Chris Rasmussen
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Reuben M. Long, Co. A, 9th Pennsylvania Reserves
Reuben Miller Long was born in Pittsburgh on September 5, 1833. He was the fourth of seven children born to Joseph and Sarah Long. He was a mechanic partnered with his elder brother Joseph in Long & Brother, a blacksmithing business specializing in steamboat and railroad related work. He enlisted as a private in the…
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Joseph G. Beale, Co. C, 9th Pennsylvania Reserves
Joseph Grant Beale, the son of Washington and Rosann Beale, was born March 26, 1839, in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. His father was being a successful farmer, Beale spent his youth on his family’s farm before attending the Caton Academy in Turtle Creek and the Iron City Commercial College in Pittsburgh.
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Lewis Schreiner, Co. B, 9th Pennsylvania Reserves
Schreiner was recruited by Captain Francis Hardtmayer and enlisted in the Garabaldi Guards on 25 June 1861. Mustered in as a Private as part of the Ninth Pennsylvania Reserve Corps, Company B on 28 June 1861 at Camp Wright by Lieutenant Chandler Hall. Mustered into federal service at Washington, DC on 28 JUL 1861 by…
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Florentine H. Staub, Co. D, 3rd Pennsylvania Reserves
Florentine H. Straub was born January 15, 1831 in Northampton County, Pennsylvania. At the age of twenty-one, he married Susan Niehart on September 5, 1852. Together they resided in Berks County, Pa, and between 1853 and 1860, and would have three sons, Francis, Albert, and Florentine Jr. Straub enrolled in the “Mechanics’ Rifle Company” on…
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Letter Correspondence of Lt. John A. Willoughby, Co. G, 5th Pennsylvania Reserves
These letters are written by John A. Willoughby, of Company G, 5th Pennsylvania Reserves, prior to his commissioning as an officer. The original source of these transcripts however, has been lost. If anyone can identify the source, please let us know.
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Diary of Private Edwin D. Benedict, Co. C, 12th Pennsylvania Reserves
Handwritten transcriptions from a number of pages of the Diary of Private Edwin D. Benedict, who served in the Troy Guards, Company C, of the 12th Pennsylvania Reserves. As noted in the upper righthand margin on page one, the source of the diary itself is from the Chicago Historical Society.
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The Pennsylvania Reserves in the Defenses of Washington
The Battle of Fredericksburg and its aftermath would result in a number of changes in the command structure of the Pennsylvania Reserves. During the battle, the division was part of Major General John Reynolds’ First Corps and commanded by Major General George Meade. The First Brigade was led by Colonel William Sinclair, the Second Brigade…
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Chaplain Samuel Jessup, 6th Pennsylvania Reserves
Samuel Jessup was born in Montrose, Pennsylvania on December 21, 1833. He attended Union Theological Seminary, and graduated in 1861. He was appointed Chaplain of the 6th Pennsylvania Reserves in June of 1861, and served in that capacity until his resignation on July 30, 1862. That same year he married Ann Eliza Jay. He spent…
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New Flags for the Pennsylvania Reserves
Following the Battle of Fredericksburg the Reserves were detached from the Army of the Potomac and assigned to the Defenses of Washington. In May of 1863, Colonel Horatio Sickel, of the 3rd Reserve who was commanding the division sent the following letter to Pennsylvania Governor Andrew Curtin requesting that new regimental flags be issued to…
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Psychosis of a Soldier: The Troubled Story of Private Abraham B. Penman
It’s easy to sometimes overlook the normal, mundane and uneventful military tenures of volunteer soldiers when trying to tell interesting stories. We tend to favor those whose decorated military careers are obvious, and those stories that have been told, and retold generation after generation. In 2011 we were presented with a number of transcripts of…