. of course most of my family who have been in war do not really talk about it.
war is hell. my maternal grandfather who was in the push into germany in WW2 and occupied japan for a short time before his time was up, only said one thing about his time in war, " when people get shot up, it smells like boiling blood." and that was all he would say.
around here in this part of west virginia you'd think the damn civil war was still going on. get over it, slavery is bad, the south lost, please move on.

Id like-if I may-pay a tribute to my fellow countrymen who fought on both sides in the American Civil War-for their new home and new freedom.

From every state;from every city,town and village;from the forest and the prairie,the hill and the plain;from the workshop,the factory,and the foundry;
from the counter and the desk;from the steamboat,the wharf and the river bank-wherever the Irish were,or whatever their occupation,they obeyed the summons of their adopted country,and rushed to the defence of its banner. They either formed organisations of their own,or they fell into the ranks with their fellow citizens of other nationalities.But special organisations,distinctive and national,had for them peculier attractions;and once the green flag was unfurled,it acted with magnetic influence drawing to it the hardy children of Erin.There were in both armies,companies,regiments,brigades,exclusively Irish;but whether there was a special organisation or not,there was scarsely a regiment,in either service which did not contain a maller or a grater number of Irish citizens.

Why the Irish were attracted by distinct organisations was well explained by General Meagher.It was prior to the formation of his famous Brigade that he used the words I am about to quote.

''It is a pardonable prejudice,for the Irishman never fights so well as when he has an Irishman as his comrade.An Irishman going into the field in this cause,has this as the strongest impulse and his richest reward,that his conduct in the field will reflect honour on the old land he will see no more.He therefore wishes that if he falls,it will be into the arms of the same nativity,that all may hear that he died in a manner worthy of the cause in which he fell,and the country which gave him birth.This is the explanation why Irishmen desire to be together in the fight for the Stars and Stripes,and I am sure there is not native born citizen here who will not confess that it is a pardonable,a generous,and a useful prejudice''.


Willie Mitchell and his father vacated Paris in the Autumn of 1862,John to become an editor on the staffs of two Richmond newspapers.Willie to join the
1st Virginia where his older brother,James was serving.

Willie recieved a mortal wound while carrying the flag of his regiment (one of several carriers on July 3rd,1863) in Picketts chage,just 200 yards from the Confederacy's High Water Mark.

It could be argued that this obscure private bore the most recognisable Irish name on the field that day,simply because of his fathers universal fame. In either army,the Mitchell name was known and revered by all of those who knew and respected John Mitchells very best friend,the founder and,until recently,the commander of the Irish Brigade,Thomas Francis Meagher.And for good reason,John Mitchell and Meagher were Irelands most famous rebels,Mitchell recieving 14 years of penal servitude just before the rising of 1848,while Meagher would get the death sentence,later to be commuted to exile in Tasmania.With other Irish rebels,Mitchell and Meagher were expected to live out their lives ,among the aboriginies and English settlers,on the vast prison island of the evil Empire.Mitchells family would later follow in the felons tracks,but not for long.In 1853,after a well executed escape plan (not unlike that of Meagher,who had escaped to America the year before)John Mitchell and little Willie,then only nine,faced the perilous voyage north to San Francisco and freedom.

But little did either Mitchell envision the equally perilous and fateful months,less than a decade later,when Americas sons would divide; the Mitchells and Meagher to play their own version of Americas civil war.But the ties between Mitchell and Meagher were never broken.An indication of the esteem which Mitchell and his sons were held by the Irish of the Union army is illistrated by the actions taken by the men of Meaghers Brigade,when they learnt on July 4 that John Mitchells son had perished in Picketts Charge.

As the Irish Brigade (no longer commanded by Meagher) began the persuit of Robert E. Lee,with the rest of the Union army,it left behind a Quartermaster, Patrick M. Haverty,to find the body of Willie Mitchell,the Confederate volunteer.Haverty never found the body,tho a naval surgeon dispatched from Washington for medical duty on the field,appears to have identified a hasty grave made for the young hero.Reportedly,some Confederate companions found the body and wrapped it in a blanket secured by three pins.On one of the pins was attached a simple note,''Private Mitchell,son of Irish patriot''.

1.Not father/son that much I know. I'm guessing brothers or cousins. Will still have to wait to get info from my mom. I have some more gg grandfathers that served in S. Georgia and Northern Alabama also, again I need first names (not much of a geneologist... or have a good memory anymore).

2.Seems at least one of our "kin" may have fought against each other... glad neither one had the other in the cross-hairs. :)

1.Sounds like your Mom has done a lot of work, OP--by all means, post the info when you find out more.

2. Ain't that the truth? :)

PS. Interesting stuff, paul.:)

Monument to the 29th Indiana Volunteer Infantry, Shiloh Battlefield. Tennessee





http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/8257/smindiana29ibk9.jpg

Once upon a time, while browsing through an auction catalog, I came across some letters written by a Civil War soldier that caught my eye. The soldier's last name was a family name, so I had the auction company send photocopies of the letters. I transcribed them, and my dad (a genealogy buff) started doing some digging around.

Dad's cousin (another genealogy buff) got interested and together they figured out that he was indeed a distant relation. The cousin built this website (http://www.geocities.com/~jcrosswell/War/CW/hillory.htm) about the letters (I wish she'd also posted jpg's, as they were written on stationery with beautiful images at the head - soaring eagles, waving flags, etc.).

His name was Hillory Shifflett and he served in the First Regiment of Ohio Volunteers, Infantry, Company C, under Captain James J. Jones. He was killed in action in the Battle of Mission Ridge (near Chattanooga) on November 25, 1863. A cannonball shot away his left shoulder and he died within the hour.

The letters are quite interesting (and very poorly written/spelled, but hey... whaddya want from a country bumpkin!).

Absolutely fascinating, Fran--thanks. It's almost surreal reading such things from a time long past.

You're right about the bumpkins and their poor use of the English language--yet I find their writings incredibly eloquent. Many were unable to read or write at all--on both sides, and in the Union's case, unable to even SPEAK English as they were forced to hire paid mercenaries. Grandpa Jabez was illiterate--or, nothing in his writing survives. He grew up on the Indiana frontier and was illegitimate to boot, poor fella. Things must have been tough for him all his life. But he DID something with his life, including burn his own farm down when it was taken away for nonpayment of taxes when he was off fighting, lol.

Still tho, he did better than his Dad, who I believe is a Hansel Izzard of North Carolina. That nogoodnik ended up at the poor farm while his son was a decorated war hero.

Heh, such is life.