Enlistment records

[Terry Brown]

I have been researching to find anything on my great-grandfather's service record, but without any success at all. Granted, I am a novice, but did hire several people along the way. Our family is most certain that he served, but nothing has been found other than from his obituary that he served in the Union Army in the Engineering Corp and was in several "major battles". By trade he was a carpenter and builder in Riverhead, Suffolk County, NY (Long Island). I have searched all of the NY regiments, but he does not appear in any of them. However, having read through a couple of articles that talked about the Corps of Topographical Engineers it may have opened a door for me. Could someone point me in the right direction or suggest a researcher that could assist? Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated. Terry

 

[Bob Velke]

What's his name?

 

[lupaglupa]

Name, birthdate and place, any other details would be helpful.

 

[rpkennedy]

New York had two engineer regiments, the 15th and 50th, and I would check there first, if you haven't already.

Ryan

 

[Arioch]

Not everybody ended up serving with the state they came from. For example: Meade came from and resided in Pennsylvania. However, he got his first commission with a Michigan engineering unit working on lighthouses and other maritime projects around the great lakes area.

 

[Terry Brown]

What's his name?

Thanks to all that responded to my earlier posting. Hopefully this will go out to all and answer the assorted questions posed. His name was Henry Harrison Corwin, but we have seen it written as H. Harrison Corwin. He was born at Aquebogue 17 Sep 1840, which is a small community within the Town of Riverhead, Suffolk County, NY, on Long Island. I'm certain that he lived in Riverhead prior and after his service. He died 8 Sep 1935 there and is buried there. His wife's name was Sarah Ellen "Nellie" (Terrell) Corwin. They were married 20 Dec 1866. Family lore says that he declined any military service pension. I had originally looked at all of the volunteer infantry and cavalry regiments from Long Island, but none of the names I found matched. I did look at the 15th, but did not get as far as finding any enlistment records. Same applies to the 1st Engineer Reg. The 50th Engineer Regiment appears to be primarily "upstate" recruits and less likely that he would have enlisted with them. I suppose that anything is possible and he could have been reassigned to another state regiment, but would assume that the 15th appears most likely.

 

[Bruce Vail]

Pension records can be most useful. US pension records are more complete and accessible than Confederate pension paperwork. I hired Reinhart Roots to look for pension info on one of my distant relatives and got good results at a reasonable price.

If he declined any pension for himself, that does not also mean that his wife declined any survivors' benefit for herself. That bears checking as well.

Good luck!

 

[lupaglupa]

I looked at a number of sources and couldn't find anything either. While there is a draft record in Suffolk for Henry H. Corwin in June of 1863, I could not find anything that indicated he enlisted. I did find his obituary with the information that he was a veteran and had refused to draw a pension.

I looked at the other Henry H Corwin, who enlisted in New Jersey, and a Henry Corwin who enlisted in New York - both are clearly different people. I read through the town clerk's list of men who enlisted in Riverhead - nothing.

You are right that Henry was living in Riverhead before and after the War. He turns up in the 1860 US Census and the 1865 NYS Census. His records are pretty consistent; he's a carpenter and then a lumberman/builder.

I also looked at the places where Henry could have declared himself a veteran without drawing a pension. In the 1865 NYS Census there is no record of his being either currently or formerly in the military (both are options on the form). Henry also is not in the 1890 US Veterans Census. I thought he might show up in a veteran's organization, but unfortunately I could not find records from either of the GAR posts in Riverhead.

I understand from your original post that you suspect that the engineers may have had a separate set of records, which would be keeping Henry from showing up in our searches. I checked the muster rolls for the three engineer regiments from New York just in case - again, no Henry.

You might try reaching out to the New York State Military Museum. They are very knowledgeable and helpful. I'm sorry I couldn't help more!

https://museum.dmna.ny.gov/

 

[Terry Brown]

I looked at a number of sources and couldn't find anything either. While there is a draft record in Suffolk for Henry H. Corwin in June of 1863, I could not find anything that indicated he enlisted. I did find his obituary with the information that he was a veteran and had refused to draw a pension.

I looked at the other Henry H Corwin, who enlisted in New Jersey, and a Henry Corwin who enlisted in New York - both are clearly different people. I read through the town clerk's list of men who enlisted in Riverhead - nothing.

You are right that Henry was living in Riverhead before and after the War. He turns up in the 1860 US Census and the 1865 NYS Census. His records are pretty consistent; he's a carpenter and then a lumberman/builder.

I also looked at the places where Henry could have declared himself a veteran without drawing a pension. In the 1865 NYS Census there is no record of his being either currently or formerly in the military (both are options on the form). Henry also is not in the 1890 US Veterans Census. I thought he might show up in a veteran's organization, but unfortunately I could not find records from either of the GAR posts in Riverhead.

I understand from your original post that you suspect that the engineers may have had a separate set of records, which would be keeping Henry from showing up in our searches. I checked the muster rolls for the three engineer regiments from New York just in case - again, no Henry.

You might try reaching out to the New York State Military Museum. They are very knowledgeable and helpful. I'm sorry I couldn't help more!

https://museum.dmna.ny.gov/

Bruce, et al,

I can't believe that you have gone to all of this trouble. Thank you one and all. Yes, I have virtually everything that you had mentioned. However, with your suggestion I looked at what Horowitz had and then went to NY State Military Museum & Veterans Research Center web-site to look at the 15th and 50th Regiments, including the associated rosters. All without any luck. The web-site did include three resource references, so that is my next attempt. As soon as I do that, I will post a reply and go from there. I am certain that my great grandmother did not file for a pension. However, one of my mother's cousins was a historian for Riverhead and she told me that she had seen his discharge papers, but said that they had been destroyed in a fire and had never found anything locally to verify his service. Challenges, challenges, challenges! Terry

 

[Arioch]

Could he have been state militia?

 

[rpkennedy]

The only Henry Corwin that I found was a private who enlisted in the 61st New York as a private on August 2, 1864 at the age of 22. His records are also under the names of "Corvin" and "Courin" so we may want to take a look for those iterations.

Ryan

 

[Bruce Vail]

Bruce, et al,

I can't believe that you have gone to all of this trouble. Thank you one and all. Yes, I have virtually everything that you had mentioned. However, with your suggestion I looked at what Horowitz had and then went to NY State Military Museum & Veterans Research Center web-site to look at the 15th and 50th Regiments, including the associated rosters. All without any luck. The web-site did include three resource references, so that is my next attempt. As soon as I do that, I will post a reply and go from there. I am certain that my great grandmother did not file for a pension. However, one of my mother's cousins was a historian for Riverhead and she told me that she had seen his discharge papers, but said that they had been destroyed in a fire and had never found anything locally to verify his service. Challenges, challenges, challenges! Terry

It's not unusual for a newbie at CWT to be bowled over at the generosity of spirit and breadth of knowledge offered by some of the more experienced members. I felt it myself when I first joined, and many times afterwards.

Looks like you have a tough nut to crack. Is it possible that your relative was not in the armed forces, but a civilian professional engaged in war-related contract work -- for example, a construction worker employed by the Sanitary Commission, or some similar group?

Any possiblity of a maritime angle? Marine Engineers were employed in both government and civilian organizations. You have searched the US Army records - have you searched the US Navy records?

 

[Gary Morgan]

I'm wondering if maybe he was a citizen hired by the Quartermaster's Department rather than a member of the Union Army. Most of the guys hired served as teamsters, frequently hired to tote stuff for a particular regiment. If so, he may well have been present at several battles without actually fighting in them. That would explain why he doesn't pop up in the usual military sources.

I know that there were several dozen "citizen prisoners" at Andersonville, most of whom were teamsters, but there was also the odd telegraph operator or railroad worker among them. Their stories are pretty sad. Because they were not officially military personnel, there was no compensation for their families if they died or were killed - no pensions, no support from the Army or the government, nothing. I'm currently writing about the widow of one of them who had to give her sons to other people to raise because she couldn't afford to keep them.

I'd recommend taking a look at a book on local history or checking with the local Historical Society to see if they have any record of him.

Good Luck!

 

[Terry Brown]

Could he have been state militia?

I haven't a clue. Were there state militias that were independent from the Union forces? In going through the 15th & 50th rosters, I tried looking at spelling variations, but didn't spot anything. I do remember being told that it was on the train, returning home, that he made the decision NOT to accept a pension, having thought that there were other's that needed it more. How much truth there is to that, who knows. However, the 15th was mustered out from New York and I'm reasonably certain that there was train service to Riverhead at the time. Most likely coincidental. If he had served in a civilian capacity, that would certainly explain not being accounted for. Are there records of civilian's that served? The eastern end of Long Island definitely has a maritime history, so I will try searching for Navy records. Any suggestions on where to start?

 

[Gary Morgan]

I haven't a clue. Were there state militias that were independent from the Union forces? In going through the 15th & 50th rosters, I tried looking at spelling variations, but didn't spot anything. I do remember being told that it was on the train, returning home, that he made the decision NOT to accept a pension, having thought that there were other's that needed it more. How much truth there is to that, who knows. However, the 15th was mustered out from New York and I'm reasonably certain that there was train service to Riverhead at the time. Most likely coincidental. If he had served in a civilian capacity, that would certainly explain not being accounted for. Are there records of civilian's that served? The eastern end of Long Island definitely has a maritime history, so I will try searching for Navy records. Any suggestions on where to start?

I can't speak to most of your questions, but I do know that records of citizens employed by the Quartermaster's Department are somewhere in the National Archives, which has been closed to the general public since March 2020, so best to chase down the other possibilities first.

 

[lupaglupa]

New York State militia units were Federalized and as far as I know all records are included with the Union Army records. It's possible some militia members early in the War might not be included but I don't think that would cover Henry - his draft record in 1863 doesn't list prior service which it would have if he had served before being subject to the draft.

Naval records show up on Fold3 but, as @Gary Morgan pointed out, civilian service jobs don't. So that is a possibility. I think you would have some luck in looking at local newspapers. The Riverhead News began publishing in 1868. If Henry were active in the GAR or at parades or other events, it would likely be mentioned here. There might well be a longer obituary here too. The paper is held by a number of libraries on Long Island and at the New York State Library in Albany. There are a couple of smaller titles too that could be a source.

 

[rpkennedy]

I looked through some of the New York information I have and found that Companies G & K, 127th New York Infantry recruited in Riverhead and found two Corwins served in the unit. Sergeant Egbert C. Corwin and George W. Corwin of Company K were both from Riverhead and may be relatives.

Ryan

 

[Arioch]

I can't believe that you have gone to all of this trouble.

Been there...done that...as most of us have who are participating in this thread. We've looked up our own targets....and after a while, you realize...it's kind of fun...

I'll probably end up starting a thread of my own out of this...I didn't realize some folks have access to GAR records...that was news to me...I'd like to search them for my own thing, too

 

[Bob Velke]

New York had two engineer regiments, the 15th and 50th, and I would check there first, if you haven't already.

There was also the 1st NY Engineers. And there was a 2nd NY Engineers but it never completed organization and the men were transferred to the 15th.

 

[Gary Morgan]

Been there...done that...as most of us have who are participating in this thread. We've looked up our own targets....and after a while, you realize...it's kind of fun...

That's true, and we all tend to jigsaw. Bob is a professional researcher (I've hired him myself to go digging in the National Archives for me), Lupaglupa is an archivist and hosts the Genealogy board here on CivilWarTalk, I'm a writer who has a chapter on "Citizen prisoners" who were held at Andersonville in her next book, and I don't know the backgrounds of the other folks who've responded. Generous, yes, but we are all also genealogy geeks and this is our idea of FUN!

I love a challenge, but I will also post here if I need help. It's kind of true across the board here - if you have a question about arm, uniforms, resources, Confederate train wrecks, old photos, etc - this is the place to bring them.