Memorial Day

Winchester National Cemetery, Winchester, Winchester City, West Virginia

As I was walking about the cemetery this view caught my eye.  From the American Civil War to the current conflicts.  Both 39 years old.  Further research shows both left behind wives and children.  

Private Adam Loughner was from Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania. He was with the Union 18th Pennsylvania Cavalry, 163rd Volunteers, Company F. (See NPS Civil War Soldiers and Sailors System)

Staff Sargent Craig W. Cherry, US Army, Virginia Army National Guard 3rd Battalion, 116th Infantry Regiment, 1st Brigade, 29th Infantry Division (Light Infantry) from Winchester, Virginia. (See Iraq War Heroes)

For me it was one of those thought provoking moments.  Both soldiers, both the same age, both died for their country. They died 140 years apart but there's always that "what if" thought when anyone dies in their prime.

So to all the military personnel from the American Revolution to the current conflicts who have made the ultimate sacrifice for the freedoms all of us Americans enjoy today, 

thank you and God speed.

Military Week-Thursday

Unknown Soldiers

Many national cemeteries have a section dedicated to unknown and missing soldiers and those have been cremated or made donations to science.

The marker states:

"The Markers In This Memorial Area Honor Veterans Whose Remains Have Not Been Recovered Or Identified, Were Buried At Sea, Donated To Science, Or Cremated And The Ashes Scattered."

The common maker for unknown soldiers:

The above photos are from Winchester National Cemetery, Winchester City, West Virginia.

To all military members whose final journey is known only to God, thank you for your sacrifice. 

Military Week-Wednesday

Jacob Koogle, St. Paul's Lutheran Church Cemetery, Myersville, Frederick County, Maryland

Jacob Koogle

Medal of Honor

Capt Co G

7 MD INF

December 5, 1841 - March 16, 1915

I was able to find a front page obituary for Jacob Koogle.  He served with Seventh Maryland Infantry Regiment, Company G during the Civil War.  He was awarded the Medal of Honor for capturing the Confederate flag at the Battle of Five Forks, Dinwiddie County, Virginia on 1 April 1865 (last major battle of the Petersburg Campaign).   After the Civil War he organized a local militia group, worked with his church (then Myersville Lutheran Church) and was in banking.

Here is the obituary:

Thank you for your service Jacob Koogle

Military Week-Tuesday

Winchester National Cemetery, Winchester, Winchester City, West Virginia

Jane B. Powers

New York

Nurse

Army Nurse Corps

World War I

June 2, 1881 - March 24, 1967

Jane was born to Andrew J. and Emma (Webb) Powers and died in Martinsburg, Berkeley County, West Virginia.  According to the National Gravesite Locator for Veterans, Jane was in the Nurse Women's Army Auxillary Corps starting on 22 August 1917.

I was unable to find an obituary as I was hoping to find out more about her and her service to our country especially at time when women could not even vote!

Thank you for your service Jane B. Powers

Military Week-Monday

In honor of the upcoming Memorial Day observation, I will be posting various gravestones I have run across in my journeys that have military connections.  

This is one I recently ran across at St Paul's United Methodist Church, Laytonsville, Montgomery County, Maryland.  It is actually a memorial as you will see.

And another view:

It states:

In Memory of Our Son 

PVT Francis Fillmore Barber 

Company D, 102nd Infantry

Died From Wounds

Received In Action In France

Mar 6, 1898 - July 29, 1918

Francis Barber is actually buried in the Aisne-Marne American Cemetery, Belleau, France as I found out from the American Battle Monuments Commission website:

I was unable to find an obituary for Francis Barber but did find on Ancestry.Com that he enlisted on 1 May 1917 as a Private First Class and promoted to Private on 13 March 1918.  He was sent overseas on 15 December 1917.  He parents were Edward H. and Frances E. Barber, who are buried next to him.

Thank you for your sacrifice Private Francis Fillmore Barber.

May 17, 1945 - Clarence Kinsey

Clarence Kinsey
March 22, 1871 - May 17, 1945
Central Chapel United Methodist Church Cemetery
Libertytown, Frederick County, Maryland

May 15, 2009 - Kenneth Douglas Smith

Kenneth Douglas Smith
March 7, 1943 - May 15, 2009
St Paul's Lutheran Church Cemetery
Myersville, Frederick County, Maryland

Mr. Smith was a dairy farmer in Middletown Valley, Frederick County, Maryland and a member of the Middletown Volunteer Fire Company per his obituary in the Hagerstown, Maryland "Herald-Mail" accessed thru Ancestry.Com.

The burial is towards the back of the cemetery and luckily my camera battery held out to get a picture!! I love how the family incorporated his profession into a lovely memorial for their loved one.