Summary Information
Wisconsin Adjutant General's Office Descriptive Cards
1898-1899
- Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs, Wisconsin Adjutant General's Office
WVM Mss 35
1.8 linear ft. (5 card boxes and 1 folder).
Wisconsin Veterans Museum (Map)
Cards compiled circa 1899 describing the men who served in Wisconsin regiments during the Spanish-American War. The cards list each soldier's name, rank and unit, enlistment and muster in dates and places, birthplace, physical description, occupation, and residence. In addition, the backs of the cards contain comments relating to each soldier's service during the war. These comments include illnesses and injuries suffered while in service, date and place of death (if applicable), disciplinary actions taken against the soldiers, promotions, transfers to different units, and muster out date and place. In addition to the muster and descriptive information, additional cards define abbreviations and give brief unit histories. A small number of additional papers, formerly stapled to the cards, date from the years after the war and generally relate to pension claims made by soldiers or their widows.
English
http://digital.library.wisc.edu/1711.dl/wiarchives.wvm-mss00035 ↑ Bookmark this ↑
Biography/History
When the United States declared war against Spain in April 1898, National Guard units from all over the country were called into federal service to complement the regular military. The state of Wisconsin contributed four infantry regiments and one battery of light artillery, almost 3,000 men, to the war effort.
Mobilization in Wisconsin took place the last week in April at Camp Harvey in Milwaukee. The soldiers of the first three regiments were mustered into federal service in the beginning of May, with the 2nd and 3rd Wisconsin Infantry Regiments receiving orders to go to Camp Thomas in Tennessee in mid-May. The 1st Infantry Regiment was ordered to Jacksonville, Florida later days later. At their respective locations, these three units spent time drilling and also began suffering from tropical diseases like typhoid fever and malaria. The 4th Infantry Regiment, not mobilized until the end of July, spent the summer at Camp Douglas, Wisconsin preparing for service.
Toward the end of July, the 2nd and 3rd Infantry Regiments were shipped to San Juan, Puerto Rico, and from there went to the city of Ponce where they disembarked. These units saw light action as they marched around the island, chasing the Spanish army. Hostilities ceased in mid-August, but the men of the 2nd and 3rd Infantry Regiments continued to take casualties as tropical diseases took their toll. The Second was sent home in late August and arrived in Milwaukee on September 9. The Third remained in Puerto Rico for mop-up duty, fighting a small skirmish at Aibonita Pass before returning to Wisconsin on October 24.
The 1st Infantry Regiment, which had remained in Jacksonville, also continued to suffer disease-related casualties. After Spain surrendered, the unit was sent home and arrived in Milwaukee on September 10. The 4th Infantry Regiment and the light artillery battery, which had not left Camp Douglas before the war ended, experienced almost no health problems. The battery was relieved from federal service on September 7, and one week later the men of the Fourth were sent to Anniston, Alabama from where it was thought they would go on to Cuba for garrison duty. Instead, they remained at their camp before being mustered out at the end of February 1899.
According to the state records, about 134 Wisconsin men died during the war in the Caribbean. Of those, 132 died of diseases and other health problems. Malaria, typhoid fever, and spinal meningitis were three of the most prevalent causes of the deaths. Only Corporal Oscar R. Swanson and Private Fred Vought, both of Company L, 3rd Infantry Regiment, died as a result of military action. Both were killed during the engagement at Aibonita Pass on August 28, 1898.
Scope and Content Note
The five boxes of muster and descriptive cards comprise the majority of this collection. The cards, arranged alphabetically by the soldiers' surnames, provide a wealth of information about the soldiers' service and the men themselves. The cards confirm that only about half of the Wisconsin men left the country, fewer still saw battle during the war, and that more than 98 percent of the deaths were the result of disease.
Starting on the front of the card, the soldier's name (surname, first name) is listed at the top, with his company and regiment immediately underneath. The middle of the card contains mostly personal information. It lists the man's rank, age, height, complexion, hair and eye color, birthplace, occupation, and marital status. The rest of the card front relates enlistment and muster in information (where, when, by whom).
On the back of the cards, handwritten notes expound upon the men's service. This information can include promotions; leaves taken; illness and injuries suffered; arrests and/or courts martial information; date, place, and cause of death (if applicable); and finally date and place of muster out.
A separate folder contains papers that had been stapled to the cards of the respective men. They are: an official copy of the general order announcing the dishonorable discharge of Willard G. Harris; a statement of service for Stephen Stachowiak; a discharge in true name for Alphonsus B. Sutor, who had served under the name Alfred Sutor; the official rejection of a pension claim for Clarence H. Lowell; an affidavit clarifying the name of Bernt J. Lund, who served under the name Ben Lund; a discharge in true name for Fred Marcey, who served under the name Fred Marca; and a confirmation of the honorable discharge of Lynn B. Graham.
Note
When searching for a particular soldier, the researcher should not become discouraged if initially unable to locate the surname. Because the soldiers' names were usually spoken to the recorders, the spelling of the surnames will vary depending on the speaker's accent and enunciation and the recorder's hearing and spelling skills. Researchers should always check potential alternate spellings (e.g. Hanson, Hansen, Henson, Hensen).
Researchers should also check about five to ten cards before and after the point where the desired card should be. There is the possibility that a past researcher put a card back in the wrong order, thus displacing surrounding cards by several spots.
Another option for researchers, if he or she knows the unit with which the desired soldier served, is to reference the publication Roster of Wisconsin Troops in the Spanish-American War. Madison: [Adjutant General's Office], 1899. It is in the library collection (call number E 726 .W6 R6) and might provide an alternate spelling of the surname.
The abbreviation keys in the back of Box 5 should be consulted to aid in deciphering the information on the cards.
Administrative/Restriction Information
Transferred from the Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs, Madison, WI, 1986. Accession Number: VA 1986 February 28. The collection was previously known as Record Group 35.
This collection was organized as a result of the National Historic Publications and Records Commission project grant (2003-075).
Processed by Russell Horton in 2003.
Contents List
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Series: Cards
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Box
1
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A -- D
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Box
2
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E -- J
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Box
3
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K -- N
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Box
4
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O -- S
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Box
5
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T -- Z, Key to abbreviations, and unit histories
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Mss
22
Folder
21
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Related papers
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