Soldiers of the 48th: Private Robert Wood, Co. F

Private Robert Wood

Company F

Since I launched this blog last November, I have been contacted by a good number of descendants of soldiers who served in the 48th Pennsylvania, all of them very generous in sharing with me information on their ancestor. A few weeks ago I was contacted by a descendant of Private Robert Wood, who not only shared her information about the soldier but sent along a photograph of him as well.

Robert Wood was born in Pottsville in either 1838 or 1839. He was young when his family moved to Danville, and it was here that Robert would grow to maturity. He found work at the Montour Iron Works, where he was injured by a boiler explosion at the age of 13. When the Civil War broke out in April 1861, Robert, now 22 years old, volunteered his services. He stood 5'4" in height, had a "Light" complexion, "Grey" eyes, and "Sandy" hair. He enlisted as a private in Company F. Private Wood served with the regiment along the coast of North Carolina throughout the winter of 1861 and into the summer of 1862. He fought at 2nd Bull Run and at South Mountain, but by this point, he had fallen seriously ill. Private Wood spent a long time at army hospitals before finally being discharged for "general disability" on February 3, 1863. He returned to Danville and to the Mountour Iron Works for a time. He was suffering from consumption, and he applied for a pension, which was denied. It was decided that Robert's condition was caused by the boiler accident when he was just 13 years old. Robert appealed the decision, and was able to secure an affidavit from his doctor who stated that Robert's illness was caused by his wartime service. During the appeal, Robert's condition got worse. He died in Danville on January 10, 1868. He was not yet thirty years old at the time of his death. Elizabeth Wood, Robert's wife, received a pension following the death of her service, which she received every month until her death in 1926.

{I would like to thank Ms. Anne Lowery for her generosity in sharing this information with me as well as the photograph of her ancestor, Private Robert Wood}