GENERAL AFFIDAVIT

STATE OF Iowa
County of Keokuk} SS.
In the matter of the claim of Matilda J. widow of Frederick Sanchez Tereso 1st Lieut, Company F of the 33rd Regiment, Iowa Inft Vols. Personally came before me, a_____ in and for aforesaid County and State, Dr. J. D Henry Town and Citizens of Martinsburg County of Keokuk State of Iowa well known to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who being duly sworn, declare in relation to the aforesaid case as follows:

That he well knew the above named claimant her Husband the above named Soldier and that they had born unto them during wedlock the following named children to wit:
Theodore S. who was born on the 11th day of November 1872 and George O. who was born on the 1st day of July 1875.
That affients? knowledge of the above facts is from being the attending Physician their attended the above named claimant in her _______at the date of each of the above named Births and Personal Knowledge of the Same.

We further declare that we have no interest in said case and not concerned in its prosecution and not related to said applicant.
J.D. Henry, MD

{On the next page (not shown) the document is signed and dated 16 Aug 1882.}

I like that I’m able to tell what their height and build, and eye and hair colors are.  I also get a surprise once in a while and learn about medical problems that they may have had.

In this case, from the WWI Registration, I found out that Loveman Jackson Cossabone of New Jersey was missing his right leg at the knee.  I’m now interested in learning about how he may have lost it. He was only 34 years old at the time he filled this out, so that must have been a great blow when it happened and affected his work and life.

He was also in the WWII Draft Registration, but at age 59 he wasn’t a likely candidate.  This form doesn’t even mention the fact that he’s missing a leg.

John Edwards, Sr. was my 3rd great-grandfather.  He served for a short period during the Civil War, in Co. G 9th Michigan Infantry.

This letter was written to try and receive an increase to his pension.  It is transcribed under the images.

Gentlemen – About three (3) years ago, I made an application for $72.00 (seventy-two dollars) a month.  Under disability that I needed the aid of another person and it was granted.  Since that time my aflliction has crawled on.
I can neither dress or undress my self.  Keep to my bed and big chair all the time.
I surely think I am entitled to the ($90.00) ninty dollars a  month.
I have got a big rupture, aboe hte naval as big as a goose egg, which is very painful all the time. Costing me about $5.00 a month for medicine all the time.
My pension certificate no. is 749.884.
Yours Resp,
John Edwards, Sr.
Dow City, Ia

Maybe it’s because they wore the big round hats, like my husband did when he served as a Drill Sergeant.  I think they looked very sharp in uniform.

This is my great-great grandfather, John Edwards Jr.’s cousin, Cecil Francis Edwards (1894-1969).

The picture was given to me by another Edwards researcher and I’m grateful for it – Thank you!!  I really wish I had a similar one of my great-grandfather, Alfred Edwards, in his uniform.

I had often wondered how exactly he had served.  He was born 11 September 1848, near London, Ontario, Canada.  That makes him pretty young for a soldier – about 12 at the start of the war.

I knew what unit he served in (Co. G. Michigan Infantry), but I didn’t have any dates and I was unable to get his pension records for a number of years.  I finally received them a couple of weeks ago and many of my questions are now answered.

First of all, he didn’t enlist until near the end of the war – 15 March 1865 at Pontiac, Michigan.  He would have been 16 years old at the time.  So, he wasn’t a 12 yr old drummer boy, he was close to being a man.

Second, he LIED about his age.  All of the documents pertaining to his pension state that he was born on 11 Sept 1846.

The only document in his pension file that has his correct birth date is what was listed on his death certificate.  A copy of the certificate was included in his file as his wife was trying to get back payments from a check that was returned.

The 1848 date is also what is listed in his obituary and it matches up with his age in census records.

These two years he added to his age, would have made him 18 at the time of his enlistment, instead of the 16 he really was.

He was the 10th of 11 children and I wonder if any of his older 3 brothers also served.  It’s something I haven’t looked into yet, but perhaps he was feeling left out – or maybe he was just very patriotic and wanted to serve his country.

Either way, I find it interesting that he would voluntarily join the Army and risk his life at such a young age.  Can you imagine many 16 year olds today doing the same?

Do you have any ancestors who lied about their age to join the Army?

Up until receiving this pension packet (a number of years ago), I had no idea that James Baker had a half brother.  I thought it was interesting that he called himself “brother of the half blood” – kind of a strange way to word it.

I have been forever grateful that both my husband and I had a number of ancestors who served on both sides of the Civil War.  The pension records have given me so many details into their lives at this time.  You truly never know what you’re going to find in those affadavits!!

This affadavit was written by John S. Baker, (James’ brother), who also served in the war.  We have a number of ancestors who suffered from “chronic diarrhea”.  What a horrible things to suffer!!

State of Missouri, County of Jackson.
In the matter of James Baker on this 12th day of February A.D., 1890 personally appeared before me, a Notary Public in and for the aforesaid County, duly authorized to administer oaths, John S Baker aged 57 years, a resident of Kansas City in the County of Jackson and state of Missouri whose postoffice address is 1431 Campbell St, well known to me to be reputable and entitled to credit, and who being duly sworn, declared in relation to the aforesaid case as follows:

I am the brother of the half blood of the above named James Baker, and have known him all my life;  When he enlisted in the army on or about March 1865 he was a sound man in bodily health and free from chronic diarrhea or any other disease or disability as far as I ever knew, and had he been a sufferer from said disease or any other disease or disability prior to and at the time of his enlistment I have every reason to believe and do believe that I should have known it.  I think it was the second day after his discharge from the Army that I saw him.  I know it was within two or three days, and I observed that he was then a sufferer from some disease which he then informed me was the chronic diarrhea, and that he had contracted the same in the Army.  I knew him each year for about four years after his said discharge from the Army when he moved to Tennessee.  He was ailing all the time from the chronic diarrhea each year, and was not able to do more than half the labor he would have done at manual labor had he been free from this disease.  I saw him again in Tennessee for four or five years from about 1871 to about 1876 or 1877 and he was sick the time each year more or less from the chronic diarrhea and he was disabled at least one half.  His disease went to his lungs.  He further declares that he has no interest in this case, and is not concerned with its prosecution.
John S. Baker

Lakewood, NJ, Nov 29th 1915

Hon Commissioner of Pensions

Washington DC    dear Sir

     I hereby make application for increase of Pension on age limit I was seventy five years old 18th of July last was born in 1840 my Pension certificate is 93-337

yours most respectfully

Ward Pierce

Receipt acknowledged by Mail & Supplies Division

]]> http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/2011/11/03/ward-pierces-plea-to-the-commissioner-of-pensions-29-nov-1915/feed/ 0 http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/2011/11/01/ward-pierces-plea-to-the-commissioner-of-pensions-16-jan-1912/ http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/2011/11/01/ward-pierces-plea-to-the-commissioner-of-pensions-16-jan-1912/#comments Tue, 01 Nov 2011 10:00:53 +0000 Jenn http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/?p=4142 Ward Pierce (1840-1921) was my husband’s 2nd great-grandfather.  He served for the Union in the Civil War and was wounded in the left thigh at Cold Harbor.

This is a letter he wrote to the Commissioner of Pensions, asking for an increase of his pension.  It’s so sad to think that he couldn’t make ends meet.  I”m so thankful to have a copy of this letter, which he wrote in his own hand.

Lakewood, N.J.  Jan 16, 1912

Hon Commissioner of Pensions

Dear Sir,

        I am very sorry that you have rejected my claim for an increase as I believe that I’m justly entitled to it as I am not able to work and have only three and a half days to my credit for two years and $17 will not make ends meet as I have no income what ever Well I have done my duty as a soldier to help keep what all men now enjoy and wishing you and all mankind prosperous and happy new year is the sincere wish of yours most respectfully,

Ward Pierce

[stamped Jan 19 1912, U.S. Pension Office]

My grandpa is the Marine in the middle  – the one holding the pineapple.   My guess is that this was taken in Hawaii.

Ruth Cossaboon was my husband’s great aunt and from what I’ve heard she was quite the lady.

I found a few newspaper articles about her service during WWII that I thought I’d share today.

From the Perry Herald, Perry, NY, Wednesday, June 16, 1943.

MISS COSSABOON NOW U.S. MARINE

Miss Ruth Cossaboon, daughter of the Rev. and Mrs. Van Cossaboon, has enlisted in the Marine Corps.  Sworn in at New York City last week, she is now on the reserve list awaiting call to active service service in a few weeks.  She expects to receive her basic training at the Marine base, New River, N.C.  By an odd coincidence, Miss Cossaboon is the only Marine of the hundred-odd local men and women now in service, as far as is known.  One other member of the Marine Corps, Pvt., Edward Courtney, was killed in an auto wreck early in the war.

This is from the Wyoming County Times, Warsaw, NY, Thursday, July 22, 1943, Page 4

FIRST SILVER SPRINGS LADY TO LEAVE FOR SERVICE IN THE MARINES

Tuesday evening Agnes Baker’s restaurant was the scene of another Citizen’s Sendoff supper to honor Miss Ruth E. Cossaboon, daughter of Rev. and Mr. N. Van Cossaboon, who will leave soon for service in the Marines, and Robert W. Fagan, who leaves the 21st of July for service and he will report to Camp Upton, L.I.

After a large company of relatives and friends had enjoyed the supper, and the usual short speeches were given and the Testaments and Legion literature were presented to Miss Cossaboon and Mr. Fagan, a short time was spent in wishing them the best of luck and a speedy return.

Perry Herald, Perry, NY, November 10, 1943:

Cpl. Ruth Cossaboon is spending a few days with her parents, Rev. and Mrs. N. V. Cossaboon. Cpl. Ruth who recently graduated from the Air Control School in Atlanta, Ga., has been assigned to tower control duty at Edenton, N.C.

Perry Record, Perry NY, March 15, 1945:

Rev. and Mrs. N. Van Cossaboon have received word that their daughter, Cpt. Ruth Cossaboon , has been transferred from Edenton, N.C. to the Marine Base at Quantico, Va, where she is an Air Control operator.

Perry Record, Perry, NY, February 28, 1946:

Air Control Operator
Miss Ruth Cossaboon, daughter of Rev. and Mrs. N. Van Cossaboon, has accepted a position as air control operator at the army airport near Harrisburg, Pa. This is a large transport center and friends of Miss Cossaboon wish her much luck in her new position. Miss Cossaboon has recently received her honorable discharge from the armed forces.

Any ideas?

1. John Edwards: (my 3rd great-grandfather) He was born in Canada, but immigrated to the U.S. with his parents in 1851. He was born in 1848, so he must have been very young during the war. He served in Co. G of the 9th Michigan Infantry.  I am still waiting on his pension records, so I don’t have the full details on what his injuries were (if any).
2. John Henry Becker: (my 3rd great-grandfather) He was born in Germany, but immigrated to the U.S. in 1852. He enlisted as a private in Co. H of Cole Co. Reg’t of Missouri Home Guards in June of 1861. He was discharged in October of that same year.  He then enlisted again in July 1862, this time as a Second Lieutenant.  In October of 1864, he was commanding a company in a battle.  They were sustaining a  battery of artillery and this caused his deafness.  He was discharged in March 1865.
3. Jacob Frederick Sanchez-Tereso : (my 2nd great-grandfather) He was born in Germany, and immigrated to the U.S. in about 1849.  He enlisted in August of 1862 in Co. F of the 33rd Regiment of Iowa Infantry. He was promoted to First Lieutenant in 1863.   He was discharged in July of 1865.
4. Samuel Edward Lee: (my 3rd great-grandfather) He was born in abt. 1823 in Montgomery county, VA.  In 1863, he enlisted as a private in Co. A 37 Va Cavalry Battalion for the Confederacy.  He was wounded in the right arm on Christmas Day 1863 in a skirmish at Bunker Cove, Tennessee.  He was wounded by a ball which entered beneath middle of right clavicle on upper edge of right scapula.  It caused his arm to be paralyzed and atrophied and he could not use it in manual labor.  He died in Virginia in 1891.
5. Austin Agee: (my 3rd great-grandfather)  He was born in 1820 in Patrick County, VA.  According to his wife’s pension record, he was in Abe Reynold’s Company, which left Patrick County in 1864, and also with the Virginia militia.   The pension record does not state if he received any injuries.  He died after the war, in 1890.
   
6. Hugh M. Robertson: (my 3rd great-grandfather’s brother).  Hugh worked as a teacher before the war. He enlisted in August of 1862 in Washington, Iowa.  He was killed in action by the explosion of a shell while serving as  a Corporal in Co. A. , 25th Reg’t of Iowa Infantry at Jackson, Mississippi.  He died before marrying or having children.
   
7. Henry Pottgen: (my 3rd great-grandmother’s brother).  He was born in about 1843 in Illinois.  He was the only support for his mother, Sophia (Ross) Pottgen for five years before the war.  He enlisted in Co. C, 13th Regt. U.S. Infantry, 1st Batt. in March of 1862.  By October 1863, he had died of chronic diarrhea.  His mother, Sophia, received a mother’s pension.
8. George Turner Cavit: (my 3rd great-grandmother’s brother)  He died while on the floating hospital “Nashville” near Millikens Bend, Louisiana in May of 1863.
   
9. Adam Potter Cavit: (my 3rd great-grandmother’s brother). He was born in 1839 in PA and enlisted in in Co. D. 13th Iowa Vol. Inf. while living at Washington, IA in 1864.  His older brother George had already been killed in the war the previous year.  He lived until 1915, and for a number of years lived in a soldier’s home.

My husband also had ancestors who served during the Civil War:

1. Ward Pierce: (my husband’s 2nd great-grandfather)  He enlisted at Camden, NJ in August of 1861. He was in a hospital, ill with something in June of 1862 and was discharged that same month.  He enlisted again as a Private in Co. G, commanded by Capt Theo W Baker in the 6th Regiment of New Jersey Volunteers.  Later, the 6th and 8th Regiments were consolidated and he served in Co. E 8th Regiment NJ Vols.  He was wounded on June 8, 1864 at the Battle of Cold Harbor. He had been hit in the left thigh with a shell and ended up in the hospitals at Newark and Davids Island for 15 months, before he was discharged in August of 1865. In his pension records, he stated that the scar (which was 6 1/2 by 4 inches), ulcerated and pained him greatly, not allowing him to do hard labor.
2. Hedger Pierce: (my husband’s 3rd great-grandfather).  He was Ward Pierce’s father.He enlisted in January of 1864 and was a Private in Company “I” of the 10th Regiment New Jersey Volunteers.  He was wounded while at Laurel Hill, VA in May of 1864.  He was hit by a musket ball in the left shoulder. He appears to have been sent to a number of hospitals – in D.C., Philadelphia, Davids Island, and Newark. In later years, he became paralyzed and his son Ward had to take care of him, despite his own injuries.
3. George Spencer: (my husband’s 2nd great-grandfather). He was born in England in 1826 and immigrated to New York in 1851.  He enlisted on Christmas Eve of 1863 and mustered in on the 5th of January. He was sent to Baltimore, Maryland to join Company D. of the 8th New York Heavy Artillery. He participated in the Battle of Cold Harbor in June of 1864.  In August of 1864, he was captured and taken to Belle Isle prison. This was an open-air prison located on an island in the James River near Richmond, Virginia that provided no shelter.  There was poor sanitation, insufficient food supplies, and a lack of clothing and blankets for prisoners.  While being held captive here, George became very sick.  He developed a cold due to exposure. He was paroled in October.  He participated in the Battle of Appomattox Court House on April 9, 1865.  On May 23, 1865, he and his unit traveled to Washington, D.C. to march with the Army of the Potomac in the Grand Review.  After the war, he still suffered from chronic diarrhea and problems with being much weaker than before the war. 
4. James Baker: (my husband’s 3rd great-grandfather).  He was born in PA in 1824 and enlisted in March of 1865 in Co. F. 74th Regiment of Pennsylvania Volunteers.  When he came back from the war, he suffered horribly from chronic diarrhea.  (this seems to have been a very common complaint).  He moved his family to Tennessee and then on to Kansas in hopes of recovering.  He died in Kansas in 1885.
5. Peter Henry Weeks: (my husband’s 2nd great-grandfather).  He was born in New York in 1842, but moved with his family to Indiana and then on to Iowa and later Kansas.  He enlisted in April of 1862 in Co. I. 5th Missouri State Militia Cavalry.   He came down with the mumps while he was in service and was discharged in November of that same year.  He then enlisted again, this time in 1863 in Co. D. 8th Iowa Cavalry.  He was mustered out in August 1865 in Macon, Georgia – just down the road from where we live now.

Since I have been very lucky to have visited a number of Civil War battlefields this past year, I feel even more of a connection to these ancestors who served and suffered during this war.

Some of the places I was able to visit are: Gettysburg, Manassas, Chickamauga & Chatanooga, Appomattox Court House, Ft. Pulaski, Ft. McAllister, and Fort Scott.  I’ll be visiting Ft. Sumter in May.

After his death in 1890, his wife Eliza applied for and received a widow’s pension.

I was so excited to receive this packet a number of years ago. Up until that point, I had assumed that those who served under the Confederacy didn’t receive pensions.  This was only a few pages long, so nothing compared to the Union pension packets, but it is full of very helpful, important information.

Here are the scanned images of what I have.

(Photo Credit: www.teachingamericanhistorymd.net)

My kids studied the War of 1812 this past week as part of our homeschool. It inspired me to do some researching on how my ancestors were affected by this war.

My 4th great-grandfather, John Glass is rumored to have served during the War of 1812. I have seen him listed as “Captain John Glass” in a county history. He fits the right age for having served -he was married in 1806 in Halifax County, VA and died in 1840.

Searching through Ancestry’s War of 1812 records though, the many men I found named John Glass were all privates. I didn’t find a single Captain.

I have absolutely nothing against enlisted men.  I am the proud wife of an Army sergeant and I would be equally proud to have an ancestor who enlisted during the War of 1812.

But I want the truth – whatever it may be.  Was he an officer?  If he was a Captain, wouldn’t he most likely have been a company commander?  There should be records of some sort to prove or disprove this, right?

At first, I was inclined to think that he must have been an officer.  I have the inventory of his estate which lists a sword and epaulette amongst this things.

I assumed that only an officer had an epaulet.

I then did some searching and found pictures of War of 1812 insignia,

I was surprised to find that some enlisted men did indeed wear epaulets.

I would love to get my hands on his military records, but I don’t currently have enough info to order them.

I think that I have a lot of further research to do before I can figure this out…

P.S. Did you know that there is a National Society United States Daughters of 1812?  They have a library in Washington, D.C., but their website says that they cannot assist with genealogy or lineage research.  Darn.

General Affadavit

State of Kansas, County of Shawnee

In the matter of claim for Rebecca Baker, widow of James Baker late of Co. “F” 74″ PA.

Personally appeared before was an officer duly authorized to administer oaths within and for the county and State aforesaid, Joseph Campbell, Topeka Kan. 72 yrs old.

person of lawful age who being duly sworn declare in relation to the aforesaid case as follows:

I am a brother of Rebecca Baker and was present and know that she was married to James Baker March 4th 1846 in Indiana County, Pa.  Her maiden name was Rebecca White Campbell.  I also know that Rebecca Baker has never re-married since the death of her husband James Baker Nov. 9″ 1885

J. Campbell

My great-grandfather Alfred Leroy Edwards  and his brother Elias E., served in the 42nd Division (The Rainbow Division) during WWI.  I don’t have any pictures of him during this time period, or any of his military records, but I figured that at least I could find out what battles his unit took part in to get a better picture of what his experience must have been like.

My dad has a photograph of him shaving in France, but he can’t find it right now.  Keeping my fingers crossed that it shows up!

Looking onlilne, I found this list of the battles engaged in by the 42nd Division : (1) Luneville sector, Lorraine, February 21 to March 23, 1918; (2) Baccarat sector, Lorraine, March 31 to June 21, 1918; (3) Esperance-Souain sector, Champagne, July 4 to July 17, 1918; (4) Champagne-Marne defensive, July 15 to 17, 1918; (5) Aisne-Marne offensive, July 25 to August 3, 1918; (6) Aisne-Marne offensive July 25 to August 11, 1918; (7) St. Mihiel offensive, September 12 to 16, 1918; (8) Essey and Pannes sector, Woevre, September 17 to 30, 1918; (9) Meuse-Argonne offensive, October 12 to 31, 1918; (10) Meuse-Argonne, October 7 to November 1, 1918; (11) Meuse-Argonne offensive, November 5 to 10, 1918; (12) Meuse-Argonne offensive November 5 to 9, 1918.

I also found some papers (a diary and some books) of another Iowa Private who served in the same regiment, which are available at the MacArthur Memorial in Norfolk, VA.  I would love to be able to read through his diary and get an idea of what life was like – since they may have had similar experiences.

I was also happy to find a picture of a roster from a different company(on an ebay site), but similar to the one above.  It is in great condition in a frame and has a uniform also.  It was neat to see what he would have worn.

Someone in the family HAS to have a picture of him in uniform, don’t you think?  I will have to do some searching….

]]> http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/2011/01/10/military-monday-alfred-edwards-served-in-wwi/feed/ 1 http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/2011/01/07/the-quest-for-john-edwards-civil-war-pension-an-update/ http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/2011/01/07/the-quest-for-john-edwards-civil-war-pension-an-update/#comments Fri, 07 Jan 2011 10:00:27 +0000 Jenn http://www.climbingmyfamilytree.com/?p=1572 One of my goals this year is to get my hands on John Edwards’ Civil War pension.  I have explained the problems I’ve been having here and here.

I was pleasantly surprised when I received a reply from the VA today!!  They were quick, I have to say.  I thought that I was going to be waiting months upon months to even get a confirmation, but I was wrong.  I wrote to them right before Christmas, so that’s a pretty quick turnaround.

Unfortunately, they didn’t have the records I was searching for.  They are (of course) housed in another facility (within the VA).  Thankfully, they forwarded my request and hopefully the next office will be as prompt as they were.

Am I beginning to see a light at the end of the tunnel?  Do his records actually exist??  Are they sitting on some back shelf in a musty, dark basement somewhere, untouched by human hands for the past 80 years?  Probably.

I just hope that the VA can unearth them for me so that I can finally read them!  After all of this time and frustration, there had better be something good in this thing!

I “found” these when I scanned in some old negatives.  I had no idea who they were.  I passed them on to my mom, who passed them on to her older sister and she was thankfully able to identify them as their cousins – children of my grandpa’s sister Lou.

He has a mini me!  These two pictures are actually the same pic, I just couldn’t scan it all in at once.  And yes, I know that I AGAIN scanned it backwards.

I do know that he served on the cutter “FIR” (WLM-212), which was based out of Seattle, WA. I found a wonderful publication about the history of this ship, including some great pictures. It answered many of my questions about what his duties may have been.

I had a comment on one of my previous Coast Guard-related posts from Dick Levesque, and that led me to his wonderful website, Coast Guard Pics.   He is a retired Coast Guardsman who created his site for anyone interested in pictures related to the Coast Guard.  What a great idea!  I sent him the pictures I have to add to his site.  Do you have any Coast Guard pictures in your collection?

The following picture was in my stack of those unidentified. With a little googling, I found out what it is. It is the Tillamook Rock Lighthouse, off the coast of Oregon. It was on a very cool website called Lighthouse Friends, where you can search for lighthouses by map.  It only took me a couple of minutes to find what I was looking for!

It is no longer a working lighthouse. I saw a picture with the waves way over the top of the building, so I can see why it was abandoned.  I read that “storms often brought flying rock and debris crashing through the lantern room and iron roof.  The fog signal would clog with pieces of seaweed or rock”. The repairs were just too much. Someone actually bought it and is trying to sell space to put your loved one’s urn in. Hmm.

Can you imagine being THAT isolated though?  I don’t see anywhere to walk around, do you?  In the article I read, it mentioned the lighthouse keepers not getting along with one another after being cooped up together for so long (there were 4 of them assigned there for 3 months at a time). It said that “enraged keepers were known to pass notes at dinnertime rather than speak to each other”. Wow. I wonder if the FIR stopped here to drop off supplies, or perhaps switch out stir-crazy keepers.  Maybe my grandpa just took a picture as they passed by.  Who knows.

Hopefully someday, a researcher will be able to find their ancestor.

I posted about this in March and didn’t hear anything since then.

I decided to get aggressive and made some phone calls.  I’m finally figuring out that it is better to speak directly to people instead of sending an email.  I waited on hold to the National Archives for about 20 minutes, after the recording assured me every thirty seconds that the wait was 1 minute and 8 seconds.    Hmm.  Not sure who recorded that message.

I finally got through and then to my dismay was told that I needed to speak to someone else entirely.  Thankfully, it was a quick transfer and the next person picked the phone up immediately.  I don’t think I could have handled another wait on the phone. Especially since my kids seem to think that this is the time to make messes, loud noises, need immediate attention, or fight with each other.

The woman I spoke with was very helpful.  She explained to me the reason finding my ancestor’s pension record was so difficult.  He died in 1931 and the records were closed out in 1929.  That means that they definitely have everything from 1929 and before,but it gets tricky beyond that.  The VA had the records (and could possibly still have the records).  The problem is that the Civil War records weren’t put in a separate section to themselves.  They are mixed with other pensions (including WWI).  As they find these older records, they pile them up and send them to the National Archives.  But only as they find them.  They haven’t gone through them all specifically to pull the Civil War records out.  That means that my ancestor’s pension file could be in either place.

The reason I’ve had so much trouble in the past, is that the automated ordering system at the Archives immediately kicks a message back to me saying that they don’t have records for the date I’m searching.  I called the VA and they also told me the same thing. There is obviously some miscommunication between them.  I think that it would be wonderful if the VA would take the time to go through the files and forward all of the Civil War pensions to the NARA once and for all.  I don’t when this will happen.  I know that I’m not the only one that has had this problem though.

Anyway, back to my story.  The woman gave me the number to their resident pension expert and told me that he should be able to go and see if the record is there.  If not, he could walk me through the process of obtaining the record from the VA.

After a few days of phone tag, I emailed my ancestor’s information to him and he went and searched for it.  I now know that John Edwards’ pension is NOT at the National Archives.

Here is what he told me:

The way to access the file that you are requesting is via the Department of Veteran Affairs.  We recognize that we should have these files in the National Archives and we are working with the Department of Veteran Affairs to have them transferred to us.  You need to write a letter to the VA Freedom of Information Officer.  State that you are requesting access to the pension file under the Freedom of Information Act.  You must state your willingness to pay applicable fees or provide a justification to support a fee waiver.

The address to the VA FOIA/Privacy Act Officer is:

Department of Veteran Affairs

Veterans Benefits Administration (20M33)

810 Vermont Avenue, NW

Washington, DC 20420

So, I now have another letter to write.

I’m hoping that it doesn’t take months upon months to hear back from the VA.  I guess I shouldn’t be too impatient though.  I’ve been waiting almost 8 years, what’s another 6 months?  I think that I may give them my parents’ address as a backup in case they take too long in getting back with me.  We will be moving next summer and then moving again the summer after that. (Gotta love the military!)  I would hate for them to finally send his packet and have it lost in the abyss of undeliverable mail. I just hope that they are able to give me some sort of confirmation, or that there is some way for me to verify that they have received my request and are processing it.  We’ll see.  I WILL get his pension packet someday in the near future….

I have been working on my DAR membership for the past few months.  The patriot I chose was Nathaniel Brittain, my 5th great-grandfather.  He was from Virginia, and served in B. Company of the 8th Virginia Infantry during the Revolutionary War.  Imagine my surprise when I found out that his unit fought in the Battle of Sullivan’s Island in Charleston, SC on June 28-29, 1776.  Of course I had to make a road trip!

After the War, Fort Sullivan was renamed Fort Moultrie after Colonel William Moultrie, who fought during this battle.  Today, it is a part of the National Park Service.

So, we piled all of the kids in the car and drove to Charleston.  It’s only about 2 hours away, but it’s kind of a boring drive – not much to see on the way.  They grumbled a bit, but were fine after we stopped for food.   We took them to the aquarium first, and then headed across the bridge and over to Sullivan’s Island.

I think that we must have chosen the windiest day of the year to visit.  It wasn’t super cold, but we were being blown away. Two of my kids finished the Junior Ranger programs, so they had to fill out their booklets and learn about the fort.  They had a hard time keeping hold of their papers with all of the wind!

I was a little disappointed that there weren’t more exhibits geared towards the Revolutionary War period, but I should have known there wouldn’t be much.  The fort was in use through WWII, so a lot of the exhibits were geared towards that and the Civil War.  The Palmetto Fort that was used during the Revolution is of course, long gone.

I’m still glad we made the trip.  It’s always nice to walk in the footsteps of your ancestors.

I also was able to give the kids a great history lesson!

Here are some pictures from our visit:

(The first few were taken at Battery Park in Charleston, where there is a memorial to those that died or were wounded at this battle.)

I’m so proud of my “Papa” as we always called him.  He saw so much action by the time he was 20, but it was that way with many men during WWII.  I can’t imagine what a stressful time this must have been for his mother, having four sons all gone to war at the same time.  Thankfully, they all came home!

Here he is on the left, with a friend.  I really wish that I had a picture of all 4 brothers together.  I wonder if they took one after the war.