Boscobel-A Medal of Honor Recipient, a Woman Soldier, and a Reenactment

In 1846, the first settlers began arriving into the area that would become Boscobel, the word being derived from "bosc" for wood and "belle" for beautiful, describing the magnificent grove of oak trees located in the vicinity of what would become the town.  By the 1850's, settlers were purchasing the wild prairie land for 50 cents an acre.

When the Civil War broke out, the small Wisconsin town organized two companies of volunteers in

From Fold3

April, 1861, the first to do so in Grant County.  One of those to heed the call was farm boy Francis Jefferson Coates who enlisted using his middle name in Co. H, 7th Wisconsin Infantry on July 20th, 1861, a month before his 18th birthday. During his service, Coates was promoted from private to corporal on September 17th, 1862, and then to sergeant on March 8th, 1863.   He was wounded twice, once at South Mountain and then at Gettysburg.

On July 1st, 1863, the first day's fighting at Gettysburg, the 7th Wisconsin, part of General John Reynolds' First Corps, was deployed to aid General John Buford's cavalry brigades at McPherson's Ridge.  However, Heth's Confederates were able to drive the Iron Brigade, of which the 7th Wisconsin was a part, from their position with considerable loss.

During the fighting, Coates was struck by a ball on the right side of his face, which caused him to lose both of his eyes.  For his courage, the Wisconsin farm boy received a brevet promotion to captain in addition to the Medal of Honor, which was awarded on June 29th, 1866.  His citation reads:

For extraordinary heroism on 1 July 1863, while serving with Company H, 7th Wisconsin Infantry, in action at Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, for unsurpassed courage in battle, where he had both eyes shot out.

From FindAGrave.com

On September 22nd, 1864, Coates was discharged and returned home to Boscobel where he learned to make brooms for a living.  He married and had 5 children.  In the early 1870's, Coates and his family moved to Dorchester, Nebraska.  There, he died of pneumonia on January 27th, 1880, at the age of 36 and is buried in Dorchester Cemetery in Saline County, Nebraska.  Click (HERE) to visit his memorial page on Find A Grave.

Boscobel erected a monument in his honor on July 1st, 1989, the 125th anniversary of his actions at

Gettysburg.  The stone sits in front of the G.A.R. Hall, a former Baptist church, which was purchased in 1889 to serve as a meeting place for the John McDermott G.A.R Post #101.  Hailing from nearby Fennimore, Captain McDermott of the 20th Wisconsin Infantry was killed at Prairie Grove, Arkansas on December 7th, 1862, while retrieving the flag from a fallen comrade.

Since the death of the last Civil War soldier, the hall has been preserved as a memorial to veterans and continues to serve as a meeting place for the L.G. Armstrong S.U.V camp #49.  Leroy G. Armstrong of Fennimore served in the capacity of surgeon or assistant surgeon for the 6th, 8th, and 48th Wisconsin Infantry units.  After the war, he was instrumental in organizing the John McDermott G.A.R. Post #101.

In the picture, the monument to Coates is clearly visible in front.  Speaking of Coates, I wonder if he was ever aware of Rebecca "Georgianna" Peterman of Ellenboro who served as a drummer and scout in his regiment, the 7th Wisconsin Infantry.  She had a connection with Boscobel as well.  After mustering out and returning home, Peterman decided to reenlist, a feat which proved to be difficult considering how much the press hounded her after learning of her service.   Everywhere she went, people knew of her, Boscobel included.  On March 6th, 1865, the Janesville Daily Gazette, carried a story from the Boscobel Broad Axe detailing Peterman's past service and her current attempt to enroll as a recruit.  Her gender was discovered during the examination.  And, according to the article:

"...she was politely informed that, though Uncle Sam was anxious to get men, women were not wanted in the military service, and if she did not leave town immediately, she would be placed under arrest.  As she did not choose to take this rather strong hint, she was arrested, but finally settled the matter by leaving."

Thank goodness Boscobel is a lot more welcoming today!  Indeed, every time I go back to the town of just over 3,000, I meet more nice folks.  And I am very honored to have been asked to once again give my talk on women soldiers at their annual reenactment called Muskets and Memories.  It will be on Sunday, August 2nd at 11:00 a.m. under the big Event Tent.  This is a fairly large event, drawing about 500 reenactors and over 800 spectators the first weekend in August every year.  My talk went great last year and was well received.  I am hoping for the same this year.

So if you're in the area next weekend, stop by and I will not only tell you more about Peterman, but also share the stories of other women soldiers from Wisconsin.  On top of that, I will talk about the accounts of women who participated in Pickett's charge and Bentonville, the two engagements we'll be recreating over the weekend.

Click (HERE) for the Muskets and Memories website.  (Yes, there is a mistake on it.  But it's supposed to be corrected.)

Prior to the event, on Friday, July 31st from 9-10 a.m. central time, Mark and I will once again be on the WRCO morning show, which is based in Richland Center.  If you are in the area, the station is 1450 AM or 100.9 FM.  Or click (HERE) to listen online.

Sources:
http://genealogytrails.com/wis/grant/history_boscobel.htm
Gettysburg Medal of Honor Recipients by Charles Hanna
http://www.suvcw-wi.org/garhall.html
http://www.suvcw-wi.org/camps/camp49.html

Until next formation.....rest.

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My Talks in Newark, Ohio and Fort Donelson, Tennessee, 7/14 and 7/16/15

Unlike the last time I traveled by train to speak, I actually showed up at the station on the correct day.  Mark picked me up in Illinois and off we went to Newark, Ohio where I would speak at the Licking County Library.  Doug Stout, who is Head of Circulation and Building Service was waiting for us and was wonderful with everything.  I met Doug last year when I saw him post on the Facebook page of Petersburg National Battlefield.  He was putting on a program at his library about the battle and was looking for interesting stories to share.  I responded to him with the account of the woman soldier unearthed at the Crater in 1866,  which I wrote about (HERE).  The next thing I know, we became friends and he invited me to speak at his library!  Of course, I was very honored.

Before Mary Surratt.....

Mary Surratt; from Surratt House Museum

Today marks the 150th anniversary of the hanging of the Lincoln conspirators.  Among the condemned sent into eternity on July 7th, 1865, was Mary Surratt, the first woman executed by the Federal government.  But a little over a year-and-a-half prior, another woman nearly went down into history for that distinction.

Sometime in either October or November, 1863, Jane Ferguson enlisted in the 13th Kentucky Cavalry as John F. Tindsley, the surname being her maiden name.  I have also seen the alias spelled Lindley and Findsley.  Regardless, I have not been able to find service records for her.  Perhaps that is because the day after she "jined the cavalry," she was arrested for alleged espionage.  This was not her first military stint, however.  Prior to enlisting in this Federal unit, Jane and her husband were serving the Confederacy in Captain Oliver P. Hamilton's cavalry company, which was organized in Jackson County, Tennessee "...for the local defense of the border counties lying up the line of Tennessee where the counties and mountains strike the Kentucky line..." (Source:  http://www.tngenweb.org/civilwar/csacav/csahamil.html).  From my research, it does not appear that she was formally enlisted in this company because I have not been able to find service records for her.  Furthermore,  she claimed at trial on November 23rd, 1863, that she stayed "...part of the time in camp, and part of the time at a boarding house."

They Fought in the Mexican War, too!

Even though my blog centers around women who fought during the Civil War, I have occasionally strayed from this focus to highlight women combatants of other conflicts.  See my previous post about female fighters in the American Revolution (HERE)  and, more recently, the women of Waterloo (HERE).  In this post, I am going to discuss the women soldiers who fought in the Mexican War, 1846-1848.

Signed frontpiece of Allen's memoirs; New York Public Library

Eliza Allen Billings wrote about her experiences as "George Mead" in her 1851 autobiography, The Female Volunteer:  Or the Life and Wonderful Adventures of Miss Eliza Allen, A Young Lady of Eastport, Maine.  Eliza fell in love with William Billings who worked for her father, George Allen.  Since the Billings family was poor, he did not approve of the romance and forbade the couple to see each other.  Thinking military service would gain him respect, William enlisted to fight in the Mexican War.  Eliza soon followed him disguised as "George Mead."  Her adventures as a soldier took her to the battlefields of Monterey and  Cerro Gordo where she was wounded but remained undiscovered.  Both mustered out and their adventures continued in the gold fields of California.  Later, Eliza saved William from a shipwreck.  In 1849, both returned to Eastport, Maine having achieved some success in prospecting.  Eliza's parents, relieved to be reunited with their daughter, finally allowed her to marry William.