The General Thomas Welsh Family Papers is a collection of original correspondence, official documents, and ephemera. Many of the papers were created by or directed to Thomas Welsh between approximately 1843 and his death in 1863. They provide glimpses into his youth, his experiences in the Mexican War, his life in Columbia between the wars, and his rise in rank to Brigadier General during the Civil War.
The collection contains correspondence with his wife and family from 1861-1863. There are also official correspondence and documents related to Welsh's military service, autobiographical pieces, correspondence following his death, obituaries, and family papers into the early twentieth century. Other items in the collection include genealogy pages from the family bible, photographic images of Thomas Welsh and family members, two scrapbooks, newspaper issues and newspaper clippings, written notes from recollections of one of Welsh's daughter, and a biographical sketch of Welsh written by his son.
Admin/Biographical History
Thomas Welsh (1824-1863) was a Lancaster County native (born and raised in Columbia), who rose from hardscrabble origins to local fame, first as a Mexican War hero, and then as a brigadier general during the Civil War. He was well known and well respected as a no nonsense officer, for his leadership and gallantry in battle, for his dedication to the service of his country, and for his concern for the welfare of his men.
Welsh lost his father at the age of 2, and went to work to support his family at age 8. He had very little formal schooling, and was largely self-educated. In 1843, at age 19, he left Lancaster County for Washington City, then went west as an itinerant carpenter/laborer to Cincinnati, Little Rock, and Fort Smith.
When the Mexican War broke out in 1846, he enlisted in a Kentucky regiment, and was severely wounded at the battle of Buena Vista (1847) from which he never fully recovered. Returning home to Columbia, he re-enlisted as a second lieutenant, assigned to the 11th U.S. infantry regiment in Mexico City. Within days of his arrival in Mexico City, he was declared unfit for service on account of his battle wound, and sent home again.
Back in Columbia as a civilian, he dabbled in politics, and received a patronage job in the Pennsylvania Main Line of Public Works (the rail and canal system connecting Philadelphia and Pittsburgh). After several years, he opened up a grocery and dry goods store in Columbia's canal basin. He also became an insurance agent. In 1857, he was elected Justice of the Peace, and his reputation grew as a community leader. By 1860, he was president of the Borough Council, a founding member of the Columbia Board of Trade, Vice President of the Columbia Cricket Club, and a canal boat operator, in addition to a dry goods merchant, insurance agent, and Justice of the Peace. He had a wife, 5 surviving children, and legal guardianship of his sister's 4 children.
When Confederate forces shelled Fort Sumter, marking the beginning of the Civil War, Thomas Welsh raised and organized the first company of volunteers from Lancaster County, and took them into the field as their Captain. Within days, he was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel of the regiment, which served out its 90-day enlistment in the Shenandoah Valley.
Returning to Harrisburg, he was appointed Commandant of Camp Curtin, the problem-plagued processing center for new recruits. In short order, Welsh cleaned up the camp's poor sanitary conditions, improved the health of the camp, and implemented soldierly discipline and training.
In October 1861, he resigned from his camp duties, and as Colonel of the 45th Pennsylvania, led his regiment into the field. After brief service outside of Washington, they were sent to South Carolina in December, where they were posted to Otter Island. After the battle of James Island, they were recalled to Newport News, in July 1862, then sent to guard Aquia Creek.
In September, now in brigade command in Burnsides' 9th Corps, Welsh chased Lee's Confederate army west into central Maryland. His brigade broke the enemy line in Fox's Gap, on Sept. 14, then 3 days later achieved the furthest Union advance at Antietam, reaching the edge of Sharpsburg, and nearly cutting off Lee's only avenue of escape. Welsh's gallantry earned him a field promotion to brigadier general, which Congress confirmed on March 13, 1863.
The 9th Corps (Welsh now in command of the 1st Division) was sent west in the spring of 1863, then dispatched south to support Grant's investment of Vicksburg. After Vicksburg fell, they turned east and defeated Confederate General Johnston at the Battle of Jackson. Welsh contracted malaria in the southern swamps, and died in Cincinnati upon their return north. One of his men later recalled, "Had he lived, Welsh would undoubtedly have attained a much higher command. 1
1. Beauge, Eugene, in Albert, Allen D., Ed., History of the Forty-Fifth Regiment Pennsylvania Veteran Volunteer Infantry 1861-1865, Williamsport, PA: Grit Publ. Co, 1912, p. 79.
System of Arrangement
The collection is arranged in series:
Series A Thomas Welsh before the Mexican War
Series B Mexican War, 1846-1848
Series C Between the Mexican War and the Civil War, 1848-1861
Series D Civil War
Series E Post-Civil War
Series F Miscellaneous Family Papers
Series G Papers from the families of Gen. Thomas Welsh and Blanton C. Welsh
Please use digital images and transcriptions when available. Original documents may be used by appointment. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
Images have been provided for research purposes only. Please contact archives@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material.
Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pa.
Classification
MG0828
Description Level
Fonds
Custodial History
Almost all of the papers have been passed down through successive generations of Welsh's descendants, from Thomas Welsh's wife and children to his granddaughter, Emilie Benson (Welsh) Wiggin, to her daughter Nancy Jane (Wiggin) Townsend. After Nancy Townsend's death, her son Charles Townsend passed them on to his cousin, Richard Wiggin (grandson of Emilie Benson Wiggin) in 2015.
A few papers passed out of the family's possession and found their way into other collections. Richard Abel of Columbia, PA began collecting Welsh papers and artifacts some years ago, and subsequently transferred this collection of Welsh materials to Richard Wiggin in 2012.
Handwritten account of the life and military career of Thomas Welsh by Blanton Welsh. Discusses the role of his mother Annie in keeping the family together and the careers of himself and three of his siblings: Mary, Lilian, and Thomas Anna.
Admin/Biographical History
Thomas Welsh (1824-1863) was a Lancaster County native (born and raised in Columbia), who rose from hardscrabble origins to local fame, first as a Mexican War hero, and then as a brigadier general during the Civil War. He was well known and well respected as a no nonsense officer, for his leadership and gallantry in battle, for his dedication to the service of his country, and for his concern for the welfare of his men. See MG0828 for more biographical information.
Provenance: Passed down through the family, Blanton Charles Welsh to Emilie Benson (Welsh) Wiggin to Nancy Jane (Wiggin) Townsend. Acquired from: Chuck Townsend, Knoxville, Tennessee, 2016/05/15.
Access Conditions / Restrictions
Please use digital images and transcriptions when available. Original documents may be used by appointment. Please contact research@lancasterhistory.org at least two weeks prior to visit.
Copyright
Images have been provided for research purposes only. Please contact research@lancasterhistory.org for a high-resolution image and permission to publish.
LancasterHistory retains the rights to the digital images and content presented. The doctrine of fair use allows limited use of copyrighted material without permission from the copyright holder. Fair use includes comment, criticism, teaching, and private scholarship. Any images and data downloaded, printed or photocopied for these purposes should provide a citation. All other uses beyond those allowed by fair use require written permission.
Permission for reproduction and/or publication must be obtained in writing from LancasterHistory. Some items are photocopies from other collections--researchers must obtain permission for reproduction and publication from the owner of the original material.
Persons wishing to publish any material from this site must assume all responsibility for identifying and satisfying any claimants of copyright or other use restrictions. Publication fees may apply.
Credit
Courtesy of LancasterHistory, Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
"... Proceedings of the Black History in Pennsylvania Conference held in Pittsburgh on April 5 and 6, 1979"--Introd.
Includes bibliographies.
Contents
Part 1. Early Black education -- Part 2. Black life and labor in modern industrial Pennsylvania -- Part 3. Black genealogy and historiography -- Part 4. Curriculum development in Pennsylvania Black history.
In the preface, the author states that he wanted to look at more than just the naval tactics employed on Lake Erie during the War of 1812; he wanted to concentrate on the construction of the fleet and its associated logistical problems. "All contributing factors have been considered. They include the state of society within the area, its urban centers, its industrial facilities, and its transportation and communication development; where the workmen were obtained and how they were transported to the scene of the building; the costs involved in the construction; and the leaders who directed the work. It is, I hope, a complete treatment of the building of the fleet."
Contents : 1. Why The Fleet Was Built/ 2. The Lake Erie Frontier/ 3. The Builders of the Fleet/ 4. Manpower and Supplies/ 5. Chronology of The Fleet's Construction/ 6. Conclusion/ Appendix 1: The Five Vessels From Black Rock/ Appendix 2: The legend of The Dupont Powder Train
Contents: Pennsylvania's State Houses and Capitols, by Hubertis Cummings. -- Stephen Hills and the building of Pennsylvania's first Capitol, by Hubertis Cummings. -- The Vision of William Penn: mural painting in the Capitol of Pennsylvania, by Violet Oakley.
Harrisburg, Pa. : Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission
Date of Publication
1979.
Physical Description
ix, 305 p. : ill. ; 24 cm.
Notes
This book was derived from the author's PhD thesis, "Conestoga Crossroads: The Rise of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, 1730-1789", call number 974.815 LACI W876t.
LCHS copy inscribed by author.
"Notes and bibliographical essay": p. 257-296.
Summary
PART ONE- Concentrates on the political and administrative history of Lancaster as a borough. PART TWO- Discusses the town's economic structure and it's role as a regional marketing center and "western emporium " including a description of the structure of inland trade. PART THREE- Focuses on the economic class structure of the community, on the characteristics of it's religious life, on the social and cultural interaction between "Dutchmen" and "Engellanders" and on the role of the town as an intellectual center.
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission,
Date of Publication
1984.
Physical Description
vi, 123 p. : ill. ; 23 cm.
Notes
Interviews with Robert Arnold, Sr., and others.
Summary
" The changing impact of industrialization on American society has been a favorite problem for discussion and debate in the academic world. Rarely, however, have the actors of that controversial drama-the workers themselves - been given the opportunity to tell the tale from the uninhibited perspective of personal experience. The candid recollections contained in Cornwall effectively answer that need and, in the process, reveal some provocative and surprising conclusions about working-class response and behavior. Like other industrial ventures of the nineteenth century, the Cornwall Ore Bank Company in Lebanon County generated its share of unskilled and semi-skilled immigrant labor from eastern and southern Europe. Unlike other growing industrial giants, however, the family-operated mining enterprise skillfully constructed a sense of paternalism which engendered a climate of harmony and cooperation. Although basically a periodic treatment of workers' experiences in the twentieth century, the interviews collected here reflect the subtle confrontation between that nineteenth century legacy and the reality of the monopoly capitalism initiated by Bethlehem Steel with its takeover in 1921. A number of events, especially the depression of the 1930s, the CIO unionization drive in the late 1930s and early 1940s, and the mine closings in 1973, would provide a serious challenge to management's hold on the community, and underscore workers' desperate struggle to come to grips with capitalism's unpleasant side effects. Cornwall is an interesting and important contribution to the literature of this complex period of American social and economic history." [from Pennsylvania Heritage Magazine]
