Benjamin Franklin Waite was born October 1, 1839, in Summit County, Ohio, the son of Isaac E. (1800-1859) and Rebecca (Dove, d. 1844).
Massachusetts native Isaac married his first wife Matilda Jenkins in 1824 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, and they had at least five children (one of whom was Isaac O. who would enlist in the Third Michigan infantry). Isaac married his second wife, Rebecca Dove in 1836 in Medina County, Ohio (and three of their sons would also enlist in the Old Third, one of whom was Benjamin). Isaac E. was married a third time to New York-born Jean or Joana Willis or Wills (b. 1813) sometime before 1850 by which time Isaac was working as a shoemaker in Richfield, Summit County, Ohio, where Benjamin (listed as “Franklin”) attended school with seven of his siblings, including his brothers John and Thomas and his half-brother Isaac.
Isaac moved most of the family to Indiana sometime in the early 1850s, possibly settling in Angola before moving to Michigan where he settled the family in Georgetown, Ottawa County by 1854, and in 1860 Benjamin may have been a farm laborer working for Marcus Lane in Cheshire, Allegan County.
By 1860 there was one Joana Wait (b. 1814 in New York) listed as the head of the household; living with here was one William Kelley (b. 1831 in New York) and one Thomas M. either Wait or Kelley (b. 1843 in Ohio). This is probably Thomas Milo Wait (see below). Two houses away lived a 35-year-old farm laborer named Allen Wait and his wife (?) Melissa, on the Edson farm.
Benjamin stood 6’4” with blue eyes, brown hair and a light complexion and was a 22-year-old lumberman probably living in Georgetown when he enlisted as First Corporal or Sergeant in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his half-brother Isaac and brother John; Walter Waite of Company K may have been a cousin and he may have been related to Thomas Waite. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.) Ben was reported sick in the hospital in January of 1863, and by April had been detached to the ambulance corps where he remained at least through July.
In November, for reasons unknown, he was reduced to the ranks from Sergeant by order of Colonel Stephen Champlin and fined one-months’ pay. He nonetheless reenlisted on December 24, 1863, at Brandy Station, Virginia, crediting Tyrone, Kent County, was presumably absent on veteran’s furlough, possibly in Michigan, in January of 1864 and probably returned to the Regiment (or ambulance corps) on or about the first of February.
By the first of March Benjamin was back with the ambulance corps and still on detached service when he was transferred to Company I, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864. He probably remained with the ambulance corps through October, and from December through January of 1865 was a nurse serving in the medical department in City Point hospital, Virginia. By February he was back with the ambulance train where he remained through May, and was mustered out of service on July 5, 1865, at Jeffersonville, Indiana.
After the war Benjamin returned to Michigan, settling in Ottawa County again.
He was married to Ohio native Laura Jane Thompson (1843-1919), on December 30, 1866, in Georgetown, Ottawa County, and they probably had at least five children: Lillian A. (b. 1868), Rosetta D. (b. 1870), Miles A. (b. 1873), Maretta A. (b. 1876) and Ruby Dove (b. 1881).
Benjamin remained in Georgetown for some years, but by 1873 had settled in Colfax, Michigan and by 1878 in Manton, Wexford County. By 1880 he was working in a saw mill and living with his wife and children in Colfax, and he was living in Manton in 1881.
He was possibly living in Grand Rapids in 1888 but had apparently moved back to Manton by 1890. He was living in Greenwood, Wexford County in 1894, in Manistee, Manistee County in 1906 and 1909, and in Manton in 1911. In fact he probably lived the rest of his life in Manton. He married his second wife, Canadian-born Victoria (b. 1854) and by 1920 they were living in Cedar Creek, Wexford County.)
He was a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association and Grand Army of the Republic Morton Post No. 54.
He applied for and received a pension (no. 415295).
Benjamin was possibly a widower when he died on September 3, 1924, in Manton and was buried in Greenwood cemetery, in Manton, section 1, lot no. 186 (presumably next to his wife Laura).
Isaac O. Waite was born on January 31, 1836, probably in Richfield, Summit County, Ohio, the son of Isaac E. (1800-1859) and Matilda (Jenkins or Allen).
Massachusetts native Isaac married his first wife Matilda Jenkins in 1824 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, and they had at least five children (one of whom was Isaac O. who would enlist in the Third Michigan infantry). Isaac married his second wife, Rebecca Dove in 1836 in Medina County, Ohio (and three of their sons would also enlist in the Old Third, one of whom was Isaac O.). Isaac E. was married a third time to New York-born Jean or Joana Willis or Wills (b. 1813) sometime before 1850 by which time Isaac was working as a shoemaker in Richfield, Summit County, Ohio, where Benjamin (listed as “Franklin”) attended school with seven of his siblings, including his half-brothers John, Thomas and Benjamin.
Isaac E. moved most of the family to Indiana sometime in the early 1850s, possibly settling in Angola for a brief period before moving to Michigan where he settled the family in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1854.
By 1860 there was one Joana Wait (b. 1814 in New York) listed as the head of the household; living with here was one William Kelley (b. 1831 in New York) and one Thomas M. either Wait or Kelley (b. 1843 in Ohio). This is probably Thomas Milo Wait (see below). Two houses away lived a 35-year-old farm laborer named Allen Wait and his wife (?) Melissa, on the Edson farm. In any case, Isaac may very well have been working as a farm laborer and living with John and Maria Wait in Michigan Township, Clinton County, Indiana in 1860.
Isaac O. stood 6’0” with dark eyes, brown hair and a fair complexion and was a 25-year-old farmer probably living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his half-brothers Benjamin, Thomas and John; Walter Waite of Company K may have been a cousin. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
He was discharged probably for disability sometime in October or on December 1, 1861, or possibly in May of 1862.
Isaac O. was married to Ohio native Adelia A. Thompson (1849-1886), on January 31, 1863, and they had at least 4 children: Leon Abijah (b. 1863), Charles Burton (b. 1868), Allen D. (1870-1846), and Ira P (b. 1876).
After he left the army Isaac returned to Michigan where he reentered the service in Company B, First Michigan Light Artillery on November 29, 1863, at Grand Rapids for 3 years, crediting Georgetown and was mustered on December 29, 1863 probably at Grand Rapids where the battery was originally organized between September 10 and December 14, 1861. (The battery left Michigan on December 17 for St. Louis, Missouri, and during the battle of Shiloh in early April was overhwlemed and captured except for Lang’s section which was attached to Mann’s Battery “C,” First Missouri Artillery. It was subsequently reorganized at Detroit in December of 1862.)
The battery left for Columbus, Kentucky on Christmas day, and remained in Columbus until it was moved to Corinth, Mississippi January 4-9, 1863. It remained in Corinth until early March when it was moved to Bethel, Tennessee and remained on duty there until early June. It subsequently moved back to Corinth on June 7 and remained there until October 29 when it was moved to Pulaski, Tennessee, remaining on duty there until late April of 1864.
It participated in the Atlanta campaign from May until September and was on duty at Rome, Georgia until mid-October. It then moved to Alabama where it participated in numerous operations and was also involved in the March to the Sea November 15 to December 10. It was possibly during the March to the Sea campaign, and according to one source perhaps during the battery’s engagement at Griswold, Georgia, that Isaac was short in the left side “the bullet traveling across his back muscles and coming to rest against his spine.” It was decided by the surgeons to leave the bullet where it was rather than risk paralyzing him and according to subsequent statements this caused him some considerable pain for years afterwards.
In any event Isaac recovered his health enough to rejoin the regiment and was possibly on duty by the time the regiment participated in the siege of Savannah in late December and the campaign of the Carolinas from January until April of 1865.
The battery assisted in the occupation of Raleigh, North Carolina on April 14, participated in Johnston’s surrender and the march to Washington via Richmond April 29 to May 19 and Isaac was with the battery when it joined in the Grand Review in Washington, on May 24. It was then moved to Detroit June 1-6, 1865. Isaac was mustered out with the battery on June 14, 1865 at Detroit.
After he was discharged from the army Isaac returned to Michigan, probably first to Grand Rapids, but by 1870 he was working as a farmer and living with his wife and children in Georgetown, Ottawa County. By 1880 he was working as a farmer and living with his wife and children in Georgetown; next door lived Allen Wait and his family. Isaac was living in the Hudsonville area of Ottawa County in 1888 and 1890. Sometime around 1891 he was residing in Kalkaska County, and may have lived for a time in Manton, Wexford County (possibly with or near his half-brother Benjamin).
Isaac may have been a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association. He applied for and received a pension (no. 884251).
Isaac died on June 20, 1913, in Manton, and was buried in Georgetown cemetery. (There is also a report of his burial in Ridgeview memorial gardens in Hudsonville, Ottawa County)
John Nelson Waite was born on September 10, 1840, in Richfield, Summit County, Ohio, the son of Isaac E. (1800-1859) and Rebecca (Dove, d. 1844).
Massachusetts native Isaac married his first wife Matilda Jenkins in 1824 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, and they had at least five children (one of whom was Isaac O. who would enlist in the Third Michigan infantry). Isaac married his second wife, Rebecca Dove in 1836 in Medina County, Ohio (and three of their sons would also enlist in the Old Third, one of whom was Benjamin). Isaac E. was married a third time to New York-born Jean or Joana Willis or Wills (b. 1813) sometime before 1850 by which time Isaac was working as a shoemaker in Richfield, Summit County, Ohio, where John attended school with seven of his siblings, including his brothers Thomas and Benjamin and his half-brother Isaac.
John reportedly left home around 1850 and lived with a neighbor in Summit County, Ohio until about 1856. His father had moved to Indiana sometime in the early 1850s, possibly settling in Angola before moving to Michigan where he settled the family in Georgetown, Ottawa County by 1854, and that same year John accompanied the neighbor to Macomb County. Two years later he moved to Ottawa County where he lived with his father and worked on neighboring farms.
By 1860 there was one Joana Wait (b. 1814 in New York) listed as the head of the household; living with here was one William Kelley (b. 1831 in New York) and one Thomas M. either Wait or Kelley (b. 1843 in Ohio). This is probably Thomas Milo Wait (see below). Two houses away lived a 35-year-old farm laborer named Allen Wait and his wife (?) Melissa, on the Edson farm.
John stood 6’0” with blue eyes, brown hair and a light complexion and was a 20-year-old cooper probably living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company I on May 13, 1861, with his half-brother Isaac and brothers Benjamin and Thomas; Walter Waite of Company K was his cousin. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.) He was sick in the hospital in August of 1862 until he was discharged on September 27 at Chesapeake hospital, Fortress Monroe, Virginia, for hypertrophy of the left ventricle of the heart.
After he was discharged from the army John returned to Ottawa County and on December 14, 1862, married New York native Jane L. Johnson (b. 1846), and they had at least eight children: Frank Dorr (d. 1873), Mrs. Eva R. Hoyt (b. 1864), Louis Ruez (b. 1866), John J. (b. 1868), Mrs. Carrie Laverne Barnaby (b. 1871), Glenn Howard (b. 1875), Theresa B. and Byron.
John was married a second time, to Mrs. Martha Martin (d. 1919).
Soon after he married Jane John settled on a farm in Jamestown, Ottawa County where he resided until 1870 when he moved to Hanley, Ottawa County and engaged in the mercantile business. By 1880 he was working as a grocer and living with his wife and children in Jamestown. In 1883 he moved to Hudsonville, Ottawa County and opened a mercantile establishment, expanding his business in 1890.
He was living in Hudsonville in 1894, and possibly in 1896 when he became a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association, and he was still residing in Hudsonville from 1906-11. In 1885 he applied for and received a pension (no. 466886).
John was active in the local school board, was a Freemason, and, though formerly a Republican, he switched first to the “Greenback Party” and then to the Democratic party about 1890. He served for many years as a Justice of the Peace and for four years was Township Supervisor. John was appointed Postmaster in Hanley in 1872 and in Hudsonville in 1884, a position he held through 1893. In 1920 he was living with his daughter Theresa and her husband Frank Bowmaster in Georgetown, Ottawa County.
He died a widower on Wednesday August 30, 1922, at the home of his daughter, Mrs.Theresa Bowmaster in Hudsonville, Ottawa County. Funeral services were held on September 1, and he was buried in Georgetown cemetery.
Thomas Milo Waite was born on July 11, 1842, in Summit County, Ohio, the son of Isaac E. (1800-1859) and Rebecca (Dove, d. 1844).
Massachusetts native Isaac married his first wife Matilda Jenkins in 1824 in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, and they had at least five children (one of whom was Isaac O. who would enlist in the Third Michigan infantry). Isaac married his second wife, Rebecca Dove in 1836 in Medina County, Ohio (and three of their sons would also enlist in the Old Third, one of whom was Benjamin). Isaac E. was married a third time to New York-born Jean Willis or Wills (b. 1813) sometime before 1850 by which time Isaac was working as a shoemaker in Richfield, Summit County, Ohio, where Thomas (listed as “Milo”) attended school with seven of his siblings, including his brothers John and Benjamin and his half-brother Isaac.
By 1860 there was one Joana Wait (b. 1814 in New York) listed as the head of the household; living with her was one William Kelley (b. 1831 in New York) and one Thomas M. either Wait or Kelley (b. 1843 in Ohio). This is probably Thomas Milo Wait. Two houses away lived a 35-year-old farm laborer named Allen Wait and his wife (?) Melissa, on the Edson farm.
Thomas stood 6’1” with blue eyes, brown hair and a light complexion and was an 18-year-old farmer probably living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his brothers Benjamin and John, half brother Isaac and one Walter Waite of Company K may have been a cousin. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
Thomas was shot in the left forearm, fracturing the arm, on May 31, 1862, at Fair Oaks, Virginia, and by late July he was a patient at the U.S. General Hospital in Annapolis, Maryland. He remained hospitalized until he was discharged on October 9 at Annapolis for a “gunshot wound of the left forearm with fracture, loss of substance of the ulna.” His discharging physician also noted that he “Has no pronation [or] supination and but little use of the forearm.”
Following his release from the army Thomas returned to Michigan, probably to Ottawa County. By 1870 Thomas was working as a laborer and living with the Justus Waite family in Blendon, Ottawa County; also living there was Walter Waite, the son of Justus and who had also served in the Third Michgian during the war. (In 1870 there was a 28-year-old Thomas Wait, born in New York married to New York native Lucy (b. 1848) and they had at least two children: Ann (b. 1867) and Sarah (b. 1869). He was a farmer (he owned $2000 worth of real estate) and living with his his wife and two daughters in Georgetown, Ottawa County; also living nearby were two of the Tate brothers (Alfred and John) who had also served in the Third Michigan infantry and their parents. )
By 1880 Thomas was working as a farm hand for one Eugene Williams in Burr oak, St. Joseph County.
He was living in Hanley, Ottawa County in 1883 when he married Mara or Mary Prescott Cook (1852-1904) on September 27, 1883, in Grandville, Kent County, and they had at lerast two children: George H. and Bernice (Mrs. Gibson).
Thomas eventually settled in Hudsonville, Ottawa County where he was living in 1896, 1888, 1890, in Georgetown in 1894, in Hudson in December of 1896 when he became a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association.
By 1906 he had moved into Grand Rapids and was residing at 42 South Division. In 1907 he was living at 319 Jefferson and was still in in Grand Rapids in 1909, but had moved to Georgetown, Ottawa County, by 1910. By 1918 Thomas was back in Grand Rapids residing at 1051 Jefferson Street. He provided an affidavit for the pension application of the children of Samuel Camp (also of Company I) on August 10, 1896, and he himself received pension no. 12,575, drawing $10.00 per month in 1883.
Thomas was a widower when he died of bronchitis, on Wednesday evening, December 11, 1918, at his home at 1051 Jefferson in Grand Rapids, and the funeral service was held at 2:30 p.m. on Saturday in a Hudsonville church. He was reportedly buried in Georgetown cemetery, although in fact he was interred in Grandville cemetery, lot no. 659.
Showing posts with label Old Georgetown cemetery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Old Georgetown cemetery. Show all posts
Saturday, March 05, 2011
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Alfred, John Jr., Thomas and William Tate
Alfred E. Tate was born in 1842 in Franklin County, Massachusetts, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 his parents moved from England to Massachusetts, and then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 Alfred was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer.
By 1860 Alfred was living with his family and attending school with three of his younger siblings. He was also apparently was working as a mill hand and living at the Paddock boarding house in Georgetown along with John Finch (Company I), Albert Hayes (Company I), Joseph Ledbeter (Company B), Benjamin Parker (Company I), James Parm (Company I), Thomas Rowling (Company B), Stephen Scales (Company I), his older brother William (Company I), and John M. Taylor (Company I).
Alfred stood 5’10” with blue eyes, light hair and a light complexion and was 22 years old and probably still living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company F on February 8, 1864, at Grand Rapids for 3 years, and was mustered the same day, joining his three older brothers Thomas, William and John who had previously enlisted in Company I (and he was possibly related to Frederick who would also enlist in Company I). Alfred joined the Regiment on February 17 at Camp Bullock, Virginia, was absent sick in the hospital in May and may have still been absent in the hospital when he was transferred to Company F, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864. He was absent on sick leave from December of 1864 through January of 1865, and was mustered out as a Corporal on July 5, 1865, at Jeffersonville, Indiana.
After the war Alfred eventually returned to western Michigan.
In 1871 Alfred married New York native Joanna (d. 1854), and they had at least four children: Frank (b. 1874), Alfred, William and Ray.
He was possibly working as a drayman (if so possibly for his brother Thomas who owned a livery stable in Lowell) and living in Lowell, Kent County in the late 1860s. By 1870 he was living with his parents in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate. By 1880 Alfred was working as a farmer and living with his wife and son Frank in Georgetown. And he was living in Georgetown in 1890 and in 1894. By 1895 he was residing in Hudsonville, Ottawa County where he was living from 1906-10 and on R.R. no. 1 in 1911 and 1922, and in Grandville, Kent County in 1916, 1923 and 1925.
Alfred was a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association, and the Grand Army of the Republic Custer Post No. 5 in Grand Rapids until he was suspended November 26, 1908.
In 1890 he applied for and received a pension (no. 791371).
Alfred died on September 14, 1928 or 1929, in Hudsonville, and was buried in Georgetown cemetery: lot 452 grave no. 1.
In 1928 or 1929 his widow also applied for a pension (no. 1627856) but the certificate was never granted.
John Tate Jr. was born in 1844, probably in Leighton (?), Massachusetts, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 the family moved from England to Massachusetts, then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 John was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer. His father John was still living in Georgetown in 1860.
John stood 5’9” with blue eyes, brown hair and light complexion and was an 18-year-old farmer living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company I, joining his older brothers Thomas and William (who had enlisted in Company I in 1861), on August 19 or 20, 1862, at Ionia for 3 years, crediting Georgetown, and was mustered on August 19 at Detroit; another older brother Alfred would enlist in Company F in 1864. John may have been related to Frederick who also enlisted in Company I. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
John Jr. joined the Regiment on September 8 at Upton’s Hill, Virginia, and was in the Regimental Quartermaster department in charge of public animals from December of 1862 through November of 1863. In late February and early march of 1864 he was hospitalized, presumably in the regimental hospital, suffering from “intermittent fever” and returned to duty probably sometime in March. In any case, he was present for duty and with his company when he was severely wounded in both of his thighs on May 6, 1864 and subsequently hospitalized. John was probably still absent sick when he was transferred to Company I, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864, and he remained absent sick through the summer. In fact he was furloughed, probably from a hospuital, in late July. He remained absent sick from the regiment until he was discharged for disability on October 8 at Armory Square hospital, Washington, DC, or on October 14, 1864, near Petersburg, Virginia.
After he was discharged from the army John returned to Michigan.
In October of 1864 he applied for and received a pension (no. 35432).
He was probably living in Lowell, Kent County in 1869, when he married Michigan native Fanny or Fannie M. Miller (1850-1926) on September 6, 1869, in Vergennes, Kent County, and they had at least three children: Lizzie B. (b. 1871), Edith Lucy (b. 1881) and John Evert (b. 1884).
By 1870 he was working as baggage agent and living with his wife in Lowell village, Kent County; his older brother Thomas operated a livery stable and lived just two houses away. (His parents were still living in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate.) John and his wife were still living in Michigan in 1871 by the time their daughter was born but eventually moved to Kansas. By 1880 John was working as a stock and grain dealer and living with his wife and daughter in Concordia, Cloud County, Kansas; also living with them were Ann Miller, his mother-in-law, a boarder named George Evans and a servant named Lizzie Williams.
John died on February 14, 1886, in Chicago, Illinois, and the body was returned to Concordia where he was buried on February 17, 1886.
Fannie was living in Concordia, Kansas, in 1886 when she applied for a dependent widow’s pension. By 1890 Fannie had remarried to a W. E. Poston and was living in Concordia, Kansas in August of 1890 when she applied for a pension as guardian on behalf of aher two minor children (no. 427013). (She eventually divorced Mr. Poston and remarried to Fernando Page, of Grand Rapids and Washington, DC. Page, too, had served in the Third Michigan during the war.
Thomas Tate was born in 1837 in England, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 the family moved from England to Massachusetts, then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 Thomas was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer. His father John was still living in Georgetown in 1860.
Thomas was 24 years old and probably living in Georgetown when he enlisted as Fifth Sergeant in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his younger brother William. Their younger brothers John and Alfred would enlist in Company I in 1862 and in Company F in 1864, respectively. Thomas may also have been related to Frederick who also enlisted in Company I. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
Thomas was promoted to Second Lieutenant April 3, 1862, commissioned the same day, and in October was promoted to First Lieutenant, commissioned as of September 17. He was home in Michigan during the winter of 1863, and rejoined the regiment in early March of that year. Thomas transferred to Company B on May 1, 1863 and promoted to Captain, commissioned March 28, 1863, replacing Captain Fred Stowe.
He was wounded slightly in the right eye on May 3, 1863, at Chancellorsville, Virginia. According to James Taylor of Company I, Thomas and eight other men became separated from the Third Michigan. About 11:00 p.m., wrote Taylor after the war, Birney’s division,”moved forward to that famous night charge, Ward’s brigade leading, ours following, and Graham’s following us, with orders to make as little noise as possible until we came upon the enemy; then make all the noise possible, both with our guns and throats, which we did to the best of our ability. In this charge we got separated, part swinging to the right and part toward the left. I was near the center, and after the first heavy firing had abated I found myself between two fires. . . . Capt Tait [sic] and eight others got together from my regiment that night. We got an early breakfast, while the Captain said he would look for the regiment.” It is unclear what became of Tate after that.
In any case, Thomas apparently recovered and by the first of September was reportedly in command of Company F. He was on detached service in Michigan, presumably recruiting, from December 29, 1863, through January of 1864, and returned to the Regiment in time for the opening of the Spring campaign. He was shot in the left side of his groin on May 12, 1864, at Spotsylvania, Virginia, and according to Dan Crotty of Company F, Thomas had been severely wounded while leading his company on a countercharge against the rebels. He was admitted to Mt. Pleasant hospital in Washington, DC on May 12 with a gunshot wound, and sent to Armory Square hospital in Washington on May 20.
He was still absent wounded when he was transferred as Captain to Company F, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864, and remained absent wounded through August. In fact, he had returned home to western Michigan on furlough. On July 14 he arrived at the Rathbun House in Grand Rapids.”The Captain,” wrote the Eagle the next day, “was wounded in battle on the 12th of May last, and he has been in hospital since that time, or up to within a few days past, when he had so far recovered as to enable him to come home. Capt. Tate and the majority of the men in his command were among the reenlisted veterans, who visited their homes in this city and vicinity, last winter upon a short furlough, under the command of Capt. Loring [Lowing].”
On August 22 he applied for an extension of his leave on the basis of his health, and supposedly left on the morning of September 5 to rejoin his command. In fact, in September of 1864 he reported for duty at the draft rendezvous in Jackson, Jackson County where he served through May of 1865 as Acting Assistant Inspector General. He was mustered out on July 5, 1865, at Jeffersonville, Indiana.
Thomas eventually returned to western Michigan, and soon settled in Kent County. Thomas worked for some years as a tanner, and by the late 1860s he was working and living in Lowell, Kent County, and in September of 1868 was elected as Second Lieutenant of the newly formed Tanner’s Club in Lowell. The club was in the process building a new tannery in Lowell which was to be dedicated the following week.
He was working in the livery business when he married New York native Phebe Southard (1853-1919) on March 24, 1869, in Grand Rapids; they had at least four children: Willie (1871-1872), Maggie L. (b. 1874), George M. (1876-1961) and Bessie B. (b. 1878).
By 1870 Thomas owned and operated a livery stable in Lowell, Kent County and was living with his wife next door to her family; and next door to the Southards was Thomas’ younger brother John and his wife Fanny. John was working as a baggage agent. (His parents were still living in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate.)
He was possibly living in Eaton Rapids, Eaton County in 1872, back in Lowell in 1874 where he operated a livery stable and worked as a deputy sheriff. According to the Eagle of April 11, 1874, deputy sheriff Thomas Tate arrested one William Fry who lived a short distance from Lowell and who was charged with raping his fifteen-year old daughter. Tate brought Fry to Grand Rapids, wrote the paper, “last night and lodged him in jail. He did not dare to leave him in Lowell, fearing that the people, in their indignation, would attempt to mob him, perhaps to lynch him.”
By 1880 Thomas was “keeping a livery stable” and living with his wife and children in Lowell. Also working at the stable was his brother-in-law George Southard.
Thomas was a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association. In 1870 he applied for and received a pension (no. 107093).
Thomas probably died in 1887, possibly in Michigan, and although there is no record of his death on file in Kent County, he may in fact have died in Lowell and may have been buried in Oakwood cemetery or in the Lowell area. (His widow was buried in Oakwood cemetery, 0-114-3 in 1919.)
In September of 1887 his widow applied for and received a pension (no. 343829). By 1890 she was residing in Lowell.
William Tate was born in 1840 in Massachusetts, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 the family moved from England to Massachusetts, then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 William was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer.
In 1860 William was a mill worker living in Georgetown at the same boarding house as John Finch (Company I) company, Albert Hayes (Company I), Joseph Ledbeter (Company B), Benjamin Parker (Company I), James Parm (Company I), Thomas Rowling (Company B), Stephen Scales (Company I), his younger brother Alfred (Company F), and John M. Taylor (Company I). (His father John was still living in Georgetown in 1860.)
William was 21 years old and residing in Georgetown when he enlisted as Fourth Corporal in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his older brother Thomas. Their younger brothers John and Alfred would enlist in Company I in 1862 and in Company F in 1864, respectively; he may also have been related to Frederick who also enlisted in Company I. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
By mid-November 1861, William was in the Union Hotel hospital in Washington, DC. He apparently recovered his health and was present for duty and had been promoted to Sergeant when he was killed in action on May 31, 1862, at Fair Oaks, Virginia. William was buried in Seven Pines National Cemetery: section D, grave 410, although there is a also marker for him in Georgetown cemetery, Ottawa County.
No pension seems to be available.
His parents were still living in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate.
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 his parents moved from England to Massachusetts, and then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 Alfred was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer.
By 1860 Alfred was living with his family and attending school with three of his younger siblings. He was also apparently was working as a mill hand and living at the Paddock boarding house in Georgetown along with John Finch (Company I), Albert Hayes (Company I), Joseph Ledbeter (Company B), Benjamin Parker (Company I), James Parm (Company I), Thomas Rowling (Company B), Stephen Scales (Company I), his older brother William (Company I), and John M. Taylor (Company I).
Alfred stood 5’10” with blue eyes, light hair and a light complexion and was 22 years old and probably still living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company F on February 8, 1864, at Grand Rapids for 3 years, and was mustered the same day, joining his three older brothers Thomas, William and John who had previously enlisted in Company I (and he was possibly related to Frederick who would also enlist in Company I). Alfred joined the Regiment on February 17 at Camp Bullock, Virginia, was absent sick in the hospital in May and may have still been absent in the hospital when he was transferred to Company F, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864. He was absent on sick leave from December of 1864 through January of 1865, and was mustered out as a Corporal on July 5, 1865, at Jeffersonville, Indiana.
After the war Alfred eventually returned to western Michigan.
In 1871 Alfred married New York native Joanna (d. 1854), and they had at least four children: Frank (b. 1874), Alfred, William and Ray.
He was possibly working as a drayman (if so possibly for his brother Thomas who owned a livery stable in Lowell) and living in Lowell, Kent County in the late 1860s. By 1870 he was living with his parents in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate. By 1880 Alfred was working as a farmer and living with his wife and son Frank in Georgetown. And he was living in Georgetown in 1890 and in 1894. By 1895 he was residing in Hudsonville, Ottawa County where he was living from 1906-10 and on R.R. no. 1 in 1911 and 1922, and in Grandville, Kent County in 1916, 1923 and 1925.
Alfred was a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association, and the Grand Army of the Republic Custer Post No. 5 in Grand Rapids until he was suspended November 26, 1908.
In 1890 he applied for and received a pension (no. 791371).
Alfred died on September 14, 1928 or 1929, in Hudsonville, and was buried in Georgetown cemetery: lot 452 grave no. 1.
In 1928 or 1929 his widow also applied for a pension (no. 1627856) but the certificate was never granted.
John Tate Jr. was born in 1844, probably in Leighton (?), Massachusetts, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 the family moved from England to Massachusetts, then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 John was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer. His father John was still living in Georgetown in 1860.
John stood 5’9” with blue eyes, brown hair and light complexion and was an 18-year-old farmer living in Georgetown when he enlisted in Company I, joining his older brothers Thomas and William (who had enlisted in Company I in 1861), on August 19 or 20, 1862, at Ionia for 3 years, crediting Georgetown, and was mustered on August 19 at Detroit; another older brother Alfred would enlist in Company F in 1864. John may have been related to Frederick who also enlisted in Company I. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
John Jr. joined the Regiment on September 8 at Upton’s Hill, Virginia, and was in the Regimental Quartermaster department in charge of public animals from December of 1862 through November of 1863. In late February and early march of 1864 he was hospitalized, presumably in the regimental hospital, suffering from “intermittent fever” and returned to duty probably sometime in March. In any case, he was present for duty and with his company when he was severely wounded in both of his thighs on May 6, 1864 and subsequently hospitalized. John was probably still absent sick when he was transferred to Company I, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864, and he remained absent sick through the summer. In fact he was furloughed, probably from a hospuital, in late July. He remained absent sick from the regiment until he was discharged for disability on October 8 at Armory Square hospital, Washington, DC, or on October 14, 1864, near Petersburg, Virginia.
After he was discharged from the army John returned to Michigan.
In October of 1864 he applied for and received a pension (no. 35432).
He was probably living in Lowell, Kent County in 1869, when he married Michigan native Fanny or Fannie M. Miller (1850-1926) on September 6, 1869, in Vergennes, Kent County, and they had at least three children: Lizzie B. (b. 1871), Edith Lucy (b. 1881) and John Evert (b. 1884).
By 1870 he was working as baggage agent and living with his wife in Lowell village, Kent County; his older brother Thomas operated a livery stable and lived just two houses away. (His parents were still living in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate.) John and his wife were still living in Michigan in 1871 by the time their daughter was born but eventually moved to Kansas. By 1880 John was working as a stock and grain dealer and living with his wife and daughter in Concordia, Cloud County, Kansas; also living with them were Ann Miller, his mother-in-law, a boarder named George Evans and a servant named Lizzie Williams.
John died on February 14, 1886, in Chicago, Illinois, and the body was returned to Concordia where he was buried on February 17, 1886.
Fannie was living in Concordia, Kansas, in 1886 when she applied for a dependent widow’s pension. By 1890 Fannie had remarried to a W. E. Poston and was living in Concordia, Kansas in August of 1890 when she applied for a pension as guardian on behalf of aher two minor children (no. 427013). (She eventually divorced Mr. Poston and remarried to Fernando Page, of Grand Rapids and Washington, DC. Page, too, had served in the Third Michigan during the war.
Thomas Tate was born in 1837 in England, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 the family moved from England to Massachusetts, then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 Thomas was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer. His father John was still living in Georgetown in 1860.
Thomas was 24 years old and probably living in Georgetown when he enlisted as Fifth Sergeant in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his younger brother William. Their younger brothers John and Alfred would enlist in Company I in 1862 and in Company F in 1864, respectively. Thomas may also have been related to Frederick who also enlisted in Company I. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
Thomas was promoted to Second Lieutenant April 3, 1862, commissioned the same day, and in October was promoted to First Lieutenant, commissioned as of September 17. He was home in Michigan during the winter of 1863, and rejoined the regiment in early March of that year. Thomas transferred to Company B on May 1, 1863 and promoted to Captain, commissioned March 28, 1863, replacing Captain Fred Stowe.
He was wounded slightly in the right eye on May 3, 1863, at Chancellorsville, Virginia. According to James Taylor of Company I, Thomas and eight other men became separated from the Third Michigan. About 11:00 p.m., wrote Taylor after the war, Birney’s division,”moved forward to that famous night charge, Ward’s brigade leading, ours following, and Graham’s following us, with orders to make as little noise as possible until we came upon the enemy; then make all the noise possible, both with our guns and throats, which we did to the best of our ability. In this charge we got separated, part swinging to the right and part toward the left. I was near the center, and after the first heavy firing had abated I found myself between two fires. . . . Capt Tait [sic] and eight others got together from my regiment that night. We got an early breakfast, while the Captain said he would look for the regiment.” It is unclear what became of Tate after that.
In any case, Thomas apparently recovered and by the first of September was reportedly in command of Company F. He was on detached service in Michigan, presumably recruiting, from December 29, 1863, through January of 1864, and returned to the Regiment in time for the opening of the Spring campaign. He was shot in the left side of his groin on May 12, 1864, at Spotsylvania, Virginia, and according to Dan Crotty of Company F, Thomas had been severely wounded while leading his company on a countercharge against the rebels. He was admitted to Mt. Pleasant hospital in Washington, DC on May 12 with a gunshot wound, and sent to Armory Square hospital in Washington on May 20.
He was still absent wounded when he was transferred as Captain to Company F, Fifth Michigan infantry upon consolidation of the Third and Fifth Michigan Regiments on June 10, 1864, and remained absent wounded through August. In fact, he had returned home to western Michigan on furlough. On July 14 he arrived at the Rathbun House in Grand Rapids.”The Captain,” wrote the Eagle the next day, “was wounded in battle on the 12th of May last, and he has been in hospital since that time, or up to within a few days past, when he had so far recovered as to enable him to come home. Capt. Tate and the majority of the men in his command were among the reenlisted veterans, who visited their homes in this city and vicinity, last winter upon a short furlough, under the command of Capt. Loring [Lowing].”
On August 22 he applied for an extension of his leave on the basis of his health, and supposedly left on the morning of September 5 to rejoin his command. In fact, in September of 1864 he reported for duty at the draft rendezvous in Jackson, Jackson County where he served through May of 1865 as Acting Assistant Inspector General. He was mustered out on July 5, 1865, at Jeffersonville, Indiana.
Thomas eventually returned to western Michigan, and soon settled in Kent County. Thomas worked for some years as a tanner, and by the late 1860s he was working and living in Lowell, Kent County, and in September of 1868 was elected as Second Lieutenant of the newly formed Tanner’s Club in Lowell. The club was in the process building a new tannery in Lowell which was to be dedicated the following week.
He was working in the livery business when he married New York native Phebe Southard (1853-1919) on March 24, 1869, in Grand Rapids; they had at least four children: Willie (1871-1872), Maggie L. (b. 1874), George M. (1876-1961) and Bessie B. (b. 1878).
By 1870 Thomas owned and operated a livery stable in Lowell, Kent County and was living with his wife next door to her family; and next door to the Southards was Thomas’ younger brother John and his wife Fanny. John was working as a baggage agent. (His parents were still living in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate.)
He was possibly living in Eaton Rapids, Eaton County in 1872, back in Lowell in 1874 where he operated a livery stable and worked as a deputy sheriff. According to the Eagle of April 11, 1874, deputy sheriff Thomas Tate arrested one William Fry who lived a short distance from Lowell and who was charged with raping his fifteen-year old daughter. Tate brought Fry to Grand Rapids, wrote the paper, “last night and lodged him in jail. He did not dare to leave him in Lowell, fearing that the people, in their indignation, would attempt to mob him, perhaps to lynch him.”
By 1880 Thomas was “keeping a livery stable” and living with his wife and children in Lowell. Also working at the stable was his brother-in-law George Southard.
Thomas was a member of the Old Third Michigan Infantry Association. In 1870 he applied for and received a pension (no. 107093).
Thomas probably died in 1887, possibly in Michigan, and although there is no record of his death on file in Kent County, he may in fact have died in Lowell and may have been buried in Oakwood cemetery or in the Lowell area. (His widow was buried in Oakwood cemetery, 0-114-3 in 1919.)
In September of 1887 his widow applied for and received a pension (no. 343829). By 1890 she was residing in Lowell.
William Tate was born in 1840 in Massachusetts, the son of John (1815-1900) and Barbara (1815-1888).
Sometime between 1837 and 1840 the family moved from England to Massachusetts, then from Massachusetts to Michigan between 1844 and 1846, and by 1850 William was living with his family in Georgetown, Ottawa County, where his father worked as a laborer.
In 1860 William was a mill worker living in Georgetown at the same boarding house as John Finch (Company I) company, Albert Hayes (Company I), Joseph Ledbeter (Company B), Benjamin Parker (Company I), James Parm (Company I), Thomas Rowling (Company B), Stephen Scales (Company I), his younger brother Alfred (Company F), and John M. Taylor (Company I). (His father John was still living in Georgetown in 1860.)
William was 21 years old and residing in Georgetown when he enlisted as Fourth Corporal in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his older brother Thomas. Their younger brothers John and Alfred would enlist in Company I in 1862 and in Company F in 1864, respectively; he may also have been related to Frederick who also enlisted in Company I. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
By mid-November 1861, William was in the Union Hotel hospital in Washington, DC. He apparently recovered his health and was present for duty and had been promoted to Sergeant when he was killed in action on May 31, 1862, at Fair Oaks, Virginia. William was buried in Seven Pines National Cemetery: section D, grave 410, although there is a also marker for him in Georgetown cemetery, Ottawa County.
No pension seems to be available.
His parents were still living in Georgetown, Ottawa County in 1870; his father owned $2000 worth of real estate.
Sunday, August 26, 2007
Wilbur Bement
Wilbur Bement was born 1834 in New York, the son of Levi H. (b. 1800) and Elizabeth (Briggs, b. 1809).
Massachussets native Levi married New Jersey-born Elizabeth and they eventually settled in New York by 1834 and resided there for some years. Levi moved his family from New York to Georgetown, Ottawa County, Michigan, along with his brother Harley Sr., and by 1860 Wilbur was working as a teamster and living with his family in Georgetown. Next door was the Davis family; three of their sons would join Company G of the Third Michigan in 1861. Nearby was the large farm of George Weatherwax who would also join the Third Michigan, becoming the first Captain of Company I.
Wilbur married his next-door neighbor, Michigan native Martha A. Davis (b. 1844), on July 4, 1860, in Georgetown, and they had at least five children: Elmer (b. 1860?), Eva (b. 1870), May (b. 1872), Vida (b. 1878) and Gracie (b. 1886). (Martha was the sister of James, George and William Davis, all three of whom would join Company G, Third Michigan infantry in 1861).
Wilbur was 27 years old and probably living in Lamont or Georgetown when he enlisted as wagoner in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his first cousin Harley Jr. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
Wilbur’s sister Clarinda was mentioned by Captain Stephen Lowing of Company I, in a letter home in in January of 1862. Lowing wrote to his brother-in-law Frank Bosworth that apparently Jackson Meeks of Copany I, had gotten Clarinda “into trouble” and was seeking a transfer to another unit to avoid having to return to Ottawa County.
Wilbur was detached from the company sometime during the winter of 1861-62 and appointed Chief Wagoner probably around February of 1862. He was absent sick in the hospital in August of 1862, apparently recovered and returned to duty probably driving wagons. From March of 1863 through May he was reported detached with the Brigade wagon train, probably as a teamster. In June he was reported AWOL, but the following month was absent with leave (possibly on furlough to recover his health), and in November was back with the Regimental wagon train. He was absent sick in the hospital by May of 1864, and was mustered out of the service on June 20, 1864.
Following his discharge Wilbur returned to Ottawa County,and by 1870 he was working as a farmer and living with his wife, one child and his mother in Georgetown. By 1880 Wilbur and his family were living in Wyoming, Kent County. He was living in Ottawa Station in 1888 and in West Olive in 1890. He may have been a member of Grand Army of the Republic Thuskittle Post No. 388 in Allendale, although this is not certain, and he his pension application (no. 782,109) was still pending in 1891.
Wilbur died of “exhaustion” as a result of chronic diarrhea, on March 16, 1891. He was buried in Old Georgetown cemetery, Ottawa County.
His widow received pension (no. 320020), drawing $12.00 per month by 1907, the same year she remarried Simon Gristwood.
Massachussets native Levi married New Jersey-born Elizabeth and they eventually settled in New York by 1834 and resided there for some years. Levi moved his family from New York to Georgetown, Ottawa County, Michigan, along with his brother Harley Sr., and by 1860 Wilbur was working as a teamster and living with his family in Georgetown. Next door was the Davis family; three of their sons would join Company G of the Third Michigan in 1861. Nearby was the large farm of George Weatherwax who would also join the Third Michigan, becoming the first Captain of Company I.
Wilbur married his next-door neighbor, Michigan native Martha A. Davis (b. 1844), on July 4, 1860, in Georgetown, and they had at least five children: Elmer (b. 1860?), Eva (b. 1870), May (b. 1872), Vida (b. 1878) and Gracie (b. 1886). (Martha was the sister of James, George and William Davis, all three of whom would join Company G, Third Michigan infantry in 1861).
Wilbur was 27 years old and probably living in Lamont or Georgetown when he enlisted as wagoner in Company I on May 13, 1861, along with his first cousin Harley Jr. (Company I was made up largely of men from Ottawa County, particularly from the eastern side of the County.)
Wilbur’s sister Clarinda was mentioned by Captain Stephen Lowing of Company I, in a letter home in in January of 1862. Lowing wrote to his brother-in-law Frank Bosworth that apparently Jackson Meeks of Copany I, had gotten Clarinda “into trouble” and was seeking a transfer to another unit to avoid having to return to Ottawa County.
Wilbur was detached from the company sometime during the winter of 1861-62 and appointed Chief Wagoner probably around February of 1862. He was absent sick in the hospital in August of 1862, apparently recovered and returned to duty probably driving wagons. From March of 1863 through May he was reported detached with the Brigade wagon train, probably as a teamster. In June he was reported AWOL, but the following month was absent with leave (possibly on furlough to recover his health), and in November was back with the Regimental wagon train. He was absent sick in the hospital by May of 1864, and was mustered out of the service on June 20, 1864.
Following his discharge Wilbur returned to Ottawa County,and by 1870 he was working as a farmer and living with his wife, one child and his mother in Georgetown. By 1880 Wilbur and his family were living in Wyoming, Kent County. He was living in Ottawa Station in 1888 and in West Olive in 1890. He may have been a member of Grand Army of the Republic Thuskittle Post No. 388 in Allendale, although this is not certain, and he his pension application (no. 782,109) was still pending in 1891.
Wilbur died of “exhaustion” as a result of chronic diarrhea, on March 16, 1891. He was buried in Old Georgetown cemetery, Ottawa County.
His widow received pension (no. 320020), drawing $12.00 per month by 1907, the same year she remarried Simon Gristwood.
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