Shortly after the 51st North Carolina organized, Company D was sent down the Cape Fear to construct an ironclad battery. The battery was close to Wilmington’s Lazaretto. Eventually, the fortification would be named Fort Strong. Private John D. McGeachy, an aspiring poet, composed the verse below while he was laboring on the battery: [May 18,… Continue reading Ode to an Ironclad Battery: Poetry from the 51st North Carolina
Category: 51st North Carolina
Private John David McGeachy Remembers the War
John David McGeachy, a Robeson County farmer, enlisted in Company D of the 51st North Carolina on April 26, 1862. He served with the regiment until April 1865, when the company disbanded and went home. Among his papers in the David Rubenstein Library at Duke University, are three journals. One, a pocket-sized notebook, contains the… Continue reading Private John David McGeachy Remembers the War
Latest Discovery: The Catherine McGeachy Buie Papers
I recently discovered the Catherine McGeachy Buie Papers online. As usual, my discovery was by accident. The collection is hosted by Duke University on their “Libraries” website. The collection contains scans of hundreds of documents, mostly letters sent to ‘Kate’ McGeachy. As I skimmed through the documents, I found letters written by soldiers in the… Continue reading Latest Discovery: The Catherine McGeachy Buie Papers
The Real Reason Colonel Cantwell Resigned?
When North Carolina seceded from the Union, Wilmington resident John L. Cantwell, a Mexican War veteran, was commanding the 30th North Carolina Militia. Cantwell resigned from the militia and attempted to be elected colonel of two different regiments. He failed both times. Finally, on April 30, 1862, he was elected colonel of the 51st North… Continue reading The Real Reason Colonel Cantwell Resigned?
Company B Casualties from May to October 1864
[Wilmington Journal, November 10, 1864] ON THE LINES NEAR RICHMOND, VA, November 1st, 1864 To the Editors of the Journal: You will confer a great favor to the families and friends by publishing the following list of killed, wounded and prisoners of Co. B, 51st N. C. T.: Sergt Calvin Tucker, died July 12th, 1864,… Continue reading Company B Casualties from May to October 1864
Sarah Ketchum’s Pension Woes
The previous post contains a short biography of Captain David W. Ketchum, Assistant Commissary of the 51st North Carolina. The unexplained gap in his service record between 1863 and the end of the war became a problem for his widow 25 years after his death. This is the story of Sarah Ketchum’s three-year wait to… Continue reading Sarah Ketchum’s Pension Woes
Sorting out the Facts for Captain David Ketchum
Conflicting Sources I recently discovered two Find-A-Grave memorials for David W. Ketchum. The memorials contain conflicting information. Memorial #16296735 lists his date of birth as October 13, 1838, and date of death as April 19, 1893. The memorial has a photo of Ketchum’s tombstone with the birth and death dates inscribed on it. The other… Continue reading Sorting out the Facts for Captain David Ketchum
Company I Casualties from May to September 1864
On May 1, 1864, Company I, 51st Regiment North Carolina Troops, moved from Petersburg to Ivor Station to join the rest of Clingman’s brigade on an expedition to Suffolk. The company had 129 men on its rolls. Six of the men were absent. Over the previous two years, the company had lost only two men… Continue reading Company I Casualties from May to September 1864
William R. Best Letters to “Cousin”
Note: this is the last of the letters I downloaded from the Private Voices website. William Reddin Best was born and raised in Duplin County. On April 16, 1861, at age 19, he enlisted as a private in 1st Company C, 36th Regiment North Carolina Troops. He served in the company for a year before… Continue reading William R. Best Letters to “Cousin”
William H. Strickland Letter to Family
Following is a heavily edited transcript of a letter Private William H. Strickland wrote to his “aunts and uncle” in September 1864, while he was home on furlough. This letter is part of the Sally G. Quinn Papers viewable on the Private Voices website (https://altchive.org/node/281). The original transcript is also available on 51stnct.com HERE. Magnolia… Continue reading William H. Strickland Letter to Family