Seeking Possible Identification? : Graphic!

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

I'm sure most of you are familiar with the famous photo of dead Confederates who were photographed along the Hagerstown Pike at Sharpsburg.

These men were members of Starke's Louisiana Brigade who were made up of the following units.

10th Louisiana Infantry
15th Louisiana Infantry
1st Louisiana (Zouaves) Infantry Battalion
1st Louisiana Volunteer Infantry
2nd Louisiana Infantry
9th Louisiana Infantry

In the photograph there is the body of a Confederate sergeant. So I did some research and narrowed it down to the following men.

Antietam: Sgt A. B. C. Davis

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt Samuel Kearney

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Pvt Philip Georges

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt George F. Richardson

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt John Ryan

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt Charles Henry Clay Trabue

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt William T. Clack

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt Alexander Feuga

antietam.aotw.org

Any thoughts on which soldier the unfortunate could be?

 

[Scott1967]

Do you think he was shot in the side? The way he's laying leads me to believe he was turning or repositioning when he was shot.

I think that's viable , Looks like an exit wound in his front and not his pockets turned out by looters and we have accounts of the 7th WI firing into the backs of the Starkes Men , There is also what looks like blood that has seeped out of the wound and dripped onto the ground if you look really close.

 

[gbeardsley]

Do you think he was shot in the side? The way he's laying leads me to believe he was turning or repositioning when he was shot.

Honestly I'm unsure. The way the man in the photo is laying seems like he twisted as he fell as you stated previously. I'm no expert on forensics but it seems like a large exit wound, maybe from a cannon shot? I would definitely get a second opinion on anything I say here as I'm just a amateur civil war buff with a little bit too much free time on his hands.

On a different note, contacting the relatives of the names on your list seems like a good place to start. Maybe some descendant has a photo of the soldier that we can use to rule in or rule out him as a possibility. I've always thought that if you can identify the one sergeant you can then narrow down the unit of the soldiers who were around him and then do research on them too.

 

[gbeardsley]

One thing we should look at is the debris. Some soldiers would paint their regt number on their knapsacks, canteens, etc. If we could find something like this it could narrow down the unit and therefore whittle down the list.

 

[gbeardsley]

I'm not sure if he is still active but @wilber6150 had some great threads on this I stumbled on.

GRAPHIC - Antietam fence line Examination | Period Photos & Examinations

Hi list, Im at a crossroads with this image, so Im going to ask your opinion.. Is it worth while to zoom in and try to gain some knowledge of clothing and equipment or would it be too graphic and disrespectful to our honored dead...Let me know what you think and whatever the concenscious is...

civilwartalk.com

Antietam Fence line #2 | Period Photos & Examinations

Hi list, I thought we could examine another shot of Antietam that seems to be taken the same day as the previous shot, but just farther down the fence...

civilwartalk.com

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

Made this to get a better sense of the place.

 

[WKFurlow]

Been trying to track down the Richardson and Ryan genealogists but I can't find the right tree since it is a common surname.

noting how the 1st LA was on the extreme left of starkes line we can make a educated guess he is from that regt.

that would make the SGT. one of the following:

Antietam: Sgt John Ryan

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt Alpheus Shumway

antietam.aotw.org

Antietam: Sgt George F. Richardson

antietam.aotw.org

C.H.C. trabue can be ruled out due to his family bible stating he was MW and died Sept.19/62 (top of page 4)

You can use the search tools on My Heritage to find what you are looking for.

 

[gbeardsley]

Don't forget about the other photos taken along the fence. Some of them are the same soldiers but different angles.

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

noting how the 1st LA was on the extreme left of starkes line we can make a educated guess he is from that regt.

You can use the search tools on My Heritage to find what you are looking for. View attachment 538480

What about my belief it may be Sgt. Joseph Joyce?

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

Don't forget about the other photos taken along the fence. Some of them are the same soldiers but different angles.

You're absolutely right.

This photo is a clue to the exact location of the bodies.

"On the west side of the Hagerstown Road"

View in the field, on the west side of the Hagerstown Road, after the Battle of Antietam

1 photograph : albumen silver print on card mount ; 11.5 x 15 cm (mount) | Photograph shows three dead Confederate soldiers by a rail fence on the Hagerstown Road on September 17, 1862.

www.loc.gov

Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be another photo of the Sergeant from another angle. Yet there is this second image of the three bodies near him. Which would place him on the right of these three. Unless of course the plate is flipped.

I took the liberty of making another diagram of sorts to give a better idea of the general layout of the area. This one is better and more accurate I think.

Here are he other photos I could find.

 

[gbeardsley]

What about my belief it may be Sgt. Joseph Joyce?

I think the first step in solving this is to figure out approximately how old the sergeant is. Joyce was around 32 years old, which seems a bit old for the man in the photo but its anyone's guess. One thing that could prove or disprove it is a certain individual is if somewhere there is a photo of them floating around that we could use to have facial recognition.

 

[rpkennedy]

I'm no expert on forensics but it seems like a large exit wound, maybe from a cannon shot?

It wouldn't be shocking. The left wing of Starke's Brigade was taking heavy fire from Campbell's battery which was firing straight down the Hagerstown Pike. IIRC, they were firing a mix of case-shot and canister so there were a lot of metal pieces flying downrange.

Ryan

 

[rpkennedy]

Without an existing photograph of the several potential sergeants to compare to the body, I don't know that we can ever come to a definitive conclusion.

Ryan

 

[WKFurlow]

What about my belief it may be Sgt. Joseph Joyce?

I will see what I can find on Sgt Joseph Joyce

 

[WKFurlow]

I will see what I can find on Sgt Joseph Joyce

@Johnny_Reb_1865 per Perplexity. This is what I found Sgt. Joseph C. O. Joyce was a soldier who served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action on September 17, 1862, during the Battle of Antietam, one of the war's most significant and bloodiest battles. Joyce was part of the 88th New York Infantry Regiment, which was a unit in the famed Irish Brigade.

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

@Johnny_Reb_1865 per Perplexity. This is what I found Sgt. Joseph C. O. Joyce was a soldier who served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. He was killed in action on September 17, 1862, during the Battle of Antietam, one of the war's most significant and bloodiest battles. Joyce was part of the 88th New York Infantry Regiment, which was a unit in the famed Irish Brigade.

This is another guy. This Sgt. Joseph Joyce was from Louisiana and was mentioned in "I Dread The Thought Of The Place" as having been shot in the side and his friend noted he had to leave him at the fence. See posts 43 and 38.

 

[Johnny_Reb_1865]

Here's all of the Sergeants who fell at the fence. If I'm missing someone please let me know. Civil War Data is a pay site again.

Cropped and flipped for a better look at his face.


____

Sgt. Joseph Joyce, Co. D, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1829 in England, ~33 years old)

Sgt. Samuel Kearney, Co. A, 2nd LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

Sgt. George F. Richardson, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1839 in Louisiana, ~23 years old)

Sgt. John Ryan, Co. D, 1st LA. Inf. Regt.
(Born about 1837 in Ireland, ~25 years old)

Sgt. Charles H. C. Trabue, Co. A, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born Sept. 8, 1834, in Tennessee, 28 years old) (Ruled out as having been mortally wounded.)

Sgt. William T. Clack, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1843 in Louisiana, ~19 years old)

Sgt. Alexander Feuga, Co. I, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1841 in France, ~21 years old)

Sgt. Alpheus Shumway, Co. I, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1834 in New Orleans, ~28 years old) (Ruled out since he was wounded and left with a nurse.)

Sgt. Louis Aarons, Co. F, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

 

[gbeardsley]

I will look at some of the debris later to see if it can give us any clues on the specific regt. in the area.

 

[WKFurlow]

Here's all of the Sergeants who fell at the fence. If I'm missing someone please let me know. Civil War Data is a pay site again.

View attachment 538695


Cropped and flipped for a better look at his face.


____

Sgt. Joseph Joyce, Co. D, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1829 in England, ~33 years old)

Sgt. Samuel Kearney, Co. A, 2nd LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

Sgt. George F. Richardson, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1839 in Louisiana, ~23 years old)

Sgt. John Ryan, Co. D, 1st LA. Inf. Regt.
(Born about 1837 in Ireland, ~25 years old)

Sgt. Charles H. C. Trabue, Co. A, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born Sept. 8, 1834, in Tennessee, 28 years old) (Ruled out as having been mortally wounded.)

Sgt. William T. Clack, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1843 in Louisiana, ~19 years old)

Sgt. Alexander Feuga, Co. I, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1841 in France, ~21 years old)

Sgt. Alpheus Shumway, Co. I, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1834 in New Orleans, ~28 years old) (Ruled out since he was wounded and left with a nurse.)

Sgt. Louis Aarons, Co. F, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

For data mining, the genealogy databases the more details we have the easier it will be. Do you have access to info such as place and date of Birth, Wife...anything like this will be useful. Maybe we should set up a relational database to for this information. All the data is scattered out everywhere

 

[WKFurlow]

Here's all of the Sergeants who fell at the fence. If I'm missing someone please let me know. Civil War Data is a pay site again.

View attachment 538695


Cropped and flipped for a better look at his face.


____

Sgt. Joseph Joyce, Co. D, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1829 in England, ~33 years old)

Sgt. Samuel Kearney, Co. A, 2nd LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

Sgt. George F. Richardson, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1839 in Louisiana, ~23 years old)

Sgt. John Ryan, Co. D, 1st LA. Inf. Regt.
(Born about 1837 in Ireland, ~25 years old)

Sgt. Charles H. C. Trabue, Co. A, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born Sept. 8, 1834, in Tennessee, 28 years old) (Ruled out as having been mortally wounded.)

Sgt. William T. Clack, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1843 in Louisiana, ~19 years old)

Sgt. Alexander Feuga, Co. I, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1841 in France, ~21 years old)

Sgt. Alpheus Shumway, Co. I, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1834 in New Orleans, ~28 years old) (Ruled out since he was wounded and left with a nurse.)

Sgt. Louis Aarons, Co. F, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

I was able to find this on Joeseph Joyce from MyHeritage.com

 

[WKFurlow]

Here's all of the Sergeants who fell at the fence. If I'm missing someone please let me know. Civil War Data is a pay site again.

View attachment 538695


Cropped and flipped for a better look at his face.


____

Sgt. Joseph Joyce, Co. D, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1829 in England, ~33 years old)

Sgt. Samuel Kearney, Co. A, 2nd LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)

Sgt. George F. Richardson, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1839 in Louisiana, ~23 years old)

Sgt. John Ryan, Co. D, 1st LA. Inf. Regt.
(Born about 1837 in Ireland, ~25 years old)

Sgt. Charles H. C. Trabue, Co. A, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born Sept. 8, 1834, in Tennessee, 28 years old) (Ruled out as having been mortally wounded.)

Sgt. William T. Clack, Co. G, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1843 in Louisiana, ~19 years old)

Sgt. Alexander Feuga, Co. I, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1841 in France, ~21 years old)

Sgt. Alpheus Shumway, Co. I, 1st LA. Inf. Regt. (Born about 1834 in New Orleans, ~28 years old) (Ruled out since he was wounded and left with a nurse.)

Sgt. Louis Aarons, Co. F, 10th LA. Inf. Regt. (Age unknown at this time.)