Su Naujais Metais

For the past two years I've been writing about the New Year's traditions of some of my ancestors homelands, including Germany and Scotland. Today, I'm wandering over to my husband's side of the tree and his paternal grandparent's homeland, Lithuania.

On New Year's Eve, families usually spent time together and ate traditional foods. Fortune-telling, or guessing, games were played. If there was tension, reconciliation was attempted. Little alcohol was consumed.

Fireworks over Vilnius, Lithuania; courtesy of VisitLithuania

It was important to get up early on New Year's Day. If you did not, you would have a slothful year with no luck. If you were behind in your work, you would late all year. If you heard a lot of birds chirping, you would have many visitors over the coming year and it would be a fun one. If you borrowed something on New Year's Day, you would experience shortages throughout the year.

Lithuanians used to watch the weather carefully. If New Year's Eve was cold, Easter would be warm. If the night cold, clear and star-filled, the summer would be a good one. If the morning dawned foggy, there would be many deaths. If there was a blizzard, farmers would harvest a bumper crop. Huge snowflakes meant the cows would give a lot of milk.

Today, the end-of-year traditions have lost some of their importance in comparison with Christmas celebrations. The first day of the new year is spent with family or close friends at home or in a restaurant. People still hope the first piece of news they hear will be good as it reveals the type of news they hear throughout the year.

And since 1919, 1 January has also been Flag Day. To celebrate, a solemn ceremony, in which the flag is replaced, is held on Gediminas Field in Vilnius, the capital.

A Slave Named Alexander

A few months ago I was at my local Family History Center looking through several reels of microfilm I had ordered. I was searching for additional documentation for several marriages in Bedford County, Virginia, and one death in Amherst County, Virginia. I was hoping the death registration information would include the parents' names of my great great grandfather, Powhatan Perrow Jennings, adding yet another piece of proof to my Daughters of the American Revolution application. That column was blank on the entry in the register of his death. So I might have walked away with nothing had I had not looked at every page on the reel.

There in the early section of the register for the year 1857, I found this entry:

Amherst
page 68

28
Name in full: Alexander
White:
Colored / free:
Colored / slave: 28*
Name of the owner of slave: P. P. Jennings
Sex / male: 14**
Sex / female:
Date of death: October 23
Place of death: Amherst
Name of disease or cause of death: Typhoid fever
Age / years: 12
Age / months:
Age / days:

* This column was a cumulative count by race for the year.
** This column was a cumulative count by sex for the year.

Of the tenth deaths recorded on 23 October 1857, four died of typhoid fever -- all slaves.

Amherst County Register of Death entry for Alexander, the 12-year-old slave
owned by Powhatan Perrow Jennings; image courtesy of the Family History
Library

I was not surprised to learn Powhatan owned at least one slave as he owned and farmed a 200-acre piece of property and 15 acres were in tobacco in 1850. Tobacco was a very labor-intensive crop to grow and harvest; it was the cash crop in Virginia at the time and for years before and after.

No, what surprised me was seeing slave names on the same register page as their owners. The few of us in the Family History Center that morning puzzled over this for quite some time. If slaves were property, why were their deaths treated in such a fashion, especially as the right to own slaves was hardening in the South at that very time? We all thought if any record of a slave death was made, it was done in the owner's property records.

The FamilySearch catalog provided the answer:

"Register gives full name of the deceased, race, sex, death date, place of death, cause of death, age, parents' names, birthplace, occupation, name of spouse, and sources of occupation. Between 1853 and 1863, the name of the slave owner was also given. Information is not always complete."

And so, I am releasing the name of Alexander, a 12-year-old slave owned by Powhatan Perrow Jennings, who died of typhoid fever on 23 October 1857. In another eight years he would have been a free 20-year-old man with nearly his entire life in front of him.

_______________
Slave Name Roll Project

If you have ancestors who died in Virginia between 1853 and 1863, I encourage you to request the microfilm from the Family Search Library and look at the source document. You may have an opportunity to add too the Slave Name Roll Project and that would be a wonderful way to collaborate and share your research...Just a thought.

52 Ancestors #52: Genealogy Resolutions

I didn't used make resolutions on New Year's. I believe self-improvement is a continuous process. When your recognize something about yourself that doesn't please you, start fixing it right away. Don't wait for the new year. Sometimes you fail, have to pick yourself up, dust yourself off, and try again. Other times you can take a victory lap. Trying to become a better person is a never-ending process.

But on 1 January 2013 I made one resolution and that was Dad's 20+ years of genealogy research would not die and would continue and be shared with others.

I'd always been intrigued by family history from the first time I sat with Dad in his home office helping him with data entry into his Family Tree Maker database and listening to his stories. Since he was working on his and Mom's family, I would work on my husbands'. His grandparents all emigrated from eastern Europe and progress was slow to nonexistent. I would stop for years at a time, start again, find a tidbit, and hit another brick wall.

Trakai, Lithuania, where my husbands' paternal grandfather was born. It
took 10 years to locate the name of this city; photograph courtesy of
Wikipedia

But in 2012, I brought back all Dad's genealogy files and software because his health did not permit him to continue and became obsessed!

One night I realized I was making interesting discovery after interesting discovery and without much thought started blogging about them. Who wouldn't want to tell people that Charles Dickens' Bleak House was written about their family? Or that the 1st Lord Howe had to forcibly toss someone out of the window to enforce his claim to a Jennens inheritance? Or about the quack doctor who likely killed Jonathan Hiller's first wife?

However, I quickly ran out of steam. I was writing all the time and no longer researching. Soon I had no more material about which to blog. After a month, the blog almost died. I stopped thinking about it and started researching in earnest again. And, of course, started finding interesting stories. After five months I resumed blogging and learned to pace myself. I don't have to post every day. I came up with a schedule that works for me -- usually three or four posts a week -- if it's less, that is okay, too. When I have an idea I made a placeholder post, schedule it and include the link to the person in my tree and a brief description of what I want to write about. I've got ideas through 2018 now!

On 1 January 2014 I made another New Year's resolution, I would write a book about Dad's one immigrant line from Scotland -- his mother's paternal Muir line. He didn't know much about his Muir ancestors because when he was researching he had no access to Scottish records. Using ScotlandsPeople, I do.

East Kilbride, Scotland, Parish Church, built in 1774, where my great great
aunt, Martha Muir married John Riddell in 1852; photograph courtesy of
Wikipedia

After several false start starts, I started writing the book as a blog in October of 2014. When completed, it will encompass eight volumes -- one for every child of my Muir three times great grandparents who lived to adulthood and had children. When I finish the descendants of one child, I make an electronic book and post a link, making it available for download to anyone who is interested. After the second volume was completed I skipped ahead to my two times great grandfather, James Muir. And hit a wall when I got to my own grandmother. I found it very difficult to write about people I actually knew.

So I am making another New Year's resolution in 2016 -- I will start writing this book again, darn it!

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 ancestors in 52 weeks challenge optional theme Resolution.

________________
Writing a Family History
Hello from the Old Dominion

19th Virginia Infantry: After the War

Continued from 19th Virginia Infantry: Defending Richmond:

Over the past month, I have told the often brutal story of the 19th Virginia Infantry during the Civil War. The regiment was formed soon after President Abraham Lincoln issued a proclamation calling up 75,000 men on 15 April 1861 and served until the remnants were captured en masse at Saylor's Creek on 6 April 1865, three days before Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox. The regiment was part of the Army of Virginia until the commonwealth seceded from the United States.

Five Jennings men from Amherst County, Virginia, all first cousins to each other and some brothers, served with the 19th Virginia Infantry. This post briefly describes their lives after.

Relationship of the five Jennings men who served with the 19th
Virginia Infantry during the Civil War; created using Powerpoint

Charles Edward Jennings

The last military record on which Charles Edward Jennings, my great grandfather, was recorded, was a muster roll for Pratt Hospital in Lynchburg, Virginia. The Board of Medical Examiners cleared him to return to his regiment, but there is no 19th Virginia Infantry muster roll to prove he returned. I wrote in detail about his military service in A Lover, Not a Fighter.

He returned to Amherst County and continued farming. He married his first cousin once removed Nancy "Nannie" Jane Johnson/Johnston on 23 December 1873. They had seven children. Their youngest was born on 11 April 1892 and Nannie died two weeks later on 25 April. The newborn infant died on 9 August 1892.

Charles Edward Jennings; courtesy of Janie (Moore)
Darby

Charles then married Effie Davis Beard, my great grandmother. They received a marriage license on 2 June 1895 and married sometime there after. The lived in Roanoke, Virginia, where Charles owned a grocery business in partnership with another man. Charles and Effie had four children before she died on 4 May 1906 of heart disease. Their youngest child died on 12 June of the same year. He was seven months old. Charles died in Erwin, Tennessee, where he lived with one of his daughters and her family. He, Effie and their youngest child are buried in Fair View Cemetery in Roanoke.

Daniel Rose Jennings

Daniel Rose Jennings was wounded twice during the war -- at Gaines' Mill and Gettysburg. He was promoted to corporal after Gettysburg. On 30 March 1864 he was detailed by special order to General Pickett's headquarters where he worked as a courier. He was at Appomattox when General Robert E. Lee surrendered. He was the only one of the five Jennings men who fought with the 19th Virginia Infantry, which documentation supports him serving through the entire war. This does not mean the others did not; only that documentation has not yet been found to prove it.

Daniel returned to Amherst County and married Mary "Mollie" T. Johnson on 24 August 1865. They had five children. Daniel worked as a machinist and then engineer after the war in Appomattox County, Richmond, and Norfolk. He died on 18 January 1911; his widow on 31 October 1918. Both were interred at Hollywood Cemetery in Richmond.

John Thomas Jennings

John Thomas Jennings was the older brother of Charles Edward Jennings. After being sent to an army hospital in Farmville, Virginia, to recover from rheumatism, he married Margaret E. Tomlinson on 1 July 1863. He returned to the 19th Virginia Infantry after Gettysburg and served until December when records indicated he transferred to Company G, 51st Virginia Volunteers, the unit in which his brother William Henry Jennings served. The last military record is a receipt for clothing issued on 11 December 1864 by the 51st Virginia Volunteers.

John remained in Amherst County and was a farmer. He and Margaret had 12 or 13 children. My assumption is Margaret died sometime before his marriage to widow Ellen Camp in 1902. I do not know when John died. He was interred at Amherst Cemetery. His, headstone, however, includes no date of birth or death.

Leroy Powhatan Jennings

Leroy was wounded twice during the war -- at Gaines' Mill and Gettysburg. He was taken prisoner at Gettysburg and sent to a hospital in Baltimore because he had suffered a gunshot wound in his right lung during the charge down Seminary Ridge. He was paroled and sent to a military hospital in Richmond and then home to continue his recovery. He was promoted to corporal after Gettysburg and returned to the 19th Virginia Infantry by January 1864. The last muster roll for Leroy was for the month of August 1864.

Leroy Powhatan Jennings; courtesy of Ancestry.com
member buffalo4me

He returned to Amherst County and farmed. He married Isabella M. White, one of three sisters to marry Jennings men. They had 11 children before Isabella died on 12 April 1883. I wrote about their lives earlier this year in, Three Brothers Married Three Sisters.

On 29 October 1884 Leroy married Sarah Ellen Clements and they moved to Texas that same year. They eventually settled in Mineola, Texas, and had ten children. Some of their descendants remain in Mineola to this day. I wrote about their lives in Gone to Texas.

Samuel Henry Jennings

Samuel Henry Jennings was older brother of Daniel Rose Jennings. He came down with smallpox when the 19th Virginia Infantry was stationed at the Fairfax County Courthouse in September 1861 and was discharged from the army on the 12th of that month.

He returned to Amherst County and to his wife, Mary Ann Howl, who he likely married just before 1860. They remained in Amherst County their entire lives and Samuel was a farmer. He and Mary Ann had eight children. In 1900 Samuel lived with his son. The enumerator listed his marital status as "married," but his wife was not enumerated in the same house. I have been unable to find her in the 1900 census.

Samuel died on 16 January 1904 of Bright's Disease and was interred at the Meade Cemetery in Madison Heights, Virginia. Mary Ann (Howl) Jennings died on 2 June 1925 and was interred at Fair View Cemetery in Roanoke.

19th Virginia Infantry: Defending Richmond
19th Virginia Infantry: Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: September 1862-May 1863 
19th Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina
19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter

Wordless Wednesday: Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: June 1863-April 1865

The 19th Virginia Infantry, part of General Longstreet's corps, fought at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863. They were slaughtered during Pickett's charge from Seminary Ridge.

19th Virginia Infantry before, during and after Gettysburg; created using
Google Maps and Powerpoint

The 19th Virginia Infantry returned to Virginia but was not an effective fighting force until the spring of 1864. Their primary responsibility after Gettysburg was to assist in the defense of Richmond. The regiment was captured en masse at Saylor's Creek while marching to Appomattox.

19th Virginia Infantry after Gettysburg through their capture at Saylor's
Creek in April 1865

_______________
Jennings, Charles E. (my great grandfather), Private, Co. H; enlisted 1 March 1862 at Amherst courthouse; Present until detailed 18 May 1863 to General Hospital in Lynchburg on surgeon's certificate; absent there through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Daniel R. (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse; age 20, farmer; Private to 4th Corporal by August 1863; 4 Corporal to 3rd Corporal by October 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by February 1864; Present until wounded at Ganes Mill on 27 June 1862; returned, wounded in action at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863; sent to Lynchburg Hospital; absent, detailed on government work, dropped as non-commissioned officer from 16 April 1865. Surrendered at Appomattox, pension in 1910.

Jennings, John T. (my great grand uncle), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse, age 23, farmer; present through last roll 31 December 1863.

Jennings, Leroy P.  (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. I; enlisted 29 April 1861 at Buffalo Springs; age 19, farmer; Private to 3rd Corporal by August 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by October 1863; Present till wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862; returned; wounded in action and taken prisoner of war on 3 July 1863 at Gettysburg; gunshot in right lung; paroled at General Hospital West's Building in Baltimore on 25 September 1863; returned to duty by February 1864; through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Samuel H. (my first cousin three times removed), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst courthouse; age 24, farmer; Present until discharged discharged on 12 September 1861 by order of General Beauregard, surgeon's certificate, listed disease was smallpox. Pension 1900.

19th Virginia Infantry: Defending Richmond
19th Virginia Infantry: Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: September 1862-May 1863 
19th Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina
19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter

19th Virginia Infantry: Defending Richmond

Continued from 19 Virginia Infantry: Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge:

The remainder of 1863 passed quietly for the 19th Virginia Infantry. They had been decimated at Gettysburg and were no longer an effective fighting force. The regiment reached the Culpeper area on 24 July and by early August were camped in Orange County, Virginia, near Somerville Ford. They men were so close to home, many deserted.

On 8 September, the regiment moved south of Richmond to Chaffin's Farm where it could rebuild and refit in safety. Pickett assumed command of the Department of North Carolina and General Hunton replaced him. He and General Kemper became part of the Department of Richmond under Major General Arnold Elsey. They remained at Chaffin's Farm until May 1964.

Camp life was lax. They lived in log cabins vacated by other Confederate soldiers. The cabins had fireplaces, bunk beds, and windows. Women were frequent camp visitors and many men, who were married, had their wives living nearby. There were weekend parties, music and dancing.

Union camp life (thought to be similar to Confederates). Photograph by
Matthew Brady and held by the Library of Congress

They performed light guard and picket duty, which was interrupted on 29 November 1863 when Hunton's brigade was sent north of Richmond to Hanover Junction to protect against a Union cavalry raid against Richmond. No battle was fought.

By Christmas, about the time Daniel Rose and Leroy Powhatan Jennings had recovered from the wounds sufficiently and returned to the 19th, rations had become critical. By March 1864, the men were calling their winter quarters "Camp Starvation." The men lived on cornbread until a party of soldiers was sent to neighboring counties to get meat. When that was gone, they ate cats, which were skinned, boiled and roasted. Some of the men compared the taste to rabbits.

The 19th Virginia Infantry was slowly growing in manpower. Each soldier who persuaded a new man to enlist received a 30-day furlough. They had about 320 men in early May. Below Gettysburg numbers, but if they needed to, they could fight. Union armies began advancing toward Richmond again about that time. Hunton's brigade, of which the 19th was a part, was moved to Hanover Junction again. Times were confusing because the men were ordered back to their camp the next day. On 11 May, they fought at Yellow Tavern against Union cavalry.

On 25 May 1864 the division rejoined the corps in Caroline County, Virginia, which was now commanded by General Richard H. Anderson. On 2 June they marched to a position near Cold Harbor, not far from the 1862 battle of Gaines Mill, where Daniel and Leroy Jennings had first been wounded.

Battle of Cold Harbor by Kurz and Allison; courtesy of Wikipedia

Overnight the Confederates built a series of elaborate fortifications seven miles long. At dawn the Union army attacked. Thousands of attackers were killed or wounded during one of the most lopsided battles of the war. The 19th lost six men killed and 42 wounded.

After Cold Harbor, the 19th moved to trenches between Richmond and Petersburg. The next nine months passed somewhat peacefully though trench life weakened several men and they were always hungry. They did play cards, checkers, and chess. Boxing and wresting matches were held. An inspection report praised the 19th's camp for its good condition. But men continued to desert.

Defensive trenches and fortifications around Richmond and Petersburg;
courtesy of the Library of Congress

On 31 March 1865 the Hunton's brigade was ordered to Hatcher's Run. Elements of the Union army had been sent near there to destroy as many Confederate supply wagons as they could find. Confederate soldiers attacked but were repulsed. The 19th retired from the field.

They joined the slow retreat to Appomattox in a hungry, tired and weak condition without sufficient rations. On 6 April 1865 they stopped to rest on a hill overlooking Sailor's Creek near Farmville. They made fires and were preparing to eat what little food remained when they were quickly surrounded by the forces of General George Armstrong Custer. The 29 men remaining in the 19th Virginia surrendered. Most were sent to Point Lookout prison in Maryland and remained there until after the war when they were paroled after taking an oath of allegiance.

Confederate muster rolls are incomplete for late 1864 and 1865. We know that John Thomas Jennings transferred to Company G, 51st Virginia Volunteers in January 1864 and no more military records have been found. This was the unit in which another brother, William Henry Jennings, had served since January 1863. The last muster roll for Leroy Powhatan Jennings is for the period of August 1864. Charles Edward Jennings was declared fit to return to duty in October 1864 by the Board of Medical Examiners, which is the last war-related record that has been found for him. Only Daniel Rose Jennings was known to have served through Lee's surrender at Appomattox and was at General Pickett headquarters at the time. Of the five Jennings men who enlisted in the 19th Virginia Infantry, it is likely none were at Sailor's Creek when the regiment surrendered.

General Lee's surrender at Appomattox Court House in the McLean House;
lithograph courtesy of Wikipedia

To be continued...

________________
Jennings, Charles E. (my great grandfather), Private, Co. H; enlisted 1 March 1862 at Amherst courthouse; Present until detailed 18 May 1863 to General Hospital in Lynchburg on surgeon's certificate; absent there through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Daniel R. (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse; age 20, farmer; Private to 4th Corporal by August 1863; 4 Corporal to 3rd Corporal by October 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by February 1864; Present until wounded at Ganes Mill on 27 June 1862; returned, wounded in action at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863; sent to Lynchburg Hospital; absent, detailed on government work, dropped as non-commissioned officer from 16 April 1865. Surrendered at Appomattox, pension in 1910.

Jennings, John T. (my great grand uncle), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse, age 23, farmer; present through last roll 31 December 1863.

Jennings, Leroy P.  (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. I; enlisted 29 April 1861 at Buffalo Springs; age 19, farmer; Private to 3rd Corporal by August 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by October 1863; Present till wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862; returned; wounded in action and taken prisoner of war on 3 July 1863 at Gettysburg; gunshot in right lung; paroled at General Hospital West's Building in Baltimore on 25 September 1863; returned to duty by February 1864; through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Samuel H. (my first cousin three times removed), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst courthouse; age 24, farmer; Present until discharged discharged on 12 September 1861 by order of General Beauregard, surgeon's certificate, listed disease was smallpox. Pension 1900.

19th Virginia Infantry: Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: September 1862-May 1863 
19th Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina
19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter

52 Ancestors #51: Mom's Spritz Cookies

Ancestor Name: Dorothy Ailein (Lange) Jennings (1930-2014)

Mom was a great cook. I think one of the best heirlooms I received when she died was her recipe book. For years and years she spent the month of December baking Christmas cookies. She loved to try new cookie recipes during this time. There were always new types of cookies. Some made her annual rotation and some did not. A family favorite, however, was Mom's Spritz cookies.

Spritz cookies similar to those Mom used to make; source unknown

Spritz cookies, more officially known as Spritzgebäck, is a type of German and Alsatian Christmas biscuit or cookie made of flour, butter, sugar, and eggs. Wikipedia says, "When made correctly, the cookies are crisp, fragile, somewhat dry, and buttery. The German verb spritzen means to squirt in English. As the name implies, these cookies are made by extruding, or 'squirting,' the dough with a press made of patterned holes or with a cake decorator, or pastry bag, to which a variety of nozzles may be fitted. In the United States, the name Spritzgebäck is often shortened to spritz becoming known as the spritz cookie."

Many people add flavor extracts; others add chocolate to their recipes. Some people add icing or sprinkles to decorate them. Many families, I'm sure, have a much treasured version of this cookie recipe. What we all loved about Mom's version was the buttery, crispy flavor. To make them crispy she used a star-shaped hole with her cookie press and shaped them like a capital S.

These cookies bring back so many memories...of a night over the holidays when my middle brother, cousin, and I went out on the town. When we returned, my cousin and I stood in Mom's laundry room, where she stored her Christmas baking, and ate all the Spritz cookies. Or of last year when I saw this post from my youngest brother on Facebook:

"Missing Mom as Christmas nears, so I decided to honor her by -- of all things -- baking Spritz cookies! I found a recipe online and gave it a try. Kind of bland to be honest. Maybe it's the recipe, maybe it's the cook? My penmanship isn't as good as Mom's either."

Maybe it was because Mom didn't make them.

My brother's attempt at baking Spritz cookies; Facebook

His wife was visiting her mother, helping her prepare for the holidays. When she saw my brother's Facebook post, she emailed me for Mom's recipe. I sent her to my online recipe website and she and her mother made Spritz cookies, wrapped them up for Christmas and gave them to my brother. She sent me a photograph when they were fresh out of the oven.

Spritz cookies; photograph courtesy of Celeste Jennings

Mom's Spritz cookie recipe:

1 cup butter
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour

Cream butter and and sugar until well blended; blend in egg and almond extract. Mix in flour. Put dough in a cookie press and use star-shaped pattern. Shape each cookie into capital S.

Bake at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for 7 to 9 minutes on next to top shelf.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 ancestors in 52 weeks challenge optional theme Nice.

19th Virginia Infantry: Gettysburg and Pickett's Charge

Continued from 19 Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina:

John Thomas Jennings was admitted to the Confederate Army Hospital in Farmville, Virginia, on 8 May 1863, suffering from rheumatism. He was there for at least four days before going home. On 1 July he married Margaret Ellen Tomlinson in Amherst County, so it is highly unlikely, he rejoined the 19th Virginia Infantry before they fought in Gettysburg.

On 13 May 1863, Charles Edward Jennings, my great grandfather was transferred from the Receiving and Wayside Hospital, or General Hospital No. 9, in Richmond to the Chimborazo Hospital Division No. 1. He was admitted on 15 May suffering from dropsy of the foot. Three days later, he was transferred to the Confederate Army hospital in Danville, Virginia, suffering from debilitas, or general weakness. He returned to the regiment on 29 May. Meanwhile, on 18 May, General Lee's command had issued Special Order No. 134, which detailed Charles Edward Jennings for duty at the general hospital in Lynchburg. He was to report to Sergeant W. O. Owen when he arrived.

Virginia Monument at Gettysburg, the first of the Confederate
State monuments, dedicated in 1917; personal collection

Daniel Rose and Leroy Powhatan Jennings had returned to the 19th sometime before Longstreet's corps began moving north on 15 June. They marched along the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge mountains stopping briefly between Ashby's and Snicker's Gap. Longstreet and his men reached Chambersburg, Pennsylvania, on 27 June 1864. Discipline had been strict. One deserter was executed as an example to the other soldiers.

The battle at Gettysburg had raged for two days before Longstreet's men arrived. They camped three miles from town the morning of 3 July. At noon they took a position behind a hill protected by artillery. The battle that morning had not gone as General Lee planned. Now he decided Pickett's division was to attack the right center of the Union line from Cemetery Ridge.

Pickett's charge at Cemetery Ridge, a drawing from Harper's Weekly; courtesy
of the Library of Congress

Pickett's men began the now famous "Pickett's Charge" and advanced about three quarters of a mile across an open field before coming under fire from three directions. Bitter hand-to-hand fighting continued for a time but eventually hope was lost and the Confederates had to retreat. The 19th lost nearly 60 percent of its men and the regiment's colonel had been wounded. Brigade commander, Garnett had been killed. Only a major was left able to make a brigade report to divisional headquarters. Daniel Rose and Leroy Powhatan Jennings had both been wounded. Daniel was picked up by Confederates. Leroy was not so lucky. After lying injured on the field of battle for hours, he was picked up by the Union side and taken prisoner after having been shot in the right lung.

4 July dawned and it rained heavily. The two armies stared across the bloody field at each other for most of the day. When it became clear Union general Meade was not going to risk another battle, Lee began moving his army towards Fairfield and Chambersburg. Several thousand wounded men were loaded into wagons, which lacked layers of straw or springs to absorb the jolts, and joined the miles long train, as well as 4,000 prisoners of war. The Confederates retreated towards Williamsport, Maryland. The Union pursuit was half-hearted. They didn't catch up to the Confederates until 14 July and found the enemy had just crossed the Potomac river.

Lee's retreat across the Potomac at Williamsport. Painting by Edwin Forbes;
courtesy of Wikipedia

The 19th Virginia Infantry was one of the first units to cross back into Virginia as they provided guard and escort duties to the prisoners. Those prisoners were delivered to authorities in Winchester on 10 July. Confederate general John D. Imboden described the retreat as  "that vast procession of misery." Most men were without food and water and many were injured.

To be continued...

________________
Jennings, Charles E. (my great grandfather), Private, Co. H; enlisted 1 March 1862 at Amherst courthouse; Present until detailed 18 May 1863 to General Hospital in Lynchburg on surgeon's certificate; absent there through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Daniel R. (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse; age 20, farmer; Private to 4th Corporal by August 1863; 4 Corporal to 3rd Corporal by October 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by February 1864; Present until wounded at Ganes Mill on 27 June 1862; returned, wounded in action at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863; sent to Lynchburg Hospital; absent, detailed on government work, dropped as non-commissioned officer from 16 April 1865. Surrendered at Appomattox, pension in 1910.

Jennings, John T. (my great grand uncle), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse, age 23, farmer; present through last roll 31 December 1863.

Jennings, Leroy P.  (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. I; enlisted 29 April 1861 at Buffalo Springs; age 19, farmer; Private to 3rd Corporal by August 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by October 1863; Present till wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862; returned; wounded in action and taken prisoner of war on 3 July 1863 at Gettysburg; gunshot in right lung; paroled at General Hospital West's Building in Baltimore on 25 September 1863; returned to duty by February 1864; through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Samuel H. (my first cousin three times removed), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst courthouse; age 24, farmer; Present until discharged discharged on 12 September 1861 by order of General Beauregard, surgeon's certificate, listed disease was smallpox. Pension 1900.

Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: September 1862-May 1863 
19th Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina
19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter

Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry, September 1862-May 1863

The 19th Virginia Infantry began made winter camp in Culpeper, Virginia,  in 1862 but were soon headed to Fredericksburg to fend off a Union attack.

19th Virginia Infantry through the winter of 1862-1863; created using
Google Maps and Powerpoint

After the Battle of Fredericksburg, General Garnett's brigade, of which the 19th was a part, left Petersburg for an expedition in North Carolina.

19th Virginia Infantry sent to North Carolina while rest of Pickett's
Division sent to Suffolk; created using Google Maps and Powerpoint

_______________
Jennings, Charles E. (my great grandfather), Private, Co. H; enlisted 1 March 1862 at Amherst courthouse; Present until detailed 18 May 1863 to General Hospital in Lynchburg on surgeon's certificate; absent there through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Daniel R. (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse; age 20, farmer; Private to 4th Corporal by August 1863; 4 Corporal to 3rd Corporal by October 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by February 1864; Present until wounded at Ganes Mill on 27 June 1862; returned, wounded in action at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863; sent to Lynchburg Hospital; absent, detailed on government work, dropped as non-commissioned officer from 16 April 1865. Surrendered at Appomattox, pension in 1910.

Jennings, John T. (my great grand uncle), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse, age 23, farmer; present through last roll 31 December 1863.

Jennings, Leroy P.  (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. I; enlisted 29 April 1861 at Buffalo Springs; age 19, farmer; Private to 3rd Corporal by August 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by October 1863; Present till wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862; returned; wounded in action and taken prisoner of war on 3 July 1863 at Gettysburg; gunshot in right lung; paroled at General Hospital West's Building in Baltimore on 25 September 1863; returned to duty by February 1864; through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Samuel H. (my first cousin three times removed), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst courthouse; age 24, farmer; Present until discharged discharged on 12 September 1861 by order of General Beauregard, surgeon's certificate, listed disease was smallpox. Pension 1900.

19th Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina
19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter

19th Virginia Infantry: Fredericksburg and North Carolina

Continued from 19th Virginia Infantry: South Mountain and Sharpsburg:

After the bloody battle at Sharpsburg, Lee's army crossed the Potomac River at Shepherdstown, West Virginia. The 19th Virginia Infantry was now commanded by Colonel Henry Gantt, and they spent some time in the Shenandoah Valley before moving to Culpeper by 4 November 1862. The men built "brush huts" and wrote home asking for more clothing. They looked forward to a quiet period to recruit sufficient numbers to again become an effective fighting force.

Just weeks after the men arrived in Culpeper, it became obvious the Union army was moving toward Fredericksburg with the objective of racing the Confederate army to Richmond. Longstreet's corps was ordered to Fredericksburg and arrived on the outskirts south and east of town on 19 November 1862. They took up positions in the low hills in back of the city on the left side of the Confederate line.

Union army preparing to cross the Rappahannock river during the Battle of
Fredericksburg by Kurz and Allison; courtesy of Wikipedia

On 13 December the Union army attacked the Confederates on the right side of their line. By afternoon, the entire Confederate line was engaged in battle, including most of Longstreet's corps. Each Union attack was repulsed and they eventually withdrew. Garnett's brigade, of which the 19th Virginia was a part, were held in reserve throughout the battle.

The 19th moved into winter camp near Guiney's Station south of Fredericksburg after the battle. It was their second attempt at establishing a camp. They performed picket duty during January and early February of 1863.  General Lee began to worry about another Union attempt to seize Richmond. On 14 February he ordered Pickett's division south of Richmond. It took the men about two weeks to make the march to Chester Station. Later, they marched to Petersburg.

Garnett's brigade, including the 19th Virginia Infantry, was detached from Pickett's division for duty in North Carolina in March. The Union military forces held several strategic coastal towns there, which threatened the Confederate supply base. Garnett's division was to support General D. H. Hill's plan to pressure Union positions at Washington and New Bern. The brigade traveled by train to Tarboro, North Carolina, on 9 March and then on to Greenville. But the trip was struck by trouble from the beginning. Only 160 of the 800 men in the brigade made the train.

The brigade had arrived too late to participate in General Hill's expedition against New Bern. After conferring with Longstreet, Garnett's men marched to Washington, North Carolina, along the north banks of the Tar river in cold, rainy weather. At Washington, they joined the brigades of James J. Pettigrew and Junius Daniel and began besieging the city. This battle is sometimes known as the Siege of Little Washington. The Confederates then demanded the town's surrender. The Union general replied, "If you want Washington, come and get it."

Hill, however, was under orders not to take heavy casualties, so the battle became an artillery duel. Over time both sides were low on supplies and conditions for the men were miserable. They lacked tents to protect them from frequent rain storms. Cold nights and warm days caused an outbreak of chills and fever. At least one Union relief attempt failed to reach Washington but another attempt by the USS Escort was successful and included additional troops.

USS Escort running supplies and reinforcements up the Tar river during the
siege at Washington, North Carolina, from Harper's Weekly; courtesy of
NCPedia

Hill received a message from Longstreet requesting additional troops for an assault on Suffolk, Virginia. His men had completed foraging around Washington and were well supplied with food. Coupled with his inability to stop Union supplies and reinforcements from reaching Washington, he raised the siege on 15 April. Five days later Confederate troops were completely gone from the area.

While Garnett's brigade had been in North Carolina, the rest of Pickett's division, along with General Hood's division, had arrived near Suffolk, Virginia, then under Union control. Their orders were to protect Richmond, capture Suffolk, and allow the men to forage in an area where little warfare had previously occurred. Longstreet was unsuccessful in only one objective: capturing Suffolk. Like, Garnett's experience in North Carolina, the battle devolved into a siege. There were brief skirmishes and sharpshooters were active but no major battles.

On 29 April, General Lee sent an urgent request for reinforcements as the Union army was crossing the Rappahannock river near Fredericksburg. Pickett's division, now including the 19th Virginia Infantry, marched toward Richmond -- yet another forced march in the rain. They arrived in Manchester on 7 May and while there provided escort services for the body of General "Stonewall" Jackson, who had died friendly fire incident. Then the division marched north to Hanover Junction where they stayed for three weeks. They pushed on to Culpeper where they rejoined the rest of Longstreet's corps.

To be continued...

________________
Jennings, Charles E. (my great grandfather), Private, Co. H; enlisted 1 March 1862 at Amherst courthouse; Present until detailed 18 May 1863 to General Hospital in Lynchburg on surgeon's certificate; absent there through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Daniel R. (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse; age 20, farmer; Private to 4th Corporal by August 1863; 4 Corporal to 3rd Corporal by October 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by February 1864; Present until wounded at Ganes Mill on 27 June 1862; returned, wounded in action at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863; sent to Lynchburg Hospital; absent, detailed on government work, dropped as non-commissioned officer from 16 April 1865. Surrendered at Appomattox, pension in 1910.

Jennings, John T. (my great grand uncle), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse, age 23, farmer; present through last roll 31 December 1863.

Jennings, Leroy P.  (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. I; enlisted 29 April 1861 at Buffalo Springs; age 19, farmer; Private to 3rd Corporal by August 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by October 1863; Present till wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862; returned; wounded in action and taken prisoner of war on 3 July 1863 at Gettysburg; gunshot in right lung; paroled at General Hospital West's Building in Baltimore on 25 September 1863; returned to duty by February 1864; through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Samuel H. (my first cousin three times removed), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst courthouse; age 24, farmer; Present until discharged discharged on 12 September 1861 by order of General Beauregard, surgeon's certificate, listed disease was smallpox. Pension 1900.

19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter

52 Ancestors #50: How Many Betties Does One Man Need?

Ancestor Name: Benjamin Leonard Fletcher Jennings (1868-1943)

Benjamin Leonard Fletcher Jennings was born on 17 May 1868 to Samuel Henry and Mary Ann Howl (or Howell) Jennings in Amherst County, Virginia. His father, Samuel, served with Company H, 19th Virginia Infantry during the Civil War with his brother, Daniel Rose Jennings, and three first cousins, one of which was my great grandfather.[1] Benjamin was Samuel and Mary's fifth child out eight. For most of Benjamin's adult life he was a farmer, working on land he owned.

Sometime before 1894 he married Bettie Elizabeth Miller, daughter of Alexander and Ann Marie (Jennings) Miller. Benjamin and Bettie were first cousins. Over the course of their 14-year marriage, they had five children:

• Harry McCoy Jennings, born 10 March 1894
• John Lawson Jennings, born 20 July 1897
• Mary Annie Jennings, born 30 May 1900
• Rosa Mattie Jennings, born 29 December 1903
• Oscar Leonard Jennings, born 25 Jun 1908

Bettie died the day after Oscar was born, likely from issues related to childbirth. And that's when Benjamin did something a wee bit naughty...at least from a genealogist's point of view. 

Headstone of Bettie Elizabeth (Miller) Jennings,
who was interred at Amherst Cemetery; photograph
of Find a Grave volunteer Martha Harrison

He quickly remarried on 18 November 1908, which is perfectly understandable with so many small children at home, including a newborn infant. However, he married someone with the same given name as his fist wife. This has caused several Jennings researchers no end of grief as many have assumed Bettie Elizabeth Miller and Bettie Lee Brizendine were the same person. Of the seven other public trees on Ancestry.com that included Benjamin Leonard Jennings, only two correctly indicate he married twice to different Betties. Two things enabled me to sort Benjamin's Betties out to my satisfaction: 1) Bettie Elizabeth's headstone, though very difficult to read, gives her date of death as 1908 and 2) the difference in Bettie Elizabeth and Bettie Lee's dates of birth. Bettie Lee was born on 7 Oct 1884. Once I knew there were two Betties, I went searching for a marriage record.

Marriage index record for Benjamin Leonard Jennings and Bettie
Lee Brizendine; image courtesy of Ancestry.com

Bettie Lee Brizendine was the daughter of James T. and Laura (Arthur) Brizendine. She grew up in Bedford County, Virginia, and she and Benjamin were married in Lynchburg. They had two daughters:

• Gertrude Elizabeth Jennings, born 9 August 1912
• Beulah Lee Jennings, born 21 July 1916

On 15 April 1934 Benjamin and Bettie Lee separated. She was granted an absolute divorce decree on the grounds of desertion on 21 January 1937. The next year Bettie Lee married Charles Smith in Winchester, Virginia, on 25 March 1938. He was the son of Alfred and Mary Ann (Burkitt or Burkett) Smith and he was born in Hull, England.

Benjamin never remarried and died on 21 February 1943 of heart disease at the Western State Hospital in Staunton where he had been a patient for over two years. Benjamin and Bettie Elizabeth, his first wife, were interred at Amherst Cemetery.

After only eight years of marriage Bettie Lee's second husband, Charles Smith, died on 25 March 1946 at their home in Lynchburg of tuberculosis. Bettie Lee lived as a widow for another 28 years before dying of cardiac arrest on 8 January 1974.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 ancestors in 52 weeks challenge optional theme Naughty.

_______________

[1]See my War Stories page for the series of posts I am writing about the five Jennings men who served with the 19th Virginia Infantry.

19th Virginia Infantry: Battles of South Mountain and Sharpsburg

Continued from 19th Virginia Infantry: Second Manassas:

There is a gap in the muster rolls for the 19th Virginia Infantry from September 1862 through June 1863. That gap leaves many questions. Was John Thomas Jennings wounded during that time? Did he fall prey to disease? Or was he with the regiment the entire time. When did Charles Edward recover from his illness and return to the regiment? When did Daniel Rose and Leroy Powhatan recover from the wounds they received at the Battle of Gaines' Mill and return to the unit? We know both were back in time for Gettysburg when the muster rolls are again available.

My assumption is that John Thomas Jennings remained with the regiment as there are no medical records to support another conclusion.  So he likely marched away from the battlefield where the Battle of Second Manassas was fought with the rest of the 19th Virginia Infantry.

They were to move into Maryland, enemy territory. Union troops had occupied Harpers Ferry earlier in August. This move blocked one of General Lee's routes of communication with Richmond and denied the Confederate army the opportunity to resupply outside of the war-torn area of Virginia. To combat the Union in the Shenandoah Valley, Lee conceived the Maryland Campaign. Stonewall Jackson and his men were sent to dislodge enemy troops from Harpers Ferry while Longstreet's corps, including the 19th Virginia Infantry, were sent north.

After crossing the Potomac River, Pickett's division camped along the Monocracy River in Maryland near the Baltimore & Ohio railroad bridge outside of Frederick and enjoyed a week of camp life likely with plenty to eat as this part of the country had yet to experience war.

Confederate soldiers marching through Frederick, Maryland, September 1862;
courtesy of the Historical Society of Frederick County

There had been riots in Baltimore and President Lincoln had to travel through the city in disguise on the way to his inauguration. Longstreet's men assumed they would be welcomed and marched singing, "Maryland, My Maryland." The 19th Virginia Infantry book relates a humorous story:

"One lady with an American flag pinned to her bosom was particularly obvious [among the crowd]. Seeing this golden opportunity, a soldier of the 19th halted, bowed and remarked, 'We are in the habit of charging breastworks wherever we see that flag floating'."

By 12 September Longstreet's corps was camped around Hagerstown on the Williamsport Road. A surprise order required them to turn back and make a forced march back along the Frederick-Hagerstown Road in order to meet a Union army approaching South Mountain. The men marched over 13 miles on the 14 September in hot weather on dusty, hard-packed dirt roads. They were exhausted as they climbed to the ridge above Turner's Gap, one of three gaps in the South Mountain chain where three battles were fought that collectively became known as the Battle of South Mountain.

Union soldiers advance up South Mountain near Turner's Gap; image
courtesy of the U.S. Army

The 19th Virginia Infantry faced withering fire from the enemy concealed behind a stone fence above them. After an hour of fierce fighting one-third of their number had become disabled and their officer, Colonel Strange, fell mortally wounded. They were ordered to retreat soon after. The men of the 19th had experienced their first taste of defeat, but it would not be their last. Another was soon to follow.

Longstreet's corps was ordered to meet the rest of Lee's army near Sharpsburg.[1] Antietam Creek flowed east of town and provided a natural defense. Two of Union general McClellan's men had intercepted an order from Lee. McClellan now knew that Lee's forces were divided and rushed to defeat Longstreet before he could rejoin the rest of Lee's army.

The 19th Virginia Infantry was now part of brigade commanded by Richard B. Garnet and part of a division commanded by David R. Jones. They still fought with Longstreet's corps.

The battle began about 5:30 a.m. the morning of 17 September as the Union attacked the center of the confederate line. At 10:00 a.m. Union general Burnside began an attack toward the position General Jones' division, including the 19th, defended. Jones only had 3,000 men and 12 guns available to meet Burnside and his 12,500 men. Luckily, Burnside's attack was delayed trying to negotiate Antietam Creek when a stone bridge became a bottleneck. This gave the Confederates time to reinforce Jones' division with an additional 3,000 men. The Union forces, however, were able to force Jones' men back to within 200 yards of the town of Sharpsburg.

'Battle of Antietam," a lithograph by Kurz & Allison; image courtesy of
the Library of Congress

Jones' much depleted ranks broke and ran through Sharpsburg in a panic. Many of Burnside's men broke and ran as well. Burnside said, "I can do nothing more. I have no infantry." He ordered a retreat, making official what was already occurring at several points in his line. And so at about 5:30 p.m., the battled ended. It was bloodiest single day in American history. 22,717 men were dead, wounded or missing.

The next morning Lee's troops prepared to defend against a Union assault but it never came. Under truce flags, the armies buried their dead and took wounded soldiers to nearby field hospitals. Not long after, Lee began withdrawing his army back across the Potomac.

Confederate dead ready for burial after the Battle of Sharpsburg. Photograph
by Alexander Gardner; image courtesy of the Library of Congress

The men of the 19th Virginia Infantry looked forward to winter camp. The effective strength of the regiment had dropped sharply in 1862 from nearly 500 to fewer than 50 men.

To be continued...

________________
[1] Also known as the Battle at Antietam, which was the Union name of the battle.

Jennings, Charles E. (my great grandfather), Private, Co. H; enlisted 1 March 1862 at Amherst courthouse; Present until detailed 18 May 1863 to General Hospital in Lynchburg on surgeon's certificate; absent there through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Daniel R. (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse; age 20, farmer; Private to 4th Corporal by August 1863; 4 Corporal to 3rd Corporal by October 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by February 1864; Present until wounded at Ganes Mill on 27 June 1862; returned, wounded in action at Gettysburg on 3 July 1863; sent to Lynchburg Hospital; absent, detailed on government work, dropped as non-commissioned officer from 16 April 1865. Surrendered at Appomattox, pension in 1910.

Jennings, John T. (my great grand uncle), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst Courthouse, age 23, farmer; present through last roll 31 December 1863.

Jennings, Leroy P.  (my first cousin three times removed), Corporal, Co. I; enlisted 29 April 1861 at Buffalo Springs; age 19, farmer; Private to 3rd Corporal by August 1863; 3rd Corporal to 2nd Corporal by October 1863; Present till wounded at Gaines Mill on 27 June 1862; returned; wounded in action and taken prisoner of war on 3 July 1863 at Gettysburg; gunshot in right lung; paroled at General Hospital West's Building in Baltimore on 25 September 1863; returned to duty by February 1864; through last roll August 1864.

Jennings, Samuel H. (my first cousin three times removed), Private, Co. H; enlisted 15 April 1861 at Amherst courthouse; age 24, farmer; Present until discharged discharged on 12 September 1861 by order of General Beauregard, surgeon's certificate, listed disease was smallpox. Pension 1900.

Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: August-September 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: Battle of Second Manassas
19th Virginia Infantry: Seven Days Battles
19th Virginia Infantry: Peninsula Campaign
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: January-August 1862
19th Virginia Infantry: First Winter Camp
Mapping the 19th Virginia Infantry: 1861
19th Virginia Infantry: First Blood at Manassas
A Lover, Not a Fighter