USA > Pennsylvania > Chester County > West Chester > Reunion of the Ninety-seventh Regiment Pennsylvania Volunteers, October 29th, 1884 at Camp Wayne, West Chester, Pa. An account of the proceedings with a roster of the comrades present > Part 2
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Over there Lindsay of Co. I is hunting up some of " the squad." and he will find them on hand sure, as they always put in an appear- ance when wanted, brave and sturdy and with much of the vigor of their brave and lamented captain, Hawkins.
The boys of the " Honorable Member's " Company, and he too, are on hand. and Captain Underwood has succeeded in reorgan- izing the old drum corps for the occasion, and Cass Fahnestock and Riley are about to sound the "call for the assembling."
At a quarter to Ir o'clock Major Price called upon the boys " to fall in." Promptly the veterans took their places in the ranks, while the crowd of lookers-on remained upon the sidewalks inter- ested spectators of " forming the line." As the men separated from the crowd, and stood again in solid phalanx together, the esprit de corps was renewed as if by magic, and the old martial bearing
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returned, bridging the interval of the years of peaceful pursuits and bringing back in vivid realization the influence of the soldier's ready obedience to the command of "Attention !" "Forward March !" taking up the step at the sound of the same fife and drum that had so often called them forth to the march and the field of battle. Captain W. S. Underwood conducted the music on the right. Colonel John Wainwright and Brevet-Colonel Isaiah Price led the one hundred and sixty-eight officers and men, who then marched out Gay Street to Church, down Church Street to the Fair Grounds, where they were met by Colonel Guss and Lieutenant-Colonel A. P. Duer, the committee of arrangements and the special committee having charge of the reception of the orator of the day, Hon. Marriott Brosius; and Mrs. St. John and daughter, had preceded the veterans to the place of meeting in carriages, and also about forty of the comrades who had previously walked to the grounds. The battalion was halted in front of the stand, erected in rear of the track stand, for the exercises of the day. It was appropriately draped with the national flag, having an awning canopy, and a beautiful bouquet of flowers upon the table.
Announcement was then made requesting the men of the dif- ferent companies to assemble in groups and proceed to register their names and post-office addresses with the secretary of the association, Captain Leonard R. Thomas, who occupied the managers' office adjacent to the stand for this purpose.
During this proceeding the president of the association, Colonel H. R. Guss, accompanied by the orator of the day, Hon. Marriott Brosius, Second Lieutenant of Co. K : Colonel John Wainwright, Rev. David W. Moore, Chaplain; and Brevet-Colonel Isaiah Price, historian of the Regiment, occupied the platform. Soon after taking their seats the reception committee. Colonel D. W. C. Lewis and Major David Jones, brought to the stand Mother St. John, comfort- ably wrapped from the cold, and seated her in a large rocking-chair in the presence of the comrades, who greeted her with three hearty cheers.
Colonel Guss called the meeting to order, and said :
Comrades of the Ninety-seventh Regiment and Mother St. John : It affords me much pleasure to welcome you here upon the First Reunion of our old Regiment, hoping to have the pleasure of see- ing you and many more members of the old Regiment at our future meetings. Knowing many of your number have traveled many miles to be with us this day, shows the interest you have taken in
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the meeting. Hoping this interest may grow with all, many thanks for your presence here to-day, and hoping you may all have a very pleasant day and one you will long remember with pleasure, I now introduce the Chaplain of the Regiment, Rev. D. W. Moore, who will open the exercises with prayer.
The Chaplain then came forward and offered the following beautiful and touching address to the throne of Grace :
PRAYER BY THE CHAPLAIN.
O thou who art the Lord God of the heavens above and the earth beneath ; thou Creator of all things therein, and thou who art our kind Preserver and most merciful Benefactor, we would not assemble here and now without seeking thy benediction.
O Lord, thou hast been very good to us, in that thou hast spared us to come together to-day, after many years of separation and of varied vicissitudes, since we were together as soldiers fight- ing the battles of our beloved country, and for which many of our original numbers fell dead on the field of carnage; or died in hospitals, nursed by loving hearts and tender hands, at home ; or in the horrible prisons of the South, with nothing to comfort or cheer their dying hours. O Lord, we have not forgotten the many trying experiences of the past, nor would we ever forget them. Especially would we remember that " thy banner over us has been love." And we render thee thanks this day for all of thy goodness and gracious dealings. And we thank thee, O Lord, for the preservation of our country-for the Union of these States-and for the overthrow of Rebellion.
And we do most earnestly beseech thee to continue thy favor unto this our native land. Suffer no enemy to invade our shores, and keep us from destroying ourselves by internal strifes and political seditions. O thou God of our Revolutionary fathers, grant us thy grace, and their spirit of patriotism, which will lead us as a people to make sacrifices of all personal and party considerations for the good and perpetuity of the nation at large.
And now, O Lord, will thou forgive us of our many sins, both as soldiers and as people? We all have sinned and come short of the glory of the Lord. In thy rich grace and mercy pardon us of all transgressions, and lift up the light of thy countenance and smile upon all of us who are here to-day. And forget not to bless the soldier's widow and his orphan children. Be good and kind,
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O Lord, to those who have suffered the loss of all that was dear to them for the sake of our American liberties.
Hear, O Lord, and answer these our feeble supplications, and save us all in thy kingdom above, for Jesus' sake. Amen.
Colonel Guss then stated the first business in order would be the reading of the proceedings of the meetings preliminary to this one, at which the Association of the Ninety-seventh Regiment was formed, and which had fixed upon the time and place of holding this Reunion ; but as the secretary of the association was now engaged in making the registry of the names of the comrades, he would call upon the historian of the Regiment, Brevet-Colonel Isaiah Price, to read a paper he had prepared for this occasion.
The following is the historical sketch read at the Reunion by Colonel Price :
REUNION NINETY-SEVENTH REGIMENT P. V.
October 29th. ISS 1.
Comrades ! As your historian, entrusted with the duty of pre- serving the record of service in which our Regiment participated during the war of the Rebellion, it is with a degree of satisfaction commensurate with the pride we all may indulge in feeling, from having borne a part in those services, in whatever station, that I may refer you to the published record it was my privilege to prepare ten years ago, of which I need only say, some of your number have given me the best assurances of their appreciation of its interest to them.
That narrative brings the account down to the close of the war, the return of the discharged veterans to receive the well-deserved, honored welcome from their fellow-citizens, friends, and their anx- iously-expectant families, parents, sisters, brothers and lovers.
It contains also the record roll of each man's service in detail, whether found among those of you who returned to claim and receive the glad welcome that awaited you, or with the long list of those who laid down life for their country ! whom we left upon the field of battle to sleep the calm, eternal sleep in which repose those devoted patriot martyrs.
It also gives the proceedings had in regard to the erection of the proposed monument, so long the subject of conjecture and criti- cism regarding its completion. The delay is therein explained as due to the objections, as to location, on the part of the residents in or owners of the properties adjacent to the site that was formally des-
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ignated by the borough authorities for its erection-on the west line of Church Street, in the middle of Market Street, on a plot twelve feet square, enclosed by an iron railing.
Trusting that in time this opposition would be withdrawn, the trustees of the monument fund, who are charged with the duty of building the monument, have quietly waited for some evidence of such change of feeling in regard to that location.
Nearly two years ago the subject was again revived by the trustees and the secretary of the Monument Association, when in view of the continued opposition to the proposed site, another was suggested as available, although all are united in opinion that no other in West Chester could be so appropriate or desirable as the one already designated.
Having ascertained that the lot on which the old basin is located is no longer required by the borough for that purpose and was to be leveled and added to "Marshall Square," the trustees with the secretary joined in petitioning the borough council of last year to grant them the western half of that lot with the foundation of half the old basin as a site for the monument, at such time as the council should be prepared to abandon its present use. The proposition was favorably entertained by a portion of the members, but the majority at that time was not inclined to favor monument building. Action was therefore deferred to await a more auspicious considera- tion. The incoming of the board of the present year gave expectation of greater favor for our application. This has been verified by the assurances received that the present board are united in purpose to grant our request when the material of the present basin shall be removed, as it is required for use in other borough improvements.
The trustees will accordingly proceed with the erection of the monument at that locality, when the ground shall be made ready for its reception. The delay. it will be seen, has been of such unavoid - able nature as to attach no censure to the trustees, who have been ready and willing to comply with the duties of their trust, at all times since their appointment.
It will be unnecessary to recount in this paper the proceedings preliminary to the present reunion of the members of the regiment, is these are already recorded in the minutes of the meetings pre- vously hell by the secretary thereof, and in the recorded action of the committee appointed to prepare for these interesting ceremonies in which we are now engaged.
The only remaining duty for the historian will consist in collect-
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ing and recording such individual accounts of those who have fulfilled the record of life, as may become known to him, that each record may be filled out to the final discharge, so that future generations may know who were the last to respond to the "roll call" when all shall be assembled in that final meeting of " the grand army above."
The account thus collected will also embrace the mention of such public service or position as may be occupied by any of our number, or whatever matter of public interest may come to the notice of the historian. It will greatly assist these labors if each member of the regiment will forward to his address at West Chester, Pa., a brief record of the time and place of death, nature of disease, etc., of any of our number that may be known at any time by him, and also any fact of public interest such as is indicated herein.
The first name calling for our notice is one distinguished in the service of his country, whom we all honor for his brave deeds and pity for his painful wounds received while with us in the volunteer defence of our country, while yet a lad, displaying those qualities of the true soldier which have entitled him to receive the distinguished recognition of an appointment rarely accorded outside the training received at West Point. Following his record in the U. S. Army from the point at which it is left in the history of the regiment, General Pennypacker has commanded as follows:
1874. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Post of Nashville, January to Angust. Commanding U. S. troops in New Orleans ("Overturning of the Kellogg State Government"), September and October. Commanding Sixteenth Intantry and Post of Nashville, November and December. President General Court Martial at Lebanon, Ky., in April. Same duty at Nashville in May.
1875. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Post of Nashville, January to December, including President General Court-martial at Mobile in August. Commanding escort. funeral of President John- son, at Nashville, October 2d.
1876. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Post of Nashville, January to June. Commanding military escort at funeral of Major- General Gordon Granger, at Lexington. Ky., January 25th, 1876. Commanding Department of the South, with headquarters at Louis- ville, Ky., July. August and September. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Newport Barracks, Ky .. Ovober. Commanding Six- teenth Infantry and Mount Vernon Barracks, Ala., November. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and U. S. troops in Custom-house, New Orleans (during the " electoral count "). December.
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1877. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and U. S. troops in Custom-house. New Orleans, January to June. Commanding Six- teenth Infantry and Fort Riley, Kan., July to December. President General Court-martial, Fort Lyon, Col., August and September. Member General Court-martial, Fort Union, New Mexico, December.
18;S. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Fort Riley, Kan., January to December inclusive. Member of Retiring Board at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., October, November and December.
1879. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Fort Riley, Kan., January to March. President Court of Inquiry at Fort Stanton, New Mexico (" the Lincoln County murder "), April, May, June, July and August. Member General Court-martial at Fort Leaven- worth, Kan., September. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Fort Riley. Kan., October, November and December. Member General Court-martial. Fort Riley. Kan., October and November.
ISSO. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Fort Riley, Kan., January to October. President General Court-martial, San Anto- nio, Texas, November. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Post of San Antonio, December.
ISSI. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Post of San Anto- nio, Texas, January to April. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Fort McKavett. Texas, May to December. President General Court-martial. Fort Davis, Texas (for the trial of Lieutenant' Flip- per. "the colored officer of the army"), September, October, November and December.
1832. Commanding Sixteenth Infantry and Fort McKavett, Texas, January to June. On leave of absence and in Europe (on surgeon's certificate of disability on account of wounds received in battles. July to December.
1883. On leave of absence and in Europe, January to May. Transferred from the active to the retired list of the Regular Army, by direction of the President of the United States, July 3d. 1883. on account of disability arising from severe wounds received in action.
1884. Residence in Philadelphia.
Brevet-Colonel Isaiah Price. Having made application to the War Department for muster upon his commission as Major, received while 'in command of the Regiment at Cold Harbor, Va., in June, 134, being then and subsequently prevented from muster by the alhence, wounded, of Colonel Pennypacker, the following order was issued granting the application :
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Special Order No. 227.
HEADQUARTERS OF THE ARMY, ADJUTANT-GENERAL'S OFFICE, WASHINGTON, D. C., December 4th, 1853.
*
EXTRACT. *
2. By direction of the Secretary of War, under the joint reso- lution approved July 11th, 1870 (amendatory of the joint resolution approved July 26th, 1866), and to complete his record, the muster- out of service of Captain Isaiah Price, Company C. Ninety-seventh Pennsylvania Volunteers, September 17th, 1864, is amended to take effect June 6th, 1864. He is mustered into service as Major of said Regiment to date June 7th, 1864, and mustered out and honorably discharged as Major to date September 17th, 1864, and he is mustered for pay in said grade during the period embraced between the aforesaid dates. The amount of pay and allowances received by him as Captain subsequent to June 6th, 1864, and to which as Major he is not entitled, will be deducted in making payment under this order.
% * *
By command of Lieutenant-General Sheridan.
[Official.] R. C. DRUM, Adjutant-General.
(Signed ) S. N. BENJAMIN, Assistant Adjutant-General.
Assistant Surgeon William C. Morrison. Resumed the practice of his profession after his return from the service in 1865 at Coch- ranville, Chester County, Pa., where he continued in practice until his health failed, about the year 1883. He declined rapidly, and died of Bright's disease at the above place on February 19th, ISS4, and was buried at Faggs' Manor Burial Ground on Saturday, Feb- ruary 23d, aged 43 years.
Hospital Steward Reuben H. Smith, M. D. After the war resumed the practice of medicine at Wilmington, Delaware, where he remained until his health failed, early in 1852, when he came to reside in West Chester with his son, Stephen T. Smith, until his death, which took place March 6th, 1883, aged ;1 years.
Principal Musician James St. John. Died in Philadelphia of consumption, contracted from exposure in the service. on March 17th, 1868. He was buried in Lafayette Cemetery, Tenth and Fed- eral Streets, Philadelphia.
CO. A.
First Lieutenant Frank C. Henry. Died at Coatesville Feb- ruary 26th, 1880.
Second Lieutenant Joseph Philips. Died.
John A. Groff. After having served as Recorder was elected a Magistrate for the borough of West Chester, Pa., March 13th, 1877, and served until 1882.
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Corporal Jacob Daubman. Died.
George M. Mintzer. Died.
Lewis Cochran. Died.
Joseph Edward Stott. Died January 13th, 1877.
James M. Haines. Erroneously reported dead, is living at Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
David M. Taylor. Was elected cashier of the Farmers' National Bank at Oxford, Chester County, Pa. He has continued to fulfill the duties of his responsible position with an honest fidelity and care, that in these days of financial crookedness and degeneracy on the part of so many high and trusted bank officials is most commend- able.
Robert H. Humpton. Died.
Joseph E. Valentine. Immediately after his discharge from the service he entered upon preparation for the dental profession. He graduated with creditable success at the Pennsylvania College of Den- tal Surgery, in Philadelphia, in the class of 1867-68. He soon after located in the practice of his profession at Wilkesbarre, Luzerne County, Pa., where for several years he was successfully engaged. He now resides in Philadelphia, practicing his profession.
Jacob B. James. Died.
Edward O'Neil. Died.
Caleb Townsend. Died.
Andrew K. Wright. Died.
CO. B.
Captain Dallas Crow. Obtained a position in the money department of the Adams Express Company shortly after his dis- charge from the service. He has continued to receive the fullest confidence of the company. His duties are of the most responsible character, requiring not only accuracy and promptness, but the most sterling integrity.
Captain Jonas M. C. Savage. Has become disabled from his wounds received at Green Plains, Va., on May 18th, 1864, and is now an inmate of the Soldiers' Home at Hampton, Va.
First Lieutenant David S. Harry. Died.
George W. Wonderly. Died September roth, IS73.
CO. C.
First Lieutenant Emmor G. Griffith. Was elected Assessor and Collector for the borough of West Chester in 1877, and served therein efficiently until elected Treasurer of Chester County in ISS1. In these responsible positions he has performed the duties with
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fidelity and diligence, to the manifest advantage of both the borough and county. His term of office will expire with the present year.
Sergeant Isaac A. Cleaver. Was elected a director of the Penn Mutual Insurance Company and has served with much ability. He is actively engaged in mercantile business at Berwyn, in East- town Township. He has been an active, enterprising citizen. ener- getic in the public welfare and its interests in his locality. He should become the successor in the State Legislature of his friend and neighbor, Captain William Wayne, the present member from that district.
Corporal Davis O. Taylor. Has pursued his vocation as machinist at West Chester since his discharge from the service. He has just received the nomination of his party for the office of Clerk of the Courts of Chester County, which, in a district polling an average majority of 2,300, is equivalent to an election. That he will bring to the discharge of the duties of the office the requisite ability and faithfulness, his record of service will fully justify the prediction.
William Agg. One of our badly wounded comrades. Received employment soon after the close of the war in the post-office department of Philadelphia. After some years of faithful service as a letter-carrier he was appointed to the charge of the sub-district of Kensington, where he continued to receive the confidence of the department until his death, which occurred after a short illness in IS83.
Anthony Grimes. Died in Philadelphia about 1878.
Levi Keeley. Died October 13th, 1864.
Asher M. Kinnard. Died at West Chester, of typhoid pneu- monia, at 12 o'clock MI., June 5th, 1883.
Wesley McLain. Erroneously reported dead, is still living at Milton, Northumberland County, Pa.
John L. Kitts. Received an appointment as paying teller in the National Bank of Delaware County, at which post he is still engaged.
CO. D.
Captain William S. Mendenhall. After the war settled in Wil- mington, and was engaged in the retail notion and trimming trade. His health failed, resulting in consumption, of which he died at that place.
Sergeant William McCarty. Died.
Corporal Wilbur F. Flannery. Died of consumption at Potts- town, Pa., January Ist, 1879.
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CO. E.
Sergeant Patrick Carter. Died.
John Bennett. Died March 25th, 1874.
Michael Walsh. Died of consumption at Concordville, May 24th, ISTS.
CO. F.
Second Lieutenant Oliver E. Strickland. Died at home since the war.
Musician Thomas St. John. Died of consumption in Philadel- phia. February 19th, ISSO.
John Hall. Died.
George W. Wolf. Died in Philadelphia of consumption, November 4th, IS78.
Davis McAffee. Died July 12th, ISS3, at his home in East Nantmeal, from the result of an operation necessitated by wounds received during the service.
CO. G.
John G. Herkins. Died of consumption, January, ISSO.
Thomas L. Hinkson. Died in Philadelphia, February 27th, ISTS.
CO. H.
Captain George A. LeMaistre. Has been engaged for several years as managing engineer for Walton, Whann & Co., manufac- turers of phosphate - a most responsible position, requiring skill, accuracy and great care in the management of the details, to avoid the dangers attendant upon the chemical processes connected with the production and storage of large quantities of acids required in those works.
First Lieutenant Thomas S. Taylor. Was engaged after the war as a teacher of penmanship, for which he was very well qualified. He died of consumption at West Chester, ISS3.
Sergeant Benjamin F. Smith. Died June 4th, 1872.
Sergeant Thomas John. Died at West Chester.
Corporal Isaac T. Massey. Died. Was killed by falling down stairs in Philadelphia on Christmas Day, IS78.
Jonathan Cross. Died.
Joseph Dasey. Died June 4th, 1872.
Milton Jackson. Died March 26th, 1876.
Edward H. Taylor. Died.
CO. I.
Second Lieutenant Annesley N. Morton. Died of pneumonia in Philadelphia, August 13th, ISSO.
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CO. K.
Captain William Wayne. Was elected a member of the House - of Representatives of Pennsylvania in r880; was re-elected in :882, and has just received renomination for a third term in that body. His services as a member of the House need no other commendation than this repeated manifestation of confidence on the part of his constituents. As soldier and as statesman alike in faithfulness to the duties of the time, his presence with us here affords the opportunity to extend to him our hearty and united congratulations.
Captain William S. Underwood. Was elected in 1878 to the office of Register of Wills for Chester County, which position he filled with the same ability, fidelity and care that marked his services in the field. He is now the manager of an important business enterprise in the borough of West Chester.
Second Lieut. Marriott Brosius. Upon returning from the service entered Millersville State Normal School, from which he graduated. He was also a graduate of the Law Department of the University of Michigan. He afterwards studied law at Lancaster, Pa., with Hon. Thomas E. Franklin as his preceptor, and was admitted to practice at the Lancaster Bar in April, 1868. He has continued in the practice of his profession at Lancaster, with such diligence and careful atten- tion to business as have brought to him an enviable success. In ISS2 he was nominated by the Republican State Convention as Congress- man-at-Large, but shared the defeat of his party in that election. He is a most eloquent and interesting speaker, whether in the political can- vass or as a temperance advocate in its moral aspect, yet giving the cause the more practical advantage of his support of the party of progress, rather than follow the lead of merely theoretical and impracticable ideas of reform that tend to hinder and defeat the real purpose to be advanced. He has delivered many of the most interesting and eloquent Memorial Day addresses for the Grand Army of the Republic and other like ceremonies at various places : and to him has been assigned the duty of delivering the address upon this day of our Reunion, and I know that you will all be gratified in hearing the expression of his thoughts which these reminiscences of our old army days will give him the inspiration to speak to our ears and to our hearts.
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