Each of us has eight great-great-grandfathers. Of my eight, I know the names of six. Three of those resided in the United States at the time of the Civil War. One, John Dotts, was born in 1802, and was thus was too old to have served. The remaining two, John George Molz Sr. of New York City and Isaac Reed from the South Jersey Pine Barrens enlisted. Both were hospitalized during their service (for every three soldiers who died in battle, five more passed from disease), and both are likely interred in the Fredericksburg (Virginia) National Cemetery.
John Molz arrived from Baden-Württemberg as early as 1850 but certainly by 1854. In July of that year, at the age of approximately 22, he married Sophia Catharina Gampper at the Evangelical Lutheran Church at 108 West 24th Street in New York City (now the site of a Hampton Inn).
John worked as a tailor, and three children were born in short order – Ernstine Christine “Deana” in 1856, John George Jr. (my mother’s grandfather) in 1858, and Carolina in 1860. The family lived variously in New York and Philadelphia.
Change came on the 11th of September, 1861, when John enlisted in Company E, 45th Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry at the age of 29. This regiment was also known as the 5th German Rifles and was composed almost entirely of German immigrants. Military records say John was a small man – 5 feet 5 inches in height with a dark complexion, blue eyes, and light hair. We don’t know whether he was motivated by the Union’s cause, or perhaps his young family needed a soldier’s salary plus any enlistment bonus being offered.
While the records are sketchy, the Muster Rolls from 28 October 1861 and 1 January 1862 show him as neither present nor absent. On 8 May 1862 (from the Muster Roll for March and April), he was present. However, the Muster Roll for May and June lists him as absent – sick in the hospital in Winchester, Virginia. On 24 June 1862, the records list John as having deserted at Mount Jackson, Virginia.
Desertion was not uncommon during the Civil War. There was no process for taking leave, and John had been ill. Because his fourth child, Susanna, was born in June 1863, John must have returned to his family.
Nearly a year and one half after deserting, perhaps upon his full recovery, John enrolled in Company K, 98th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteers as a veteran on 23 Dec. 1863. He enlisted in the field at Brandy Station, Virginia. There may have been a sign-up bonus for re-enlistment.
About four months later on the 5th of May, 1864, John George Molz was killed in the Overland Campaign in the Battle of the Wilderness in Virginia – just 16 miles south from his point of re-enlistment. After the war, the military attempted to remove bodies from the battlefield to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery, though John’s earthly remains may lie in the dense underbrush at Wilderness.
John’s widow, Sophia (Gampper) Molz, married twice more and had three more children. She received a pension for herself until she remarried and for her children with John George Molz until they had grown. Sophia passed in 1920 and is interred in the Presbyterian Grounds in Bridesburg, Philadelphia.
Isaac Reed was 17 years old at the time of the 1850 Census, meaning he was born between September 1832 and September 1833. At that time, he was living in the home of his parents, Eden Reed and Rachael Ford in Burlington County, New Jersey. Some of Isaac’s ancestors were on this continent before the Revolutionary War and were among the first to populate the wilds of New Jersey.
Isaac married Mary Jane Coleman in Washington Township, Burlington County on the first of March 1855. Mary Jane was born 15 Oct 1839, being 15 years old at the time of her marriage. Their first child, Richard Reed, was born in August 1855, just five months later. A second son, Reuben, was born in April 1858. Their daughter Sarah Jane (my father’s grandmother) was the last. the records are unclear on her birth date – October 1860 or November 1861.
Isaac Reed joined the 23rd Regiment of the New Jersey Infantry on 13 Sep 1862. Many of his Reed cousins – Alfred, Benjamin, Daniel, Eden, John, and Joseph – also enlisted on that day in Beverly, New Jersey, for a term of nine months. Nicknamed the “Yahoos,” the 23rd’s first engagement was the Battle of Fredericksburg from 11 to 15 Dec 1862. However, it is not known whether Isaac fought in that battle. He may have already been suffering with the Typhoid Fever from which he passed on 2 Jan 1863.
Isaac was buried at the White Oak Church in Falmouth, Virginia. The church served as a Union hospital (see map above). The sign above its door in the photo below reads "United States Christian Commission." According to military records, all remains at White Oak Church were moved to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery after the war.
In March 1863, Isaac’s widow, Mary Jane (Coleman) Reed applied for pensions for his children at the young age 23. She remarried in September of the same year to a man named Henry Parker and had four more children with him. Mary Jane passed in 1902 and is interred with her second husband at the Reevestown Cemetery in Barnegat, New Jersey.
While the remains of John George Molz and Isaac Reed are both believed to be in the Fredericksburg National Cemetery, their graves and most others are unmarked. The United States first issued identification tags or “dog tags” in 1906. During the Civil War, some soldiers pinned paper notes with their name and home address inside the backs of their coats or scratched their name into the back of their belt buckles. This proved inadequate for many reasons including that clothing of the deceased was often reused by the undersupplied army.
John Molz arrived from Baden-Württemberg as early as 1850 but certainly by 1854. In July of that year, at the age of approximately 22, he married Sophia Catharina Gampper at the Evangelical Lutheran Church at 108 West 24th Street in New York City (now the site of a Hampton Inn).
John worked as a tailor, and three children were born in short order – Ernstine Christine “Deana” in 1856, John George Jr. (my mother’s grandfather) in 1858, and Carolina in 1860. The family lived variously in New York and Philadelphia.
Change came on the 11th of September, 1861, when John enlisted in Company E, 45th Regiment, New York Volunteer Infantry at the age of 29. This regiment was also known as the 5th German Rifles and was composed almost entirely of German immigrants. Military records say John was a small man – 5 feet 5 inches in height with a dark complexion, blue eyes, and light hair. We don’t know whether he was motivated by the Union’s cause, or perhaps his young family needed a soldier’s salary plus any enlistment bonus being offered.
While the records are sketchy, the Muster Rolls from 28 October 1861 and 1 January 1862 show him as neither present nor absent. On 8 May 1862 (from the Muster Roll for March and April), he was present. However, the Muster Roll for May and June lists him as absent – sick in the hospital in Winchester, Virginia. On 24 June 1862, the records list John as having deserted at Mount Jackson, Virginia.
Desertion was not uncommon during the Civil War. There was no process for taking leave, and John had been ill. Because his fourth child, Susanna, was born in June 1863, John must have returned to his family.
Nearly a year and one half after deserting, perhaps upon his full recovery, John enrolled in Company K, 98th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteers as a veteran on 23 Dec. 1863. He enlisted in the field at Brandy Station, Virginia. There may have been a sign-up bonus for re-enlistment.
About four months later on the 5th of May, 1864, John George Molz was killed in the Overland Campaign in the Battle of the Wilderness in Virginia – just 16 miles south from his point of re-enlistment. After the war, the military attempted to remove bodies from the battlefield to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery, though John’s earthly remains may lie in the dense underbrush at Wilderness.
John’s widow, Sophia (Gampper) Molz, married twice more and had three more children. She received a pension for herself until she remarried and for her children with John George Molz until they had grown. Sophia passed in 1920 and is interred in the Presbyterian Grounds in Bridesburg, Philadelphia.
Isaac Reed was 17 years old at the time of the 1850 Census, meaning he was born between September 1832 and September 1833. At that time, he was living in the home of his parents, Eden Reed and Rachael Ford in Burlington County, New Jersey. Some of Isaac’s ancestors were on this continent before the Revolutionary War and were among the first to populate the wilds of New Jersey.
Isaac married Mary Jane Coleman in Washington Township, Burlington County on the first of March 1855. Mary Jane was born 15 Oct 1839, being 15 years old at the time of her marriage. Their first child, Richard Reed, was born in August 1855, just five months later. A second son, Reuben, was born in April 1858. Their daughter Sarah Jane (my father’s grandmother) was the last. the records are unclear on her birth date – October 1860 or November 1861.
Isaac Reed joined the 23rd Regiment of the New Jersey Infantry on 13 Sep 1862. Many of his Reed cousins – Alfred, Benjamin, Daniel, Eden, John, and Joseph – also enlisted on that day in Beverly, New Jersey, for a term of nine months. Nicknamed the “Yahoos,” the 23rd’s first engagement was the Battle of Fredericksburg from 11 to 15 Dec 1862. However, it is not known whether Isaac fought in that battle. He may have already been suffering with the Typhoid Fever from which he passed on 2 Jan 1863.
Isaac was buried at the White Oak Church in Falmouth, Virginia. The church served as a Union hospital (see map above). The sign above its door in the photo below reads "United States Christian Commission." According to military records, all remains at White Oak Church were moved to the Fredericksburg National Cemetery after the war.
In March 1863, Isaac’s widow, Mary Jane (Coleman) Reed applied for pensions for his children at the young age 23. She remarried in September of the same year to a man named Henry Parker and had four more children with him. Mary Jane passed in 1902 and is interred with her second husband at the Reevestown Cemetery in Barnegat, New Jersey.
While the remains of John George Molz and Isaac Reed are both believed to be in the Fredericksburg National Cemetery, their graves and most others are unmarked. The United States first issued identification tags or “dog tags” in 1906. During the Civil War, some soldiers pinned paper notes with their name and home address inside the backs of their coats or scratched their name into the back of their belt buckles. This proved inadequate for many reasons including that clothing of the deceased was often reused by the undersupplied army.
In support of the war effort, tobacco factories were converted to other uses such as hospitals, factories, and prisons. Sutherlin’s 1855 factory (shown today at right) became Confederate Prison No. 6. Over 7,000 Union prisoners of war were housed in Danville. Over half died from cold, dysentery, and smallpox.
Today, Marjory and I are fortunate to own one of the surviving large homes known as the Patton House, pictured at right. The Patton family served as bankers to the wealthy tobacco and textile barons, and lived quite well as a result. Completed in 1890, the 7,500 square foot home is unique in Danville because of its townhouse style and Richardsonian Revival architecture.
While sitting on the porch of the Patton House, we can clearly see the Sutherlin Mansion including the small balcony where Jefferson Davis review his troops and delivered his last public address. The third and final flag of the Confederacy flies before the mansion today, but this was not always the case. Major Sutherlin’s home also served as a public school and the city’s library before its present incarnation as the 
Henry Stubblefield Isaacs (1835-1912), a paternal great-great grandfather, served in the 14th Kentucky Calvary. His Company F mustered in during February 1863 and mustered out on March 1864. This regiment was assigned to the mountains of eastern Kentucky – Henry’s home territory – to reduce and prevent the many guerilla raids by the Confederates. Fourteen enlisted men were killed in skirmishes while another 66 passed from disease.
Henry Harrison Fields (1827-1900), another maternal great-great-great-grandfather, served in the 19th Kentucky Infantry beginning in January 1862. This regiment saw considerable fighting as part of the Vicksburg Campaign, a major turning point in the war, where the Union gained control of the Mississippi River. The Vicksburg Campaign also brought General Ulysses S. Grant to prominence. The 19th Kentucky Infantry lost one officer and 42 enlisted men in combat and another 155 from disease. Henry mustered out of Company D as a Corporal in March 1866.
In his “March to the Sea” in late 1864, General Sherman destroyed at least 20% of Georgia’s farms. By early 1865, the South’s railroads and its major cities – Atlanta (at right), Charleston, and Columbia – lay in ruin. With the fall and destruction of its capital city imminent, the Confederate government evacuated Richmond on April 2 using the last open railroad line, the Richmond and Danville. (Please see a future post for more information about Danville and the Civil War.)