Willimantic Civil War veterans honored

By Mike Lange
Staff Writer

    WILLIMANTIC — Two patriotic organizations joined forces on June 7 to pay tribute to Willimantic soldiers who served in the Civil War.
    Although temperatures hovered in the 80s, members of the Daniel Chaplain Camp Sons of Union Veterans and Sarah Elizabeth Palmer Tent Daughters were dressed in authentic 1860s garb for the ceremony – wool uniforms for the men and color hoop-skirt dresses and bonnets for the ladies.
    The groups gathered at the Willimantic Library, also known as the Norton’s Corner School, and marched to the veterans’ memorial on the front lawn of the nearby town office.

Observer photo/Mike Lange

    CIVIL WAR REMEMBRANCE — Members of the Daniel Chaplain Camp Sons of Union Veterans and Sarah Elizabeth Palmer Tent Daughters of Union Veterans held a memorial service in Willimantic on June 7 to honor local soldiers who served in the Civil War. Front row, from left: Linda Tozier, Mary Annis, Estella Bennett and Carmen Smith. Back row: John Battick, Jim Annis, Wayne Bennett and Jim Austin.

    Wayne Bennett noted that it has been several years since Willimantic — population 150 — has had a formal Memorial Day service honoring all those who served in battle. “So it’s our purpose to preserve the memories of the Union soldiers who fought and died to preserve our nation,” Bennett said.
    Carmen Smith read the names and gave a brief biography of the local soldiers who served in the Civil War: David F. Averill, CO. D, 24th Maine Infantry; William H. Chamberlain, Co. E and Co. F of the 2nd Maine Infantry; Hazen Frost, Co. C, 16th Maine Infantry; Isaiah Genthner, 1st Battalion, Light Artillery; Alonzo Gilman, 3rd Battalion, Light Artillery; and Granville M. Wise, Co. C, 9th Maine Infantry.
    Brothers Warren and William Sturtevant were also believed to be Civil War veterans, but no official record of their service has been located, according to Smith.
    The ceremony ended with “Taps” played by Dale Huff and a PowerPoint presentation at the library on Jennie Wade, the only civilian killed at the Battle of Gettysburg.
    The 20-year-old woman died from a gunshot wound in the kitchen of her sister’s home from a stray bullet. Although 7,600 soldiers perished in the bloody battle, she was the only civilian casualty.