Remembering Veterans - Two

 This is another walk featuring veterans, a continuation of the previous walk, offered here in remembrance of Veterans Day.  This walk will be a good workout, since it takes you from an area down fairly near the chapel up the hill and toward the back of the property.  It still shouldn't take much more than an hour, if you have a map.  Find a map at the end of this post, or get one from the cemetery office 10 A.M - 2 P.M. Monday through Friday.

1.  Nellie Gregg Williams (block 52) Find Nellie Willams' grave by going north on Main Dr. The small flat stone is on your left on the hillside.  While Nellie was never a solder, her service to veterans deserves to be noticed and remembered. Nellie was the wife of Louis Williams, who was ten years older than she was and who left her a widow in 1915 when she was in her forties.  They couple never had children.  At that time World War I had already begun, though the USA had not joined the conflict.  But as local young men in Company M were heading off to Europe, Nellie decided to do her part.  She wrote the soldiers letters, sent them homemade cookies and candy, and then kept in touch with them when they returned home.  She did the same thing during World War II.  After World War I she faithfully worked the local Armistice Day events, which involved community-wide dinners, speeches, music and patriotic readings.  Most remarkably, she was concerned about the lack of burial space for military veterans at Oak Hill. She purchased and donated19 lots of block 311, and intended them for the use of World War and other military veterans who had not family lot.  The military section can be found in the area adjacent to Mt. Olivet. This area has been the site of Memorial Day observations ever since.

2.  Edmund Kearny Tice (block 112) If you go up Center Ave., up the hill, there is a faint unpaved road on the left that cuts across to the road that runs parallel to the chain link fence at the edge of the cemetery property. He is remembered as a captain during the War of 1812.   Block 112 is in about the middle. Tice's' headstone is a small flat red granite one. By occupation Tice was a carpenter and builder, born in New Jersey in 1791.  He and his wife Jane moved here in 1850.  For a time he was City Marshall.

3.  James Bintliff (block 125) Follow the same faint path further along toward the road that runs parallel to the chain link fence.  Block 125 can be found on the right side of the path near the paved road. The monument is tall and square, topped with a finial shaped like an urn; unfortunately a tree fell on it this past summer and the tall family monument was knocked over.  James Bintliff's small headstone is still undamaged.  Bintliff was an English born newspaper editor from Monroe who rose from company captain to brigadier general during the Civil War.  According to the State Historical Society, in 1862 he recruited a company of Monroe soldiers as Company G., 22nd Wisconsin Infantry,  He was elected captain and over the following months they fought from Kentucky and into Tennessee. He was captured in Brentwood, TN, and was imprisoned at Libby prison. Bintliff continued to fight after his release, accepting several promotions. By 1865 he was a brigadier general, leading men in the Siege of Petersburg. After the war he lived in Janesville and for a time was editor of the Janesville Gazette.

4.  Edward Osgood Wright (block 99) Wright's grave is in block 99, not too far from the G.A.R. memorial section, on the left side of Center Ave, top of the hill where it is more flat.  I'm sorry to say that this historic stone fell over years ago and still is flat on the ground, with a good sized crack in it. Edward Wright was originally from New York state, though his family was living in Janesville at the beginning of the Civil War.  He enlisted in the 71st Regiment, New York State Militia in 1861. Wright fought bravely and rose through the ranks. In 1862 he was killed in battle. 

This is what the New York Times wrote in his obituary:

Edward O. Wright, Second Lieutenant in Company H. Fifth Regiment New-York State Volunteers, died in the Fairfax Seminary Hospital, near Alexandria, on Sept. 26, of a wound received in the second battle of Bull Run, Aug. 30. Lieut. Wright enlisted as a private in the Seventy-first Regiment, N.Y.S.M., on April 20, 1861, but as he was among those whom that corps was obliged to reject, because it was so full when it left this City for the seat of war, he enlisted, on April 22, in Duryea's Zouaves, which was then forming. During the stay of the regiment at Fort Schuyler, its encampment in the vicinity of Fortress Monroe, and at Fort Federal Hill, Baltimore, he discharged his duties with zeal and fidelity. In the battle of Big Bethel, on June 10, 1861, he bore himself with great bravery and coolness. Although he was always foremost in the succession of battles and skirmishes before Richmond in which the Zouaves won such distinction. Sgt. Wright, for his services in the ranks had been rewarded with promotion, escaped without a scratch, and for bravery displayed in the battle of Gaines' Mills he was made a Second Lieutenant. In the battle of Groveton, or Bull Run No. 2, which was fought on Aug. 30, he was wounded by a mini ball, which struck his left arm near the socket, passed through his lung and finally lodged between his shoulder blades. Could he have received immediate attention his life might have been spared, but he lay on the field until the afternoon of the next day, when the ball was extracted. After submitting to this operation he dragged himself to Centreville, where he was paroled, and thence was sent within the National lines. He was promptly taken to Fairfax Seminary Hospital, but the excellent care which he there received came too late to revive his failing energies, and he died as we have already stated, on Sept. 26. During all his sufferings, which were at times intense, he gave a striking example of patience to those around him. His company, which had become attached to him as few companies are to their commanders, will miss him in camp and on the battle-field,and a wide circle of friends in this City, who knew and appreciated his worth, mourn his loss. 

6. William Harrison Ash (block 277) You are headed west up Center Ave., way toward the wooded back edge of the property.  You'll turn right on Chestnut St., and block 277 will be on your right. Ash has a modern stone, low and flat. William Ash was originally from Champaign, Illinois. In 1862 he enlisted in the 81st Illinois Infantry . He served almost four years, and during that time spent secen months in the notorious prison camp, Andersonville.  After the war he married Mary Jane O'Dell and raided a family of five children. When they were older they moved to Janesville to live with their son Harry. Ash died in 1926. 

7. William Pearl (block 281) To find this block go as far west on Center Ave. as you can, toward the wooded back edge of the property. Turn right, and William Pearl's stone is in that wooded area. Similar to William Ash's stone, this is a modern headstone, low and flat. Pearl was eighteen years old in 1862 when he joined the army as a musician, a drummer,  of Company M, 22nd Wisconsin Volunteers.  His unit fought in battles at Unionville, Nashville, and Brentwood, Tennessee. Later the unit fought under General Joseph Hooker in Atlanta.  After the war he married Mary Jane Clough and raised five children in the Town of Harmony.

5. Rev. George Ward Dunbar (block 268) This large gray granite monument is located on Summit Ave., the highest part of the cemetery.  Going north on Summit, you will find the Dunbar plot on your left, and the woods is behind this block. Dunbar was a priest of the Episcopal church, born in New York state. He served i a number of parishes back east before coming to Christ Church in Janesville. He married twice, his first wife dying fairly young.  His second wife was Adelaide Ruger.  Adelaide's father was a military man, so perhaps he influenced Dunbar to become a chaplain in the army. At any rate, Dunbar had several interesting posts, where he usually went to postings to act as chaplain, but also functioned as postmaster, librarian and teacher. His first post was to Fort Concho, Texas, later he was sent to Fort Yates in Dakota territory, and the Presidio in San Francisco.  . Finally he was posted to Alcatraz, then a military fortification in San Francisco Bay.  He retired in 1897 and he and his wife returned to Janesville.  After his wife's death he moved to Washington D.C. where he died in 1914.

You can click on this map to enlarge it, and then print one for yourself. I am sorry this one doesn't have all the streets labeled.  I'll work on this later this winter.  Be aware that none of the street named in the cemetery are marked either - I wish I knew why not.

Remembering Veterans - One

This week we celebrate Veterans Day, so I thought I would suggest a couple walks that feature people who served their country through service in the military.  I know that technically Veterans Day is supposed to honor those who died while in military service, but I am not making that distinction with the people included here; all simply served with distinction. I struggle sometimes in trying to decide how to include service men and women in walks, since there are so many of them, and since military history is not my special area of knowledge.  That said, I don't want to ignore veterans.

All the folks featured in this walk, and the next one I will share, are featured in the book Memory Walks in Oak Hill, written in 2008 by local historian Maurice Montgomery.  Monty was an enthusiastic researcher, and wrote about each person in detail.  I only provide highlights here, so I recommend that you read his book if you want more.  In addition, you can visit Find a Grave, for additional information and some photographs.

As always, dress for the weather, and bring along your map (or get one from the cemetery office).

1.  George Morton Randall (block 20) George Randall's headstone is up the hill behind the chapel.  George was born in Ohio in 1841, and was about twenty when his family moved to Janesville. At the beginning of the Civil War he enlisted in the 4th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry as a private, and served with honor, advancing to lieutenant at the battle of Antietam. He stayed in the army and participated in the Indian wars after the Civil War, participating in military expeditions against the Indians at Big Horn, Powder River and Yellowstone. Eventually he was put in command of Fort Reno in the Oklahoma Territory. During the Spanish-American War he was stationed in Cuba, and later in 1900 he was sent by President McKinley to the Alaskan Territory, to help keep order during the gold rush. In 1903 he was sent to the Philippines to work on the pacification of the native people there.  He retired in 1905, and in 1918, he died in Colorado. 

2.  William H. Sargent (block 63) Look for a narrow stone tablet with an eagle and shield. Sargent was born in England in 1840, and emigrated with his father and siblings to this area about 1855. He served as a carrier for the Janesville Gazette, and volunteered for the local Water Witch Engine Company - the fire department.  In 1860 he married Clara F. Spencer, daughter of the local fire chief, and a year later the Civil War broke out.  Sargent became a member of Company G, 8th Regiment Wisconsin Volunteers. He saw much action in St. Louis, Cairo, Corinth, Vicksburg, and Nashville.  William Sargent was killed in the second day of fighting at Nashville, the Battle of Fort Negley, shot through the heart.

3.  Justus Perry Wheeler (block 81) You are looking for a gray obelisk; the section with Justus Wheeler's name has been damaged, though it is readable. Wheeler was born in 1782 in Massachusetts. He studied law, and while a young man served with honor in the War of 1812. After the war he moved to New York where he married Lucy Culver and raised a family of ten children. By 1840 they had moved to Rock County and owned a substantial farm in the town of La Prairie. In 1851 he was one of the organizers of the first Rock County fair, which showcased and promoted local agriculture.  Justus Wheeler died in 1872.

4.  George Bentley (block 91) At the crest of the hill there is a marble block with a slightly inclined top, a Union soldier's cap, drawn sword and shield. This is the monument to George Bentley, who died in battle Oct. 8, 1862.  He was born in Connecticut in 1831, so he was only 31 when he was killed at Perryville, Kentucky. He was a member of Company H, 21st Infantry Regiment of Wisconsin. According to the local newspaper, his funeral was large and elaborate, including a military escort, a band, clergy, representative of the railroad where he worked prior to the war, and many friends.

5.  James E. Croft: (block 99) Find the small gray granite headstone for James Croft very near the G.A.R. memorial section.  Croft was from Yorkshire, England, and came to Janesville as a young man. In 1862 he enlisted in the 12th Wisconsin Battery, Light Artillery, and was in many battles, especially in Tennessee and Georgia. He was awarded the Medal of Honor while serving at the rank of private for his bravery in action on October 5, 1864 at Allatoona, Georgia. His citation reads "Took the place of a gunner who had been shot down and inspired his comrades by his bravery and effective gunnery, which contributed largely to the defeat of the enemy."

6.  G.A.R. Memorial (block 99) The Grand Army of the Republic was a fraternal organization for Union soldiers, designed to benefit veterans in both political and social spheres - much as organizations such as the VFW and American Legion do today.  It encouraged "Decoration Day" events to remember fallen soldiers, established retirement homes and hospitals and their wives, cared for indigent soldiers and more.  Members had military style uniforms with badges, medals and ribbons.  There was a women's auxiliary group called the Woman's Relief Corp.  These woman are not buried here, bu many have distinctive flag holders near their headstones.

The local GAR post, called the W. H. Sargent Post 20, was established in 1881. Soon after organizing, the post bought 4 lots in block 99 at Oak Hill as a military burial park for Civil War soldiers.  If you look at burial dates, those that indicate death prior to 1883 are cenotaphs, that is there is no body. The stone is simply a memorial.  Burials after 1883 are traditional.  This area has been kept up nicely by volunteers, including the local D.A.R. It is interesting to note that the boundaries of the area are marked by posted created from cannon muzzles and balls. Be aware that this area only contains a small number of Civil War burials; other are scattered throughout the cemetery.

7.  Dr. Henry Palmer (block 51) Henry Palmer's headstone is on the side of the hill along the main road. You can see the Palmer monument from the road. Henry Palmer was one of the most respected and influential men in Janesville during his life. Born in New York in 1827 in a farming family, for a time he taught public school to earn money for his own medical school.  He became a skilled physician and surgeon, opening offices first in New York state, and later here in Janesville, where he joined Dr. Robert Treat. He enlisted as regiment surgeon for the 7th Wisconsin Infantry, the "Iron Brigade" when the Civil War broke out. Later he was posted to York Military hospital in Pennsylvania, where he instituted improvements in cleanliness, nutrition, and treatment that greatly reduced patient mortality.  At one point when the hospital was attacked by Confederate troops, Palmer hid the sickest and armed those able to fight to repel the attack.  He was captured, but escaped and returned to his duties at the hospital. After the war he was in charge of Camp Douglas in Chicago for a time, but finally returned to medical practice in Janesville.  He also served as mayor of the city.