Jonas Croupe
Company E
Personal War Record
Frank Baker, Company F
Frank Baker
• Enlisted in Company F; August 28, 1861
• Promoted from 1st Lt. Co. F; March 22, 1862 (to what rank?)
• Resigned July 23, 1862
• Re-enlisted (as Sergeant?), Co. K; February 15, 1864
• Promoted to 1st Lt., Co. I, July 6, 1864 (also showing date as September 9, 1864?)
• Promoted to Captain, Co. E; January 24, 1865 (Date also listed: January 1, 1865?)
• Wounded at Petersburg; April 2, 1865
• Mustered out with Company August 29, 1865
Baker enlisted and was commissioned as a 1st Lt. August 28, 1861, in Company F.
He was wounded during the Breakthrough at Petersburg (Fall of Petersburg/third battle of Petersburg); April 2, 1865.
He mustered out of service on June 29th, 1865.
On July 31, 1866 Baker applied for a Federal Pension on account of his wound.
Served with the 98th PA: Siege of Yorktown, battles of Williamsburg Fair Oaks, Seven Pines, Fair Oaks, and Malvern Hill. Wilderness, Spottsylvania (assault on the Salient), Cold Harbor, Petersburg, siege of Petersburg, defense of Washington against Early’s attack. He participated in Sheridan’s Shenandoah Valley Campaign, battles of Opequan, Winchester, Cedar Creek, Dabney’s Mills, Hatcher’s Run, Fort Fisher, and the assault and fall of Petersburg.
*Photo and history courtesy of Dave Hann
(Note to self: verify ranks and dates ~ some confusion/overlap with dates and rank via Bates across 4 companies.)
Rock Creek ~ Fort Stevens Monument
98th PA Monument in Rock Creek Park ~ Washington DC
6625 Georgia Ave., between Whittier & Van Buren Streets, NW
Battle of Fort Stevens
Dedicated: July 13, 1891 (Dedication Ceremony)
Sculptor: P.R. and Company, Philadelphia, PA
*Text below was copied from the NPS website.
The monument was erected by the 98th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry who served with the Union Army during the Battle of Fort Stevens. The monument was the first dedicated at the cemetery in 1891. The regiment was part of the reinforcements sent from the Army of the Potomac in Petersburg, Virginia to reinforce the undermanned garrisons in Washington D.C. The veterans arrived on the July 11, 1864, and took part in the attack that drove the rebel army from the gates of Washington the following evening, concluding the battle.
INSCRIPTIONS:
[FRONT]
In Memory of Our Comrades Killed and Wounded in Battle on This Field
July 11th & 12th 1864
98th Reg’t. P.V.
1st Brig. 2nd Div. 6th Corps
[SIDE]
Killed in Battle
July 11th & 12th 1864
Frederick Walter Co.
Bernhard Hoerle
Sergt. George Marquet
Corpl. Henry Poelser
Michael Bruner
Charles Sehaus
George Merkle
Joseph Schnitzler
[SIDE]
Wounded in Battle
July 11th & 12th 1864
Col. John F. Ballier
Lt. Col. John B. Kohler
Capt. Wm. Wilson Co.K
Lt. Geo. Schuler G
Samuel Thompson A
Corpl Charles Veneman A
Sergt. Frank Reiner C
Frederick Denker C
Corpl. William Aberle D
Jacob Reiner D
George Klumpp D
William Caus E
Daniel Kirsch E
[SIDE]
Wounded in Battle
July 11th & 12th 1864
Corpl. J. Schweitzer Co. E
Corpl. I. Fred. Loedle E
Frederick Frank E
William Fratz G
Sergt. Christian Brandt G
Frank Maier G
Sergt. John Wagner G
Sergt. John G. Greul H
Arthur Corvan H
Sergt. Jacob Goetz K
Sergt. William Bayer K
Frank Weingartner K
Christian Worster K
Sergt. John G. Kaiser K
John Gress K
FUN FACTS
- The first monument (this one!) dedicated to soldiers who were killed or wounded during the Battle of Fort Stevens was erected by the state of Pennsylvania to honor the 98th Pennsylvania Volunteers.
- Thirty veterans from PA and the 25th NY Cavalry attended the July 13, 1891 dedication. (Prior to the ceremony, veterans of the battle had been participating in a reunion at Fort Stevens.)
- The monument design references the classical world and its use is symbolic for Christian belief in the eternity of the spirit.
- This design was first used as a battlefield memorial at Vicksburg and Manassas in 1864/65 and at Gettysburg in 1882/86.
FACTS FOR THE REALLY DEDICATED
Erected in 1891, the monument is an eight-foot high granite obelisk mounted on a rough-stone base measuring one-foot high. Embossed text with the name of the regiment is located at the base of the obelisk on the west side. A bronze regimental seal is also located on the west side of the monument below text which states, “In Memory of our comrades killed and wounded in battle on this field July 11th & 12th 1864.” The names of the wounded and killed are inscribed on the north, south and east sides. Embossed crosses are located on each side of the monument just below the obelisk point. The monument is located in the northwest section of the cemetery facing Georgia Avenue between the two New York monuments.
Henry Reichert
*Henry Reichert discharge papers.
Henry Reichert (Heinrich)
Company B
Service listed as September 19, 1861 to September 21, 1864
b. 1841 Württemberg, Germany (Konstanz?)
d. April 10, 1924 (also listed as April 11, 1924)
Buried: German Reformed Burial Ground, Philadelphia County, PA
Height: 5’7″
Eyes: Blue
Hair: “Sandy”
Father: John Reichert
Married: April 2, 1873 to Emma Katharia Martin Reichert
Married at the Emanuel United Church of Christ in Philadelphia, PA
Last residence listed as 2641 Pratt Street, Philadelphia, PA
Occupation: Storekeeper
Certificate of Death Informant: son Karl Reichert
PA State Health Death Index, File # 46182
*Information above courtesy of Find-A-Grave.com
Information provided by descendants:
His name has been variously listed as Henry Reichardt, Henry Richard or Henrik Reichardt.
Family Oral History:
Henry ran one of the first Unity-Frankford grocery stores in Philadelphia, PA.
He also worked for the US Armory, later known as the Frankford Armory in the Frankford section of Philadelphia after the war.
Henry enlisted with the 98th PA, Company B, mustered out 1862 as a corporal.
Possibly re-enlisted with the 71st PA, until 1864, mustered out as a private.
*A special Thank You to Lowell and Bonnie Allen for providing this family history.
[ **RESEARCH NOTES: Also found Henry Reichert in 27th PA, Company C.
Will research further why he is not listed on the Gettysburg PA monument under the 98th.]
Frederick Crecelius
Frederick Louis Crecelius
Private, Company C
Enlisted 1863
Captured at Bull Run, Imprisoned at Libby Prison
Birthplace: Baden, Germany
Spouse: Margaret Salem
Children:
– Mary Crecelius
– Josephine Crecelius Wilkinson
• m. William A. Wilkinson; occupation: Rigger ]
• children: Nellie Wilkinson (age 13 in 1880);
Richard Wilkinson (age 4 in 1880);
William Wilkinson (age 2 in 1880)
– Louis Crecelius
Buried: New Village Congregational Church Cemetery, Lake Grove, Long Island, NY
Last residence listed as: 176 Grayson, Philadelphia, PA
Frederick’s occupation was listed as a printer.
Residents/Tenants (1860-70/80?): Jonathan Jeffries, a machinist, and his wife Elizabeth and daughter Sallie Jeffries.
*Photograph courtesy of Find-A-Grave.com
*A Special Thank You to Robert Pellegrino for all of the information listed above.
Henry Bourguen
Henry Bourguen
Private, Company C, 98th P.V.I.
Bates spelling: Henry Bourguin
Born: TBD
Location: TBD
Died: TBD (Aged ?)
Buried at: TBD
Photo was taken at the National Military Home in Dayton, OH, in 1894 and depicts him wearing his GAR membership medal.
*A special Thank You to William Jones for contributing the photograph and information.
Planning the Gettysburg Monument
*All of these amazing images are in the PA archives and are public domain. However, there are sooooo many documents and most of them are extremely hard to read. Until I can get the best of them posted for you, these full size originals AND SO MANY MORE can be found HERE on pages 259-265. And HERE on pages 86-112 of the archives. Check them out!
(At some point when it is not 3 a.m. and tears are not blurring my eyes from stumbling upon this beautiful resource, I will translate all 30+ pages of them for you and post a nice summary of what I have learned here. ~Becky)
FUN FACT
• The PA 98th Gettysburg monument (the one on the John Weikert Farm) cost $1,500 and was made by John Ferguson Marble and Granite Works.
George Crowl
George Crowl
Private, Company G
*The information on this page was copied from FindAGrave.com.
The son of William & Sarah (Kohl) Crowl, he married Sarah Daugherty and fathered Thomas Oliver (b. 02/17/41 – 87th Pa), Peter (b. 06/29/43), Sarah Ellen (b. 09/01/44 – married a Bowman), Mary Spangle (b. 12/04/46 – married Leonard Knisley), Zacharias Taylor (b. 01/08/48), and George Leonard S. (b. 04/17/54). Sarah died in 1855. In 1860, he was a cooper presumably living in Siddonsburg, Monaghan Township, York County, Pennsylvania, although he is not found in that census. He stood 5′ 9″ tall and had gray hair and blue eyes.
A Civil War veteran, he enlisted in York, November 21, 1861, and mustered into federal service that same day as a private with Co. G, 98th Pennsylvania Infantry. Promoted to corporal to date November 17, 1862, he received a “slight wound” at Cold Harbor, and reduced to ranks to date April 3, 1865. He honorably discharged with his company June 29, 1865.
He then enlisted in the U.S. Marines March 19, 1866, and, according to George, served aboard the U.S.S. Sacramento, although the Navy could find no records of that service. He honorably discharged March 18, 1868.
Sarah had died in 1855, and he married Bridget Fitzcarlo ca. 1864 and lived in Philadelphia for some years after the war. By 1890, he was living in Monaghan Township, York County, where he died from “old age.” His pension file is combined with that of his son Thomas, who had died in a Confederate prison.
Andrew Sheely
Andrew Sheely
Private, Company I
*The information on this page has been copied from FindAGrave.com
~The following information is courtesy of Dennis Brandt ~
The son of John & Elizabeth (Emelit {?}) Sheely, in 1860 he was a farmer living in Mount Pleasant Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania.
A Civil War veteran, he enlisted and mustered into federal service at Chambersburg April 7, 1865, as a private with Co. I, 98th Pennsylvania Infantry, and honorably discharged with his company June 29, 1865.
In 1890, live in Mount Pleasant Township, Adams County, in 1907, in Littlestown, Adams County, but died in Mount Pleasant Township at age 79 from chronic interstitual nephritis with gangrene of an unspecified body part a contributing factor.
OBITUARY
Andrew Sheely died recently at his home in Mount Pleasant township about a mile Southwest of White Hall. He was about 78 years of age and was a Veteran of the Civil War. He lived on the original Sheely homestead in the county and on occasions would speak of the family traditions that when the farm was settled, Indians were neighbors and spots would be pointed out where Indian wigwams had stood.
He leaves a wife, two sons and a daughter, Daniel Sheely of Hanover, Jacob Sheely of White Hall and Mrs. George Shildt of White Hall.
Gettysburg Compiler
{Gettysburg, Pennsylvania}
April 21, 1909
Captain Christopher Meyer
Christopher Meyer
Captain, Company B
*The information on this page has been copied from FindAGrave.com
Served with Co.B 98th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War of 1861-65. Captain Meyer was commissioned Captain on September 28th, 1861 and resigned his commission November 1st, 1862 for ill health, being wounded in the right chest and arm at the battle Malvern Hill July 1st, 1862.
While with the Regiment he took part in the Battles of Williamsburg May 4th, 1862 Fair Oaks May 27-28th, 1862 Malvern Hill July 1st, 1862.
His Regiment was at the Battle of Gettysburg but Captain Christopher Meyer was not with them, some thing he would later say was the greatest regret of his life.
He moved to Nevada some time around 1880 because of his health (bad lungs because of his chest wound) and spent most of his time as a local business man and politician in Carson City.
His health began to fail around 1901 as his old war wounds took their toll on him, and he was soon living at the Old Soldiers home near Carson City until his death by pneumonia brought on by chest wounds of 54 years before.
He was buried in The General Custer Post No. 5 Grand Army of the Republic section in The Lone Mountain Cemetery in Carson City, Nevada.
He was the Post Comander of that Post from 1889-92 & 1896-99
Photo is Courtesy of Captain Meyer’s Granddaughter and shows Captain Meyer as a 2nd Lieut. some time in early 1861. The Photographer is Gill’s City Gallery No. 20 King St., Lancaster, PA, and has an old Penciled ID on the back “Capt. C. Meyer 98th PA”
OBITUARY
From The Morning Appeal; August 14, 1901
Died.
In this city, August 12, 1901, Christopher Meyer, a native of Germany, aged 78 years.
Captain Meyer was a well known and highly respected resident of this city, where he has resided for thirty years. He was a veteran of the Civil War and a member of the G.A.R. During his many years as a resident in Carson he made a host of friends who deeply regret his end. Although he had lived his three score years and ten, he was a bright and intellectual old gentleman and retained the many friends he had by kindly acts and generosity.
The funeral will take place this afternoon under the. auspices of Custer Post, from the family residence at 4:30.