Isaac Musser Bowman was born July 11, 1836, in Eden Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania to Isaac Bowman (22 Nov 1802-5 Mar 1875) and Anne (Nancy) Musser (18 Oct 1805-6 Apr 1875).
His grandfather, John Bowman born in 1755, served in the American Revolution for Pennsylvania.His great grandparents were born in Switzerland.
Isaac married Charlotte Alexander (born on 26 Jun 1835 in Eden Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania). They married on 27 Oct 1859 in Eden Township, Pennsylvania.Charlotte’s grandparents were both born in Ireland.Her parents, James Alexander and Martha McCullough were born in Pennsylvania.
Isaac was a 24-year-old shoe and boot maker when he enlisted on April 24, 1861, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as a Private in the Union Army, 18th Regiment, Infantry, Company I. The 18th regiment was organized in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, at Washington Square until May 14.Then it moved to Baltimore, Maryland, with duty near Fort McHenry until May 22 and at Federal Hill until August.
Most of his regiment was removing stores to Fort McHenry from Pikesville Arsenal. The 18th regiment was formed for three months and was mustered on August 6, 1861, in Philadelphia, PA.Part of Company I re-enlisted for 10 days at the request of General Banks, then mustered out. Several of the Pennsylvania regiments were called up for only three months in 1861 and some in 1862 were called up for 20 days to repel Lee’s invasion of Maryland then disbanded.
Isaac M Bowman Gravestone, New Providence Cemetery Lancaster, PA
Isaac was a fine mechanic and was about the last in his area who could make a complete boot or shoe.He was one of the first to cultivate small fruits in the Lower End.He was one of the most prominent residents of Camargo.
Charlotte died at the young age of 44 years on 25 Sep 1881, in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
Isaac died July 16, 1910, at age 74 years and 5 days, at his home in Camargo, Eden Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He was buried in the Mennonite burying ground, New Providence Cemetery, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
Julius was born at Mt. Morris, New York, New York in 1820 to John Mahan and Martha Alcemener Camp Mahan. He was baptized at the United Church of Mount Morris on February 2, 1822.
Julius’s maternal great-grandfather is Moses Camp who served in the American Revolution. Moses was in Captain Bostwick’s Company when he crossed the River Delaware the evening of December 25th, 1776, with George Washington. His name is on a War Department record with the other 29 men in his company.
Julius married Frances M. Olney on April 14, 1845, in Knox County, Ohio.
Julius P. Mahan was a 41-year-old shoemaker, married with three children when he enlisted to serve his country in the Civil War. He enlisted in Company H, Ohio 76th Regiment, Infantry, as a corporal, on October 2, 1861. The Ohio 76th was organized at Camp Sherman, Newark, Ohio October 5, 1861, through February 3, 1862. It moved to Paducah, Kentucky February 9, then to Fort Donelson, Tennessee. Julius participated in the investment and capture of Fort Donelson, Tennessee February 13-16, 1862, Expedition toward Purdy and operations about Crump’s Landing, Tenn., March 9-14, Battle of Shiloh, Tennessee, April 6-7.
An Army of The United States Certificate of Disability for Discharge of Corporal Julius P. Mahan states he has been unfit for duty for 60 days. He says that exposures while at the Battle of Fort Donelson he took a severe cold which settled in his breast and so sinks to have but little use of himself for a long time. He also had diarrhea. He was also in the Battle of Shiloh but in a few days was sent to Hospital on account of sickness brought on by exposures while at the Battle. The examining physician reports he has had pain in his Breast and side ever since, also diarrhea, and has been unable to do any duty since that time.
Cairo, Illinois, March 30, 1863: He is found incapable of performing the duties of a soldier because of Chronic Diarrhea and General Disability, thus ending his service. The pension file for Julius P. Mahan contains 86 pages. Sworn people including his son-in-law Isaac Keller Vance, a civil war veteran, wrote on August 26, 1882, for Proof of Disability that during the latter part of conquest while in the line of duty at or near Louisville, Kentucky did on or about last of August 1862 did become disabled in the following manner. He was guarding deserters; prisoners were sent ashore from the boat, by an officer in command of prisoners, to land to Provo marshal to take charge of prisoners and broke his ankle.
From the War Department, Surgeon General’s Office, Record, and Pension Division, Washington, D.C. dated June 8, 1883, to support the claim No. 421583 filed by Julius, the assistant Surgeon, Pope, wrote (from the records filed in the office): “J.P. Mahan was admitted to G.H. Camp Dennison, Ohio June 9,62 with debility and furloughed June 10 62; that he was admitted to Port Hospl. Camp Chase, Ohio Aug 7 62, diagnosis not stated and returned to duty Aug 21, 62; and that he was admitted to Port Hspl. Cairo, Ills Mch 30. 63 with chronic diarrhea and discharged from service Apl 1. 1863. Records of the regiment from Jan.1863, when they commence to Apl.1.1863 furnish no information in this case.”
Despite developing a severe cold at the Battle of Fort Donelson and developing pain in his breast and side along with diarrhea at the Battle of Shiloh, sent to the hospital and unfit for 60 days, then sustained an ankle injury while guarding prisoners, he returned home to Howard, Ohio as a shoemaker until 1875. He then moved to McCune, Crawford County, Kansas where he was farming.
By 1881 he was 61 years old and becoming unable to do manual labor due to his wartime illnesses and injury. He hired Stoddart & Co. Lawyers in Washington, D.C. to apply for a pension. It cost him two dollars May 4, 1881, three dollars Nov. 4, 1882, and five dollars July 12, 1883, a total of $10.00. On January 30, 1884, he wrote a four-page letter to Hon. WH Dudley, Commission of Pensions WA., D.C. He references the dates and years evidence was sent regarding his request for a pension. He is now providing the same evidence for the third time directly instead of through the Stoddart firm. He names the officers who are now dead.
He states, “If I cannot get my claim through honorably, I do not want it at all.” “I have simply asked what I felt I had a right to ask and obtain.” He died November 24, 1884, with no pension.
His widow Frances M. Olney Mahan applied for a widow’s pension in 1887 sending in many affidavits over three years. She is to receive a pension commencing July 18, 1890, for $8.00 a month.
She died on March 6, 1891, was never paid, and was dropped from the Pension Roll at her death according to the US Pension Agency Topeka, Kansas.
Julius P. Mahan was a highly esteemed citizen of McCune, Kansas. He was a member of the Presbyterian church that was so crowded at his funeral, that there was no room for all who attended. He was a member of the Osage Post 156 G.A.R. The lodge attended his funeral. Julius was 64 years when he died on November 24, 1884, in McCune, Crawford Co., Kansas.
Frances was born on August 7, 1824, in Knox County, Ohio. She died on March 6, 1891, in Crawford County, Kansas.
They are buried at McCune Cemetery, Crawford Co., Kansas. Plot: Section 1 Lot 13 Space 1.
Doctor Franklin Sweeney was born October 23, 1835 in Liberty, Casey County, Kentucky. He was one of 13 children of Benjamin Sweeney and Sarah Tucker Northcutt. Doctor married Sarah Margaret Allen on July 7, 1859 at Liberty, Casey, County, Kentucky. She was born March 15, 1841 in Casey County, KY, and died February 23, 1888 in Casey County, KY. According to the census of 1860, Doctor Franklin Sweeney was a farmer. Doctor was his given name, not his profession.
He enlisted in the Union Army on July 28, 1862 in either Russellville, Logan County, Kentucky or Casey County as a private and served in Captain Whipp’s Company C of the 8th Regiment, Kentucky Cavalry. He mustered out September 17, 1863 in Lebanon, Kentucky.
Doctor Franklin Sweeney and his wife Sarah had at least 15 children. Their daughter Susan Jane Sweeney (1872-1962) is the child from whom the Tent 22 member descends.
After Sarah’s death in 1888, Doctor married Nancy Louisianna (Lucy Ann) Watson October 27, 1891 in Casey County, Kentucky. She was born in March 21, 1868 or 1869 and died January 31, 1926 in Casey County, Kentucky.
Five more children were born to this couple.
Doctor Franklin Sweeney died April 16, 1902, and is buried in Brush Creek Cemetery, Casey County, Kentucky.
Alva Coats Malott was born to Hiram Malott and Matilda Smith on Dec 31, 1840 in Brown County, OH (southwestern OH, near Cincinnati). His parents were, also, both born in Brown Co, both having pioneer ancestors there since about 1780. Alva’s mother died when he was three and his father married his second wife, Mary Ann Lane, who raised Alva, his older brother, and four half-siblings. His father, Hiram, was a farmer of modest means in Sterling Township. The 1860 census listed his father with a real estate value of his farm of $1500 and a personal estate value of $500. Despite farm life, Alva and his entire family could read, write, and speak English. After Alva finished school, he started farming with his father.
Alva was described as a stout, rugged young man of excellent character; 5’8”, light complexion, light hair, and blue eyes. Attached are two photographs of him: one as a young man in his Civil War uniform (20-23 years old) and one as an old man (age unknown).
Alva enlisted at 20 years of age in the Civil War on September 30, 1861 in Bethel, Ohio for three years as a Private in Company H, of the 59th Regiment of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry commanded by Sergeant James S Riley and Colonel James P Fyffe; he served under Generals: Nelson, Buell, and Sherman. He mustered in on October 13, 1861 at Camp Kenton, KY. Alva fought in battles at Pittsburg Landing, Corinth, Perryville, Murfreesboro, Stones River, Tullahoma, Chickamauga, Chattanooga, Missionary Ridge, Resaca, Kennesaw Mountain, Atlanta, Peach Tree Creek, and Jonesboro, the last three being in Sherman’s March to the Sea. On December 5, 1861, Alva was admitted to Eruptive General Hospital Louisville, KY with Rubeola and returned to duty on December 23. During the summer of 1862, Alva injured his feet from hard marching and marching through hot sand. About June, 1863, at Stones River Ford, TN, approximately 6 months after the Battle of Stones River, where 6000 Union soldiers were killed, Alva was detailed by an Ordering Sergeant to go with Teamster, John Meyers, to help him haul wood. Alva was thrown by a mule and trampled under its hooves, incurring an injury to his back and left side. He was carried back to camp in a wagon and described by fellow comrades as being stiff all over and suffering a great deal. His injuries were severe enough that he was excused from duty for over a month. He was treated by a surgeon in the Regimental Hospital and left at a Convalescent Camp at Murfreesboro. Alva was honorably discharged November 1, 1864 as a Private at Nashville, TN.
After the war, Alva was married to Abigail Rardin Wilson on March 11, 1866 in Sterling Township, Brown Co, OH. by Reverend Alexander Humphries. Abigail was the daughter of Curtis Wilson who came to Ohio from Vermont, and his second wife, Isabel Gray, who had been born in Hamilton Co, OH. Abigail, who was four years younger than Alva, had eight children – four sons and four daughters and kept house. Abigail and her children could all read, write, and speak English.
Alva had pain in his back and along the short ribs on his left side and difficulty with his feet the rest of his life. Despite, that he and others that knew him well considered him at least half disabled, he continued to try to earn a living as a farmer. Most likely, his ancestors had all been farmers and he knew nothing else. By 1870, at 30 years of age, Alva was a farmer with a real estate value of $400 and a personal estate value of $210.
A physician’s affidavit states that from November 1880 to February 1881, Alva was confined to the house with lumbago. Finally, on September 22, 1882, Alva filed for a pension with the federal government. He was only 41 when he was classified as an invalid and received $6 per month. He claimed he was disabled to a 1/2 degree and not capable of doing manual labor. At least eleven people, including one doctor, signed sworn affidavits that were submitted to the federal government on his behalf to get keep his pension. The government seemed to question if his injury or the incident that had caused it had even taken place, saying that he was never classified as a Teamster or that there were no hospital records. But he never claimed to be a Teamster and he was treated in a regimental hospital not a regular one so the records were not readily available or were lost during the war. The communications between Alva and the Bureau of Pensions went on for 47 years, right up until the last few days of his life. His pension file was a whopping 140 pages; along with his military record, I received about 150 pages from National Archives!
By 70 years old, Alva was still farming, owned his farm free of a mortgage, and all eight of his children were still living. Alva and Abigail lived their entire lives in Eastwood, Sterling Township, Brown Co, OH with three exceptions for a total of five years when they lived closer to Williamsburg, Clermont Co, OH. After 49 years of marriage, Alva’s wife, Abigail, died October 26, 1915 in Sterling Township, Brown Co, OH. Alva was 75.
By 80, Alva abandoned farming because he could no longer stand to plow or walk. He became a boarder but I’m not sure what became of his farm. He possibly married a 3rd wife, Flora Abbatol, because his death certificate states he’s a widow but lists her as his spouse; no record found. His health was poor because of rheumatism, disease of heart, nervousness, dizziness, lower limbs weak and refused to act, rupture of both sides, helplessness, general weakness due to extreme old age, and very bad eyesight. He required a personal aide or attendance of another person because of these disabilities.
Alva’s last pension check was issued on December 4, 1928 at the rate of $72 per month. The next day, on December 5, he applied for the last time for an increase in his pension to $90 per month but he would never receive that. Alva died at 1:30 am, December 20, 1928 in Eastwood, Sterling Township, Brown Co, OH at the age of 87 years, 11 months, and 19 days, probably within a few miles of his birth. His cause of death was stated as arteriosclerosis which he had had for two years with a secondary contributing factor being hypostatic pneumonia. Alva was buried December 22, 1928 at the lower end of the “circle” in the Williamsburg Cemetery in Williamsburg, Clermont Co, OH. Attached are a photograph of the gates of the Williamsburg Cemetery and another of Alva and Abigail Malott’s tombstone.
Williamsburg Cemetery Gates
Malott Headstone used with permission from CWhite on Findagrave.com
John Oliver Walton, Pvt, Co G, 193rd New York Infantry, was born December 22, 1842, to Rufus Walton and Jane Rork in Keene, Essex County, New York. He married Sarah Mussen, (1845 – 3 Oct 1896), on September 8, 1864, in Bloomingdale, Essex County, New York.
John and Sarah had a child, Frank Grant Walton (1868-1923), and this child descends this line to a member of Laura Belle Stoddard Tent 22, Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War 1861-1865.
John Walton died on May 27, 1924, at Lake Placid, Essex County, New York. He is buried along with his wife Sarah and his parents in Brookside Cemetery, Bloomingdale, Essex County, New York. His obituary stated that he was a member of the local GAR Post, perhaps in Lake Placid.
Warren Senate, b.1845 in St. David, New Brunswick, Canada, d.12 Dec 1893 in Wessington, Hand County, SD.
Wife: Alice Louella “Ella” Hain, m. 16 May 1890 at Wessington, Hand County, SD. She was b.1857 in MI and d.1950 in Ponoff, OR.. (Note: I was not able to locate any town past or present with this name in Oregon)
Their son. Levi Warren Senate (1890-1951) is the child from whom Tent 22 member descends.
Warren Senate served as a Pvt in Co “M”, 31st ME Infantry Regiment. He enlisted on 1 Oct 1864 at Augusta, ME. He contracted Rubeola in the service and was mustered out with a medical discharge at Alexandria, VA on 23 Jun 1865. He suffered from debilitating deafness as a result of his disease.
Pension Application file #179.303 dated 30 Oct 1872.
There is a listing for Warren Senate on FindaGrave in the Wessington Cemetery, Hand County, SD
Charles Harrison Foster (1839-1898) did not have an easy life. When he was 16 his father (Caleb Foster 1796-1855) drowned while crossing a creek, leaving his wife (Susanna McClellin 1804-1856) still pregnant with her 8th child. Her sister came to help with the birth, and when Susanna died shortly thereafter, took the baby home with her to raise. The other 7 children were left to take care of each other as best they could. Charles had many years of heavy responsibilities.
Charles Foster enlisted 12 Aug 1862 at Connorsville, Indiana, and was discharged with the rank of Cpl by reason of disability on 15 Jun 1865. [Notes from IN State Archives say he was mustered out at Pulaski, TN on 1 Sep1863]. joined Company C, Calvary, 5th Regiment, known as the Iron Brigade because of 1,246 men, 199 died in their battles. He worked with the mules that transported men and materials. On December 20, 1862, a mule repeatedly kicked him, leaving him with a broken collarbone, a mashed shoulder, and injuries about the head. He was sent to Woodsville, Kentucky, for medical care, and was discharged on August 12, 1862. These injuries left him permanently disabled.
Charles married Sarah Denny (1848-1921) on February 25, 1867. Their first child, Anne, died very young. They had three other children, William, Olive, and Josephine. All of their property was in Sarah’s name and she took care of all legal papers that needed to be filled out. We assume that this was because the head injuries left him unable to think through complicated affairs. After his death, Sarah applied for and received a widow’s pension for wounded veterans. Pension Application file #277658 Cert #344811 dated 5 Apr 1879.
Foster was discharged with the rank of Cpl by reason of disability on 15 Jun 1865. [Notes from IN State Archives say he was mustered out at Pulaski, TN on 1 Sep1863].
Their son, William Foster (1870-1935), married Margaret Dudgeon (1875-1945) and had 11 children. Their son, William Orville Foster (1870- 1935) is the child from whom Tent 22 member descends.
William E Shanklin at the 1907 G.A.R. Post 52, Reunion in Santa Barbara, CA
On 26 July 1862, 23-year-old William Ervin Shanklin enlisted and reported to the Union Army, 71st Regiment Infantry, Company H – from Champaign County, originating at Camp Douglass, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, serving until 29 October 1862. Here he was one of about 1,000 men who were assigned to Companies of about 100 men each.
Camp Douglass was the largest training camp in Illinois. On the east side of the camp was the parade ground and administrative buildings: on the south side was the camp hospitals: on the west side was the prison camp. Captured Confederates were incarcerated at Camp Douglass, which was a gallery of horrors on the fringes of the bustling urban center of Chicago.
William entered as a Private. After some quick organizing and outfitting and the issuance of Henry Repeating Rifles, the men were photographed, then loaded onto the train and carried to their first post at Cairo, Illinois on July 27, 1862.
Beginning in July and carrying on throughout August Illinois experienced continuous downpours of rain, reaching 9 inches in several areas. The heat was in the mid-80’s most days and tornadoes continued to roll through Kentucky and Illinois. As was the custom, the soldiers made camp, erecting their tents and bedrolls as they arrived at their duty stations. The exposure proved to be a debilitating burden for all the men. Almost immediately several began feeling ill. As they were relieved by another Regiment, they moved on to Columbus, Kentucky, where the harsh weather continued to abuse them. From Columbus, Kentucky, the 71 st Regiment broke into Companies, some being assigned to guard the Big Muddy Bridge and the Illinois Central Railroad. Two Companies went on to Mound City, north of Cairo on the Ohio River in Illinois to guard against any Confederates that might make their way into the area.
Three Companies were taken to Moscow, Kentucky to guard a rail line and bridge over the Ohio River. The final three Companies made their way to the Little Obion Bridge in Kentucky, ever watchful for incursions.
As the end of October approached, they returned to Camp Douglass, where they were mustered out on October 29, 1862. Fortunately for the men of the 71 st Regiment, they never faced battle against the Confederate Army. However, the cruel weather and lack of sanitation led to the death of 23 men who had suffered from typhoid, pneumonia, tuberculosis, and measles. William would eventually succumb to tuberculosis at the age of 76.
When he enlisted William was given a bounty of $75, and he was paid $13 per month. He arrived home after three months with about $100, which he added to his savings.
William Ervin Shanklin and Nancy Marie Cox Shanklin 1863
By November William was back in Farmer City, DeWitt County, IL. Within 49 days of being mustered out of the Army, William proposed to and married Nancy Marie Cox of Farmer City.
17 December 1862, William married Nancy, daughter of Marcus D. Lafayette and Melissa Graves Blasdel Cox, at her home in Farmer City, DeWitt County, IL. He was seven years and three months older than Nancy. He is 23 and she had just turned 16 in October. This young couple showed great courage as they mapped out their course and then followed it to a new life in California.
They took a train to New York. There they boarded a boat belonging to the Panama Railroad and sailed south along the American coastline to Aspinwall, Panama. This was always dangerous due to the Confederate Navy and Confederate pirates trolling the waters. The ocean steamer took about ten days to reach what is today the city of Colon.
A letter written home to family read, “The main street in town was crossed by alleys, these covered with planks to aid pedestrian passage. The abundant rain and uninterrupted heat contributed to the oppressive atmosphere. Houses were mostly shanties built on stilts above the soft soil. Most of the houses only have Venetian blinds all around them, the partitions only go to a certain height, so as not to block the circulation of air. Having enjoyed the novelties of the country, where everything for us was a curiosity. We retired to the Aspinwall Hotel. our room was on the upper floor where there was a big bed on which there was a little mattress, about an inch thick, all dirty and disgusting.”
“At 7:00 a.m. the next morning, we proceeded to the station to board the Panama Railroad that crossed the isthmus and joined Aspinwall with Panama City, where we boarded a boat to San Francisco. The 47-mile, 2 1/2-hour journey was pleasant enough.” They crossed over 170 bridges and culverts, one of the bridges was over 600 feet long. There were no tunnels, and the summit grade was 258 feet above sea level. Their personal baggage cost them 5 cents per pound. This was the most expensive railroad in the world. In modern terms, the cost was a total of $375 to travel less than 50 miles. With multiple trains making the trip more than 1,500 passengers were shuttled to the Pacific Ocean in a single day.
The passenger cars were furnished with cane-bottomed seats. Out the windows, they caught sight of richly feathered tropical birds, huts built of bamboo, lush vegetation, bogs filled with stagnant, muddy water, and mountain peaks.
The train arrived in Panama City around 11:30 a.m. and they, along with the other passengers bound for San Francisco, waited in a depot for a boat to shuttle them to their vessel. Not knowing the steamer’s schedule, they could not explore the city. At 5 p.m., a small ship arrived with the tide and was soon crammed…
“…where the passengers were packed together like sheep in a pen. The crowd was so great in the little steamer that it was necessary to remain standing; the heat was so intense that several people fainted… The children were crying. The men were impatient, yelling and cursing for light.”
In the evening, exhausted, hot, and hungry, they left the confines of the shuttle boat and boarded the SS Golden Age, for their journey to San Francisco. The Golden Age, the fastest steamer of the Pacific Mail Fleet, sailed the San Francisco-Panama run from 1854 through 1869. The ship’s typical manifest would identify approximately 100 first- and second-class passengers, more than 400 unidentified souls in steerage, and cargo of U.S. Mail, packages, and gold coin.
“Finally, evening having come, we had to climb the big rope ladder that placed us on the deck of the Golden Age. A luxurious steamer, whose magnificence and comfort was in great contrast with the first ship, which we had taken from New York, and which was most filthy. We were given a small cabin.”
They took some time in San Francisco, sightseeing and having a portrait taken, copies of which were sent home with their letters.
16 June 1880, the US Census Santa Barbara Co, CA, the Shanklin family was living in Ballard. William was farming, Nancy keeping house and busy with her four children George, Harry, Lowell, and Effie. That same year the Township of Ballard was established by the government. Soon, the residents got busy and built the now historic Red School House.
William became a member of the Starr King Post No. 52 of the G.A.R. – Grand Army of the Republic while living in Santa Barbara.
By 1902, William’s health was declining. He was 63-years old when he checked himself into the newly built Sawtelle Veterans Home in Santa Monica. A new hospital had just been built as well as a chapel. It was open to Civil War Veterans, who had no adequate means of support and were incapable of earning a living. The buildings were shingle-style frame barracks and at the time there were about 1,000 men living on the 700-acre campus.
27 August 1915, William died in Lompoc at the home of his daughter and son-in-law Effie and Walter “Asa” Lewis. He was 76 years old. The family used a “Cabinet Card” known as a Remembrance/Mourning/Funeral card, manufactured on a black background with gold lettering as the handout to those attending the funeral. It was printed by H.F. Wendell of Leipsic, Ohio, a well-known producer of funeral cards. It read:
In Loving Remembrance of W.E. Shanklin,
Died August 27, 1915, aged 76 years. Gone but not forgotten.
A precious one from us has gone.
A voice we loved is stilled;
A place is vacant in our home
Which never can be filled.
God in His wisdom has recalled,
The boon His love had given,
And though the body slumbers here,
The soul is safe in Heaven.
William’s obituary was printed in the Lompoc Record (weekly publication) in September 1915
He died due to Tuberculosis
ANOTHER CIVIL WAR VETERAN PASSES AWAY
Death removed one more of Lompoc’s old Grand Army men last Friday when William E. Shanklin was called to the Great Beyond.
Mr. Shanklin passed away at the home of his daughter, Mrs. W.A. Lewis (Walter Asa Lewis and Effie Mae Shanklin Lewis), Friday evening, August 27, 1915. He had been ailing for almost a year and this became serious about two months ago.
The deceased was born in the state of Illinois, June 12, 1839, and at the time of his death, he had reached the ripe age of 76 years, 2 months, and 15 days. He resided near Vandalia, IL in the southern part of Illinois until he had reached manhood. At the breaking out of the Civil War, he answered the call to arms and joined the 71st Illinois Infantry. At the expiration of his enlistment, he moved to Farmer City, where he was married to Miss Nancy Cox, who survives him. They came to California in 1864 by way of the Isthmus of Panama, making their home for a number of years at Point Arena, where most of their children were born.
They moved to this county in the year 1880 and resided at Ballard for many years. On account of ill health, Mr. Shanklin moved to Santa Barbara where he has made his home for the past sixteen years.
He is survived by four children, two sons, and two daughters, all of whom reside in Lompoc. They are Lowell F (Lowell Francis and Ella Jane Muncton Shanklin) and Harry L. (Harry Lafayette and Rose Angelia Beatty Shanklin) and Mrs. W.A. Lewis (Walter Asa and Effie May Shanklin Lewis) and Mrs. L.F. Jennings (Louis Frederick and Linnie Estelle Shanklin Jennings). His only living brother, Uncle John Shanklin is also a resident of Lompoc. He was preceded in death by his eldest son, George Samuel in 1899.
William Ervin Shanklin was a member of King Starr Post No. 52, G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic), at Santa Barbara. The remains were taken to Ballard and interred in the cemetery at that place Sunday. The pallbearers were Messrs. N.T. Saunders (Nathan T. Saunders), H.E. McCabe (Henry E. McCabe) and George Ingamells of Lompoc, and Mr. Frank H. Smith of Ballard.
William Ervin Shanklin (GAR) b. 13 Jun 1839 White Hall, Greene Co., IL to Samuel Withrow Shanklin and Frances “Fannie” Duncan Shanklin; d. 27 Aug 1915 Lompoc, Santa Barbara Co., CA; m. 17 Dec 1862 Farmer City, DeWitt County, IL Nancy Marie Cox, b. 9 Oct 1846 Dearborn Co., IN; d. 22 Oct 1918 Lompoc, Santa Barbara Co., CA; dau. Marcus D. Lafayette Cox, b. 31 Oct 1824 Lawrenceburg, Dearborn Co., IN; d. 16 Jan 1900 Farmer City, DeWitt Co., IL; m. Melissa Graves Blasdel, b. 24 Apr 1824 Dearborn Co., IN; d. 13 Jan 1899 near Farmer City, DeWitt Co., IL
Effie May Shanklin b. 11 Apr 1872 Point Arena, Mendocino Co., CA; d. 11 Jul 1944 Lompoc, Santa Barbara Co., CA; m. 29 Sep 1895 Ballard, Santa Barbara Co., CA Walter Asa Lewis, b. 25 Jun 1872 Santa Maria, Santa Barbara Co., CA; d. 1 Mar 1949 Peoria, Maricopa Co., AZ; div. 1917 Santa Barbara Co., CA , son of Joseph Marion Lewis (Jul 1925 Center Twp, Greene Co., PA; d. Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Co., CA 11 Apr 1909) and Margaret Anne Tomer (b. 30 May 1846, Louisville, Jefferson Co., KY; d. 5 Jul 1915, Lompoc, Santa Barbara Co., CA)
Walter Ervin Lewis b. 31 Oct 1896 Buell Flats, Santa Barbara County, CA; d. 8 Feb 1974 Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara Co., CA; m. 22 May 1918 Glendale, Maricopa Co., AZ Willie Fay Onstott, b. 11 Apr 1899 Sanger, Denton Co., TX; d. 13 Jul 2001 Solvang, Santa Barbara Co., CA (dau. William Henry “Frank” Onstott, b. 15 Oct 1868 Corsicana, Navarro Co., TX; d. 4 May 1966 Santa Ana, Orange County, CA; m. Lula Mae Beck, b. 17 Dec 1879 Weston, Collin Co., TX; d. 10 Nov 1979 Lompoc, Santa Barbara Co., CA)
Sarah Margaret Lewis b.25 Dec 1924 Bell Street, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Co., CA; d. 8 Sep 2019 Lompoc, Santa Barbara Co., CA; m. 19 Dec 1945 at Long Beach Los Angeles Co., CA Roy Elton Courtney, b. 7 May 1923 Berthoud, Larimer Co., CO; d. 7 Dec 2002 Lompoc, Santa Barbara County, CA; son of Novella Mae Weatherford, b. 6 May 1894 Choctaw County, City of Goodland, 2nd Indian Territory, TX; d. 10 Dec 1954 Perris, Riverside Co., CA; m. 11 Nov 1920 Fort Collins, Larimer Co., CO Ira Tipton Courtney, b. 8 Feb 1887 Broken Bow, Custer Co., NE; d. 11 Jun 1930 Bijou, El Dorado Co., CA (near Lake Tahoe)
Daughters of Roy and Sarah Margaret Lewis Courtney: Susan Lorayne Courtney Warnstrom, Elizabeth Fay Courtney
Edward Tierney was born Abt. 1830 in Tipperary, Ireland. His parents are unknown. He was married to Catherine Fogarty, on 19 Feb 1848 in Bournea Parish, Tipperary, Ireland. Edward and Catherine Tierney had at least one child, Anna Tierney, born Abt. 1858 in Springfield, Mass., from which child descends this line to the member of Laura Belle Stoddard Tent 22, Daughters of Union Veterans of the Civil War 1861-1865. Edward Tierney died on 01 Mar 1881 at home, in Portage, Columbia County, Wisconsin.
[Source: Application for Membership: DUV.] Edward Tierney was enrolled on 19 Sept 1864 as a Private in Company G 5th Infantry Reorganized in Wisconsin. He was wounded on 6 Apr 1865 at Sailor’s Creek, Virginia, and was honorably discharged on 22 Jun 1865.
[Source: Civil War Pension File # 69343, dated 9 Jul 1865.] From the Pension record, Edward Tierney, took a bullet to the hip at the Battle of Sailor’s Creek in Virginia. Due to this wound, that festered for the rest of his shortened life, he was unable to work as a stonemason. His wife, Catherine, went on to live for 19 years after his death. Catherine died on 4 May 1900.
Gahr Emanuel Aanensen was born in Haegebostad, Norway on April 30, 1832, to parents Aanen Gahrsen and Anna Jakobsdatter. He married Agnete Tobina Jacobsdatter in Vange, Norway in 1859. They had two children, Anna Sophia and Jacob Alvig before emigrating to America. The family arrived in Madison, Wisconsin during the summer of 1861. There was a vibrant community of Norwegians in Madison. Hans Christian Heg, a prominent Madison resident put out the call for 1,000 Scandinavian immigrants to join him in forming an infantry. He wrote, “The government of our adopted country is in danger. That which we learned to love as freemen in our old Fatherland- our freedom- our government – our independence – is threatened with destruction.”
The 15th Wisconsin Regiment was organized at Camp Randall, Madison, WI in December 1861, and mustered into service of the United States on February 14, 1862. Gahr Aanensen was 29 years old and joined Company A with other Norwegian, Swedish and Danish settlers as well as Norwegian officers who gave orders in the Norwegian language. He became part of a unit called St. Olaf’s Rifles.
“With companies named St. Olaf’s Rifles, the Norway Bear Hunters, Odin’s Rifles, and the Scandinavian Mountaineers, it is clear why the 15th Wisconsin Infantry Regiment was known as the Scandinavian Regiment. The 15th Wisconsin trained during the spring of 1862 at Camp Randall under Colonel Hans Heg, a prominent Norwegian immigrant who had recently been elected state prison commissioner. The men of the 15th passed through Chicago on their way to the western theater and received a special flag from a local Norwegian organization that combined traditional American and Norwegian symbols and carried the motto For Gud Og Vort Land (For God and Our Country). They went on to participate in the battles of Perryville, Stone’s River, Chickamauga, and Missionary Ridge, as well as the Atlanta Campaign. A statue of Heg, who was killed at Chickamauga, which was erected outside the northeast entrance of the Wisconsin capitol, immortalizes the service of the 15th.”[1]
The 15th Regiment’s first battle was for Island No. 10 in March and April 1862. This victory opened the Mississippi River to the Union Navy. Gahr then fought at Perrysville, Murfreesboro, and the Battle of Nolensville before beginning the campaign at Stone’s River. On January 1, 1863, Gahr was severely wounded and left on the battlefield where he was taken as a prisoner of war for a short time. After the Union victory, he was treated in Nashville and left by the 15th Regiment at Stevenson, AL, when the 15th departed in late August. He was then transferred to the Veteran’s Reserve Corps on September 1, 1863, as he was too disabled for field service, but was able to service in garrisons, hospitals and prisoner of war camps. He worked at Camp Joe Holt in Jeffersonville, Indiana, and was honorably discharged on November 24, 1864 at Lexington, Kentucky.
Gahr and Agnete reunited and moved to a farm in Silver Lake, Iowa. Gahr took advantage of the Homestead Act in 1875 and received 160 acres in Luverne, Minnesota. He is listed as one of the earliest settlers in Luverne. Throughout his life he was a member in good standing in both civic and church affairs. He and Agnete had three more daughters. He lived until 1903, dying of pneumonia at age 71. His obituary said he was plagued his whole life by his Civil War wound.
Sources:
Wisconsin in the Civil War, Michael Telzrow, Russell Horton, and Kevin Hampton
Civil War Compiled Military Service Records by Office of Adjutant General of the United States
The Fifteenth Regiment, Wisconsin Volunteers, Ole A Buslett, 1894
Roster of Wisconsin Volunteers, War of the Rebellion, 1861-1865, Volume 1
Haegebostad Parish Register #A3/1 born and baptized, p. 28 Lyngdal Parish Register #A9, married, p. 194,
in-and-out migrated, p. 252, Herad parish register #A2, born and baptized, p. 36, digitalarkivet.n.,
1870 Census: Roll M594_427, Page: 455A, Family History Library Film: 545926
1880 Census: Roll: 632, Family History Film: 1254632, Page: 466D,
Photo RG985-CWP-161.76, Wm. Schultz College, U.S Army Military History Institute
[1]Wisconsin in the Civil War, Michael Telzrow, Russell Horton, and Kevin Hampton
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Gahr Emanuel Aanensen was born in Haegebostad, Norway on April 30, 1832, to parents Aanen Gahrsen and Anna Jakobsdatter. He married Agnete Tobina Jacobsdatter in Vange, Norway in 1859. They had two children, Anna Sophia and Jacob Alvig before emigrating to America. The family arrived in Madison, Wisconsin during the summer of 1861. There was a vibrant community of Norwegians in Madison. Hans Christian Heg, a prominent Madison resident put out the call for 1,000 Scandinavian immigrants to join him in forming an infantry. He wrote, “The government of our adopted country is in danger. That which we learned to love as freemen in our old Fatherland- our freedom- our government – our independence – is threatened with destruction.”