Monument Monday - War Memorial, Manchester, Vermont

War Monument - Manchester, VT

From The Honor Roll Project at Nutfield Genealogy:

"The Honor Roll Project is an effort to transcribe and photograph military honor rolls.  The transcribed names make the soldiers available for search engines, so that descendants and family members can find them on the internet.  It is a simple, but very rewarding project."

This afternoon I took a ride into town to photograph and transcribe one of the war monuments in town.  Manchester was a gathering spot for soldiers during the American Revolution, especially in the days before the Battle of Bennington. The monument represents this with the figure of a Revolutionary War soldier at the top.  The monument, however, is dedicated to the men of four wars.

Facing the road at the base of the monument is the dedication plaque, stating that the monument was placed in 1905.  Working clockwise around the base are plaques list men who served in the Revolutionary War, the War of 1812, the Mexican War and the Civil War.  I've transcribed each panel below.

IN

MEMORY

OF

THE MEN

OF

MANCHESTER

WHO SERVED IN THE

REVOLUTIONARY WAR

WAR OF 1812

MEXICAN WAR

CIVIL WAR

___

ERECTED BY CITIZENS OF MANCHESTER

DEDICATED MAY 30 1905.

REVOLUTIONARY WAR

AMOS ALLEN DAN. ALLEN JONATHAN ALLEN SETH ALLEN ROBT. ANDERSON DANL. ARNOLD REUBEN BAKER MARTIN BARBER GIDEON BARBER ISAAC BARKER THOS. BARNEY BENJ. BEERS LEWIS BEEBE AICE BECKWITH WM. BEDELL NATHAN BEMAN HAYNES J. BEMAN WM. BENNET PETER BLACH TIMOTHY BLISS JARED BOORN NATHANIEL BOORN ARTHUR BOSTWICK NATHL. BOSTWICK THOS. BULL THOS. BULL JR ELIJAH BURTON JOSIAH BURTON CAL. CHAMBERLAIN DANL. CHAMPION CHRIS’R COLLINS NATHL. COLLINS ELISHA COOK JOHN DAGGETT JOB DEAN ELIAKIM DEMING WM. DREW DUNCAN DUNN ASA FARRAND PETER FRENCH WM. GOULD SILAS GOODRICH

JESSE GRAVES THADDEUS HARRIS BARNABAS HATCH CORNELIUS HAVENS JAS. HENNESSEY SIMEON HINE ELIJAH HOLLISTER JOHN HOWARD BENJ. HUNTLEY SAML. HULL JAS. JAMESON DANL. JONES DAVID LEE JAS. LEWIS ROBT. LOGGAN BENJ. McINTYRE JOS. McINTYRE RICH’D McINTYRE ISAAC MARKS AARON MASON JACOB MEAD PHILIP MEAD TRUMAN MEAD RUFUS MUNSON THADDEUS MUNSON JONATHAN ORMSBY GIDEON ORMSBY DANL. ORMSBY GEORGE OLDS JACOB ODELL JOHN PAGE TIMOTHY PEARL STEPHEN PEARL ABEL PETTIBONE SAML. PETTIBONE SETH PETTIBONE PETER PIXLEY FELIX POWELL MARTIN POWELL TRUMAN POWELL BENJ. PURDY REUBEN PURDY

DANL. PURDY DAVID PURDY PHILIP REYNOLDS AMOS RICHARDSON ANDREW RICHARDSON NATHAN RICHARDSON BENJ. ROBERTS CHRIS’R ROBERTS JOHN ROBERTS JOHN ROBERS JR JOEL ROSE JESSE SAWYER AARON SEXTON GEORGE SEXTON JONATHAN SEXTON DANL. SHAW JOSIAH SHELDON GEORGE SMITH JOHN SMITH NATHAN SMITH STEPHEN SMITH PELETIAH SOPER SOLOMON SOPER MOSES SPERRY PRENTICE STORES PELEG SUNDERLAND WALLACE SUTHERLAND SAML. SUTHERLAND TIMOTHY SKINNER BENJ. VAUGHN JAS. VAUGHN JEREMIAH WAIT SAML. WALKER AZEL WASHBURN STEPHN WASHBURN ISAAC WHELPLEY JEREMIAH WHELPLEY JOHN WHITE ENOCH WOODBRIDGE

WAR OF 1812

ROBERT ANDERSON ALVAH BISHOP JOHN BLACK ELIJAH BURTON JOSEPH BURTON LEMUEL COLLINS BENJAMIN DIBBLE GURDON EATON SAMUEL FOLSOM ABRAM C. FOWLER DAVID GLAZIER JOHN HARRIS APOLLOS HARVEY JABEZ HAWLEY TRUMAN HILL SERENUS KILBURN TRUMAN KIMPTON ELIJAH LITTLEFIELD	MATHEW LOGAN BENJAMIN MUNSON JEREMIAH ODELL DANIEL OLDS JOHN R. PETTIBONE JOHN S. PETTIBONE DAVID REYNOLDS JOHN W. ROBINSON JOHN H. RULE LEONARD SARGEANT SIALS SMITH BURTON STRAIGHT NATHAN THOMPSON SAMUEL THOMPSON JOHN C. WALKER THOMAS WAIT ELIPHALET WELLS JAMES WHELPLEY
SAMUEL R. WHIDDEN

MEXICAN WAR

NICHOLS BARNARD
	PIERREPONT RAYMOND
		BENJAMIN S. ROBERTS

CIVIL WAR

W.H. AXTELL R.E. BALDWIN J.E. BATCHELDER JED BELL D.W. BENNETT H.T. BENNETT S. BENNETT W.K. BENNETT TRUMAN BENTLEY W.A. BLACK COLLINS BLACKMER J.C. BLACKMER A.B. BOYNTON CHAS. BROWN HENRY BROWN W.G. BROWN C.A. BUNDY NELSON BURNHAM S.E. BURNHAM C. BURLINGAME I.M. BURTON C..J. BURTON EDW. CAMPBELL W.S. CHAPIN C.W. CHAPMAN BRENTON CHELLIS H.C. CLAYTON G.H. COBURN S.H. COBURN F.O. CONNOR E.W. COOK F.W. COOK E.M. CUMMINGS HENRY CUMMINGS H.P. CUMMINGS S.A. CUMMINGS WM. CUMMINGS W.H. H. CUMMINGS H.C. DAWSON JOS. DEMARS G.H. DICKINSON C.P. DUDLEY

D.H.DYER FAYETTE DYER T.B. EATON D.W. EDDY MARK FARNSWORTH D.O. FELT GEO. FLEMING JEROME GLEASON MYRON GLEASON. S. GLEASON R.C. GRAY JOS. GRENIER J.H. HALEY M. HANLON C.M. HARD M.D. HASKINS L.H. HEMENWAY JAS. HICKS C.H. HILL MYRON JAMESON SMITH JAMESON MORT KEARSE TOM KEARSE A..J. KILBURN S. KILBURN J.U. LEONARD ALBERT McCOY CHAS. MEARS J.B. MUNSON S.L. NORCROSS ELIJAH PHILLIPS GEO. PHILLIPS CHAS. A. PIERCE E.W. PIERCE C.H. POND HARRISON PRINDLE CALVIN REED DEAN REED JOHN REED V. REAULO JOHN REYNOLDS

T. REYNOLDS C.H. RIDOUT B.K. ROBERTS RICH ROBERTS S.H. SEAVER G.H. SESSIONS G.W. SESSIONS, JR. C.G. SHELDON D.K. SIMONDS RICHARD SKINNER FRANK SMITH W.H. SMITH A.B. STRAIGHT G.H. SWIFT H.W. SYKES NATH’L TOWSLEY G.P. UTLEY M.W. UTLEY J.M. VANDERLIP JOHN VAUGHN C.HH. WALKER T.M. WAITE W.W. WARNER S.H. WESTCOTT A.A. WHEELER DAN’L WHEELER O.O. WHITMAN H. WHITTON H. WICHTMAN N.A. WICHTMAN W.C. WILSON C.L. WOODWARD W.H. WOODWARD C. WYMAN C.M. WYMAN H.A. WYMAN M.D. WYMAN M.G. WYMAN W.M. WYMAN H.D. YOUNG O.M. BELL

Military Monday – Captain David Perry

View of Fort Ticonderoga from Mount Defiance

In addition to my family lines, I’ve also looked into my wife’s ancestors so that I can pass that information on down to my children. One of her most interesting ancestors is Captain David Perry, a participant in the French & Indian War and the American Revolution, and an observer of the War of 1812. He is also one of the few people of the time-period to record a near-death experience.

David Perry was born 8 August, 1741 in Rehoboth, Massachusetts. In 1758, at the age of 16, he took part in an attack on one of my favorite historical spots, Fort Ticonderoga. He was part of the British army, fighting against the French. His description of the battle, which was lost by his side, contains a wonderful quote that shows that even in that time-period, not everyone thought that linear warfare was a good idea:

“It was the first engagement I had ever seen, and the whistling of balls, and roar of musketry terrified me not a little. At length our regiment formed among the trees, behind which the men kept stepping from their ranks for shelter. Col. Prebble, who, I well remember, was a harsh man, swore he would knock the first man down who should step out of his ranks; which greatly surprised me, to think that I must stand still to be shot at.”

Perry continued to fight with the British for the next few years, taking part in battles in Canada, including the taking of Quebec. It was at the end of the war, in 1762, that he had his near-death experience while sick aboard a ship headed for Boston. The most interesting part of this experience, to me, is that he claims to have been shown an image of the Battle of Bunker Hill, more than 10 years before it happened. His description is incredible to read:

“While I was on board that vessel, it appears to me that I died -- that I went through the excruciating pains of the separating of soul and body, as completely as ever I shall again, (and such a separation must soon take place) and that I was immediately conveyed to the gate of Heaven, and was going to pass in; but was told by one, that I could not enter then, but in process of time, if I would behave as he directed, on the set time I should have admittance. It appeared to me that my feet stood on a firm foundation, and that I stood there for the space of about a half hour. In this time there appeared to be a continual flowing up of people, as we suppose they die; and none stopped, but all passed off, one way or the other. Just at my left hand, there appeared to be the opening of a great gulph, and the greater part of the grown people seemed to pass off there. Once in a while one passed through the gate into the Holy City. One person appeared, with whom I had been intimately acquainted, and it appeared to me that I knew him as well as ever I did: it was Doct. Matthews -- [and whether I saw him or not, he died, as I afterwards learned, while I was sick on board the ship]. The one that talked with me, told me about the Revolutionary War, and showed me the British vessels in the harbor of Boston, as plainly as I saw them when they came. And during the first year of that war, I was down there in Gen. Putnam's regiment, and I went on Roxbury hill to see the shipping in the harbor, and they looked exactly as they had been shown to me many years before. This transition (as I firmly believe) from life to death, and from death to life, which took place nearly sixty years ago, is as fresh in my mind now as it was then; and not many days have passed from that time to this, which have not brought the interesting scenes I then witnessed, clearly to view in my mind.”

After the Revolution, Perry moved to New Hampshire, then later to Vermont where he witnessed the addition of the state to the Union in 1791, and the Battle of Lake Champlain during the war of 1812. David Perry died 2 May, 1826 in Ira, Vermont, where many of his descendants still reside.

For more information about David Perry and his adventures, see the Captain David Perry Website, which contains a complete online edition of his book Recollections of An Old Soldier: The Life of Captain David Perry.