'I'm very proud of my brother': Michigan siblings travel to Fredericksburg National Cemetery, where one joins others telling the stories of men who gave their all

Mark Fischer speaks at the grave of Sgt. Wallace Wight of the 24th Michigan (Photos courtesy Glenn Fischer)

Two brothers from Michigan are back from a super fun (and meaningful) road trip to Virginia.

Mark and Glenn Fischer traveled to Fredericksburg over the Memorial Day weekend. They took in the Civil War battlefield, the local library and the food and beverage scene, among other spots.

The main attraction, though, was the annual Memorial Day luminaria Saturday night at Fredericksburg National Cemetery. There, on a perfect weather evening, Mark stood next to the grave of Sgt. Wallace W. Wight of the 24^th Michigan, telling visitors about the infantryman's service and death in December 1862.

Last year, Fischer, 53, helped a researcher with the National Park Service identify the grave of Wight and another Iron Brigade soldier, from Indiana.

Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park invited the Livonia resident to join several others stationed in the burial ground to tell individual stories of those who died in service of their country.

“I had some folks ask me where the first burial site was, how much time passed between Wallace’s death and his father returning to the scene to reunite the remains,” said Mark Fischer, who conceded he could not provide firm answers to all questions..

Glenn Fischer, (left) director of the DeWitt District Library in DeWitt, was there to support his older brother over the weekend.

“While a somber and serious occasion, it was so moving to see how the public reacted to this event so positively,” Glenn told the Picket Tuesday upon their return to Michigan.

“I'm very proud of my brother for his dedication to this soldier's story. He's always been a very curious and persistent person when it comes to solving puzzles, so it was enlightening and satisfying to see him address this one successfully,” said Glenn.

Mark Fischer had wanted to know whether Wight was buried in Virginia or in Livonia, setting of a chain of research and correspondence with the park.

The citizen historian (right) worked with Steve Morin, a retired FBI researcher who volunteers at the park, to find information that led to grave identifications for Wight and Pvt. John S. Waller of the 19^th Indiana. 

Correspondence led to Morin eventually finding a Detroit Free Press article that detailed how and where the two men died. Wight, 18, and several comrades were killed on Dec. 13, 1862, and buried at Pollock’s Farm in Stafford County.

He was later moved to Fredericksburg National Cemetery. Waller was killed by rifle fire in April 1863 while attempting to cross the Rappahannock River in Fredericksburg.

Wight’s grave at Fredericksburg National Cemetery has the wrong surname (Wright), which complicated the research. (At right, Mark Fischer)

Cemetery records have been updated to reflect the correct ID for Wight and to add Waller’s name, which was just marked “J.S.W.” on his headstone.

Because of their historic nature, the headstones will not be changed, park officials said last year.

Glenn Fischer said Saturday's event was well-organized and attended. "The event served as an important reminder of the importance of funding our National Park Service so that public events like this one can continue." 

He said the research is an example of why funding public libraries is "vital to preserving and providing access to these items and records. Without these resources, this young soldier's final resting place might remain a mystery."

Steve Morin talks about Pennsylvanian Alvin Whitaker (NPS photo)

Morin, the volunteer at Fredericksburg, was posted Saturday evening at the grave of Sgt. Alvin Whitaker of the 141st Pennsylvania, whose grave he helped properly identify.

Whitaker was killed in action in May 1864 and was buried on the field in Spotsylvania, Va. His grave at Fredericksburg National Cemetery was marked "O. Whittaker" with the 4th Ohio, but that name does not match records of soldiers killed on that date. Morin determined Alvin is likely buried in the grave.

"I think there were more visitors than last year. I was still talking to folks at 11 p.m.,” Morin said of the luminaria.

Mark Fischer told the Picket he would recommend everyone attend a luminaria service at national cemeteries.

"I can’t imagine a better way to honor all those who sacrificed so that we can live free today."

Mark Fischer educates visitors about Sgt. Wight during the cemetery event (NPS photo)

Cemetery manager secures headstone for Michigan soldier

The grave of a man who served in the Civil War has been formally marked at a northern Michigan cemetery. Claude Fields ensured that Ruel Boynton's service wouldn't be forgotten. Fields, manager of the Maple Grove cemetery in Empire Township, has performed research on many of the dead buried there, the Traverse City Record-Eagle reported. “We can’t have a vet in here with no headstone,” Fields said. “That isn’t right.”

Civil War encampment, re-enactment is set for June in Michigan

History will come alive in Northern Michigan this summer. Wellington Farm, a 60-acre living history museum in Grayling, will open for the season on Friday, May 27.  The complex typically provides visitors the opportunity to experience farm life during the Great Depression, along with hosting events. One such event, a Civil War reenactment, is scheduled to take place June 3-5. During the weekend, an artillery battery, as well as infantry units, will be encamped throughout the farm. -- Article

Popular Michigan muster, last held in 2018, is making a return

Michigan’s popular Jackson Civil War Muster is back after four years, and at its original location in Cascades Fall Park. The muster will be marking its 35th anniversary on Saturday, Aug. 27, and Sunday, Aug. 28. Officials are still choosing what battle will be reenacted. Organizers are adding a Civil War coffee wagon and other items. -- Article

Who is this mystery woman buried with spouses of Union veterans?

Local history groups have placed new headstones in a Traverse City, Mich., cemetery to honor eight people from the Civil War era. But who was Nancy Taylor? The groups have identified three women who were married to Union veterans and buried in a special area at Oakwood Cemetery. But the background of Taylor, who is buried among them, isn't clear. She died in 1918. -- Article

Mackinac Island in Michigan briefly housed three Southern prisoners. Here's what we learned about them during a recent visit

Civil War-era barracks are in the background of this fort view (Picket photo)

Above the throng of tourists enjoying the restaurants, water views and fudge shops of Mackinac Island in Michigan stands a fort that briefly held three Southern prisoners during the Civil War.

I recently spent a few hours on the island, gawking at the Grand Hotel, moving to the side of roads to make way for carriage rides and taking a look at picturesque Fort Mackinac (pronounced Mackinaw), which is perched above the harbor. Before the visit, I did not know anything about its brief Civil War episode.

Fort Mackinac, now a state park, is most famous for two clashes during the War of 1812. But during the summer of 1862, it housed three Tennesseans who military Gov. Andrew Johnson (later president) had ordered arrested for support of the Confederacy and “treasonous inclinations.”

“Johnson felt that the wealthy, planter class of the South was part of the reason for the war and he wanted the three men removed from Tennessee,” the fort’s website says.

Washington Barrow, Judge Guild and William G. Harding

Secretary of War Edwin Stanton arranged for the trio to be sent to Michigan.

Fort Mackinac had largely been used as deployment center during the mid-19^th century and was not in much use when the Civil War began.

But after the arrests of Judge Josephus Conn Guild, Washington Barrow and William G. Harding, officials prepared their quarters and secured a 90-member militia unit, the Stanton Guard, from the Detroit area.

The prisoners, all from the Nashville area, were able to walk the grounds on their own, being confined to their quarters at night. They could walk downtown under guard but were not allowed to interact with anyone. The men were never criminally charged; instead they were considered political or state prisoners.

One of the blockhouses at Fort Mackinac (Picket photo)

The park’s website provides this information about the three:

“Judge Guild was originally from Virginia, had served in the Tennessee legislature and was a founder of the Louisville and Nashville Railroad. Washington Barrow was a lawyer who served as a congressman and attorney general in Tennessee. He signed the Tennessee secession ordinance and helped finance a Confederate cavalry company. William G. Harding owned the 3,500 acre plantation Belle Meade where he raised thoroughbred race horses. He served as adjutant general of the Tennessee militia.”

A rifle firing demonstration on the grounds (Picket photo)

According to the Tennessee Encyclopedia, Guild was outspoken in his support for the Southern war effort. Early in the Civil War, Harding headed the Military and Financial Board of Tennessee, which spent $5 million arming and equipping Rebel soldiers. 

The three prisoners were on the island during its most pleasant months. Perhaps with thoughts of a possibly harsh winter ahead, Guild and Harding took a loyalty oath and were allowed to return to Tennessee.

Barrow was shipped to the military prison at Johnson’s Island in Ohio. He refused to take an oath but was exchanged in March 1863.

“Barrow returned to Tennessee, ran unsuccessfully for Confederate governor of the state, and spent the balance of the war as a private with the retreating Army of Tennessee,” the encyclopedia says. “After the defeat of the Confederacy, Barrow returned to Nashville, broken in health and financially ruined. He died within the year.”

Fort Mackinac was largely not garrisoned for the remainder of the war.

Several of the park’s 14 buildings go back before the Civil War, including its signature blockhouses and barracks that housed the Stanton Guard.

I enjoyed strolling the grounds and ramparts, and took in seasonal rifle firing and signal flag demonstrations put on by the staff.

Much of the programming focuses on the Army’s use of the fort in the 1870 into the 1890s, when it was deactivated.

Fort Mackinac is one of few surviving Revolutionary War forts.

The briefly constituted Stanton Guard at Fort Mackinac

'It's important they're not forgotten'

Eleven Michigan Civil War veterans were finally given proper headstones after being buried in Traverse City’s Oakwood Cemetery without one for more than 100 years. On Saturday, a headstone dedication ceremony was held by The Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. • Article

Michigan exhibit: They fought for liberty, opportunity -- and brought back an oddity

Children can have a hand at building a bridge (Michigan Historical Center)

President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address provides the framework for an exhibit that details Michigan’s contribution during the second half of the Civil War and what many of the veterans did upon returning home.

Themes from the address are used throughout “Conceived in Liberty” at the Michigan Historical Center in downtown Lansing.

“It set the tone for both the end of the war, this time when Native Americans and blacks are allowed to fight in the war, and this period of Reconstruction of the South after the war,” center director Sandra Clark told the Picket this week. “It asks what does liberty mean and what does it mean in achieving it for everyone?”

One area focuses on Company K of the 1^st Michigan Sharpshooters. The company was comprised of Native Americans who served with valor in the Virginia campaigns. (The Picket will be doing a separate story on Company K soon and will include pertinent photos then.)

While “Conceived in Liberty” has a good bit of information on the struggle for civil rights, it includes a wide range of items about the entire Michigan experience, and includes a couple of oddities. Clark provided an overview of a few of the highlights of the exhibit, which continues through Sept. 27.

(Photos courtesy of Michigan Historical Center)

Michigan made a significant contribution to Union cavalry. Its most famous horseman? George Armstrong Custer. James H. Kidd of the 6^th Cavalry served with Custer during part of the conflict, and Kidd’s saddle is one of the exhibit’s focal points. “Little girls walk in and see saddle and think about horses and they are interested,” said Clark. But cavalry duty wasn’t a piece of cake. “They rode hard and slept on the cold ground.”

Capt. McCarter drew sketches for cannon mounts

They saw no glory in battle but make no mistake: The First Michigan Engineers and Mechanics made a vital contribution to the war effort in Kentucky and Tennessee.

“It was fascinating how quickly they could move, build a sawmill and build pontoon boats, whatever,” said Clark, referencing a book about the unit, “My Brave Mechanics.”

The engineers constructed the Elk River bridge in south-central Tennessee and built block houses and other structures to keep the army and supplies moving.

Exhibit artifacts include a diary, tools, instruments and sketches. “We have some pretty amazing photographs of some of their work at the time.”

The unit was pretty good at destroying stuff, too. They crippled Confederate infrastructure during Sherman’s March to the Sea and Georgia.

Talk about an attention-getter. “Conceived in Liberty” includes a copy of a newspaper printed on wallpaper at the end of the siege on Vicksburg, Ms., which ended in a significant loss for the Confederacy.

“When they see wallpaper on the back, it stops them and makes them curious about this,” said Clark, who wants people to see how tough the siege was on Southern civilians. “The town was without any kind of supplies by the time it fell.”

It’s not known whether the editor of the Daily Citizen peeled wallpaper from homes. More likely there were stocks somewhere in town. On July 2, the newspaper made a snide remark about Union Maj. Gen. Ulysses Grant’s plans to have dinner in Vicksburg on July 4. Grant first had to catch the rabbit, an article said.

Once the city fell, mischievous Union soldiers reprinted that final edition with an updated article to show that Grant, in fact, had caught the rabbit. This copy was brought back by a Michigan soldier, said Clark.

The exhibit includes a coat worn by a sailor who served on a Union gunboat during the campaign against Vicksburg, a Rebel strong point on the Mississippi River.

Luther Baker helped in the successful hunt for Lincoln assassin John Wilkes Booth and received a handsome reward for his contribution. After the war, the native New Yorker moved to Michigan and eventually lived in Lansing.

The exhibit includes a case Baker carried during the war and a cabinet card showing him with his old war horse, Buckskin. The text of a card details the exploits of the horse, from his point of view.

After Buckskin died, his remains were displayed. His whereabouts are unknown today, says the Detroit Free Press.

African-American men could not become Federal soldiers until after Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863.

The 102^nd U.S. Colored Troops was organized first as the 1st Michigan Colored Volunteer Infantry Regiment. The unit was sent to South Carolina, Georgia and Florida, where it participated in smaller skirmishes and picket and guard duty.

Clark told radio station WKAR that a Detroit newspaper urged black men to join the Michigan unit rather the famous 54^th Massachusetts. The exhibit provides examples of men who joined both units.

The exhibit includes a  tobacco pouch belonging to abolitionist and former slave Sojourner Truth.

The men of the First Michigan Engineers were among those who came home and got into the furniture-making business.

“They upped their game,” said Clark. “Grand Rapids becomes the furniture capital of the world.” 

The exhibit includes this bed frame made by a soldier.

(Dr Pepper Snapple Group)

The story of Vernors, a Michigan soft-drink staple, adds a little extra fizz to “Conceived in Liberty.”

James Vernor, who served in the 4^th Michigan Cavalry, was a Detroit pharmacist who experimented with flavored waters.

According to legend, Vernor stored a secret mixture containing ginger in an oak keg before he shipped off to serve as a hospital steward. Upon his return, he found the ginger concoction tasted pretty darned good. 

The fallen: 'Bringing Michigan back to them'

This past weekend, a group from Michigan brought a handful of hom  to the final resting place of 175 fallen soldiers at Gettysburg, Pa. Historian Bruce Butgereit and other members of the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War traveled for the 150-year remembrance of President Abraham Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address on Nov. 19, 1863. Soil from all over Michigan was collected for the remembrance. • Article

Reporter films re-enactment with POV camera

Haven't seen one quite from this angle before. A Michigan newsman, dressed as a Confederate, placed a camera on his forehead to film a re-enactment of the Battle of Sheperdstown in what is now West Virginia. • Photos and video