Onondaga's centennial. Gleanings of a century, Vol. II, Part 20

Author: Bruce, Dwight H. (Dwight Hall), 1834-1908
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston History Company
Number of Pages: 1094

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In February, 1862, Sumner was selected by General Scott to accompany President- elect Lincoln to Washington, and on the 16th of March the latter appointed him brigadier-general in place of General Twiggs. This was one of the very first of Lincoln's appointments, and in making it he remarked: "It's the best office in my gift " -- not knowing then that he would soon elevate many others to the same rank.

BIOGRAPHICAL.

General Bates, the president's attorney-general, afterward stated: "Lincoln said, in the darkest days of the war, 'There's one man we can always trust, and that is Sumner.'" General Sumner was immediately ordered to the command of the De- partment of the Pacific, where he rendered important service in preventing the suc- cess of secession intrigues, and in which capacity he has often been credited with saving California to the Union. But being anxious for more active duty in the field he was recalled and in March, 1862, was appointed commander of the First Army Corps in the Army of the Potomac. He commanded the left wing at the siege of Yorktown and performed a conspicuous part in all the battles of the Chickahominy campaign, during which he was twice slightly wounded. In recognition of his services under McClellan he was appointed major-general of volunteers to rank from July 4 and brevet major-general in the regular army to date from May 31, 1862. On the reorganization of the army after General Pope's Virginia campaign he was assigned to the command of the Second Army Corps, and with it he participated 111 the battle of Antietam, where he was again wounded. He commanded the Right Grand Division of the Army of the Potomac, which on December 13, 1862, bore the brunt of the battle of Fredericksburg, and on January 25, 1863, at his own request, he was relieved. On March 9 he was assigned to the command of the Department of the West, and while on his way to enter upon the discharge of his duties in that capacity he was taken sick in Syracuse and died on the 21st of the same month.

General Sumner was in the military service of the United States for forty-four con- secutive years, and during that entire period his love for his profession never diminished, but grew stronger and more intense. He was a true soldier, imbued with the staunchest patriotism, and inspired others to the highest sense of ennoble- ment and courage. As a disciplinarian he was never excelled and seldom equaled. He rose by gradual promotion from the rank of second lieutenant to the command of one of the most important armies ever brought together in America, and by im- movable respect and obedience to superiors won the confidence and esteem of every comrade. His highest ambition was unswerving adherence to duty, no matter how disagreeable or in his opinion inadvisable. He never questioned the commands of his superior officers, but executed their orders with soldierly promptness and pre- ciseness. His great patriotism is exemplified in General Orders, No. 2, dated at San Francisco September 3, 1861: " No Federal troops in the Department of the Pacific will ever surrender to Rebels." Throughout the Mexican war, the Kansas troubles, and the various Indian uprisings he bore a conspicuous part and covered his name with glory. For bravery and heroism, for skill, coolness, and good judgment, he was never known to err, and while others hesitated he promptly and discreetly fol- lowed his duty as a true soldier and loyal citizen. At the breaking out of the war of the Rebellion he was the senior colonel of the U. S. Cavalry, ranking with the famous Albert Sidney Johnston, afterward of the Confederate army. Immediately after the firing on Fort Sumter he was rewarded with a brigadier-general's com- mission, and during the early years of that memorable conflict he rendered valnable service to the Union cause. His principal engagements as corps commander were Peach Orchard, Savage Station, Allen's Field, White Oak Swamp, Glendale, Mal- vern Hill, Antietam, Fredericksburg, and Fair Oaks. Of the latter Rev. Dr. J. J. Marks, in his "Peninsula Campaign in Virginia," says: "When the battle had vigorously begun General Sumner, with the true instinct of an old warrior, compre-

ONONDAGA'S CENTENNIAL.

hended the whole move [of General Johnston], and gave orders for the advance of his corps across the Chickahominy. By incredible efforts he succeeded in urging over before night all his men, and bringing with him several pieces of artillery. After General Sumner had crossed the river he had no other guide to the scene of battle than the cannonading; but hurrying up he succeeded in reaching the field in time to prevent Johnston surrounding our left wing, and thus saved our honor and the Army of the Potomac. For the four divisions composing this wing of the army would certainly have been overcome by vastly superior numbers, though they had fought with the bravery of Spartans." A. D. Richardson, in his " Field, Dungeon, and Escape," thus speaks of the general: "Hundreds of soldiers were familiar with the erect form, the snowy, streaming hair, and the frank face of that wonder- ful old man, who, on the perilous edge of battle, while they were falling like grass before the mower, would dash through the fire and smoke, shouting: "Steady, men, steady ! Don't be excited. When you have been soldiers as long as I you will learn that this is nothing. Stand firm and do your duty.' " His last words on his death bed were: " God save my country, the United States of America."

The funeral of General Sumner was one of the most imposing and impressive occasions ever seen in Syracuse. The city was shrouded in the deepest mourning and literally filled with the highest officers of the government, civil and judicial dig- nitaries, military organizations, and thousands of visitors from far and near. Rev. Samuel J. May conducted the services at the house-the Teall mansion in Fayette Park-while Rev. Dr. Canfield presided at the First Presbyterian church. He was buried in Oakwood Cemetery, where a handsome tomb adorns his final resting place.

The following letter was received from General Mcclellan : " NEW YORK, March 23, 1863. " Hon. D. Bookstaver, Mayor of Syracuse:

" DEAR SIR :- I regret that my engagements are of such a nature as to render it

out of my power to attend the funeral of iny lamented comrade, Gen. Sumner.

" It would afford me peculiar satisfaction to pay that just tribute of respect to his memory at this particular time, for in him the nation has sustained a loss it can ill afford at such a juncture as this.

" All recognized the high honor, loyalty and courage of that distinguished veteran.

" He presented to younger men the highest example of unswerving devotion to his country, and of a firm determination to sacrifice everything that might be neces- sary in subduing the rebellion, and restoring peace and the unity of the nation, by putting forth all the strength of the country to defeat its armed enemies in the field. " Although the nation has lost his services, we have at least his example left for our imitation.

" Please present to the family of Gen. Sumner my sincere sympathy. And believe me to be truly yours,

"GEO. B. MCCLELLAN, Maj. . Gen. U. S. A."

Major-General Halleck formally announced the death of General Sumner in this glowing tribute:

"WAR DEPARTMENT, ADJ. - GEN'S OFFICE, "WASHINGTON, March 24, 1863.

" General Orders No. 71.]

" With profound regret the general-in-chief announces the decease of Major- General Edwin V. Sumner, United States Army, at Syracuse, N. Y., on the 21st instant. General Sumner entered the army in March, 1819, and it was his fortune to be connected with all the stirring military events which occurred throughout the

BIOGRAPHICAL.

long period of his service. His indomitable energy and high-toned military spirit impelled him always to seek assignment to duty in the field. He was twice brevet- ted for gallant and meritorious conduct in the Mexican battles. Subsequently he commanded the Department of New Mexico, and directed important campaigns against the restless tribes within its limits.

" At the commencement of the Rebellion, being then a colonel of cavalry, he was appointed brigadier-general in the army, and was then ordered to command on the Pacific Coast. His last urgent entreaty, before departing to that distant station, was that he might be promptly recalled to take part in any conflict which might occur with the rebels in the neighborhood of the Capital. His ardent patriotism and martial fire would not permit him to rest until he was recalled, and assigned to a high command in the Army of the Potomac. The name of Sumner is identified with nearly every fierce struggle in which that army has been engaged, and every page of its history will perpetuate the fame of this noble soldier. His gallantry was acknowledged first by the commission of major-general of volunteers, and then by the brevet of major-general on his army commission.

" Having been relieved from duty with the Army of the Potomac, at his own re- quest, after the battle of Fredericksburg, he was assigned to command the Depart- ment of Missouri. While on the way to St. Louis to enter upon this important com- mand, he who had escaped the dangers of so many bullets, fell suddenly a victim of disease. The regrets of the whole army go with him. He will be lamented and re- membered, not for his soldierly traits alone, but for his generous and courteous bearing, the offspring of a true and noble nature.

"As appropriate military honors to the memory of the deceased general, the several posts within the Department of Missouri will fire thirteen minute guns, com- mencing at 12 o'clock M., and display the national flag at half staff from the same hour until sunset, the day next after the receipt of this order.

" By command of

"L. THOMAS, Adjutant-General."

MAJOR-GENERAL HALLECK.

Appropriate resolutions were passed upon the death of General Sumner by the Legislatures of Massachusetts and New York. In Chapter 69, laws of 1863, of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the following is recorded :

" Resolved, That it is with the most profound regret and heartfelt sorrow that Massachusetts receives the tidings of the demise of another of her brave and illus- . trious sons, Maj .- Gen. Edwin V. Sumner, while in the midst of those active and patriotic duties which it was his constant desire and highest aim promptly to per- form and faithfully to fulfill.

" Resolved, That in the death of General Sumner we feel that the country has lost a noble and patriotic citizen ; the government a firm and enthusiastic defender ; the army a brave and accomplished officer, whose services and life were devotedly given to the Union, and whose character and deeds will be cherished in the hearts of his grateful countrymen so long as they have a country to love and the honor of its flag to cherish and defend.

' Resolved, That we present to the family of the deceased our sympathetic con- dolence, remembering that he for whom they and the country mourn as dead will ever in memory live; and through the medium of noble example will speak in deeds of heroic valor to the sons of America to the latest generation; which is a more eloquent eulogy than language can frame, and a more enduring monument than the hand of man can raise.

" Resolved, That his Excellency the Governor be requested to transmit a copy of these resolutions to the family of the late Major-General Sumner.

" House of Representatives, April 23, 1863.

" Passed.

" April 27, 1863.

" Approved.

ALEXANDER H. BULLOCK, Speaker. "In Senate, April 25, 1863. J. E. FIELD, President.

JOHN A. ANDREW, Governor."

ONONDAGA'S CENTENNIAL.

The following resolutions were unanimously passed by the Assembly of New York State in March, 1863:

" Resolved, That this House has heard with deep regret of the death of Maj .- Gen. Edwin V. Sumner, and as a testimonial of respect for his eminent services in the United States Army, the purity of his patriotism, and the devotion of his life to the cause of his country, we desire in this manner to express the sentiments we feel at the great loss which the nation has sustained by this unexpected event.

"Resolved, That copies of these resolutions, properly engrossed, be sent to the president and Congress of the United States, to the governor and Senate of this State, and that they be entered upon the journal of this House."

After the adoption of the foregoing resolutions, Hon. Chauncey M. Depew, then assemblymen from Westchester, paid a glowing tribute to General Sumner's mem- ory, from which the following is taken :

"Our best blood waters every battlefield of the country. Amid the smoke and din of the conflict, has gone out brilliant intellect, and great heart, vigor and youth- intellect which would have added to the greatness of the Commonwealth-vigor and youth, which would have increased its material wealth and its grandeur-noble souls, who would have contributed to its moral elevation. Butof them all, death has claimed for its victim, in this abundant harvest, no nobler soul or no mightier spirit than Gen. Sumner. A half century he has been in arms for his country, and the story of his life is the story of his nation's glory and her deeds. He is connected with every battlefield which is looked upon as an exemplification of American valor, and with every act which adds a bright page to his country's annals.

"Wherever the fight was thickest there was he to be found. Wherever the assault was to be carried, he led it; and where the retreating column was to be protected, he was in the rear-at once the avenging angel of the charge and the protecting panopoly of the retreat. Often and again during the dreadful scenes of the Penin- sula campaign, and the seven days' battle, when wearied with marching and over- powered by numbers, the shattered columns of the Union were flying in disorder from the field-the bold front of Sumner rushing hither and thither in the thickest of the fight, exposing himself where danger was the greatest and bullets rained fastest, gave heart to the fainting, courage to the weak, strength to the manly, and rolled back again the tide of success.

"Sir, at the battle of Antietam it was his efforts which won for us, as much as any other the result there achieved; and when he stood upon the heights of Fredericks- burg, beside the Commanding General, and saw his old column, which had never turned its back toward the enemy, scaling the impassable heights, beating itself vainly against impregnable fortifications, marching up but to be mowed down, with a devotion unequaled in history-the warrior-souled old chieftain longed to be with his comrades, and it required all the orders and the command of his superior officer to keep him from mingling in the hottest of that fray.'

General Sumner's widow continued to reside in Syracuse for eighteen years after his death, and died at Charlottesville, Va., December 9, 1880, being buried beside her distinguished husband in Oakwood. She was a woman of singular gentleness and great force of character, and of true patriotic impulses and heroism. Her home life was peculiarly sweet and harmonious. Their children were Nancy, widow of Lieut. Leonidas Jenkins, U. S. A., of Syracuse; Margaret Forster, wife of Col. Eugene E. McLean of New York city; Sarah Montgomery, wife of Col. William W. Teall, of Syracuse; Col. Edwin Vose, U. S. A., of Fort Grant, Arizona; Mary Heron, widow of Gen. Armistead L. Long, who has served as postmistress of Charlottesville, Va., since Grant's first administration ; Col. Samuel Storrow, U. S. A., now at Fort Leavenworth, Kan .; and three, Elizabeth Heron, Edwin Vose, 1st, and George Wright, who died in infancy.

! 1

BIOGRAPHICAL.

REV. SAMUEL J. MAY.

REV. SAMUEL JOSEPH MAY was born in Boston, Mass., September 12, 1797. 1Tis father, Colonel Joseph May, was the son of Samuel May, of Boston, by his second wife, Abigail Williams, of Roxbury. Colonel May was born in Boston in 1760, and died there in 1841. He was a public benefactor, a man of sterling character and in tegrity, a devout Christian, and for many years a member and warden of King's Chapel, In 1785 he was one of the twenty who voted to make those alterations in the Liturgy which separated that society from the Trinitarian communion and from the Episcopal church. He married Dorothy Sewall, daughter of Samuel Sewall, of Boston, by his wife Elizabeth Quincy, niece of Josiah Quincy of Revolutionary fame, and sister of Dorothy, the wife of John Hancock. She was a lineal descendant of Chief Justice Samuel Sewall, who was born in England in 1652, and died in Boston in 1730, and who, because of his participation as junior judge "in the trial and con- demnation to death, at Sa- lem, of many persons accus- ed of witchcraft," afterward strove in various ways "to atone for that early wrong," notably by observing "annu- ally, in private, a day of hu- miliation and prayer during the remainder of his life, to keep fresh in his mind a sense of repentance and sorrow for the part he bore in those trials."

Rev. Mr. May's earlier edu- cation was received principal- ly in private schools in his native city. In September, 1813, he entered Harvard REV. SAMUEL JOSEPH MAY. College and was graduated with a class of sixty-seven in 1817. There he distinguished himself by winning sev- eral prizes and achieving high rank as a scholar. In October of that year he went to Hingham and began the study of theology under the Rev. Henry Colman, assist- ing also in teaching a small classical school. Not liking this he returned in May, 1818, to Cambridge, where he resumed his theological studies in the Divinity School, then hardly organized, but under the direction of Rev. Dr. Ware, whose counsel and advice had a marked effect upon the subsequent character of Mr. May's life. In 1819 he made the acquaintance of Noah Worcester, D. D., and until the latter's death

ONONDAGA'S CENTENNIAL.

enjoyed his warm friendship. Dr. Worcester was the author of "The Apostle of Peace," and in 1814 published his "Solemn Review of the Custom of War," both of which impressed Mr. May, who, in speaking of the venerable author, said, "He was the most holy man I ever knew. The first great Christian reform that I ever em- braced was the one inaugurated by him-the attempt to abolish the custom of war."

In 1820 he began to preach, first at Nahant, and early in 1821 in Brooklyn, Conn. He had espoused the doctrine of Unitarianism, to which he adhered throughout life. March 13, 1822, he was ordained to the ministry in Chauncy Place church, Boston, and four days later commenced his labors as minister of the First Ecclesiastical Society of Brooklyn, Conn., where, in January, 1823, he began the publication of "The Liberal Christian," a fortnightly paper in which he expounded the principles of his religion. He was installed pastor November 5, 1823, and officiated in that capacity until 1836, when he was transferred to the church in South Scituate, where he remained six years. June 1, 1825, he married Lucretia Flagge Coffin, second daughter of Peter and Anne (Martin) Coffin, of Boston, who was born in Portsmouth, where her father was a merchant. She was a woman of great force of character, a worthy helpmate and a devout Christian. May 12, 1842, he removed to Lexington as principal of the Normal School, which position he resigned in 1843. In the latter year, while on a journey to Niagara Falls, he occupied the pulpit of Rev. J. P. B. Storer in Syracuse for several Sundays, and upon the death of that divine Mr. May received a unanimous call to become the minister of that young Unitarian church. He began his labors here in April, 1845, and continued almost without interruption until his death, July 1, 1871, a period of twenty-six years.

Mr. May was a man universally beloved and revered, and wherever he lived left an indelible impress of his personality upon the entire community. His great, warm heart went out in wholesome, brotherly love to all humanity, and every one, young and old, found in him a friend. His Christianity was manifest in his every action, every word, and diffused itself like a pure, radiant light from the depths of his soul. He won the esteem, respect and confidence, and even the love, of all classes, and his memory still lingers in the hearts of thousands of those who knew him. As a minister of the gospel he was conscientious to a fault. He clearly and fearlessly expounded the doctrines of Unitarianism, and was largely instrumental in elevating that denomination above the prejudices of other sects, not only in Syracuse, but throughout the Eastern States.

He was an unswerving advocate of temperance and of peace as opposed to war, and in August, 1826, organized the Windham County (Conn.) Peace Society, of which he was corresponding secretary. On these two subjects he delivered numerous lec- tures and wrote several tracts. He also edited the Christian Monitor and Common People's Adviser, and other papers for a time. But it was as a friend and fellow laborer of William Lloyd Garrison that he acquired an almost national reputation in the cause of anti-slavery, which he espoused under the teachings of that eminent liberator, and of Daniel Webster, as early as 1828. In 1835 he became the general agent and corresponding secretary of the Massachusetts Anti-Slavery Society, and for many years lectured enthusiastically, in the face of stubborn opposition and even mob violence, on the subject of abolitionism. He was probably the first Unitarian minister to openly identify himself with the emancipation of the negro. During his long and efficient labors in this field he was the personal friend of Dr. Channing,

BIOGRAPHICAL.

John Greenleaf Whittier, Gerrit Smith, Theodore Parker and others. Between 1834 and the war of the Rebellion he was one of the most active agents in the "under- ground railroad," his house being a conspicuous station where hundreds of slaves fleeing from bondage stopped on their way to Canada. He boldly defied the Fugi- tive Slave Law, not only in his pulpit, but wherever he might be, and fearlessly championed the cause of right and justice. He was foremost in the famous "Jerry Rescue" in October, 1851, and at once openly acknowledged the part he took on that historic occasion. During the Civil war he was especially active in helping soldiers' families, securing them pensions, and personally visiting the camps of the Potomac army. He was actively identified with the cause of education, and for a time served as president of the School Board. It was in his honor that May School in the Seven- teenth ward and May Memorial church (built in 1885) were named. Mr. May was succeeded by Rev. Samuel R. Calthrop, the present pastor, who was installed April 29, 1868.

Mr. May was endowed with a peculiarly courteous demeanor and a disposition of rare sweetness. His admirable traits, his acknowledged abilities and his nobility of character gave him an unusual influence which extended throughont the whole com- munity. He died late Saturday night, and when the news was announced from city pulpits Sunday morning the services in many churches were interrupted by sob- bings. Colored people put on mourning badges, and everywhere signs of general bereavement prevailed. The funeral, which occurred at the church on July 6, was one of the largest ever held in Syracuse. Twenty-one clergymen, including a Jew- ish rabbi, were present. In both pulpit and congregation were representatives of nearly every religious sect in Central New York-of every nationality, Indians, col- ored persons, rich and poor, high and low, Roman Catholics and Protestants, all honoring by their presence the beloved friend of all mankind.

Mr. May's wife died in 1865. His home life was one long stream of happiness. His sister Abigail was the mother of Louisa May Alcott, author of "Little Women," etc.

HENRY DARWIN DIDAMA, M. D., LL.D.

HENRY DARWIN DIDAMA, M. D., LL. D., son of Dr. John and grandson of Dr. Simon Didama, both physicians, was born in Perryville, Madison county, N. Y., June 17, 1823. His father and grandfather came with the Holland Company from Delft in the latter part of the last century, when John was only thirteen years of age, and located in Trenton, N. Y. His mother, Lucinda, was of the New England Gaylord stock, hence the subject of this sketch is fortunate enough to have the best ancestral com- bination possible: Holland Dutch and Connecticut Yankee. He does not remember, as he himself has stated, any exhibitions of remarkable precocity, although he has been assured that he was an excellent silent listener in early life, speaking only two words till he had reached the mature age of four years. He declares that, as there were then no State hospitals for feeble-minded children, he was tenderly but despair- ingly cared for under the parental roof. He was sent to the village district school, where the kind mental ministrations and physical administrations of patient teach-

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Onondaga's centennial. Gleanings of a century, Vol. II, Part 20

Author: Bruce, Dwight H. (Dwight Hall), 1834-1908 Publication date: 1896 Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston History Company Number of Pages: 1094

Author: Bruce, Dwight H. (Dwight Hall), 1834-1908
Publication date: 1896
Publisher: [Boston] : The Boston History Company
Number of Pages: 1094