The daily morning journal and courier., 1895-01-04
THE LATE CEN. JonN E. DENNIS.
Record of Brave and Patriotic Man We'll
 Knnn.,n, in, Nn,,r II,,rr.,r,

THE, LATE CEN .TORN E. DENNIS.
 Record of Brave and Patriotic Man We'll
 Known In New Haven.
 To the Editor of the JOURNAL AND COURIER:
 Permit me to speak of brave soldier, the late General John B. Dennis, whose
 death you announced in your valuable paper and mention of whose illness you from time to time recorded. Major
 Dennis, as he was best known to his many old friends in New Haven, had
 been for many years past living in omaha, Neb. He died at Melrose,
 Mass, few days ago. Last fall he came east to attend the annual reunion of the Seventh regiment, Connecticut Volunteers, and was taken i'll at the residence of his brother. Jared Dennis, No. 230 High street Hartford. After partial recovery he went to his sisters home in Melrose. but did not regain his health. The deceased was native of Norwich in this state and lived there until the war broke out.
 General Dennis served during the war of the rebellion for over four years. He was one of the first to enlist and went out with the Worcester Light infantry in April, 1861. with the first three months troops from Massachu- setts. He afterwards returned to Nor
 wich, and on August 19 1861. was com missioned captain of Company H, Seventh regiment, Connecticut Volun- teers, General Hawley's regiment. He was captured June ?, 1864, at the battle of Bermuda Hundred, Va, and escaped from rebel prison at Columbia S. C., November 2S, 1864 His discharge followed on February 17, 1865 He was afterward commissioned major and ad-
 ditional paymaster United States Vol unteers, was promoted lieutenant col onel and brigadier general by brevet,
 March IS, 1865 and received his final discharge from the service July 31, 1865.
 After the close of the war General Dennis removed to South Carolina. be- came paymaster general and served in the legislature of that state in 1868 and 1870. In 1878 he was appointed an agent of the United States quartermaster's department at YanlSton, Dak., and one year later became an internal revenue officer. During his residence in Dakota he was the commander of the National | Guard of that state. In 1889 he was l appointed the chief deputy collector of internal revenue for the district of Ne braska, with headquarters at Omaha. General Dennis was married three | times. His first wife was Hattie s. Loring of Worcester, who died in 1860. l The second wife was Sara M. English | of New Haven, whose death occurred In 1 1879. She was d daughter of an old and esteemed townsman Nathaniel s. | English of Fair Haven, The third wife, who survives him, was Mrs Eliza beth Hedgethorne.
 General Dennis was very popular ot- ffcer in the Seventh regiment, and the news of his death will be received with sincere sorrow by the surviving mem bers. He was a bright, active man in business matters and was fond of mak- | ing money. but was exceedingly gen erous and charitable, He possessed a cheerful disposition, and during his service always made the best of dis | agreeable circumstances. He believed in the success of the war and the resto- ration of the union, and was an intense | ly patriotic man.
 General Dennis, when a captain of the Seventh. was with twenty of his company taken prisoners in June, 1864, while guarding the picket line before Petersburg. He was detained some months, and with others from Norwich was among the Federal soldiers sent to Charleston to be placed within range of the guns of the Federal batteries in retaliation for the bombardment of the city by General Gilmore. Transfer red in the course of his captivity to six different prisons he, after one inef- fectual attempt, finally made his escape with thirteen companions on December 24. General Dennis bore all the eX- penses incident to the recruiting of his company, in the Sixth Massachusetts regiment, with which he first went to the war. and was reimbursed by Hon. William P. Greene and daughter of Norwich. The deceased. although prisoner in both Columbus and Charles town, held important offices in both cities after the war, representing the latter city in the legislature.
 General Dennis remains were brought to Norwich and inferred in the family lot He leaves a wife and two sons, who live in Omaha. MT Edgar F. Den his of Norwich is a nephew, and Mrs Fred Reynolds is a niece of the de- ceased. Three brothers also survive, him, Jared of Hartford, Gorham of Prov idence and Charles of Toronto, Canada.