The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1884-05-27
Coming to Portland.
THE CITY GUARD OF HARTFORD
The First Company to Enlist for the War
How 1t was Organized-SOme Account
of Hts Members-Hcw They VIII Come
10 Portiand-A Unique Excursion, Etc.
Etc.
HARTFORD. Conn. NAV "a

country.
Ihls company was talked up in the fall nj
AooO Dy lew young merchants of Hartford
Six IN number, who had been connected with
military organizations which had run down
from various reasons, and these gentlemen,
Messrs. Hemingway, Stillman, Rathbun Dick
inson, Prentice and Fitch, went to work to or
ganize an independent company, consisting Of
those OF high character in every respect. the
result being that on the evening of Jan. Sth.
1861, upwards of fifty young men signed the
roll, and organized. The war soon broke out.
and the ranks filed up so that on their frat
parade in May they paraded sixty-ssyen man
out OF total membership OF seventy.five. AZ
escort to Gov. Buckingham at the time of his
Inauguration.
Their first captain, L. g. Heminpvav had
already begun recruiting company of picked
men from the City Guard and others of like
character, and within fifteen minutes after or.
ders were issued from Washington to enlist no
more men nnlAas for Tires ye~-. wv ~ "a
this company WAS accepted. it being Company
A, 4th Regt. G. ", aiterward changed to 1st
Regt. Heavy Artillery.
Something like year sfterward an elegant
flag was received from California at the War
Department at Washington to be given "to
the first regiment of three years men who had
enlisted from any State" 1t was presented to
this regiment, and is now among the battle
flags at the capitol in Hartford Therefore the
Hartford City Guard have the honor of being
the first company in the United States which
enlisted for three years or for the war. During
the war the number of commissions issued to
this war company was thirty-niue.
Capt Hemingway, who afterward became
Major, was in several battles, and is now living
in Woodbridge. Conn, nearly blind from dis
ease contracted in service.
The other FIVE originators of the company
have record as follows: Stillman succeeded
Hemingway as captain of the home company,
but in few weeks got the war fever, and OBJ
tanned commission as lieutenant in the
Marine Corps, and was retired as captain few
years ago, and is now a negotiator of Western
| loans at Hartford; Prentice became captain,
was afterward colonel 1st Regt. @. N. G., and
| then Brig. Gen. of Connecticut National
| Guard; Dickinson was lieutenant, afterwards
| raised company for the 18th Regt., served
through the war in the Department of the
Gulf, promoted to be major, was quartermas-
Ter General OF Connecticut for. several years.
ana Is nov postmaster Of Hartford and city
went out as orderly sergeant Of the
| war company, afterwards entered the
| regular army as lieutenant, was wounded in
| action, and finally retired as captain. He is
| now an insurance officer in New York. RsIh~
bun remained at home working hard to keep
| up the company which was a recruiting office
/ for officers and is the present commander
| of the Veteran City Guard. Such is the hon
orable record of the six young men who Or
| ganzed the company and it was one to be
| proud of. The City Guard has been designs-
| ted as follows since its organization: Indepen-
| dent Co., January to September IL, 1861;
| Artillery Co. A LIST. Regt., O. N. g., to Au-
gsst IS, 1865; Battery D: Light ARTILLERY, G. N
| g., to August l 1871; Infantry Co. f., LIST,
| Regt., @. N. g.. to present time. It has al
| ways been considered at the head of the Con-
| necticut military companies, both as to drill
| and social standing, and was always q pet
company of the late Governor Buckingham,
| who never refused commission to any men,
| Der who applied for one; consequently the
| company furnished sc commissioned officers
/ during the war, and 80 non- commissioned off.
| GERS and privates, total 1856.
| The home company kept up its organization
| by hard work, acting as escort to departing
| regiments and returning regiments and at fun
| erals, etc., the total parades for little over
four years, or up to close of the war, being 63,
| or an average of fifteen per year.
| 1t was called on also for special duty twice
| by Gov. Buckingham and guarded the State
| Arsenal in the fall of 1862, for six weeks at a
| time when an immense amount OF war mate
/ rial was stored there, and again in the spring
l Of 1868 for eight days during the New York ri
| OTIS, so that they were all war men virtually.
At the close of the war the company was re-
| organized and most Of the old mem
bers went on to the honorary list, un-
1 Til the next year, when all those who
| had been msmbers up to July LIST, 1866, formed
the veteran Association Of the Hartford
| City Guard" aud no others can ever join.
| They have an annual banquet and reunion in
| January, when there Is q notable gathering of
1 out of town members. It was this association
| the war Governor, VIM. A. Buckingham, the
unwilling of which is to bring together 5000
| to 10000 veterans, and in which the famous
7th Regiment of New York city is to take part
| on June 18th.
In 1879 the veteran City Guard" was Or
ganizsd. to which all past members who have
received an honorable discharge are admitted.
1 This organisation includes of course the
original company and many who reside out of
| Hartford it has upwards OF $50 members on
| the roll and has a semi-military uniform. II
| was organized into q battalion Of two COM
panies this present Spring, and is commanded
Il by Major. 1t seldom parades excepting with
the active company, as to attend the funeral
1 OF some member. 1t has an excursion annually
| with the active company for one day. Last
November the two companies took part in the
1 Evacuation Day celebration at New York, and
| were guests of the 7th New York Veterans.
| Officers are elected annually, the past captains
having been: in 1878, Gen. O. FL. Prentice, a
former captain; in 1879, Maj Henry l.. PsscO,
formerly Major of the 10th Connecticut Volun-
teers, captured by the rebels and prisoner at
Andersonville. Macon, etc, died two years
| ago; in 1880, Can't. ID. W. @. Skilton, formerly
Captain in 22d Regiment Connecticut VolqD-
teers, and Secretary Of the Phoenix Fire In
surance Co.; in 1881, Col. Charles A. Jewell,
also an officer of the I'D Regiment in the war,
and brother Of the late Gov. Jewell; in 1882,
COL Geo. T. Bissell, formerly Colonel Of the 18th
Regiment Connecticut Volunteers, a promi-
nent banker; 1883, Capt. j. G. Rathbun, who
upon the formation this year Of q battalion was
elected unanimously as the Major. He is q
prominent druggist in Hartford.
The other officers of the Veterans are Capt
Judson Fl. Root, member OF the great wool
firm of 81. @. Judd & Root, Capt. Charles r,
Hart, senior member of Hart. Merriam & Co.,
one of the largest carpet and paper hanging
firms in New England; Captain and Adiutani
Charles K. Gilbert, cashier of the Etna Life
Insurance Company; Quartermaster b. f
Blakesee. lieutenant Of the old 18th Con-
necticut Volunteers, and prisoner of war al
Andersonville, Columbia, Charleston, etc.
wounded at Suffolk. Va, and left on the field
| for dead; he is a stock broker; First Lieuten
ant Geo. +. Whitney is connected with the
| Pratt & Whitney Company, manufacturers O
| machinery; First Lieutenant Thomas #
| Burke is another old war man, having beer
| captain in the 10th q. Vols, alsh was prison
l or IOr q long Jlmo, OUT escaped IN uArlDt
l manner; Second Lieutenant Sidney Burr is q
dry goods salesman, and Second Lieutenan
| George L. Parmele leading dentist Judgt
Advocate Joseph L. Barbour is we'll known I,
Portland people; he is a lawyer, an eloquen
speaker and has been for several years tn,
| prosecuting attorney of Hartford.
Among the non-commissioned officers an(
| privates are Col. Lucius A. Barbour, com
manding the list Regt Conn. Nat. Guard, vic
president and treasurer of the Willimanti
Thread Company: Major A. L. Goodrich, Ad
jutant j. X. Williams, Qusrtermaster T.
Swan, Sergeant Major W. G. Simmons, Hospi
tai Steward Newton and Quartsrmaster Ser
geant j. d. Worthington, all officers of the Is
Regiment; also Gen. Dickinson, postmaster
Col, Bissell, banker; Col. Charles A. Jewell
of the Jewell Betting Company; Gen Alex
HARRISON, exc uartermsster-Gener of Con
necticut; Corporal II. T. Sperry, editor @
| Evening Post; Managing Editor S. A. Huh
bard, of the Courant; j. M. Allen. presiden
| of the Steam Boiler Insurance Company; c
s. Gillette. president of the First Nations
; Bank Capt. John G. Root, president Of tn
| Farmers & Mechanics National Bank; Co
| John b. Clapp, Brigade Inspector; tn rec @
the Cheneys, the well known sill
Commissioner; Major. Longdon, Cit,