It was the first weekend of October and, as they have for fifteen years past, the men of Company A, 12th New Hampshire Infantry, gathered in the field behind the Cullimore Farm on New Durham Ridge for a living history Civil War encampment. I joined them again, this my 7th year.

Begun in 2003 as a fundraiser to place a Civil War monument in town [see New Durham Monument page], the money now being raised through the bake sale held by members of the co-hosting New Durham Historical Society during the two-day event goes towards the Civil War Memorial Scholarship Fund [Attn: The 2019 application is up, if you're a graduating New Durham senior and plan on attending college].

In recent years, the group has been portraying a camp of the "Provost Guard", a unit of men detached from the 12th NH to guard the vital railroad station and powder mill in town, as well as arrest any deserters finding their way back home. This camp would have served as the quarters for those members of the unit who were off-duty.

There is more to read about the Provost Guard and the Eureka Powder Works on the 16th Annual Encampment page.

​​While some of the participants have come and gone over the years, and the displays have been changed at times to add variety, the overall outcome of this gathering remains the same: to give the visiting public a chance to see the daily life and routines of a Civil War soldier. It also gives us reenactors the ability to "walk in their shoes" and relive the 1860's, if just for one weekend. For those of us who had ancestors that served, having such an opportunity to spend this time as they may have, is an experience like no other.

See you in October 2019!

This item is a flyer for the "order of exercises" for the Memorial Day event which took place in Farmington, NH on 31 May 1897 [the usual day of the 30th being on a Sunday, the holiday's service had been moved to Monday]. It began with a parade from Main St to the town cemetery, led by the Farmington Cadet Band, with the local company of National Guard, the G.A.R. and Woman's Relief Corps members following, and the town officers, clergymen, and the public bringing up the rear. 

After the ceremony at the (Pine Grove) Cemetery, it was followed by exercises at the Civil War monument downtown. That evening, a program was held at the opera house.

The back side of the flyer listed the "Names of Deceased Soldiers and Sailors, of Farmington, N.H." that were decorated, including veterans of other wars besides the Civil War.

Farmington Cemetery

WAR of 1812
Jeremiah Willey, Timothy Davis, Asa Willey, George L Whitehouse, Thomas Ham, Daniel Willey
1812 - Ten Rod Road
Mark Demeritt, Nicholas Ricker, Samuel Chesley, Samuel C. Jones, Timothy Henderson, Dennis Downing
Chestnut Hill Road - John K Walker
Rochester Road - Isaiah Peavey, John Tanner
MEXICAN WAR
John F Place, C.B. Roberts, ----- Shapleigh (Florida War)

Outside Yards
Augustus Horne, Ten Rod Road
Thomas Pinkham, Hodgdon Yard
Jonathan Stevens, Stevens Yard
Samuel Bunker, Bunker Yard

More about: 
Farmington News, 28 May 1897
Farmington News, 4 June 1897
Pine Grove Cemetery burial listing on Find a Grave

Note: The Carlton Post, No. 24, of Farmington, NH, was first organized in 1870, with 51 members. It later disbanded, only to be reorganized in 1882. It was named for Ralph Carlton, who was captain of Company I, Third New Hampshire Infantry. New Durham born, he was a resident of Farmington when he enlisted in 1861. He was killed 16 June 1862 in Secessionville, SC.

The following is a letter written by Alonzo ("Lon") Davenport of the 16th New Hampshire Infantry, to his wife Emily "Em". He had enlisted on 3 Sept 1862, and was mustered in on 23 Oct as a corporal. He was mustered out on 20 Aug 1863.

It is a very short letter, as his captain [Jonathan P Sanborn] was heading into town, so Alonzo was quick to write.

Alonzo D Davenport was born in Chelsea, Vermont on 4 Nov 1835, the son of Davis L. and Submit (Courser) Davenport. He was living in Salisbury, New Hampshire at the time of his enlistment, and afterwards moved to Franklin, NH. He died there from Bright's Disease on 28 June 1906, aged 70, and was buried in Franklin Cemetery.
He had married his wife, Emily A. Davis, on 16 Mar 1860. She died in Franklin on 2 Feb 1919.

More about:
Find a Grave entry: Alonzo D Davenport
History of the Sixteenth Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers
​Vermont in the Civil War (entry for Alonzo Davenport)

The Battle of the Crater, aka "Burnside's Mine", took place on the 30th of July, 1864, near Petersburg, Virginia. With a siege of the city having just begun, a plan was devised to break through the Confederate lines by mining under a section of their defenses, and blowing it up with explosives.

The attack began at 4:44 am, when the mine exploded, leaving a 200 foot long, 50-60 foot wide crater in the line, some 25 to 30 feet deep in places. A division under General Ledlie led the attack, and marched straight into the hole in the line. They were to continue on towards Cemetery Hill, but were bogged down within the crater. Two other divisions followed them in, to occupy the grounds on both flanks of Ledlie, while he continued forward.

Several New Hampshire regiments were a part of the 2nd Division, 2nd Brigade, of the IX Corps: the 6th, 9th and 11th Infantry Regiments. They followed the 1st Division into battle, and went to the right of the crater, in an attempt to reach the high ground of "Cemetery Hill" (Blandford Cemetery). 

It did not take long before the Confederates were able to recover from the explosion, and attacked the Union forces. With many of the troops still within the crater, and more marching into it, the soldiers were caught in a crossfire, with nowhere to go. Shortly after noon, the order was given to fall back to the Union lines. The losses for the day were around 4400 dead, wounded, and missing, all but 100 of them from the IX Corps. 

​Aylings Revised Register listed the number of killed and mortally wounded of the NH units as follows:
6th NH Infantry: 1 officer and 8 enlisted men
9th NH Infantry: 1 officer and 22 enlisted men
11th NH Infantry: 22 enlisted men

The 4th NH Infantry, which was part of the X Corps (attached to the XVIII), suffered 13 dead in the battle.

Further reading:
​Jackman, Lyman and Hadley, Amos. History of the Sixth New Hampshire Regiment in the War for the Union. Concord, NH: Republican Press Association, 1891.
Lord, Edward Oliver. History of the Ninth Regiment, New Hampshire Volunteers in the War of the Rebellion. Concord, NH: Republican Press Association, 1895.
Cogswell, Leander W. A History of the Eleventh New Hampshire Regiment, Volunteer Infantry in the Rebellion War, 1861-1865. Concord, NH: Republican Press Association, 1891.

Websites:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Crater​
​http://www.civilwar.org/battlefields/the-crater.html?tab=facts
​

Located in a plot at the Arbor Street entrance way to the Exeter Cemetery stand two stones erected in 1964 as memorials to those men with ties to the town of Exeter, NH  who served in World War II and the Korean War (the latter tablet now includes the Vietnam War veterans). They share the plot with the boulder and plaque of Gen Gilman Marston, a Civil War veteran.
Those ​names in blue indicate a link to their Find a Grave memorial page, most of them giving much detail about the soldier's service and the cause of their death in the line of duty.