Family mystery put to rest today

[better dead than red]

My Mamie's (great grand mother's) grand daddy lived in Virginia (they'd been there since the Jamestown Colony) when the War Between the States/Civil War (nothing civil about war, especially that one). He enlisted when war broke out.

When the war was over he never came home. Was he dead? Nobody knew. 20 years ago my grandmother's cousin solved the mystery. Robert was captured by Yankee soldiers near Petersburg, VA in 1864. He was sent to Point Lookout, MD then to "Hellmira" in Elmira, NY.

Robert became sick and died the day after Christmas, 1864. Basically, unknown and forgotten but for the kindness for a runaway slave

I took these photos today. My mum says she is unaware of any family ever coming to visit his grave. It took 150+ years for family to visit. I might be the last to ever see him.

Weird thread, I know, but Robert has suffered in life and been alone in death. He did his duty. His enemy buried him honorably, and his direct descendant finally found him.

Rest in Peace, Granddaddy.

I'd love to post a photo of his headstone and a photo of the memorial dedicated to the runaway slave that buried these warriors because he was a kind man. Don't know how though.

 

[manchester blue]

Save your picture on a hosting site such as postimage.org (free and no account) and then it will offer you the image URL for forums. When posting here put that URLin the 5th little box to the right at the top of the window you type your message in and it will post..

Nice story.

 

[better dead than red]

Save your picture on a hosting site such as postimage.org (free and no account) and then it will offer you the image URL for forums. When posting here put that URLin the 5th little box to the right at the top of the window you type your message in and it will post..

Nice story.

Thank you, Blue. I'll give it a try. For whatever reason I'm very emotional about this. I guess I don't feel anyone should be forgotten in life or in death.

 

[manchester blue]

I agree. My aunt died recently at a good old age and I found details of where her, and my, relatives' graves are in Phillips Park just a stones throw from The Etihad. I found one of the two graves and went off looking for the other with the numbers which were all quite random. Thirty minutes later I end up at the same place. The graves shared the same stone and we're back to back!! Really interesting seeing the family history there back to 1800s.

 

[better dead than red]

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[ob]

Great story OP

My great uncle was wounded twice at Gallipoli in 1915 , taken to hospital in Malta and returned to fight at Dardanelles where he was wounded in shoulder by shrapnel and had to discharged from the army. Not content at home he sneaked back over to France and worked on the railways helping the war effort. I have recently found out he is buried in a cemetery in Dundee and have found the plot number, I hope to attend his grave in the near future and believe I will be the first member of the family to do so

 

[rushts]

Brilliant story's guys :-)

 

[andyhinch]

Great storey thanks for sharing it blue

 

[DennisTueart11]

Thank you, Blue. I'll give it a try. For whatever reason I'm very emotional about this. I guess I don't feel anyone should be forgotten in life or in death.

I can understand the emotion. A few years ago I found information that two great great uncles of mine had died in the Great War, at Thiepval & Ypres. To this day when I look at the information I feel an immense pride but get very teary reading it.

 

[Sam Armstrong]

Some fascinating stories and amazing what you can find about your ancestors.

I have done a little delving into my own and although I can't comment on anyone in the family's wartime heroism I was quite surprised to find that, despite believing all my maternal family were from the Manchester/Pendleton & Beswick areas, that back in 1791 my Great Great Great Great Grandmother was born yards from where I now live here in the small village of Winwick, Warrington.

Feels like we've gone full circle!! Spooky.