Collection 31st OVI Grouping

CyleKostello

Sergeant
Joined
Jan 27, 2021
Location
Washington, DC
Hi all!

Been advised to post this lovely group here. Picked it up on Facebook market place for (what I consider to be) a steal of a price!

The group is attributed to Thompson Gallaher (b.1839 d. 1898) of the 31st OVI. Gallaher served throughout the war and, if his diaries are to be believed, was hotly engaged at several points. Gallaher enlisted in 1861 as a private and mustered out as a 2nd LT, after reenlisting as a veteran in 1864. Gallaher certainly had a rough war. In 1862 he was captured by rebel cavalry. He was paroled and spent the remainder of 1862 as a parolee at Camp Chase Ohio, doing clerical work for the regiment. In the same year he took severely ill and spent much time in the hospital. I believe he was afflicted with dysentery, which haunted him throughout much of the war. He returned to his regiment by Jan. of 1864 (my best guess is mid. 1863 when Dix-Hill collapsed) and, after a stint in the hospital, took part in the Atlanta campaign and Sherman's March. His 1864 diary is absolutely chock full of terse, stoic, descriptions of combat as well as the minutiae of soldier life.

This stellar group includes
1) Gallaher's 2nd Lt. Straps
2) a cloth 14th corps badge
3) a state of Ohio CW service medal
4) 31st OVVI Lee patent badge
5) 31st OVVI Ribbon
6) BOTH of Gallaher's discharge papers
7) Regiment muster in roll
8) Gallaher's marriage certificate
9) A slew of tin types, unfortunately I've been unable to confirm if Gallaher is depicted in said tin types.
10) GAR cap wreath w/ Buttons
11) 1897 Nat. Encampment souvenir
12) Hat Cord (Likely GAR)

and the absolute highlight
10) 3 full wartime diaries that cover Gallaher's service in 1862, 64, and 65. I'm currently in the process of typing these up. Unfortunately it looks like Gallaher's 1863 diary has been lost to the ages, perhaps dropped at Chickamauga or while his regiment stormed up Missionary Ridge.

Hope y'all enjoy this group as much as I did!

Also attached is my tentative type up of his 1862 diary. Some words were not immediately legible to me and I plan to circle back to those later.
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Attachments

  • Thompson Gallaher, 5_1862-3_1863.txt
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Hi all!

Been advised to post this lovely group here. Picked it up on Facebook market place for (what I consider to be) a steal of a price!

The group is attributed to Thompson Gallaher (b.1839 d. 1898) of the 31st OVI. Gallaher served throughout the war and, if his diaries are to be believed, was hotly engaged at several points. Gallaher enlisted in 1861 as a private and mustered out as a 2nd LT, after reenlisting as a veteran in 1864. Gallaher certainly had a rough war. In 1862 he was captured by rebel cavalry. He was paroled and spent the remainder of 1862 as a parolee at Camp Chase Ohio, doing clerical work for the regiment. In the same year he took severely ill and spent much time in the hospital. I believe he was afflicted with dysentery, which haunted him throughout much of the war. He returned to his regiment by Jan. of 1864 (my best guess is mid. 1863 when Dix-Hill collapsed) and, after a stint in the hospital, took part in the Atlanta campaign and Sherman's March. His 1864 diary is absolutely chock full of terse, stoic, descriptions of combat as well as the minutiae of soldier life.

This stellar group includes
1) Gallaher's 2nd Lt. Straps
2) a cloth 14th corps badge
3) a state of Ohio CW service medal
4) 31st OVVI Lee patent badge
5) 31st OVVI Ribbon
6) BOTH of Gallaher's discharge papers
7) Regiment muster in roll
8) Gallaher's marriage certificate
9) A slew of tin types, unfortunately I've been unable to confirm if Gallaher is depicted in said tin types.
10) GAR cap wreath w/ Buttons
11) 1897 Nat. Encampment souvenir
12) Hat Cord (Likely GAR)

and the absolute highlight
10) 3 full wartime diaries that cover Gallaher's service in 1862, 64, and 65. I'm currently in the process of typing these up. Unfortunately it looks like Gallaher's 1863 diary has been lost to the ages, perhaps dropped at Chickamauga or while his regiment stormed up Missionary Ridge.

Hope y'all enjoy this group as much as I did!

Also attached is my tentative type up of his 1862 diary. Some words were not immediately legible to me and I plan to circle back to those later. View attachment 389191
View attachment 389192
View attachment 389190
View attachment 389193
A very nice collection, great find!
 
Thanks all, glad you enjoy the group as much as I do!
A number of years ago, I was fortunate enough to buy a grouping of items from the 72nd Pennsylvania (The Philadelphia Fire Zouaves); while I am a son of the South, the fire department connection was just too hard to pass up.
Sounds like a great group, what was it composed of?
 
Thanks all, glad you enjoy the group as much as I do!

Sounds like a great group, what was it composed of?
Belt plates, box plates, a hat plate, a ribbon from a survivor of the unit, a 19th Century picture of their monument at Gettysburg and a 19th Century Danner's Gettysburg Guidebook featuring a drawing of the PFZ's Gettysburg Monument on the cover. Also, I have a NY Fire Zouave's Beltplate. These things said, there has always been the questions of whether any of these items were actually used by the Civil War unit or the National Guard Unit that carried this designation after the War.
 
7/5: The soldiers are well and pleased with the celebration we had yesterday. The camp has to be cleaned every morning and afternoon. A guard of ten men from each company under the command of a sargeant can get a half to whole sessions from one till half past five. J’ mo j was out today and gathered gassies.

What are gassies?

Edit: Nice collection. Thanks for posting.
 
7/5: The soldiers are well and pleased with the celebration we had yesterday. The camp has to be cleaned every morning and afternoon. A guard of ten men from each company under the command of a sargeant can get a half to whole sessions from one till half past five. J’ mo j was out today and gathered gassies.

What are gassies?

Edit: Nice collection. Thanks for posting.
Should say berries! I went back and reread some of the 1862 entries that initially gave me trouble. Updated the transcription accordingly
 
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