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 Post subject: Pvt. Henry H. Collins
PostPosted: Tue May 26, 2009 4:20 pm 
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Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2008 9:21 pm
Posts: 60
Location: Upstate New York
Took some time to decorate the grave of the sharpshooter from my little community here in Upstate New York for Memorial Day.

As we were relying on the horticultural skills of a 30 year old single guy the one big flower and the little one with it in a pot was really the best I could do, but I'd like to think that is enough.

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"Henry H. Collins
Co. D, 1 Reg. U.S.S.
Died April 25, 1916
Aged 78 yrs."

The grave marks Pvt. Collins as belonging to the U.S.S., rather than the U.S.S.S. that we use today. Do any other graves of known sharpshooters have this abbreviation?

I did my best to clean the headstone off a bit, but I feared scratching or defacing the stone. Anyone want to volunteer some cleaning techniques?

The stanchion holding his flag is for WW1! I was going to ask the groundskeeper if there was a extra G.A.R. one in the maintenance house, but then again was every veteran a member of the G.A.R.? Was there a stanchion made just for veterans of The War of the Rebellion? What would it take to get a specific U.S.S.S. stanchion made up?

Next door is the grave of his wife, Eliza Hardon Collins...who was born in 1860! While Henry was fighting on the peninsula, Eliza was learning to walk!
I guess that the government pension was a pretty big hook to cast into the dating pool back in the day, eh? I decorated her stone as well.

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Mr. Jason G. Wolczanski
Co. C, 2nd U.S.S.S.


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PostPosted: Sat May 30, 2009 1:54 pm 
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Location: Amherst, NH
Jason,
I have gone through 322 photographs I have of the gravestones of the three companies of Berdan Sharpshooters from New Hampshire and found only one that had the U.S.S. designation. Many had no designation, some had other regiments designated (such as the 5th NH to which the NH USSS were transferred) and of those left, many indicated that the person buried there had been a member of Berdan Sharp Shooters, with the word "Sharpshooters" as two words.

Regarding cleaning gravestones I would only use water and an old toothbrush with white bristles. Limestone/marble stones are especially soft and you should not scrub very hard. Sometimes a very mild detergent can be used added to the water(never use bleach) and be sure to wet the stone first.

There are gravestone flag holders that you can buy today that tend to replicate the GAR holders of yesteryear. I know that the local funeral director offered to get us one but the price was too expensive to use in bulk. I think I saw one advertized online at a flag shop for $32.00.

Bonnie

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Bonnie Knott


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PostPosted: Sun May 31, 2009 2:44 pm 
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Joined: Thu Oct 30, 2008 9:21 pm
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Location: Upstate New York
Bonnie,

Thanks for going through all of your reference materials! I guess that I never thought to look for individuals who were later transferred to other units, like all of the surviving members were at the end of '64. Great thought on that!

Thank you for your suggestion on cleaning as well...though I think I'll have to do it during the summer when I won't get called to teach, I'll need the whole day if I'm going to clean the tombstones with a toothbrush! :D

I'll check online for G.A.R. replicas. Thanks so much! :)

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Mr. Jason G. Wolczanski
Co. C, 2nd U.S.S.S.


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