Golden Thread What did your relatives do during the Civil War . . . instead of fighting?

My grandmothers maiden name was McNeill, she was descended from the Scot and Irish McNeill clans, some of her/my ancestors emigrated to America and settled there, two of my Irish McNeill uncles/ancestors were definitely in the USA at the start of the CW, one of them married an American woman but for whatever reason, both of the McNeill boys hightailed it back to Ireland, one leaving his wife behind. I’ve yet to find out why they needed to leave in such a hurry. Might be something to do with their surname.
Very interesting! Do you know what part of America they were living in?
 
My great grandfather James Edward Hartwell worked in a shipyard in Franklin, Maine.
The father of his future daughter-in-law, Daniel Crabtree, was hardscrabble farming out on Martin's Ridge in that same Franklin.
Another great grandfather, Bartholomew Kelly, was in County Cork, barely staying a step ahead of the Excise Man.
And his son's future father-in-law, Martin Joyce, was either in County Galway chasing sheep around the Connemara (and likewise avoiding the Excise), or (maybe) over here fighting for the Confederacy and then 'galvanizing' [still no luck in figuring that family tradition out].
https://civilwartalk.com/threads/martin-joyce-a-tantalizing-maybe.72381/#post-457317
 
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My great grandfather James Edward Hartwell worked in a shipyard in Franklin, Maine.
The father of his future daughter-in-law, George Crabtree, was hardscrabble farming out on Martin's Ridge in that same Franklin.
Another great grandfather, Bartholomew Kelly, was in County Cork, barely staying a step ahead of the Excise Man.
And his son's future father-in-law, Martin Joyce, was either in County Galway chasing sheep around the Connemara (and likewise avoiding the Excise), or (maybe) over here fighting for the Confederacy and then 'galvanizing' [still no luck in figuring that family tradition out].
https://civilwartalk.com/threads/martin-joyce-a-tantalizing-maybe.72381/#post-457317
Thanks for sharing! Sounds like some interesting people. :smile:

[still no luck in figuring that family tradition out].
Some of mine stubbornly remain men (and women) of mystery too. :laugh:
 
Great picture, Andy, I love looking at it! Do you know who everyone is in the picture?

Your great-grandfather had quite a fierce look on him! Maybe the same look he sported when confronting the Confederate commander about his pony. :D

And the young man at the top of the picture has this smirk... makes me wonder what he did before the photo was taken. The young lady next to him, by comparison, is downright scowling and the young lady between them in the middle row is kind of looking haughty. The lady (?) at the left is looking bored IMO.

Love the young girl at the right edge - such a beautiful face and innocent expression. :smile:
 
Very interesting! Do you know what part of America they were living in?
I’ll have to go back to the ancestry site for more specific details but I recall reading that a few members of the McNeill family lived in North Carolina/Virginia, our earliest ancestors emigrated around 1750.
 
Great picture, Andy, I love looking at it! Do you know who everyone is in the picture?

Your great-grandfather had quite a fierce look on him! Maybe the same look he sported when confronting the Confederate commander about his pony. :D

And the young man at the top of the picture has this smirk... makes me wonder what he did before the photo was taken. The young lady next to him, by comparison, is downright scowling and the young lady between them in the middle row is kind of looking haughty. The lady (?) at the left is looking bored IMO.

Love the young girl at the right edge - such a beautiful face and innocent expression. :smile:

Yes, I know all of them, and some stories about them, too. George William Ralston was station agent for the Houston & Texas Central Railroad at Mansfield (south of Dallas) for many years. The young woman in the center is Evantha Daffan "Eva" Ralston, who had some success as a writer and poet under her married name, Evantha Caldwell. The girl standing at right is my grandmother, Sara Frances Goodwin Ralston.
 
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Wouldn’t that be great.:smile:
That would be fun! :smile:

Most of the NC relatives I have been able to trace back to the continent were Scots who had hung out in Ireland for about a century before coming over in the 1700s. Other relatives just took them back to Ireland and went around telling everyone we were Irish. I finally had to explain to them that the Irish might not appreciate us claiming them quite so enthusiastically. :laugh::roflmao::D
 
That would be fun! :smile:

Most of the NC relatives I have been able to trace back to the continent were Scots who had hung out in Ireland for about a century before coming over in the 1700s. Other relatives just took them back to Ireland and went around telling everyone we were Irish. I finally had to explain to them that the Irish might not appreciate us claiming them quite so enthusiastically. :laugh::roflmao::D
That’s the case with quite a few Scot and Irish clans, the McNeill clan were Scottish but many of them settled in Ireland, my grandmother was Scottish, born to a McNeill from Ireland, my mother was also born in Scotland but her father was Irish. Talk about a complicated family tree. Every now and then I go through an identity crisis.
 
Well, from what I could glean from William Singleton Lee, he was a meager farmer who lived in what is today Plano, Texas and shoed horses for a living.

He also did that quite a bit during the war. His two brothers-in-law lived around Stephenville were also farmers.
 
That would be fun! :smile:

Most of the NC relatives I have been able to trace back to the continent were Scots who had hung out in Ireland for about a century before coming over in the 1700s. Other relatives just took them back to Ireland and went around telling everyone we were Irish. I finally had to explain to them that the Irish might not appreciate us claiming them quite so enthusiastically. :laugh::roflmao::D
In researching genealogy, I found many of my Irish ancestors were actually Scots imported into Northern Ireland by the English. And many of my English ancestors were descended from the Norman nobles imported after William The Conqueror gained control and ousted the Anglo Saxon aristocracy. So, my Irish are Scots and my English are Norman French-Vikings-whatever. Its all so confusing. The thing so many seemed to have in common was religious affiliation. They were all Huguenots, Puritans, Quakers, Dutch Reformed, Congregationalists or from other Protestant sects.
 
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Well, from what I could glean from William Singleton Lee, he was a meager farmer who lived in what is today Plano, Texas and shoed horses for a living.

He also did that quite a bit during the war. His two brothers-in-law lived around Stephenville were also farmers.
Very cool! Thanks for sharing! :smile:
 
In researching genealogy I found many of my Irish ancestors were actually Scots imported into Northern Ireland by the English. And many of my English ancestors were descended from the Norman nobles imported after William The Conqueror gained control and ousted the Anglo Saxon aristocracy. So, my Irish are Scots and my English are Norman French-Vikings-whatever. Its all so confusing.
Yeah most of mine seem to be Scots eventually (my grandma's family names especially reads like roll call in Scotland), though there are English, as well. My great-uncle has found Norman roots in the English, but he's gone back farther than me. Seems like the perfect recipe for some genetic confusion and self-loathing. :D
 
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