Although I have not been posting as frequently as I once did
and not even as much as I did during the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War
(2011-2015), I still maintain this site/blog and keep it active largely now as a
resource for those hoping to discover more about the 48th
Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment and especially its soldiers. I still occasionally
post stories pertaining to the regiment and I still regularly receive emails from
descendants of soldiers who served in the regiment and who are hoping to
discover more about their ancestor. Of
course, whenever this happens I share all I know and all I have gathered about
that particular soldier over the years. It is rather rewarding to be able to
tell these folks, interested in their family story genealogy, about their
ancestor in the 48th and connect them, somewhat, to that soldier. On
the other hand, and every once in a great while, it is I who is contacted by a
descendant who generously and graciously shares information they have about
their ancestor who served in the regiment. It doesn’t happen that often;
indeed, only a handful of times since I first launched this blog nine years
ago. But last month I awoke one Saturday morning to discover an email in my
inbox from a Mr. Brett Adams of Minnesota who came across my blog while doing
some research on his Civil War ancestor: Private Thomas Major, of Company E, 48th
Pennsylvania Infantry. I was absolutely thrilled by the message he sent, for
not only did he include some biographical and genealogical information about
Major, but he also included a photograph. Whenever I get to see an image of
a 48th PA soldier for the very first time, well, it just makes my
day. Discovering images of 48th soldiers does not happen often, or
at least not as often as one might think. Indeed, of the 1,860 men who served
in the regiment, I have only ever seen photographs of about 200 of them—or just
over 10%. That’s it. So when I, for the very first time, get to see the face of
a soldier I have known only by a name, it makes me feel a much closer
connection. I responded quickly to Mr. Adams and over the next few weeks, I was
amazed with the information he so willingly and so kindly sent along to me about
Thomas Major and his family. Included were a number of letters—previously
unknown to me, of course—written by Thomas while in service and sent to his
siblings back home in Schuylkill County. Mr. Adams also sent along images of
Major’s brother, sister, and brother-in-law.
Having studied the 48th
for so long, it was—and is—always thrilling to me when I learn more about its
soldiers, and I cannot thank Mr. Adams and his family enough for their kindness and generosity in sharing their photographs and letters with me and for allowing me the
honor of telling Private Thomas Major’s story here. . . .
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| Thomas Major Company E 48th Pennsylvania |
When Thomas Major enlisted in September 1861, he was 21
years of age. He stood 5’8 ½” in height, had a Dark Complexion, Brown Eyes, and
Dark Hair. His occupation was listed as Teamster and his residence simply as
Schuylkill County, though the Census Records place him and his family in Blythe
Township, which is east of Pottsville and west of Tamaqua. He was the son of 43-year-old James Major and
40-year-old Maria Major. His father had been born in England and by 1860 was a
foreman at a coal mine. Thomas appears to have been their eldest child; the
oldest of nine. When Thomas marched off to war in the late summer of 1861, he
left behind four younger brothers and four younger sisters. And he would write
home frequently to his younger siblings. Along with a letter he sent home on
October 18, 1861, from near Fortress Monroe, Virginia, Thomas also included a
piece of President John Tyler’s piano from Hampton. Tyler, the former President
who had been elected to the Confederate Congress, was, said Major, “now in the
Secession War.” As was the case with most soldiers, however, Thomas soon began
to admonish his siblings for not writing more often. From Hatteras Inlet, North
Carolina, in May 1862, for example, Thomas wrote that he was “discontented”
because a mail had arrived “and all the boys had letters to read and I got
none.” He was quite convinced, said the brooding young soldier, “that the folks
at home had forgot that there is a Thomas Major out on Hatteras.” Nevertheless,
he recorded his thoughts on army life and wrote about his efforts at
getting a furlough—all to no avail. He was also sure to keep his family updated
on the doings of the army. “They have taken Fort Macon and I think they will
run the vessels in down there at Beaufort,” said Major in a letter dated May 1,
1862 when the 48th formed part of Burnside’s Expedition in North
Carolina. “They lost but one man and it was 10 hours fight. They took them all
prisoners. They battered a hole through the walls that they could drive a team
in, and they put 3 balls in the magazine. The gun boats could not get in to
fight. Our forces planted mortars 3 miles from the fort and the Stars and
Stripes are waving over it now.” It was not all battle-related, though. At the
end of that same letter, Thomas mentioned that he and the boys in the mess “are
opening oysters," which they intend to have with soup for dinner. "Don’t you wish you had a
cup?” Thomas asked his brother. In another letter, this one dated May 4, Thomas recorded the elation he and his comrades felt over the fall of New
Orleans—“Hip, hip, hooray, we heard of New Orleans being taken”—but that elation
seemed to have been short-lived, since, said Thomas, the boys were now “getting down-hearted,
afraid the war will soon be over and then they will have to go to work again.”
(Not a few soldiers of the 48th wrote about how they would rather be
in the army than in the coal mines).
In his letters, Thomas would plead with his family not to worry too much about him and in June 1862 told them that if it was his fate to "fall on the battlefield it will be for a good cause." Thomas also would do his best to still be the
big brother of the family, even while hundreds of miles away from them, by urging his younger siblings to lead good, virtuous lives.
In a June 9, 1862, letter from New Bern, he urged his brother “to leave thee
off some of the bad habits you have—do, for a brother’s sake leave off drinking
liquor, which I have seen too much of it already since I came out here.” Apparently, drinking to excess was quite a
problem in the army—at times—and Thomas saw what a ruinous habit it can be. Drinking
lands men in the guard house, said Major to his brother, and in handcuffs.
Thomas then quoted directly from “A Letter From A Father to His Son on Inebrity,” that appeared in a book
entitled “The Universal Letter Writer,” and published in 1811 and which surely
made its way around the army camps. In part, this letter read that “Hard
drinking is a vice that breaks a man’s rest, impairs his understanding,
extinguishes the memory, inflames the passions, corrupts the will, lays the foundation
of the worst and most dangerous distempers; prevents a person from pursuing his
studies and from applying to his duties of his calling, be it what it will.”
Certainly, Thomas was concerned about the well-being
of his younger siblings and it is clear that he missed them. It seems his
efforts at getting a furlough did not come to fruition and like most others, he
longed for home. In a June 10, 1862, letter from New Bern, Thomas wrote that
North Carolina was pretty country, but “I would like to see the old dirt banks
[of Schuylkill County] again.”
Sadly, he would not.
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| Thomas Major Letter From Camp Hamilton Near Fortress Monroe October 18, 1861 |
In July 1862, the 48th Pennsylvania—along with
most of Burnside’s force in North Carolina—were ordered to Virginia. After
spending a few weeks at Newport News, they were sent via steamer to Aquia Creek and from there, the soldiers of the 48th marched hard
to catch up with General John Pope’s army then gathering in northern Virginia.
They arrived in time to participate in the blood-letting that was Second Bull
Run. On August 29, 1862, the 48th Pennsylvania—as part of Nagle’s
Brigade and along with the 2nd Maryland and 6th New
Hampshire Infantries—smashed through a section of Stonewall Jackson’s line
along an unfinished railroad cut. Their success was not exploited, however, and
with no supports marching to their assistance, it was not long before the
Confederates recovered and rallied and soon had Nagle’s men pinned down, fired upon from three sides. A devastating flank attack drove the survivors from the
cut and by the time the 48th rallied, more than 150 of its soldiers
were among the killed, wounded, captured, or missing. As it turned out and in
terms of numbers lost, 2nd Bull Run would be the 48th’s
worst battle of the war.
Among the wounded was young Private Thomas Major of Company
E. At some point during the battle, he was shot in the leg and remained on the
field for two days before he was able to limp or crawl away to safety. He was
taken to the Columbian College Hospital in Washington, D.C. for treatment.
Hopes for his recovery were high and from his hospital bed, Thomas continued to
write letters home. On October 11, some six weeks after his wounding, he wrote
that he was “well and hearty although in bed.” “My leg is coming along nicely,”
Thomas assured his sisters, or at least “as well as could be expected” and that
the hospital was “about the best in Washington.” He described his experiences
at 2nd Bull Run: “About the battle, I was shot on Friday the 29th.
I laid in under the hottest of the fire for 2 days. The ball tore the ground
all around me, and also my clothing was pierced a dozen times.” He also
informed his sister that he had received a letter from brother George. By the
fall of 1862, George Major, who was two years younger than Thomas had entered
the army and was just then serving in the ranks of the nine-month 129th
Pennsylvania Infantry. Thomas also passed along his regards for their neighbors
back home in Blythe Township, the Gables, but ended his letter by saying he was
tired. He told his sister earlier in that same letter that she should “not
expect to get long letters from me while I am laying on the bed for it is very
tiresome.”
There was nothing in that letter to indicate that Thomas was
not recovering well; indeed, the thought was that he would soon be back home.
It thus came as a shock when on October 31, Thomas Major died.
Included among the letters Mr. Adams sent along was one
dated November 22, 1862, and written by a M.A. Wood, who was likely a nurse or
hospital steward at Columbian College Hospital. Wood was responding to a letter
he or she received from one of Thomas Major’s siblings.
Columbian College
Hospital
14th Street, Washington, D.C.
November 22, 1862
14th Street, Washington, D.C.
November 22, 1862
Dear Friend,
It was with much pleasure
that I received your kind letter. I was truly glad to hear from you and to hear
that you were all well, for I did not know but your brother's death might
seriously affect your dear mother, but it was my prayer that the Lord would give
you all strength to bear it. It must surely have been a cruel blow, more so on
account of having all encouraging letters from him. It was very unexpected to
me. I could not have felt worse to have had an own brother die. He had been
here a long time and we all got very much attached to him. He was so patient
and so good, not even a murmur through all his sufferings. I am very glad that
it was my privilege to do what I could for him. I do not know of anything that
he wanted but that he had.
It would have seemed much
better and pleasanter for you to had him with you if it could have been right,
but the Lord doeth all things well and doubtless you feel to say with the
Psalmist "It is the Lord. Let Him do what seemeth to Him good." You
spoke of giving me his picture and your mother's. You do not know how much
pleased I should be to have them and yours too. I will have mine taken and send
you.
Please remember me kindly
to your father, mother, brothers and sisters. I hope your other brother may be
spared to you.
Please write. I shall be
very much pleased to hear from at any time.
The Chaplain has looked
after your brother's grave.
Yours affectionately,
M.A. Wood
P.S. Please excuse me
for not writing before for I have not had time. - M.A.W.
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| Columbian College Hospital Washington, D.C. (Library of Congress) |
Thomas Major answered his country’s call in the late summer
of 1861, leaving behind his family in Blythe Township and marching off to war
as a private in Company E, 48th Pennsylvania Infantry. The next
summer, he received a wound from which he would never recover. He bore his
wound bravely, stoically, all the while composing letters home to his beloved
younger siblings. His remains never made it back to those “old dirt piles” of
Schuylkill County; they were, instead, buried at U.S. Soldiers’ Home National
Cemetery in Washington, D.C.
 |
| The Worn Grave of Thomas Major U.S. Soldiers' and Airmen's Home National Cemetery Washington, D.C. (findagrave.com) |
Thomas Major's younger brother, George Major, served out his nine-month
term with the 129th, seeing action at Fredericksburg and
Chancellorsville. In the years after the war, he became Chief Burgess of
Mahonoy City. On March 30, 1874, a fire spread through a home in the center of
the city. Responding to the call were two rival fire companies, one
predominantly Welsh, the other predominantly Irish. As was so often the case in
those days of ethnic division and strife, a street brawl broke out and Burgess
Major attempted to restore order by stepping between the two gangs and drawing
his pistol. A shot was fired from the crowd and George Major fell dead. His
death—or murder—was soon blamed on Molly Maguirism.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
[My thanks, again, to Mr. Brett Adams and his brothers for their kindness and generosity in sending along the images and letters of Thomas Major and his family]