The 111th NY Volunteers from Scipio NY Who Died

I have found a lot of information on Scipio residents in the Civil War. Each source seems to have something new and different. IN the three resources below, I found a dozen men listed as killed in action or died during the Civil War due to their wounds or disease.

The official roster of the 111th has the following information on Scipio soldiers who were killed in action or died during the Civil War due to their wounds or disease:

HOXIE, ALLEN E — Age, 21 years. Enlisted, July 20, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; mustered in as sergeant, Co. I, August 20, 1862; killed in action, June 16, 1864, at Petersburg, Pa.

KEARNE, JAMES K.—Age, 44 years. Enlisted at Scipio, to serve three years, and mustered in as private, Co. G, August 31, 1864; died, February 22, 1865, in Division Hospital, near Petersburg, Va. ; also borne as Kern and Kerne.

OSBORN, GEORGE L—Age , 20 years. Enlisted, July 23, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; mustered in as private, Co. K , August 20, 1862; died, October 17, 1862, at Chicago, IL.

PHELPS , WEED.—Age, 18 years. Enlisted, July 21, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; mustered in as private, Co. K, August 20, 1862; died, October 18, 1862, at Chicago, IL.

PLATT, EBENEZER—Age , 23 years. Enlisted, July 23, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; mustered in as private, Co. K, August 20, 1862; killed in action, October 14, 1863, at Bristow Station, Va.

WIBERT, WALTE R M.—Age , 18 years. Enlisted at Scipio, to serve three years, and mustered in as private, Co. I , January 4, 1864 ; killed in action, Ma y 10, 1864, at Po River, Va .

WILDER, GEORG E H.—Age, 2 1 years. Enlisted, August 5, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; mustered in as private, Co. I, August 20, 1862 ; wounded, no date; died of his wounds. May 16, 1864, at Washington, D. C.

From the 1865 Census for Scipio the following soldiers of the 111th also died during the war:

DAVID ROSS, age 22, Private, died June 16, 1864 near Petersburg.

HENRY L. WOD, 19, Private, died in December 1864 near Annapolis.

JESTINE JONES, 18, Private, died but no details are given.

Records from that infamous prison, Andersonville, tell us this about these two soldiers from the 111th:

GLENN ANDREWS, Private, died May 26, 1864 of chronic diarrhea.

ALBERT ROBINSON, Private, died September 2, 1864 of diarrhea.

If you read my post of July 4, 2015, you noticed the mention of a Scipio man in the Civil War nurse book under discussion. Allen Hoxie and his family have deep roots in our community and I was sad to hear of the manner of his death. The roster for the 111th NY Volunteers gave a few details as follows:

HOXIE, ALLEN E — Age, 21 years. Enlisted, July 20, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; mustered in as sergeant, Co. I, August 20, 1862; killed in action, June 16, 1864, at Petersburg, Pa.

Additionally I located some information on line that gave a window into some of what Hoxie did and felt. He visited in Scipio in November of 1863, and in January of 1864 was convalescing from wounds at the Carver Hospital in Washington, DC. Among other activities, his diary tells of visiting Emily Howland who was at that time in the Washington DC area caring for "contrabands" or escaped slaves. He returned to battle in February of that year.

Information from Hoxie's diary is contained at the Cornell Rare and Manuscript Collection (rmc.library.cornell.edu), within the Howland papers. Following are a few excerpts:

"Wednesday February 24th 

"Left this morning for the Rendezvous Camp in Alexandria, Virginia. Got there about eleven o'clock. Still very pleasant but looks like rain. Shall have to stay ten days I reckon. Quite a pleasant place. Attended temperance meeting - Signed the temperance pledge and became a member of the Temperance Union."

" Wednesday March 2nd 

Left distribution Camp this morning for the 111th. Marched to Alexandria Took the cars (train-sg) for Brandy Station. Went out in a train-load of hay."

"Friday March 4th 

On picket near the Rapidan. Nothing seen on the line. Towards night I heard Kilpatrick had entered Richmond."

Allan's last letter home is also in the Cornell collection. Some of it is as follows:

"I enlisted voluntarily. Nobody's influence, nobody's money induced me, just because I felt it was my duty, and could no more help it than I could help getting hungry. It is but little I can do at best, even to give my life would not be much, and would be and is given more than willingly, glad of the opportunity."

In June, Commander Mac Dougall officially notified Allan Hoxie's uncle, George Letchworth, of his demise.
 George Peckham, a fellow soldier and likely someone Hoxie knew from home, wrote to Hoxie's mother to personally inform her as well. He assures her that her son's grave is marked so it can be found again.He also tells her that 2 months ago they left camp with 45 men and only 9 are left; the rest dead, wounded or prisoners of war. 

This is just one soldier's story; during the Civil War, there were thousands like it. I will continue to add information specific to Scipio and the 111th NY Volunteers, so check back soon.

Roswell Towsley and His Plow

Farming was probably the most important occupation of early Scipio residents, as it continues to be today. Farming sustained the family, and brought income with which to continue to improve their lives. This is nowhere as evident as when looking at the patents granted in Cayuga County in her earlier years. Other occupations became necessary to assist with farming, and inventions to make things work better and more efficiently for all this industry were sought after.

The following is extracted from the booklet titled “From The Inventors and Inventions of Cayuga County” as read before the Cayuga County Historical Society at Auburn, NY, on September 21, 1880 by Cyrenus Wheeler:

From 1790-1836, 474 patents were granted in Cayuga County. Many you may not recognize as they are not items in use today: 10 for plows, 8 for threshing machines, 5 for stave sawing and joining, 2 for spinning wheels, 3 for washing machines, and one each for a churn, harrow, millstone, mortising machine, hand rake, potash, pump raising water, saddle, bedstead, fanning mill, fence wire, knife sharpener, furnace, shears, cordage, manufacturing harness, and, last but not least, manufacturing brandy from domestic articles.

The earliest patent was granted on January 11, 1812 to Roswell Towsley of Scipio for a plow. Due to a fire at the Patent Office in 1836, which destroyed their records, no one knows the exact nature of Towsley’s invention but it does precede that of Jethro Wood.

Towsley was a blacksmith by trade, and came to Scipio to live near the present day town of Aurora in 1806. He had previously lived in Manlius, of Onondaga County. An enterprising man, Towsley also ran a tannery, shoe shop and furnace.

In 1817, Towsley built the first steam flouring mill west of the Hudson River at Aurora. 

Unfortunately, the mill was in operation only about one year when Towsley became deranged. He was sent to the “Lunatic Asylum” in New York City, where he died a lonely and broken man in 1820.

Cornelia Hancock, Quaker and Civil War Nurse

I have just finished reading "Letters of a Civil War Nurse" by Cornelia Hancock, 1863-1865. Cornelia was a single Quaker woman born in 1840 near Salem, NJ. She was turned down for nursing by Dorothea Dix who thought she was too young and attractive to nurse effectively. Nothing daunted, Cornelia simply hopped on the train to Gettysburg and served as a nurse until the close of the Civil War.
Her account of battles and particularly the aftermaths as she nursed the sick, wounded, and dying soldiers, often in temporary shelter  and often short of supplies and food is forthright and factual in nature. She mentions many soldiers, nurses and doctors by name throughout, as she writes to her family. A clear picture of camp politics emerges and Hancock's positive outlook is seen to wear down as the war nears its bittersweet end.

Imagine my surprise to find that the book mentions a Scipio soldier on page 139.

I have recently been reviewing the roster of the 111th NY Volunteers, particularly the Scipio men.  Quaker Allen Hoxie enlisted July 20, 1862, at Scipio, to serve three years; he was mustered in to Company I as sergeant August 20, 1862; the official roster shows he was killed in action on June 16, 1864, at Petersburg, PA. Cornelia Hancock was at that time stationed at City Point, VA. City Point, at the juncture of the James and Appomattox Rivers, was headquarters to the Union Army during the siege of Petersburg.
On page 139 of the book, Hancock has a short paragraph which reads:
"I am well. Miss Willetts is better, I hear. Allan Hoxie was shot with 5 bullets - is dead."

Hoxie's family received the sorrowful news from George Peckham, a fellow soldier in the 111th. George survived the war, and was buried with his wife  in Indian Mound Cemetery in Moravia, NY. His cousins Job, William and Fred Peckham, all Quakers, also served in the Civil War. Job and William are buried in the Friends Cemetery in Ledyard, NY while Fred and his family are buried in the King Ferry Cemetery.
All felt strongly that the Civil War was just in nature, believing so strongly in abolitionism that it overrode their belief in non-violence.

152 years ago today, the third bloody day of the battle of Gettysburg was being fought. Please take time today to think about all those who died and those who suffered in battle and at home.  This defining battle raged on for 3 days, often of hand-to-hand combat by our ancestors. The Civil War Trust estimates over 51,000 soldiers were killed, wounded, missing in action or captured during this horrific battle.

The 111^th NY Volunteers, recruited primarily from Cayuga and Wayne Counties, showed great valor in their post at Gettysburg while taking heavy losses. Two officers and 59 enlisted men were confirmed dead; of the men who were wounded 24 died while 145 enlistees recovered, along with 8 officers. Another 10 enlisted men were listed as missing after the battle.

The 44^th NY Volunteers, or Ellsworth’s Avengers, saw fierce fighting during Gettysburg and the Civil War in general. Colonel Elmer Ellsworth was reputed to be the first casualty of the Civil War, and the 44^th was raised in Albany as a memorial unit composed of men from each town. Each unmarried and temperate man who applied for consideration also had to provide $20 (about $500 in today's dollars) for the privilege of joining the unit. 

The 44th participated in and acquitted themselves well at many battles during the course of the Civil War, although they often saw heavy losses. Their monument at Little Round Top in Gettsyburg is a final testament to their bravery on the field. 

One local soldier of the 44th was James Benton Hitchcock, who became a member of the Selah Cornwell GAR Post out of Scipio NY after the war, and served as a Town Justice in Scipio for over 20 years. His name appears as Quartermaster Sergeant on the monument at Gettysburg, on Little Round Top. 

At the battle of Malvern Hill, 99 of the 225 soldiers of the 44th engaged in battle were killed or wounded. James Hitchcock was seriously wounded at the Malvern Hill battle, taking one minie ball in his left thigh while another broke his leg just below the knee. Despite these injuries, James managed to carry the unit flag to his commanding officer, after 4 other color bearers had already been killed in action. James earned a commendation and promotion for his valiant efforts. The colors were an important rallying point and guide star for the unit, as well as serving the field commanders by allowing them to see at any given time where their troops stood on the field of battle.

I can only imagine the fortitude and bravery of this man, who had immigrated to America as a teenager with his family and just eleven years later became a soldier in the Union Army during the Civil War. 

Here is a photo of the monument at Little Round Top, Gettysburg, battlefield for the 44th NY as well as a photo of James taken at the time of the Civil War.