Monroe County, Michigan, Had Eight Medal of Honor Recipients in Civil War

From the November 6, 2022, Monroe News by Tom Adamich.

Monroe's military history and contributions to major conflicts dates back to the American Revolution and War of 1812 periods.  But, also, Monroe has had an inordinate impact on Civil War history.  Local historians credit the county as having the highest enrollment of volunteers propotionately of any county in the United States.

The Medal of Honor is the highest and most prestigious military honor that can be awarded to the military.   And eight Monroe County residents received one during the war.

**  First Lieutenant  James Christancy of the 9th Michigan Cavalry.  As an aide, he voluntarily led a group in the Battle of Haw's Shop near Cold Harbor, Virginia, in May 1864 where he was  wounded twice.

**  Second Lieutenant Thomas  Custer, younger brother of General George Custer (who was from Monroe).  Thomas Custer was part of the 21st Ohio.  At Sailor's Creek, near Farmville, Virginia, part of the Appomattox Campaign, he leaped his horse over Confederate earthworks and captured two flags and was wounded.

--Old Secesh

Charles V. Gridley's Family: 'You May Fire....'

I have been writing about this Civil War naval officer in my Running the Blockade: Civil War Navy blog.  He made his greatest fame, however, in the Spanish-American War, when he commanded the USS Olympia when George Dewey gave his famed order:  "You may fire when you are ready, Gridley!"

Charles Gridley also had two other relatives involved in the Civil War.  His brother, Lucius Gridley, was a musician in Company A, 2nd Michigan Infantry and his mother, Ann Eliza Sholes Gridley was a Civil War nurse.

You can read about these three people in my Running the Blockade blog from last and this week.  Just go to My Blog List to the left of this and click on that blog.

--Old Secesh

M-231 Bike in Michigan Trail Named for Civil War Hero

From Oct. 17, 2015, M-Live "M-231 bike trail named for Civil War hero, Medal of Honor recipient."

Sgt. Henry E. Plant (Oct. 11, 1841-April 15, 1923) was born in New York and moved with his family to a farm in Ottawa County, Michigan.  Enlisted in the 14th Michigan Infantry in 1861.  Wounded during the Siege of Corinth, Mississippi, 1862.

On March 19, 1865, at the Battle of Bentonville, N.C., the company's color bearer was mortally wounded and Plant took the flag and waved it, inspiring his company to resist the Confederate onslaught.  For this he was promoted to sergeant and made regimental color bearer.

He was awarded the Medal of Honor on April 27, 1891, for rescuing the regimental colors, the first for anyone ever from Ottawa County and the 14th Michigan.

The M-231 is a road in Michigan.

--Old Secesh

Civil War Veteran Died Just Short of Memorial Day 1941-- Part 2

Charles Nichols was married twice.  The first time was March 22, 1868, to 22-year-old Sarah E. White who died in 1874.  He married again to 16-year-old Harriett Ann Allen on Sept. 26, 1875.  She died in 1938.

Nichols' Union service was as a replacement for Charles A. Nobles who hired him to take his place.

From the May 26, 1941, Chronicle.

Charles Nichols died May 25, 1941 at age 95.  He was the last surviving member of the Luther Post of the GAR. and became ill May 17th.

Muskegon now has only one remaining Civil War veteran, Howard Bond, 97, at 1366 Sanford Street.  Nichols lived at his son Clayton's home at 710 Catawba Avenue.  He had been born at Rutland, Vermont, on December 27, 1845 and  and came to Michigan as a child.

On Feb. 15, 1864, at age 19, he enlisted at grand Rapids and was wounded later and taken to a hospital in Washington, D.C., before being discharged in May 1865.

--Old Secesh

Civil War Artifact Remains a Mystery

From the July 27, 2011, Ypsilanti (Mi) Courier "From the archives: History behind Civil War artifact remains a mystery" by Laura Bier.

Somewhere in the attic of Sherzer Hall on the Normal College campus are two bottles.  One has blood-saturated coal cinders and the other has whole blood.  Both are from the Civil War.  In 1951, a yellowed clipping turned up about these two bottles.

The bottles involved the fatal shooting of Union Col. Elmer Ellsworth of the 11th New York early in the war by James Jackson in Alexandria, Virginia.  The New York and Michigan soldiers on the scene knew of the historic significance of the event and cut up the blood-soaked stair-runner and chipped pieces from the stained stairway as souvenirs.

A piece of the Confederate flag that Ellsworth took down that day is at the Smithsonian.  No one is sure how the bottles, said to contain blood from both victims that day,  turned up at the Michigan college, but most think that it came from a Michigan.  Perhaps they came from Corporal Francis Brownell himself.  Brownell was the one wh shot Jackson.

Early Souvenirs of the War.  --Old Secesh

Michigan's Norman J. Hall-- Part 2

At the Battle of Fredericksburg, the 25 year old Hall led his men across the river under Confederate fire to secure the other side so that a pontoon bridge could be built.

At Gettysburg, Hall's brigade, the 3rd, 2nd Division, II Corps, held the center of the Union lines on Cemetery Ridge, near the famous "copse of trees" that was the objective of Pickett's charge.  The brigade lost 200 men there.

After Gettysburg, Hall's's health began to fail and he was mustered out of service in May of 1864.  He died just three years later in New York.

He is buried at West Point at  Section 30, Row 1, Grave 373.  Very close to the grave of George Armstrong Custer.

The Monroe News of May 10, 2009 had an article about him and a photo.  It said he grew up on a farm near Dixon and S. Custer roads and attended Papermill School, a one-room schoolhouse.  He was nominated for West Point by Congressman David Noble.   He and Custer evidently knew each other.

Also graduating in the USMA Class of 1859 was Joseph Wheeler who would later become a Confederate general.

An Interesting and Brave Life Cut Too Short.  --Old Secesh

Two Interesting Facts About Lt. Hall at Fort Sumter

Well, three, actually.

1.  As you can see in the famous photo of Major Anderson and his Fort Sumter officers, Lt. Norman Hall is not in the photo. Perhaps, he was held a prisoner of war as mentioned in the Wikipedia account.  You'd definitely think he would be with his heroic acts of putting the flag up again in the bombardment.  So, why was he not in the photo.

I think I remember hearing that the photo was taken before the attack.  Perhaps he was on emissary duty between Anderson and the Confederates and not available to pose.

2.  I also read in one source that Lt. Hall's eyebrows were permanently burned off  in his flag-raising escapade.  The photo of him appears to have eyebrows.  Did he draw them on or did they grow back or perhaps the light made him look like he had them?

3.  This was not the first time a soldier had replaced an American flag shot down flag at a Charleston fort in the course of a battle.  Back during the Revolutionary War, Sgt. William Jaspar had done the same thing at Fort Sullivan, later renamed Fort Moultrie.

Michigan's Norman J. Hall-- Part 1

From Wikipedia.

March 19, 1842-May 26, 1867 and is famous for his defense of the Union center during Pickett's charge at Gettysburg.  Appointed to the USMA at West Point by Jefferson Davis and graduated July 1859, 13th in class of22 and appointed Second Lt. in 4th US Artillery.

He was at Fort Sumter during the secession crisis and served as an emissary between Major. Anderson and Confederate officers.

During the bombardment, the US flag was knocked to the ground by a Confederate shell.  Hall raced throug the flames on the parade ground to save it.  With the help of two others, he replaced the pole and hoisted the flag.  He was captured, became a POW, was exchanged and then returned to Monroe.

He was promoted to 1st Lt. in the US Artillery in May of 1861.

He fought at the Peninsula Campaign before becoming the Colonel of the 7th Michigan Infantry in July 1862.  He was then at the Battle of Second Bull Run.  At the Battle of Antietam, the 7th Michigan suffered 60% casualties and lost 20 of 23 field officers.  Hall assumed command of the 3rd Brigade after its commander was wounded.

Later in the battle, Hall was wounded himself and his horse killed.

Quite the Fighter.  --Old Secesh

Monroe County, Michigan, in the Civil War

From the April 20, 2011, Toledo (Oh) Blade.

During the war, nearly 90,000 Michigan men served in Union forces, nearly a quarter of the males in the state in the 1860 census.

Some 2,270 were from Monoe County with 430 dying from disease, wounds or killed in action.

Lenawee County sent 4,000, the second highest number for a state county.  At least 35 of them died at Andersonville.

George Armstrong Custer became a general at age 23, the youngest Union general at the time he was promoted.

Must Be a Wolverine Thing.  --Old Secesh

Michigan's Col. Hall in the Civil War

From the April 20, 2011, Toledo (Ohio) Blade "Monroe County remembers its native son at Fort Sumter" by Mark Reiter.

The only Michigan soldier at Fort Sumter was Norman Hall from Raisinville Township in Monroe County.  He was a West Point graduate and fought at other battles during the course of the war.  At Gettysburg, Col. Hall's 3rd Brigade is credited with fighting off the Confederate charge that won the battle.

However, much more attention is given to Monroe County's better-known person, George Armstrong Custer.  Norman Hall died at age 30 after the war and is buried at West Point, 30 yards away from Custer.

Never Heard of Col. Hall.  --Old Secesh

Detroit's GAR Building Gets New Life

From the Nov. 4th Detroit Free Press "Historic Grand Army of the Republic building Detroit to be given new life."

Brothers Tom and David Carleton and partner Sean Emery have bought the historic Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) Hall at Cass and Grand River streets from the City of Detroit for $220,000.

They plan on reopening the building in 2013 after a $2-3 million renovation. Part of it will be used for their multi media production firm, Mindfield, on the top two floors and want the ground floor to be let out to a retail or restaurant operation.

Some space will remain a Civil War memorial. The building was designed by architect Julius Hess in the castle-like Romanesque style that was popular in 1899. As a GAR Hall, it was used for meetings and had other uses later until the building closed some 30 years ago. There has been much damage since then.

The building's location, just 1000 feet from the MGM Grand Detroit Casino definitely helps as well.

The Carleton brothers had two ancestors who fought for the Union Army.

A photo accompanied the article of the brothers and partner crossing the street in front of the building in a Beatlesque Abbey Road style.

Always Good to Save Any Historic Building of Architectural Significance. --Old B-Runner

Iron Brigade Memorial Highway in Illinois

From the Chicago Daily Herald October 19, 2007.

The Illinois 93rd General Assembly introduced HR-688 calling for the establishment of the Iron Brigade Memorial Highway to honor one of the Union's "fightin'est" (is that a word?) brigades.

This designation will run along US-12 (my favorite non-US-66 road) through the state.

Bob Kurek and Cory Juscius of IDOT designed the sign and did a fantastic job. This is one striking sign. An example is close by us in Spring Grove at US-12 and State Park Road (Chain of Lakes).

Wisconsin, Indiana and Michigan have already named their sections of 12 for the famous unit. Michigan did so in 1993.

The brigade consisted of the 2nd, 6th and 7th Wisconsin; the 19th Indiana and 24th Michigan. No Illinois regiments served in it, but Illinois connects the states and the 24th Michigan did serve in Springfield in 1865 as the honor guard at Lincoln's funeral.

I've read that Confederates were never happy to find they were facing this unit.

One Great Fighting Group Even If They Were Yankees. --Old B-Runner

Letters Provide Look at the "Crewel War"-- Part 2

Back on June 21st, I had an entry on 291 letters that Wade Ewing of Grand Haven, Michigan, had donated to the Michigan Archives that his great grandfather Henry Mckendree Ewing had written during the Civil War.

OCTOBER 26, 1864-- Ewing was afraid his brother-in-law had been killed or captured by Confederates at Petersburg.

"This fight was a perfect failure to our army.. you will learn al the particulars of the moovement by the papers better than I can write. O I do wish the crewel war was over. I do not think we will ever whip the Rebs by fighting untill they are entirely extengwished and there will many union oldier fall before that is don for there is lots of johneys left yet and they can and do fight as Savage as the yank keys does."

The letters are valued at $30,000 and Wade Ewing was worried that some future relative might sell them to a private collector.

State archivist Mark Harvey said, "It's a credit to him that in an era of Antique Road Show and eBay, his concern was not monetary..."

Every letter will be scanned and put on the internet.

A Real Slice of the War Up Close and Personal. --Old B-Runner

Letters Provide Look at "Crewel War"-- Part 1

From the January 2, 2008 Muskegon Chronicle "Civil War letters provide rare look at "crewel war" by Terry Judd.

The envelope has a US flag flying and a cannon firing with the words "Sure Cure for Treason and Traitors." Was it a sign of the times?

A total of 292 letters were donated by Wally Ewing of Grand Haven, Michigan, to the state's archives. They are from his great grandfather Henry McKendree Ewing of the 2nd Michigan.

On December 18, 1864, Ewing was in a military hospital squinting through his left eye after a Confederate bullet ripped through his tent and struck him in the right side of his head. Doctors were unable to save the eye. "My right eye I supposed I will never have the use of it anymore. The DR says he thinks my face won't be disfigured any. Well if I should be I will never disown the Cause ...I Shall not be Shamed of it. yet life wood Seam Sweeter if I cood See out of two eyes."

Henry Ewing enlisted in the spring of 1864 along with his brother-in-law, Al Hank, in the 2nd Michigan. Of 1819 men serving in the regiment, 118 were killed, 100 died from wounds, 15 died in Confederate prisons, 109 from disease and 208 discharged from wounds-- a 30% casualty rate.

More to Come. Old B-Runner

Rededications in Niles, Michigan

From the April 30th South Bend (In) Tribune.

Two Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War events are planned for May 8th in Niles, Michigan.

One will be the marker to Brigadier General Henry A. Morrow, who as the colonel of the 24th Michigan (a part of the famous Iron Brigade for which US-12 is named) was wounded at the Battle of Gettysburg. He was wounded twice more in the war at the battles of Wilderness and Petersburg. After the war, he married a Niles girl and moved there before dying at age 62 in 1891. He was buried in Silverbrook Cemetery.

The same day, there will be a rededication of a Civil War cannon, which appears in a photo to be a Parrott gun, at Riverfront Park.

No one knows much about its early history or even whether or not it was fired during the war. At one point it was in front of the old Niles Central School. At some point, it ended up in the city dump before being found by Orin Cain, who had it placed in front of the local American Legion which no longer exists.

Hopefully This Will Become a Permanent Spot for the Cannon. --Old B-Runner