On June 23, 1864, the Wilmington Journal printed the following heartfelt tribute from “One Who Loved Him” to Private Joel P. Atwood, Company C, 51st Regiment North Carolina Troops: “Young and ardent, impelled by no motive but honor and zeal for the Southern cause, he has fallen, like many other noble spirits of the day,… Continue reading Private Joel P. Atwood: A Brave Boy and a True Patriot
Category: 51st North Carolina
Mary Eliza Mincey, the Fifty-First Regiment’s Last Widow
Private George Mincey enlisted in Company F, 51st Regiment NCT on March 10, 1862. He only served with the regiment for three months before he was discharged for an unspecified reason. In June 1893, George married his second wife, Mary Eliza Floyd, at Galivants Ferry, SC. “Liza” was only 24 when she married the 53-year-old… Continue reading Mary Eliza Mincey, the Fifty-First Regiment’s Last Widow
A Soldier’s Letter from Cold Harbor
The following letter was sent to the Fayetteville Observer by a soldier serving in the 51st North Carolina. The regiment suffered heavy casualties during an engagement with Yankee cavalry on May 31, 1864. The next day, the Fifty-First was almost completely surrounded, and 122 men were captured. McKethan’s boys were placed in reserve and didn’t… Continue reading A Soldier’s Letter from Cold Harbor
What Happened to Samson Hawley?
Sergeant Samson Hawley, Company K, didn’t return from the war. Comrades told his wife, Winiford, that Samson was killed near Malvern Hill (Cold Harbor). In 1885, the North Carolina legislature passed a new law granting widows of Civil War veterans a pension. Winiford applied for her pension right away, but the State put her application… Continue reading What Happened to Samson Hawley?
Feuding in the Officers’ Ranks
Background When the 51st Regiment North Carolina Troops organized on April 30, 1862, John L. Cantwell was elected as commander of the regiment. Along with Colonel Cantwell, the company officers elected William Allen as Lieutenant Colonel and Hector McKethan as Major. Colonel Cantwell only commanded the regiment a few months. On October 10, 1862, while… Continue reading Feuding in the Officers’ Ranks
Introduction (2 of 2)
Part 2: Me and the 51st North Carolina My interest in the 51st Regiment North Carolina Troops began in the 1960’s. My father obtained a copy of his grandfather’s civil war records from the National Archives. I was fascinated by those documents and my long-dead ancestor, Samuel Washington Ward, Company G, 51st North Carolina. My… Continue reading Introduction (2 of 2)
Introduction (1 of 2)
Part 1: What? Not Another Website! Here we go again. I built my first website in 2003. That site was also about the 51st North Carolina (and other things). The site was up from 2003 to 2007. It came crashing down when I got in a payment dispute with iPower hosting, and they released the… Continue reading Introduction (1 of 2)