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The MOLLUS Missive
Meeting Schedule for 2011
Our annual business meeting will be held in Grosse Pointe Farms.
Country Club of Detroit 25 June, 2011
11:30 AM
More details to follow as long-time Life Member and Michigan Commandery Companion Bill Dahling and I work out the details to once again conduct a lunch/dinner meeting at the Country Club. Our final meeting of the year will be 22 October in Dearborn at the Dearborn Inn in the Ten Eyck Restaurant.
Membership Dues for 2011 Annual dues for 2011 were due January 1, 2011. Dues of $25 should be sent to:
Bruce Butgereit, II, Treasurer 4191 Nature Trail Dr. Apt 10
Kentwood, MI 49512 Companions still owing: Charles DuCharme Hal Smith Jerald Everts Harlan Scribner E. Lou Hoos
Email Address Update I asked for this in the March newsletter and still need an email from the following companions to verify I have your correct address:
Hal Smith Harlan Scribner Jerald Everts Thomas Singelyn E. Lou Hoos My address is:
Civil War Sesquicentennial On Saturday, 16 April, the Michigan Commandery will participate in the opening ceremony and event with a table display. I encourage any Companion able and willing to attend to let me know. It would be great to have someone meet and greet visitors and maybe hand out a MOLLUS brochure or two. For more on upcoming events and activities, please visit this website: www.7thmichigan.us/conference/MiCWSesquiHP.htm
Upcoming Events 16 April in Springfield (IL): Lincoln Death Day program at cemetery 16 April in Lansing: Kick-off of the commemoration of the Civil War Sesquicentennial at the State of Michigan Historical Museum 21 April in Allendale (MI): Grand Valley State University Local History Roundtable open house for the Civil War Sesquicentennial
THE MISSIVE The newsletter of the Michigan Commandery of the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States
Volume 11, Issue 2 2 April, 2011
22 May in Ada (MI): The story of Annie Etheridge, Civil War Nurse and the importance of commemorating the Civil War Sesquicentennial 7 May in Grand Rapids: Dedication of new sign commemorating the Soldiers’ Cemetery in Oakhill Cemetery – resting place of the first soldier in the Grand Rapids area to die in the Civil War (died in the training camp Cantonment Anderson May 8, 1861) See image attached. 30 May in Grand Rapids: Rededication of restored bronze tablet on a boulder at the Grand Rapids Home for Veterans 11 June in Grand Rapids: Dedication of new historic interpretive sign near a boulder marking the site of Cantonment Anderson See small image attached. Dedication of a new gravestone for Loren & Jane Page who sent five (5) sons to serve in the Civil War Miscellaneous: Memorial Day programs in Grand Rapids and Lansing In conjunction with the General John A. Logan Camp No. 1, Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War - six different ceremonies in Grand Rapids to dedicate new headstones for CW soldiers who never had a marker Sesquicentennial meetings between History Partners
The Treasury
The banking reports from 2010 – Balance Sheet Standard:
Dec 31, 10
ASSETS
Current Assets
Checking/Savings
United Bank (CD) 2,093.12
United Bank (Congress) 485.11
United Bank (Savings) 1,094.17
Total Checking/Savings 3,672.40
Total Current Assets 3,672.40
TOTAL ASSETS 3,672.40
LIABILITIES & EQUITY
Equity
Opening Bal Equity 3,775.60
Unrestrict (retained earnings) -1,056.59
Net Income 953.39
Total Equity 3,672.40
TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY 3,672.40
Profit and Loss Standard:
Jan - Dec 10
Ordinary Income/Expense
Income
Annual Dues 525.00
Congress Income
1. Registration 1,750.00
2. Welcome Reception 1,371.00
3. Lunch 840.00
4. Banquet 2,100.00
5. Dinner with Lincolns 350.00
6. Souvenir Glasses 12.00
Total Congress Income 6,423.00
Interest 48.88
Miscellaneous Income
Donations 285.00
Miscellaneous Income - Other 450.00
Total Miscellaneous Income 735.00
Total Income 7,731.88
Expense
Bank Service Fees 4.00
Check Fee 3.00
Congress Expenses
Committee 86.88
Entertainment 839.79
Guestrooms 85.00
Headquarters 191.60
Hospitality 358.36
Meals 2,567.14
Printing 600.27
Room Rental 600.00
Souvenir 485.73
Total Congress Expenses 5,814.77
Fees
Annual Dues 264.00
Total Fees 264.00
Monuments & Memorials 250.00
Reimbursements for Event Costs 228.22
ROTC Medals 214.50
Total Expense 6,778.49
Net Ordinary Income 953.39
Net Income
953.39
The banking reports for this year-to-date – Balance Sheet Standard:
Mar 4, 11
ASSETS
Current Assets
Checking/Savings
United Bank (CD) 2,093.12
United Bank (Savings) 2,230.38
Total Checking/Savings 4,323.50
Total Current Assets 4,323.50
TOTAL ASSETS 4,323.50
LIABILITIES & EQUITY
Equity
Opening Bal Equity 3,775.60
Unrestrict (retained earnings) -103.20
Net Income 651.10
Total Equity 4,323.50
TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY 4,323.50
Profit and Loss Standard:
Jan 1 - Mar 4, 11
Ordinary Income/Expense
Income
Account Transfers 485.11
Annual Dues 225.00
Interest 0.17
Miscellaneous Income
Donations 125.00
Total Miscellaneous Income 125.00
Total Income 835.28
Expense
MCWS
Printing & Reproduction 184.18
Total MCWS 184.18
Total Expense 184.18
Net Ordinary Income 651.10
Net Income
651.10
Final Thoughts
The following images are from our recent visit Companion Dr. Weldon Petz. If any of you have an article or story you’d like to share, or any questions, please let me know. Loyally,
Commander
From l to r: C-in-C Harrison, W. Fred Roberts, Dr. Petz, Bruce Butgereit, II, and Bruce B. Butgereit
The cornet held by Dr. Petz is the one used by his great-uncle in the 5th New York Artillery Band.
Commander-in-Chief Keith G. Harrison and Companion Dr. Petz.
Sources: Civil War historian Bruce Butgereit; “Michigan in the War”; The National Almanac, 1863
Library of Congress photo MARTHA THIERRY /Detroit Free Press
MICHIGAN BY THE NUMBERS
Civil War contributions
90,000 Michigan men served, 23% of the state’s male population, according to the 1860 census
$7.1 the total amount that Michigan spent in four years toward the war for the following:
2.5 men served
1.5
died; 110,070 in battle, 250,152 from disease360,222died; 94,000 in battle, 164,000 from disease258,000
15,000 Michigan men — 1 in 6 — died in Civil War service; more than 9,000 deaths were from disease
69 Medal of Honor recipients
1,661 black soldiers from Michigan served in the 1st Michigan Colored Infantry (later changed to the 102nd United States Colored Infantry)181 Jewish soldiers from Michigan served (from 151 Jewish families)145 American Indian soldiers from Michigan served, many of them were members of a regiment of sharpshooters12,562 immigrants (non-citizens) served; 3,761 from Britain, 3,929 from Ireland and 4,872 from Germany
$3.7 million for 33,050 horses; $1.4 million for transportation of troops and supplies; $2 million for equipment, barracks and hospitals, apprehension of deserters and other expenses.
Michigan was the first “western" state to send troops to the war. In 1861, at the beginning of the Civil War, Michigan ranked 10th in population in the U.S. and eighth in the number who served in the war. Here are some facts about the Michiganders who served and died in the war and the financial support our state gave to the effort.
The Peach Orchard and 3rd Mich. Infantry Monument, Gettysburg, 1903
MICHIGAN
THE UNION ARMY
THE CONFEDERATE ARMY
NOTE: Figures are approximate.
2 col. x 56p9
million
$1.2 the available balance in the state treasury in 1861. $539,428 went to war expenditures that year.million
million
men servedmillion
Sign designed by Mike DeRuiter & Marcia Butgereit Quotes from Steve Soper Research
1861: The war beginsOn April 12, 1861, Confederate troops fired on the Federal garrison at Fort Sumter, in Charleston Harbor, South Carolina. President Lincoln, on April 15, sent out a call for 75,000 men for 90 day enlistment, in response to the attack. Grand Rapids and the surrounding communities answered with immediate and enthusiastic patriotism “…in a unanimous desire that the Union be preserved at all hazards and that the people of this county and valley would come to the front to a man.”
Sign designed by Mike DeRuiter & Marcia Butgereit Quotes from Steve
EnlistingBeing the commercial and social hub of western Michigan, Grand Rapids served as a focal point for those men seeking to enlist. Governor Austin Blair authorized Colonel Daniel McConnell of the Grand Rapids militia to form a regiment consisting ten companies of 100 men each.
Scores of men arrived on horseback, by stage, train and boat or on foot from the surrounding counties throughout late April and early May.
“…it took James the better part of a month to travel afoot and alone one hundred miles through forests to answer the impulses of his soul to rush to the rescue of his imperiled country. No drum beat, or enthusiasm at home need be added to the sound that came from Fort Sumter.”
Farewell to our Pet RegimentOn June 13, 1861, the streets of the little town of Grand Rapids were lined with soldiers, young men and old together, ready for the battlefield. All was astir and excitement because of the departure of 1,040 men to the front. Flags waved, bugles sounded and there was the sound of the fife and drum. And in the midst of the commotions were enacted scores of pathetic little scenes when weeping mothers bade farewell to sons who were the hope of their lives, when these same boys waved a fond goodbye.Rebecca wrote: “One of the saddest days in the record of Grand Rapids. Our pet regiment, the gallant Third, has departed at last and left many, many sorrowing hearts behind.”
CommunityDespite the fences enclosing the fairgrounds, the people of the town often watched the men drill and march. One evening a group of about 25 young men and women passed the camp guard and set up a concert on the tiers of elevated seating. The soldiers stopped what they were doing all around the camp and came over to listen to the concert prepared for the men. Miss Richmond wrote that after they closed with a moving rendition of the Star Spangled Banner “the Regiment responded with volley after volley of cheers.”
June 11, 2011Sesquicentennial Ceremony
Time and the elements have affected the condition of the memorial boulder. The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War, the Military Order of the Loyal Legion of the United States, and History Remembered, Inc., teamed up to place a historical sign to assure that what took place here in 1861 will not fade from today’s memory. The dedication took place June 11, 2011, two days shy of the 150th anniversary of that memorable day when the “Gallant Third” marched off to preserve the Union.
Cantonment AndersonAt first, new arrivals seeking to enlist were put up in local hotels until other arrangements could be made. But on May 4, 1861, the Kent County Agricultural Fairground was turned into the first training grounds and staging area and named Cantonment Anderson, after Major Robert Anderson, the commander at Fort Sumter. It was decided that the fairgrounds, located in Paris Township just south of Grand Rapids, would be a perfect location.
“Forty acres are enclosed with a high close board fence. The ground is slightly rolling and covered with oak. . . . About ten acres are occupied by buildings -- ten more have been cleared and leveled for a parade ground -- the remainder is nearly in a state of nature.”
By 1862, Cantonment Anderson was closed and all training and recruiting activities were moved to Camps Lee & Kellogg where the Central High School now stands.
Temporary Troop Quarters The camp swelled with activity and busy preparation as hundreds of men arrived. Many of the men volunteered their services as carpenters to help convert the fairground buildings and exhibit halls into barracks. “… quartered in Floral Hall, a building semicircular in shape and about 120 feet long, 14 wide and 20 high -- in this, about 700 men find lodging. The building is two stories, and on each floor are two tiers of bunks, … A straw bed and a blanket to each man is furnished by the State, while many of the men have been furnished through the industry and patriotism of the ladies, with a quilt or extra blanket. Without these our men would have suffered very much during the recent cold weather.”
Some built their own quarters: “…six of us have put up a shanty rather than be put up in the barracks which …at night it contains over 600 men. It is two stories high and four bunks high on each story. At night the smell is awful. Our shanty cost us about six dollars!”
Soper Research
From 90-day troops to3 year enlistments
Upon hearing of this change from 90 days to three years, the recruits were paraded on the parade ground & formed a hollow square. Major Champlin “stood up in the centre on a cannon carriage . . . explained the new call of the President for 3 years volunteering, he made a frank statement of facts and a most eloquent appeal to all that is manly in man. After this he stated that the Captains of the companies should each call upon the 3 years volunteers to fall back beginning at Co. A.
“Our Captn (Samuel Judd] called upon us to decide . . . when there was a perfect rush back, backed up by a lusty shout from 77 throats (some of our Co. were on Guard duty) only three backed water! What do you think now of Co. A?”
Byron R. Pierce, a dentist, was Captain of Co. K, whose men also signed up for the three years.
Fifty Years After the War4,214 Kent County Men Served in the Civil WarOver 550 Gave the Ultimate Sacrifice: Their Lives
On June 13, 1911, less than 130 of the original 1,040 men and officers still survived. Those who were able joined together here at this place to dedicate this Memorial boulder to the Third Michigan and Cantonment Anderson on the 50th anniversary of their march to war.
The Grand Rapids Herald reported that... “As the soldiers gathered, the air of patriotism and ardor for the flag and its meaning was so prevalent it seemed old Cantonment Anderson never would be forgotten. It will be remembered long after the passing of the men who immortalized the neighborhood. School children will see the boulder and oft be reminded of the men in whose honor it is placed.”
The Memorial Boulder was secured by the Sophie de Marsac Campau chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution and presented to General Byron R. Pierce of the Third Michigan.
Kent County FairgroundsStarting in 1848, an Agricultural Society, first organized in Walker, held the first fair in Kent County. By 1851, it became known as the Kent County Agricultural Society. They held fairs on the grounds of the County Courthouse in Grand Rapids until 1855 when they purchased a forty-acre tract in Paris Township at Jefferson and Hall streets. (this location)
The three-day event each Fall, was a highlight for the community and hundreds came to see the displays and exhibits of county’s best fruits, vegetables, animals, manufacturers goods, and ladies handiwork. Cash prizes were awarded to the best of each category.
Not only did the fairground serve in those first months of the Civil War as a training ground for the new recruits, but the county fairs of 1863 and 1864 also raised funds in behalf of soldiers’ aid societies, “with a good degree of success.”
Around 1890, Joseph Houseman bought the fairgrounds for about $70,000, and platted it into city lots.
Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center...supports the nation-wide Job Corps program’s mission of teaching eligible young people the skills they need to become employable and independent and placing them in meaningful jobs or further education.
Administered by the U.S. Dept. of Labor, the Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center is also located on the former site of the Kent County fairgrounds. In 1982, the Grand Rapids Job Corps Center opened, utilizing the former South High School building. The name changed in 2004, to honor Gerald R. Ford.
Today, the campus includes six buildings. The male residence, constructed in 2010, houses 135 students and the female dorm (built in 2006) also houses 135. The center has over 100 employees, including instructors, and provides education and training to 430 students a year.
Regimental FlagOn June 3, a delegation of 34 young women representing the states of the Union, visited the camp, bearing
a beautiful 6’ X 6’silk banner on which Miss Maggie Ferguson hand-embroidered the inscription in gold: “PRESENTED BY THE LADIES OF GRAND RAPIDS TO THE THIRD MICHIGAN INFANTRY” and the other
side “VOLUNTEER THIRD REGIMENT INF”. The ladies of Grand Rapids solicited funds to purchase the materials needed to create it. The battle-worn flag is now being preserved in the Michigan Historical
Museum in Lansing.
Miss Rebecca Richmond wrote in her diary “…Col. McConnell then transferred the banner to the flag company of the regiment, which received it with evident pride and
thankfulness.”
Two weeks after the men left Grand Rapids, Miss Ferguson died of consumption and was buried in Fulton Street Cemetery in an unmarked grave. After the war, when the men of the “Old Third” heard the fate of the creator of their beloved Regimental Flag, they banded together and bought a proper headstone for her grave.
South High SchoolIn 1904, the Board of Education adopted the recommendation for a new high school. Designed to hold 1,100 pupils, South High School became the third high school for the growing city. In 1908, after studying the various options, the Board purchased the land at Jefferson and Hall, where the old fairgrounds once stood. Plans were drawn up and the project was put out for bid. In 1914, the Board awarded the contract to Hauser, Owen, & Ames Co. (Owen, Ames, & Kimball, today) to construct the building for a cost of about $400,000.
The High School opened in the Fall of 1915, with 31 teachers and 735 students. Commencement exercises for the first graduating class were held on June 21, 1918 with 81 graduates.
South High School was a truly diverse and exceptional school with an excellent faculty and very successful athletic programs. The students went on to become doctors, lawyers, teachers, and even the 38th president of the United States, Gerald R. Ford.
In 1968, South High School graduated its last class.
Who Trained Here◊ Third Infantry (Muster: Jun. 1861)
Who Rendezvoused Here◊ Eighth Infantry (Muster: Sept. 1861)◊ Second Cavalry (Muster: Oct. 1861) ◊ Third Cavalry (Muster: Nov. 1861)◊ First Light Artillery Battery K and D (Muster: Nov. 1861)
SfiinaTC1tH
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On June 3, a delegation of a beautiful 6’ X 6’silk ban
“PRESENTED BY THEside “VOLUNTEER
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Stephen G. Champlin
Rebecca RichmondAbraham Lincoln
Grand Rapids, MI 1860’s
Photo: Grand Rapids Public Library
Photo: Grand Rapids Public Library
Byron R. Pierce
the General’s Speech “As we stand here among this vast assembly, to the survivors of the Third Michigan Infantry, we seem to tread upon hallowed ground; it is indeed a sacred spot. Here in our young manhood we swore allegiance to the flag whose every star retains its luster and place upon its azure field. On this site we were encamped many weeks drilling and making ready for the orders that should send us to the front. Fifty years ago this morning we responded to that call, each with knapsack and musket, marched from here amid the waving banners and plaudits of citizens, to the old Detroit & Milwaukee station where farewells were spoken.
And we left home and loved ones to share dangers and horrors of war. Think you this day is not replete with memories to this little group of men, the remnant of the 1,040 who then formed this regiment and went forth to do or die.”
“To the Sophie de Marsac Campau chapter of the D.A.R. and the city of Grand Rapids we gratefully acknowledge the gracious compliment for which this memorial stands. May this memorial stand as long as time shall endure, telling present and future generations whence came the regiments and companies that helped make a bright page in Michigan’s record in the Civil War.
l,
it & Mil kByron R. Pierce
