On 11 Feb 1863, Edwin enlisted in as a Private, Company F, Regiment the 8th Maine Infantry. He was discharged on 18 June 1866 as a Private, when the unit was disbanded.
The Grand Army of the Republic certificate is a certificate for his transfer of Posts within the organization. It lists his age at the time, as 56, and his occupation as Wagon maker. His obituary list his job with his unit as a Wheel Wright.
The other item my mom had for Edwin, was the Bible he carried into battle. The dedication page says Feb 13 1863, exactly 91 years later to the day, I was born. The Bible surprisingly, is in good condition, given its age.
Using the information on the certificate, I had a place to start doing some research. The first thing was to correct a mistake I made on reading the document, I read the F as a 7 with a line through it. In clearing up my error I discovered that Edwin was involved in the Battle of Appomattox and Lee’s surrender.
Attempting to find out more was not easy. Only so much can be found online without paying for memberships in various genealogy and Civil War sites.
On the 16th May of this year we visited Appomattox, VA. The trip was worth it. I would love to go back and take my time to trace his movements during the battle. Yes, it is possible.
The visitor’s center is in the Courthouse, where a gentle and knowledgeable lady manned the main desk. She asked if we had any questions. I said I did, and that I had an ancestor that was here at the surrender. She reached for a book and asked if he was Confederate. I explained his he was with the 8th Maine. She never blinked an eye, explaining if he had been Confederate, she could locate him on a list of passes for those confederates going home.
She gave us a map of the village, took down what little I knew about his unit, and was told to come back a little later. All this, while helping other visitors.
We came back, saw the movie upstairs about the events leading to the Battle of Appomattox, and Lee’s surrender, then came down to wait for what she found. It was a lot. At Appomattox the 8th Maine was part of the 4th Brigade under Col Harrison S Fairchild. She had called one of the Rangers for information on a point. F Regiment, 8th Maine rode 30 miles all night, slept for 3 hours, then rode another 5 miles, helping to block Lee’s escape and resupply. She had maps laid out showing where the units were and when. She showed us on one map where Grant’s HQ was located, which is where Edwin’s Brigade was camped after the Battle of Appomattox. There is no way to know where in that vast field the 8th Maine was camped. And it did not matter, not really. I knew he was there. That I saw the land he saw, that I got to stand where he stood. Tears filled my eyes knowing we, despite, the intervening 158 years, had finally met.