Sunday, August 19, 2012
History of the Little Family--online ebook
James A. Little's History of the Little Family, printed in 1900, is online here: http://archive.org/stream/historyoflittlef00cart#page/n5/mode/2up
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
From The Pension file of Josiah Curtis SMITH
I have the entire pension record from the National Archives. The file is very thick so I can't include it all.
Correspondance regarding the application for widow pension by Celista Smith. If you click on the images they will enlarge. The correspondence is very interesting and even a little funny.
The rest of this letter is missing from the file. It was written by Mary Smith Myrick.
Mrs. D. W. Myrick should be Mrs. J. W. Myrick.
Civil War Pension for James H. McCoskey
From Widow Pension Records
James H. McCoskey enlisted Nov. 28, 1861 in Indianapolis in 7th Battery of Indiana Volunteers (Harris' Company). He mustered in as a private Dec. 2, 1861. He died a corporal, March 15, 1862. Here are the details of his death:
He was taken sick at Camp ???? in Mumfordsville, KY. He was taken to a hospital in Louisville, KY. His brother, Paul K. McCoskey learned he was there on or about Feb. 25, 1862. The surgeon told Paul that James had ????? and Camp Fever, but was able to be moved. The surgeon gave him a pass or furlow. Paul immediately brought him to Terre Haute. He was attended to by his physician who knew him previously. The physician, M. Moody, M.D., stated that he was well and never sick before he went into the army. He stated that James contracted the illness while in the army. He said that James was never able to sit up after he got home from the hospital. He said that he had typhoid (camp) fever and ???????. He said he had imflammed lungs and either of the diseases could have killed him. He died before his furlow expired. His brother also stated that James was a carpenter by trade for many years.
More information:
The record states that his widow's name before marriage was Mary A. Miles. They were married April 15, 1849. Their children: (in 1864)
Sarah E. McCoskey, aged 18 years
Ulysses McCoskey aged 7 years
Delany C. McCoskey aged 5 years
Charles F. McCoskey aged three years
all living with Mary A. McCoskey in Terre Haute,Vigo Co.
Declaration for Widow's Army Pension was signed by Mary A. McCoskey and witnessed by Paul K. McCoskey and John B. McCoskey.
She intially received $8/month. The three youngest received $2/month. Sarah did not receive anything because she was over the age of 16.
Because her husband died at home, Mary may have had trouble collecting her pension. There are several signed statments swearing to the fact that James was healthy before enlisting and he never recovered after coming home. There is a letter stating that she had been trying to learn the surgeon's name who treated James in the hospital in Louisville so that she could get a certificate from him that was required to get the pension. She did get the pension it appears beginning in 1866.
The pension was dropped Feb. 4, 1880 (certificate #82350)at that time the amount was $10. The last payment she received was Sept. 4, 1875. It was dropped because it was unclaimed.
More interesting notes:
Most of us had the birth year wrong for Sarah. According to the Declaration that Mary signed in August 1864, Sarah was 18. She must have been the daughter of James' first wife, Elizabeth Allen who died in 1848. Sarah's middle name was probably Elizabeth. This would account for the gap in the children's ages.
When the McCoskeys signed their own names, they spelled McCoskey as I have. When others wrote it, we get the different spelling variations.
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