Descendants Of 154th New York Volunteers To Meet In Ellicottville

Descendants of members of the 15th New York Volunteer Infantry, a Civil War regiment raised in Cattaraugus and Chautauqua counties, will hold their 23rd annual reunion at1 p.m. on Saturday, July 12th at the American Legion Post 659 on Mechanic Street in Ellicottville.

The 154th New York was raised in the summer of 1862 and participated in many of the great campaigns and battles of the war, including Chancellorsville, Gettysburg, Chattanooga, the Atlanta campaign, and Gen. William T. Sherman’s marches through Georgia and the Carolinas. More than a fifth of the regiment’s soldiers died in service.

The reunion program will commemorate Patrick Henry Jones (1830-1900), the 154th’s long-time colonel and subsequently a brigadier general. A native of County Westmeath, Ireland, Jones came to America with his family in 1840, settling on a farm in Little Valley. In 1853, he commenced the study of law in Ellicottville. When the Civil War erupted, he enlisted in the 37th New York Volunteers, rising from second lieutenant to major of that regiment before he was commissioned colonel of the 154th New York. He commanded a brigade for much of the Atlanta campaign, leading to his promotion to brigadier general. In the postwar years General Jones was elected or appointed to prominent political positions in New York City and became inadvertently involved in some notable scandals and corruptions of the Gilded Age, including one of the most sensational crimes of the era. He spent his last twenty years in Staten Island, where he is buried in St. Peter’s Cemetery in Port Richmond.

Historian Mark H. Dunkelman of Providence, R.I. will present the program on General Jones. Dunkelman is the author of five books of 154th New York history: The Hardtack Regiment, Gettysburg’s Unknown Soldier, Brothers One and All. War’s Relentless Hand and Marching with Sherman. (forthcoming). He is currently working on a full-length biography of Jones and his presentation will reveal heretofore unknown details of the general’s life.

Anyone descended from a member of the 154th New York is encouraged to attend the reunion. The public is also invited. Descendants are asked to bring photographs and relics of their soldier ancestors to be copied and added to the regimental archives. All attendees will receive a souvenir ribbon.

For more information about the reunion, contact Mark Dunkelman at (401) 369-0637 or by e-mail at nyvi154th@aol.com.

You must first login before you can comment.

Existing Member Login
Not a Member?	Create a Member Account
*Your email address:		<--Email REQUIRED!
*Password:	Forgot Password?	<--Password REQUIRED!
	Remember my email address.