#69th New York Militia

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1862 – The Irish Brigade suffered over 60% casualties at the Battle of Antietam at an area that came to be known as Bloody Lane.

At the Battle of Antietam, the Irish Brigade led its division in attacking the infamous Bloody Lane. In preparation for the deadly work ahead, Father William Corby, one of the brigade’s chaplains and future president of Notre Dame, rode down the firing line and administered a general rite of absolution to the men. Thomas Meagher advanced to the crest of a hill overlooking a brigade of North…

[quicksiluers]

Organized in 1861 shortly after First Bull Run, The Irish Brigade’s nucleus was the 63d, 69th, and 88th New York Infantry. In the fall of 1862 the 28th Massachusetts and the 116th Pennsylvania were added, and the 29th Massachusetts served with it for a short time. It saw action in the Peninsular Campaign, at Antietam, Second Bull Run, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Cedar Run, The Wilderness, Spotsylvania Court House, Cold Harbor, and Petersburg, in the 1st Division of the II Corps. Reorganized in November 1864, with the 7th New York Heavy Artillery replacing the 116th Pennsylvania, it was by then no longer the old organization and certainly could not be truthfully designated the Irish Brigade. It had suffered over 4,000 casualties in killed and wounded, a total which exceeded the number of men enrolled in it at any given time.

Of the five men who commanded the Irish Brigade, three were killed and the other two wounded. Colonel Richard Byrne was mortally wounded at Cold Harbor; Colonel Patrick Kelly was killed at Petersburg; Major General Thomas A. Smyth died at Farmville; and Brigadier Generals Robert Nugent and Thomas Meagher were both wounded.

The most colorful and flamboyant of its leaders was the original commander and organizer, General Thomas Francis Meagher. Born in County Waterford, Ireland in 1823, he was described as ‘the counterpart of some rash, impolitic, poetic personage from Irish poetry or fiction.’ Son of a wealthy merchant, he was an active disciple of Irish liberty and participated in the various independence movements. In 1845 the British exiled him to Tasmania. Three years later he escaped and eventually made his way to New York City. At various times a lawyer, lecturer, newspaper editor, and politician, his flaming oratory had made him a favorite of the ‘Young Ireland’ group and he soon became the political leader of the Irish element in New York. At the outbreak of the Civil War he raised a Zouave company and commanded it at First Bull Run as part of the 69th New York State Militia. That winter he organized the Irish Brigade and President Lincoln appointed him brigadier general of Volunteers in February 1862. (x) 

The Fighting 69th by Mort Kunstler (x)

Fight’n Irish by Dale Gallon (x)

Raise the Colors and Follow Me! by Mort Kunstler (x)

Clear the Way by Don Troiani (x)

[denimsnake]

@rollerz​

Ok so everyone knows about the potato famine and how it led a bunch of Irish folks to immigrate to the U.S. and Canada (& Australia but they’re irrelevant to this story) and a lot of them and their descendants fought in the Civil War (on both sides), but not everyone knows that they got a little silly after the war. Picture this: a bunch of dudes angry that their ancestral homeland is occupied by English people, and these dudes are fresh out of a war that provided them with 1) military experience and 2) guns! (and other equipment. but mostly the weapons).

In 1858, the Fenian Brotherhood had been organized by one John Francis O’Mahony, who, besides bearing the distinction of Most Irish Name Ever, would go on to achieve the rank of colonel in the 69th Regiment (nice) of New York State Militia. Also, he looked like this:

The name Fenian traces back to the Fianna, which is pretty badass.

O’Mahony had taken part in the Young Irelander Rebellion of 1848, which was when a bunch of 19th-century Irish Gen Zers decided to attack the cops, but failed because the cops, by virtue of being aligned with Britain, had more manpower, more weaponry, and also probably weren’t Literally Starving due to crop failures. Due to the aforementioned starvation and also having been kicked out of Britain for being too Irish, O’Mahony moved to the United States in 1854.

Up to this point, every statement has probably made you think, “Cheers, I’ll drink to that.” I mean, who among us doesn’t want to free Ireland from the grip of tyranny? But brace yourself.

It’s April 1866. The United States has been re-unified for a year.

The Fenian Brotherhood is invading Canada.

Why? you may ask. How? is also a valid question, and easier to answer: with all that military experience acquired during the Civil War, and also the guns. I don’t know exactly which guns, but probably something cool like Spencer repeating rifles or Springfield rifles. Whatever they were, they gave the Fenians the confidence they needed to look at our great big, cold neighbor to the North and think: “Yeah, I could fuck with that.”

If you aren’t aware, you don’t fuck with Canada. You can’t fuck with Canada. Americans have tried. In 1775, General Richard Montgomery -- who was also, coincidentally, Irish -- died in Québec and all he got for it is a cool painting where he looks like Jesus. In 1812, Brig. Gen. William Hull and his severely under-equipped army tried to convince Canadians to leave Britain; RIP to William Hull but the Canadians said no thank you, and chased him out of their country. There’ve been a few other skirmishes here and there, but suffice it to say that Canada is truly the Russia of North America.

The Fenians were different, though, in that they had no government backing and therefore were even more poorly equipped to invade Canada than those other guys.

As for why: they wanted to hold Canada hostage and then hold a sort of prisoner transfer, except for political entities instead of human beings -- Canada for Ireland.

Their first target: Campobello Island. Why choose this target? I suspect it’s because they wanted to start with something small to boost confidence. If you try to bite off more than you can chew right off the bat and fail immediately, it really kills the groove, y’know? Campobello Island’s biggest claim to fame, besides that it was once invaded by Irish-Americans, is that future president Franklin Delano Roosevelt may have gotten polio there in 1921. Which means that in 1866, before the raid, it had absolutely no claim to fame.

So, anyway, about 700 Fenians set off for Campobello Island and failed immediately. They never even landed on the island because British warships showed up and they dispersed.

A couple months later, in June 1866, they tried again, but bigger this time. Led by Colonel John O’Neill (played by Richard Dean Anderson in the television adaptation), about 1000 Fenians crossed the Niagara River into Canada West (now Ontario). The USS Michigan was deployed and cut off O’Neill and his men from supplies and reinforcements. From now on, they were on their own.

And they actually did kind of a good job, for a relatively small force of men with no legitimate backing invading a foreign nation. O’Neill’s army occupied Fort Erie and then managed to ambush some (admittedly inexperienced) Canadian volunteers of the militia and the Queen’s Own Rifles of Toronto. Both forces were about the same size, but as the Torontonians (is that right? Chrome wants to change it to Estonians) were total noobs and the Fenians were veterans of the bloodiest war in United States history, the Fenians...actually won. The Battle of Ridgeway has its own Wikipedia article, and according to it it’s “the only armed victory for the cause of Irish independence between the Irish Rebellion of 1798 and the Irish War of Independence in 1919,” which kind of sucks, considering it was fought by a rag-tag bunch of idiots.

The Fenians went back to Fort Erie and some more fighting occurred, but none of that’s as interesting as the fact that a Canadian officer, Lt. Col. John Dennis -- yes, all three people I’ve introduced so far have been named John -- apparently deserted his men, fled to a house, stripped off his uniform, and shaved his “luxurious sideburn whiskers,” which is just the sort of bonkers shit you love to see in an account of a military action. Also, 2nd Lieutenant Angus MacDonald, boy detective, was there.

It’s fitting that Fort Erie was then known as Waterloo, because that’s where it all fell apart for our heroes. The British were coming, and Colonel O’Neill was, I’m sure, no quitter, but he was one to bravely run away to fight another day. The Fenians retreated back to New York State and surrendered to the U.S. Navy.

The U.S. government began to crack down on wayward Irish rebels, and President Johnson went so far as to issue a proclamation, for all the good it would do. Because of these crackdowns and the ensuing arrests of many Fenian leaders, the planned raids into Canada East (now Québec) were thwarted.

In 1870 and ‘71, the Fenians returned to their old mischief and began raiding Québec and Manitoba, but they just didn’t have the same magic as the first raids. This time ‘round, the Fenian Brotherhood had been infiltrated by British and Canadian spies, which made it near-impossible to execute any plans. Our old friend John O’Neill was arrested by a U.S. Marshal in 1870 after the Battle of Trout River (which involved the 69th [nice] Regiment of Foot [not so nice]), but he and other Fenians were pardoned by President Grant.

And so ends this tale, lost to time. Oh, but also, Kate Beaton did a comic on it.

[pinturasdeguerra]

1862 Bull Run - Irish Brigade  - Rick Reeves

At the Battle of First Manassas on July 21st, 1861, Captain Thomas Francis Meagher of the 69th New York State Militia had his horse shot from under him by an artillery projectile. Meagher, that day acting as major for the regiment, sprang to his feet and shouted, “Boys! look at that flag–remember Ireland and Fontenoy.” Meagher is shown with his sword in his hand just to the right of the flags. courtesy

[obtener2]

Father Thomas H. Mooney, Chaplain of the 69th Infantry Regiment of the New York State Militia and Irish American soldiers at a Catholic Mass at Fort Cocoran, Arlington Heights, Virginia on June 1, 1861.

An Imperfect Union Amazon http://goo.gl/xxZdDe B&N http://goo.gl/vIw8GO Kobo https://goo.gl/CKDSxE iBooks https://goo.gl/k5nrsM Google: https://goo.gl/cMS0y2 Smashwords: https://goo.gl/DZxBvF

April 20, 1861, the 69th Infantry Regiment of the New York State Militia, strength: 1,050 men, was ordered to proceed to Washington, D..C.; it left the State April 23, 1861, and May 9, 1861, under the command of Col. Michael Corcoran, it was mustered in the service of the United States for three months; it served at and near Annapolis, Md., from April 27, 1861; at and near Washington and in the 3d Brigade, 1st Division, Army North-East Virginia from May, 1861; it was mustered out in New York city, August 3, 1861. [Source: New York State Military Museum https://dmna.ny.gov/historic/reghist/civil/infantry/69thNYSM/69thInfNYSMMain.htm ]

[aiiaiiiyo]

Sunday morning Mass presided over by Father Thomas H. Mooney, Chaplain of the 69th Infantry Regiment, New York State Militia, at Fort Corcoran, Arlington Heights, June 1861 (840 x 496) Check this blog!

[newingtonnow]

The Wearing of the Green: 19th-century Prints of Irish Subjects by Hartford’s Kellogg Brothers

By Nancy Finlay for Your Public Media

A huge influx of Irish immigrants arrived in Connecticut during the second quarter of the 19th century, driven by political unrest and economic hardship.  Most of them were Roman Catholics and many of them found work as laborers.  While anti-Irish sentiment was widespread, Hartford’s Kellogg brothers, publishers of thousands of brightly colored popular prints, viewed these new Americans as potential customers.

“St. Patrick, the Apostle of Ireland” is one of a large number of prints with Catholic subject matter issued by these New England Protestants.  While St. Patrick was especially calculated to appeal to an Irish audience, it’s likely that many of the purchasers of other overtly Catholic subjects, such as the Stations of the Cross and the Sacred Heart of Jesus, were also mostly recent Irish immigrants.

Prints of Irish War Heroes and Political Slogans Target New Market

“The Battle of Bull’s Run,” one of the Kelloggs’ numerous Civil War subjects, depicts the heroic Colonel Michael Corcoran leading “the gallant 69th” in a charge on the Rebel batteries.  Corcoran was born in County Sligo and immigrated to New York as a young man.  The 69th regiment of the New York State Militia, which he led, was entirely made up of Irish immigrants, who charged into battle screaming their Gaelic war cry “Faugh A Ballagh!” (“Clear the Way!”).  Corcoran was one of the founding members of the Fenian brotherhood, a group of Irish nationalists who violently opposed British rule in Ireland.  While “St. Patrick” and “The Battle of Bull’s Run” may have appealed to other customers, no one but a staunch Irish patriot would have been likely to buy a radical political print like “The Fenian Banner” with its slogans “Erin Go Bragh” and “Justice for Ireland”.

The Battle of Bull’s Run, Va. July 21, 1861. Hand-colored lithograph by E.B. & E.C. Kellogg, 1861 – Connecticut Historical Society

The imagery of “The Wearing of the Green” is less overt: an attractive young woman in a wild landscape, probably meant to evoke the hills of Ireland. Nineteenth-century Irish-Americans would have known the words of the popular song of this title and recognized this print as yet another protest against British rule.

The staunchly Protestant Kelloggs certainly did not share these sentiments, but they knew what sorts of subjects would sell.  Rather than producing anti-Irish propaganda, as many of their contemporaries did, they chose instead to produce inexpensive prints that Irish immigrants could use to decorate their new homes in America.

Nancy Finlay, formerly Curator of Graphics at the Connecticut Historical Society, is the editor of Picturing Victorian America: Prints by the Kellogg Brothers of Hartford, Connecticut, 1830-1880.

© Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network and Connecticut Historical Society. All rights reserved. This article originally appeared on Your Public Media

from Connecticut History | a CTHumanities Project https://connecticuthistory.org/the-wearing-of-the-green-19th-century-prints-of-irish-subjects-by-hartfords-kellogg-brothers/

[political-affairs]

Times Square New York

 Times Square is a major commercial intersection and a neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, at the junction of Broadway (now converted into a pedestrian plaza) and Seventh Avenue and stretching from West 42nd to West 47th Streets. Times Square – iconified as "The Crossroads of the World",[1][2][3][4][5] "The Center of the Universe",[6][7][8] and the "The Great White Way"[9][10][11] – is the brightly illuminated hub of the Broadway Theater District,[12] one of the world's busiest pedestrian intersections,[13] and a major center of the world's entertainment industry.[14] According to Travel + Leisure magazine's October 2011 survey, Times Square is the world's most visited tourist attraction, hosting over 39 million visitors annually.[15] Approximately 300,000 people pass through Times Square daily.[16]

Formerly Longacre Square, Times Square was renamed in April 1904 after The New York Times moved its headquarters to the newly erected Times Building – now called One Times Square – site of the annual ball drop on New Year's Eve.[17]

The northern triangle of Times Square is technically Duffy Square, dedicated in 1937 to Chaplain Francis P. Duffy of New York City's "Fighting 69th" Infantry Regiment; a memorial to Duffy is located there, along with a statue of George M. Cohan, and the TKTS discount theater tickets booth. The stepped red roof of the TKTS booth also provides seating for various events. The Duffy Statue and the square were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.[18]

 Early history

Before and after the American Revolution, the area belonged to John Morin Scott, a general of the New York militia, in which he served under George Washington. Scott's manor house was at what is currently 43rd Street, surrounded by countryside used for farming and breeding horses. In the first half of the 19th century it became one of the prized possessions of John Jacob Astor, who made a second fortune selling off lots to hotels and other real estate concerns as the city rapidly spread uptown.[19] By 1872 the area had become the center of New York's carriage industry. The area not having previously been named, the city authorities called it Longacre Square after Long Acre in London, where the carriage trade in that city was centered.[20]

[edit] Early 20th century

In 1904, New York Times publisher Adolph S. Ochs moved the newspaper's operations to a new skyscraper on 42nd Street at Longacre Square. Ochs persuaded Mayor George B. McClellan, Jr. to construct a subway station there, and the area was renamed "Times Square" on April 8, 1904. Just three weeks later, the first electrified advertisement appeared on the side of a bank at the corner of 46th Street and Broadway.[21]

The New York Times, according to Nolan, moved to more spacious offices west of the square in 1913. The old Times Building was later named the Allied Chemical Building. Now known simply as One Times Square, it is famed for the Times Square Ball drop on its roof every New Year's Eve.

In 1913, the Lincoln Highway Association, headed by entrepreneur Carl G. Fisher, chose the intersection of 42nd Street and Broadway, at the southeast corner of Times Square, to be the Eastern Terminus of the Lincoln Highway, the first road across the United States, which originally spanned 3,389 miles (5,454 km) coast-to-coast through 13 states to its Western Terminus in Lincoln Park in San Francisco, California.[22][23]

As the growth in New York City continued, Times Square quickly became a cultural hub full of theaters, music halls, and upscale hotels.

Times Square quickly became New York's agora, a place to gather to await great tidings and to celebrate them, whether a World Series or a presidential election

—James Traub, The Devil's Playground: A Century of Pleasure and Profit in Times Square

Celebrities such as Irving Berlin, Fred Astaire, and Charlie Chaplin were closely associated with Times Square in the 1910s and 1920s. During this period, the area was nicknamed The Tenderloin[24] because it was supposedly the most desirable location in Manhattan. However, it was during this period that the area was besieged by crime and corruption, in the form of gambling and prostitution; one case that garnered huge attention was the arrest and subsequent execution of police officer Charles Becker.[25]

The general atmosphere changed with the onset of the Great Depression in the 1930s. Times Square acquired a reputation as a dangerous neighborhood in the following decades. From the 1960s to the early 1990s, the seediness of the area, especially due its go-go bars, sex shops, and adult theaters, became an infamous symbol of the city's decline.[26]

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1861 – The Irish Brigade fights at the First Battle of Bull Run under General Michael Corcoran from Co Sligo.

General Michael Corcoran led the 69th New York Militia, Irish Brigade, into action at the First Battle of Bull Run and was taken prisoner. Corcoran was one of the founders of the Fenian Brotherhood in America. While in jail, Corcoran wrote, “One half of my heart is Erin’s, and the other half is America’s. God bless America, and ever preserve her the asylum of all the oppressed of the earth, is…

[revoltedstates]

[thecivilwartour]

The Seventh Regiment Memorial is located in Central Park at West Drive at 69th Street. This statue is to honor the 58 men who were a part of the 7th Regiment that died defending the Union in the war. The statue shows a soldier who is at rest which his hands on his rifle. The statue was dedicated in 1874 and was supposed to be placed at Warrior’s Gate at Central Park North and Seventh Avenue. This is way up by 110th Street. The Seventh Regiment was a militia that was pretty well known in the state and the country. It was a part of the National Guard. They left to go fight for the Union in 1861. They fought in many different parts of the country during the war like Maryland and Virginia.  I think New Yorkers should care about this memorial because this regiment was such an important part of New York’s role in the war. These men laid down their lives to help fight the Confederacy and defend the Union.  I do wish that it was more visible to the public. At first, I walked by the statue until I realized that it is up on a slight incline. Many people didn’t give the memorial a second glance and I feel like it should be acknowledged better in some way. There should be a little plaque explaining what the Seventh Regiment did and what their role in the war was.

Conservancy, Central Park. "7th Regiment Memorial." The Official Website of Central Park NYC. Accessed December 15, 2018. http://www.centralparknyc.org/things-to-see-and-do/attractions/7th-regiment-memorial.html.

New York National Guard Counterdrug Task Force - Detectors. Accessed December 17, 2018. http://dmna.ny.gov/historic/reghist/civil/infantry/7thInfNYSM/7thInfNYSMMain.htm.

[goldeagleprice]

Unusual Civil War vintage notes

By Mark Hotz

Last month, I brought to you a very interesting American short snorter of World War II vintage, this one belonging to none other than John A. Roosevelt, youngest son of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, who served as a naval officer in the Pacific toward the end of the war. This month we will look at the Civil War.

This $1 bank note issued by the Girard Bank of Philadelphia (later the Girard National Bank) was found on the body of a dead Federal colonel at the Battle of Seven Pines, Va., in 1862.

Here is the back of the Girard Bank $1 note, with the inscription by Pvt. J.G. Stewart of the Confederate Mobile Cadets regiment.

Inscribed currency from the Civil War is rather hard to find, notwithstanding the occasional Confederate piece with someone’s attempted forgery of Robert E. Lee’s signature scrawled upon it. I have in my collection several unusual items of Civil War vintage. The first that I will present to you is a $1 bank note of the Girard Bank of Philadelphia, dated Jan. 9, 1862. Inscribed in bold pen on the back is the following:

“This Note was given / to Mrs. Celia Coe / By J. G. Stewart of / the Mobile Cadets/ He took it out of / a Federal Cols. / Pocket on the Battle / field of the Seven / Pines the first Battle / he was ever in / given to her at / Winchester Virginia / October 21st 1862.”

I am sure many of you can see how this item certainly piqued my interest, and my excitement was palpable when I obtained it. I initiated an Internet search in an effort to find out more about J.G. Stewart and the mysterious Mobile Cadets. After a short but determined inquiry, I found some information that really brought the item to life.

The Mobile Cadets were none other than Company A, 3rd Alabama Infantry Regiment. The Mobile Cadets consisted of volunteers from Mobile County, Ala., and was the very first company to volunteer to serve the Confederacy. The 3rd Alabama was the first regiment from that state to offer its services to the Confederate cause and the first to be sent to Virginia for mustering duties. Jones M. Withers was elected its first colonel.

The 3rd Alabama had been held in reserve in Norfolk for almost a year without seeing any action. Its “baptism of fire” came on June 1, 1862, at the battle known as Seven Pines to the Confederates and Fair Oaks to the Federals. This battle was part of the great Peninsula Campaign in which the Union Army, under the command of Gen. George McClellan, came within 10 miles of Richmond but failed to capture it.

This photo shows Battery B of the 1st New York Light Artillery at the Battle of Seven Pines.

This vintage postcard shows the entrance to the Civil War cemetery at Seven Pines.

The 3rd Alabama, with the Mobile Cadets as Company A, was held in reserve the first day of the of the battle (May 31, 1862), but was thrown into the fight and badly cut up on June 1, losing 38 killed in action and 122 wounded. Two weeks later, the regiment was made part of General Daniel Hills’ Division and took part in battles before Richmond. When the Confederates advanced across the Potomac in September, the 3rd Alabama was the first Confederate regiment to plant the Stars and Bars flag in Maryland. It was engaged in heavy fighting at Boonsboro and Antietam before retreating with the rest of the army into the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia.

On one website, I was able to find a roster roll of the 3rd Alabama Infantry Regiment. All of the men were listed alphabetically, with their company and rank. Eagerly and with anticipation, I scrolled down to “S.” Stewart had been in Company A, the Mobile Cadets. He had enlisted as a private and ended his service as a sergeant. There was no indication of whether he had been wounded or killed.

It was very exciting to be able to make this currency-related relic come alive. At least now I knew something about Pvt. Stewart and his unit. I do not know his relationship to Mrs. Celia Coe, but I can surmise from the date inscribed that the regiment had been regrouping in Winchester after the Battle of Antietam. Perhaps Stewart had been billeted in Mrs. Coe’s home?

I have yet to determine the identity of the officer from whose pocket the note was taken, but how many colonels of Philadelphia units could have fallen at Seven Pines? If any readers can offer any further assistance here, I would be grateful.

This 10-cent currency note issued by the Corporation of Winchester, Va., in 1861 was taken from Colonel Robert F. Baldwin, commander of the 31s Regiment of Virginia Infantry, when he was captured at the Battle of Bloomery Gap, Feb. 14, 1862.

The back of the Corporation of Winchester note with the inscription indicating that note was taken from Col. Baldwin on his capture. The Federal forces referred to the battle as Blooming Gap at the time, though the real location was Bloomery Gap.

The next item I’ll present to you I was very fortunate to find just in the last month. While visiting an out-of-state coin shop, I came across a Corporation of Winchester, Virginia, 10-cent note issued Oct. 4, 1861. This in itself is not a rare note and can generally be found on the market for a very reasonable price. However, when I turned it over, I found a most interesting pen inscription, which resulted in my adding this note to my collection. It read as follows:

“This was found upon the person of Col. Baldwin, on his being made prisoner at Blooming Gap.”

Above the ink inscription, in a far less sophisticated hand, and in pencil, was scrawled “Col. Baldwin Blooming Gap.” This looked all very intriguing to me, and though I had never heard of Blooming Gap, I thought it was worth researching.

Here is what I learned. It turned out that what the Federals called Blooming Gap was actually known as Bloomery Gap, and a battle took place there on Feb. 14, 1862. Early in 1862, Confederate raids and attacks put Hampshire County, Va. (now West Virginia) and much of the surrounding area under nominal Southern control. The Baltimore and Ohio Railroad and nearby telegraph wires were severed, impeding Federal troop movements.

A militia brigade under Col. Jacob Sencendiver, 67th Virginia Militia, occupied Bloomery Gap to threaten the railroad and Union-occupied territory near the Potomac River. To drive them out, Union Gen. Frederick W. Lander led a mixed force of infantry and cavalry south from Paw Paw, Morgan County, on the afternoon of Feb. 13. He intended to strike Sencendiver’s position at dawn the next morning, but bad weather and high water delayed him long enough for the Confederate pickets to give warning.

Sencendiver hastily ordered the wagons packed and sent east while posting the 31st Virginia Infantry to block Lander’s advance. Lander led the charge of part of the 1st West Virginia Cavalry (Union), overrunning and scattering the Virginians and capturing many officers and men, as well as the wagon train. Sencendiver rallied the 67th and 78th Regiments, however, and recaptured the wagons. The Federals returned to Paw Paw while the Confederates marched to Pughtown, leaving the railroad and telegraph lines open for the day. Sencendiver soon reoccupied the gap.

This lithograph of a Federal Cavalry charge, ostensibly at Bloomery Gap, was published in ‘Harper’s Weekly’ in February 1862.

The battle routed the Confederates, who lost 13 killed and 65 captured. Among the officers captured was none other than Col. Robert F. Baldwin, commander of the 31st Virginia Infantry regiment. Baldwin and his staff were surprised by the Federal cavalry, and Baldwin surrendered to Gen. Lander personally. A report submitted by Sencendiver to the Headquarters of the 16th Brigade, Virginia Militia, on Feb. 17, included a reference to Col. Baldwin:

“Our advanced pickets came in about daylight and reported the enemy advancing upon us in large force. I gave orders to have the baggage packed immediately and the men prepared to meet the enemy and repulse him if possible. The Thirty-first Regiment, Colonel Baldwin, being quartered nearer the point from where the enemy was advancing than the balance of the command, rushed hurriedly to meet him…Our loss, I regret to say, is over 50 officers and privates missing. Annexed is a list of officers captured: Col. R. F. Baldwin, Thirty-first Regiment; Capts. William Baird, acting assistant adjutant-general, and G. M. Stewart, Eighty-ninth Regiment…”

Baldwin was eventually sent as a prisoner to Fort Warren, located in Boston Harbor. On May 16, 1862, Brig. General Lorenzo Thomas, Adjutant General of the Union Army, sent the following message to Col. J. Dimmick, commander at Fort Warren: “SIR: You are authorized and directed to transfer Colonel R.F. Baldwin, Thirty-first Virginia Regiment, now in your custody, to Gen. Wool at Fortress Monroe, to be held by him for exchange of Colonel Corcoran, now a prisoner at Richmond.”

At the same time, Thomas wrote to Maj. Gen. John E. Wool, commander of Fortress Monroe to that effect, adding “…Upon his (Baldwin’s) arrival at Fortress Monroe, you will notify the rebel officer nearest to you that he is there to be exchanged for Colonel Corcoran, now a prisoner in Richmond, and upon the arrival of the latter at Fortress Monroe, you are authorized to release Colonel Baldwin.”

Col. Corcoran was the commander of the 69th New York Infantry Regiment who had been captured at First Bull Run. I have not been able to trace Baldwin after the point of his exchange, which took place in August. The 10-cent note that I acquired was obviously taken from the colonel’s possessions. The penciled inscription was probably made at the time by the soldier who was responsible for searching the colonel. Later, the pen inscription was added. But what an interesting story it is. The Battle of Bloomery Gap was a small one-day affair, and this note may well be the sole remaining souvenir of that fight.

This photo shows the Battle of Bloomery Gap historical marker, located on WV State Route 172 in front of the Bloomery Gap Presbyterian Church.

Today, the Battle of Bloomery Gap is largely forgotten, with just a historical marker placed in front of the Bloomery Gap Presbyterian Church on West Virginia Route 127 in Bloomery, located just across the line from Virginia, about 20 miles northwest of Winchester. I have included a photo.

Readers may address questions or comments about this article to Mark Hotz directly by email at markbhotz@aol.com.

  This article was originally printed in Bank Note Reporter. >> Subscribe today.

  More Collecting Resources

• Order the Standard Catalog of World Paper Money, General Issues to learn about circulating paper money from 14th century China to the mid 20th century.

• Any coin collector can tell you that a close look is necessary for accurate grading. Check out this USB microscope today!

The post Unusual Civil War vintage notes appeared first on Numismatic News.

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1877 – Death of Gaelic scholar, John O’Mahony, founding member of the Fenian Brotherhood in the United States, sister organisation to the Irish Republican Brotherhood.

THE FENIAN MOVEMENT – The Fenians wanted one simple desire for Ireland – Independence from British rule. The Great Hunger had a massive impact on Ireland. Many in Ireland believed that the government in London, to solve the ‘Irish Problem’, had deliberately did as little as possible to aid the people of Ireland – in fact committed genocide (exporting goods by armed guard out of the country) –…

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1862 – The Irish Brigade suffered over 60% casualties at the Battle of Antietam at an area that came to be known as Bloody Lane.

#OTD in 1862 – The Irish Brigade suffered over 60% casualties at the Battle of Antietam at an area that came to be known as Bloody Lane.

At the Battle of Antietam, the Irish Brigade led its division in attacking the infamous Bloody Lane. In preparation for the deadly work ahead, Father William Corby, one of the brigade’s chaplains and future president of Notre Dame, rode down the firing line and administered a general rite of absolution to the men. Thomas Meagher advanced to the crest of a hill overlooking a brigade of North…

[stairnaheireann]

#OTD in 1861 – The Irish Brigade fights at the First Battle of Bull Run under General Michael Corcoran from Co Sligo.

#OTD in 1861 – The Irish Brigade fights at the First Battle of Bull Run under General Michael Corcoran from Co Sligo.

General Michael Corcoran led the 69th New York Militia, Irish Brigade, into action at the First Battle of Bull Run and was taken prisoner. Corcoran was one of the founders of the Fenian Brotherhood in America. While in jail, Corcoran wrote, “One half of my heart is Erin’s, and the other half is America’s. God bless America, and ever preserve her the asylum of all the oppressed of the earth, is…