"Colonel The Old Vet"

[Manassas 1861]

"Colonel" was a horse owned by Lt. N.J. Hall of the 4th US Artillery, and the 7th Michigan Infantry. "Colonel" was able to survive 18 battles and lived into the 1880's.

 

[Seduzal]

Wow! Never heard or seen this before. Leaning some thing new today. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Reconstructed Rebel]

Maybe my imagination, but that horse has a rather proud, satisfied look on his face. Why not- he made it through the war!

 

[Pollaco]

Any idea of when that picture was taken?

 

[Manassas 1861]

Hall died in 1878, Colonel was given to a local society (sorry I forgot the name) to be taken care of. Library of Congress sayed the 1880's.

 

[Nathan Stuart]

If these are indeed the facts (that the pictured equine was N. J. Hall's wartime mount) then thought it quite remarkable that this animal lived an apparent long life.

Thought Col. Norman Jonathan Hall was a distinguished active Union field commander during the Civil War.

He was present at Fort Sumter when the opening shots of the war began and he firstly served as a Lt. in the 5th U.S. Artillery before becoming a Captain in command of Hooker's divisional artillery during the Peninsula Campaign. He was promoted to Colonel of the 7th Michigan Volunteer Infantry on July 7, '62 and got elevated to brigade leadership at Antietam and Fredericksburg, where in both instances, he was cited for gallantry in the field.

At Gettysburg, Hall's brigade was involved in fierce fighting and performed a vital role in the Union defenses along Cemetery Ridge (on July 2 & 3). Hall received a third gallantry citation for these actions and was promoted to Captain in the regular army on Aug. 11, '63. Thereafter, deteriorating health prevented Hall from carrying out active field service and he was forced to retire from the regular army on Feb. 22, '65, with the rank of brevet Lt.-Col... Hall died on May 26, 1867, aged 30 years.

After reviewing Norman Hall's Civil War combat record, thought he was a truly outstanding field officer who showed initiative in action and never shirked from being involved in the thick of combat. Given Hall's active wartime involvement (at least up to, and including, Gettysburg), thought it amazing that his horse 'Colonel' survived the vigors and stresses of eighteen purported battlefield engagements and managed to live a long and healthy (judging by the animal's appearance in the 1880's photograph) afterwards.

 

[donna]

He did look good after all those years and battles. Thanks for sharing.

 

[Tom Elmore]

Obituary of "Old Colonel" from the Alma Record, Alma, Michigan, January 25, 1889, p. 2:

"Old Colonel," the horse with a history, met his death on the night of the seventeenth, in his thirty-fifth year, in the barn of Mr. M. L. Robinson, five miles northwest of Adrian. "Colonel" entered the army at the age of six, and was owned by Lieut. N. J. Hall of Monroe; was present at the action incident to the firing upon Fort Sumpter [sic], was wounded at Antietam and Gettysburg, and the hero of 18 other battles. He was sent north, was purchased at Jonesville, and since that time he has been owned by various persons in southern Michigan, and was present at the last reunion of the Southwestern G. A. R., association, in August, 1887. He died of old age.