Veterans remembered: Preserving the stories of those who served

YORK - They came from local farms and families, and sometimes from communities far beyond the town's borders, to fill the ranks of the soldiers who would fight in the United States Civil War.

Some were drawn to service by the signing bounties offered - as much as $400 in nearby Portsmouth, N.H., which was significant income for men whose daily earnings in town amounted to what we would consider spare change today.

With Veterans Day coming up on Nov. 11, local resident Alex Magocsi, Jr., is sharing his work on a database of York's Civil War connections in the hope that by publicizing his efforts others may come forward with letters, photographs or other items that shed light into the stories - and history - of the town's Civil War soldiers and veterans.

"The memory is not totally lost. People have pictures, some people have documents," Magocsi said.

This coming January will mark the third anniversary of Magocsi's work, which began with his desire to record the history of his own family, and grew through discussions with Old York Librarian Ginny Spiller, who encouraged Magocsi to discover more of York's Civil War history.

"I am just scratching the surface," Magocsi said of the database he has created so far, which includes 311 names of people who were associated with the Civil War and York.

The database includes residents and non-residents who served on behalf of the town, residents of York who served elsewhere, those who were born here but had moved away and served elsewhere, those who lived here after the war and are noted in federal census data and those who are buried here but are not included in any of the other groups.

Magocsi described the effort as "an ongoing, i.e., never-ending project to provide details of U.S. Civil War veterans who have a connection to York."

It began, Magocsi explained, several years ago as he was waiting in line at Town Hall and noticed a display with the name of one of his ancestors, Charles Bragdon, highlighted on a map of veterans' graves being compiled by York Geographical Information Systems Manager Brett Horr.

In the years that have followed, he said, both Horr and local history expert and former selectman Ron Nowell have been excellent resources in locating those unknown, and sometimes unmarked, graves of York Civil War veterans and their families.

"My goal here is the memory. People have been forgotten," Magocsi said. "There is a story behind every soldier or behind his family."

For example, he explained, one York soldier's wife died while he was in service, leaving their children to be taken in by others in the community. He eventually remarried and did not return to York, Magocsi said, leaving the question, "What happened to those children?"

Through his research into original documents, and countless hours spent in area libraries, at Old York and at other historical societies, he has uncovered pieces of those memories, including the fact that one of those children grew up, got married and remained in York, though his father settled far away.

As part of his research, Magocsi has also been able to transcribe several letters written by another York veteran, Pvt. Albert Moulton, who served in Company K for about 20 months from 1864 to 1865.

Another part of his database is the compilation of Honor Rolls of U.S. Civil War soldiers who died either serving on behalf of the town of York and of those with connections to York who served on the part of other communities.

He explained that each community was required to fill a quota of soldiers, and some men would enlist for municipalities far from home due to the size of the bounty offered for soldiers. For example, several York men served for Portsmouth, N.H., where the bounty offered was about $400, significantly higher than the approximately $250 offered in York.

These Honor Rolls offer glimpses into the sacrifices made during this war, as each name includes a notation with the soldier's regiment, if that information is available, and the cause of death - "died of disease, killed in action, drowned, died of wound received, died in service, circumstances unknown."

Magocsi said that as his aim is to preserve those stories and memories, he has been archiving and compiling the information to be included in the Museums of Old York's research library.

Items that are brought to his attention need not be donated to be included in the project, he said, if family members would prefer to keep them. For example, Magocsi has scanned digital images of photographs and documents and has even transcribed letters so that the content can be preserved while the actual items remain with their owners.

To contact Magocsi about his project or to contribute information to the database, e-mail him at us_civil_war@magocsi.org.

U.S. Civil War Honor Roll - York Veterans who died while in Service

List of men who were recruited to fill the Quota of the Town of York, York County, Maine