From Times Gone By column by Dave Shampine, "A homegrown patriot DePeyster farmer rises to Civil War hero and statesman" in Watertown (NY)Daily News, May 16th.
Newton Curtis, all 6 foot 7 inches of him was 25 years old and postmaster of DePeyster. In April, 1861, he had a meeting where he said "Patriotism is of no party. The Union must be preserved." he and 14 others vowed to serve in the Union Army right then and there.
On May 2, 1861, Curtis was elected captain of a company and led 64 others from dePeyster and Macomb to Ogdensburg. He returned from the war in 1865 wounded, a hero and a general.
The "Hero of Fort Fisher, as he came to be known, was involved in politics in St. Lawrence County on both a state and national level.
He was born May 21, 1835, the son of Johnathan Curtis, a veteran of the War of 1812. After attending DePeyster School, he went to Gouveneur Wesleyan Seminary. he became a farmer like his father, but also studied law.
In 1857, he became DePester's post master after losing badly in a race for county assembly.
More to Come. --Old B-Runner
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