PVT James R Thompson

Email from Battle field trust Historian

Lawrence:

After our telephone conversation yesterday I managed to figure out the service details of your relative, James R. Thompson, although it was not as easy as I had hoped it would be. He seems not to have used his middle initial, at least not in the military records. But he belonged to Company C, 11th Pennsylvania Reserves, a company that was raised in Butler County. He was indeed killed on June 27, 1862, as you knew, at the Battle of Gaines's Mill. His regiment belonged to the command of General George G. Meade, and the 11th very famously became trapped in the thick woods during that battle. As the Union line broke in several places at sunset the 11th Reserves became an isolated island in those woods and finally had to surrender almost en masse when the battle ended. Nearly every man in the command was killed, wounded, or made a prisoner of war.

I do not see any likelihood of finding a marked or known grave for Private Thompson. Because the southern army controlled the battlefield it had the responsibility for burying the huge number of dead, which they did rapidly and without any attention to detail. It is very likely Thompson was buried in a mass grave immediately. In 1866, when the war had ended, the U.S. government sent out work crews to establish large national cemeteries in the vicinity. The Union dead from Gaines's Mill mostly went to the nearby Cold Harbor National Cemetery, into a new mass grave there. But when that cemetery became full, the rest of the dead were sent into the Richmond National Cemetery, eight or nine miles away on the outskirts of Richmond. I expect Thompson is at one of those two places, together with hundreds and hundreds of other unidentified dead.

We have a lot of sources from men who served in the 11th Pennsylvania Reserves. I looked at every one of them to see if there were any eyewitness accounts of Thompson's death, but I found none. That is disappointing, but not uncommon.

If you feel like reading about the regiment in more detail, there is an excellent published history of it by Joseph Gibbs. Three Years in the Bloody Eleventh: The Campaigns of a Pennsylvania Reserves Regiment (Pennsylvania State University Press, 2002).

Also, the national non-profit American Battlefield Trust is in the process, literally right now, of permanently preserving the big body of woods where the 11th Reserves fought at Gaines's Mill. Those woods are not part of our national park, and have been privately owned since the battle. It is very gratifying to know that such important ground cannot be developed in the future. There is no immediate prospect of those woods coming into the national park, but at least they will be protected by a responsible organization in the short term. I'm sure you can read all about it on the American Battlefield Trust website.

Please let me know if you have any questions based on the long e-mail above.

Sincerely,

Robert E.L. Krick
Historian
Richmond Natl. Battlefield Park

In 1861 James was enlisted into the Union Army joining the 11th Pennsylvania Reserves. This company recruited in Sunbury, Butler, Pennsylvania in April and May of 1861. He was killed in action at Gaines Mill on June 27th, 1862. He is buried in Cold Harbor National Cemetery in Mechanicsville, Hanover, Virginia.

Pvt. James Thompson was in the 11th,Pa.Reserves/40th,Pa.Reg.Vol. Co.C. mustered in at Butler Co.Pa. on Oct.13th,1861,was killed in action at Gaines Mill on June 27th,1862.
∼
Civil War casualty. He died at Gaines' Mill, VA.

COMPANY C, ELEVENTH REGIMENT
PENNSYLVANIA RESERVE VOLUNTEER CORPS.
This company was recruited at Sunbury, Butler Co., Penn., in April and May, 1861.

During its term of service, it was actually engaged in the following battles, with casualties as follows:

Gaines' Mill, Va., June 27, 1862, killed and mortally wounded 5; wounded, 20.
--------------------------------------------
James Thompson, born 09-07-1823 in Cherry Township, Butler County, died 6-27-1862 in Gaines Mills, Va., married 11-30-1843 Rose "Ann" Covert, daughter of Jacob and Mary (Cornelius) Covert, born 1-10-1820 in Worth Township and died 6-16-1902 at Grove City, Mercer County, Pa.
from Steve Flanagan: James R. Thompson was born May 7, 1823 in Cherry Twp., Pennsylvania, the tenth of thirteen children of James and Sarah Gilliland Thompson. He was married to Roseanne Covert on November 30, 1843 by James L Hoye, J P and resided in Cherry Township, Butler County on the 800 acre Thompson farm. Their children were Sarah Agnes 1844, John Andrew 1845, Samuel Jackson 1847, James Taylor 1849, Jacob Marion 1852, Moses Carey 1855, Margaret Evaline 1856, Matilda Emaline 1856, Mary Jane 1858, and Mariah Elizabeth 1861. Their last child was born March 10, 1861, just over six months before James' enlistment on October 7th in the Reserve Pennsylvania Volunteers to serve in the War of Rebellion (Civil War). Other participants included her brothers, brothers-in-law, and sons. James was mortally wounded on June 27, 1863 in the Seven Days' Battle at Gaines Mill near Richmond, Virginia. Their oldest daughter had died one month previously and their youngest daughter had died within one year after his death. Their oldest son also died in battle February 5, 1863. Rose Ann's eight remaining children were all miners, and she had no means of support. James father died in 1861 and his mother died in 1862.

Birth: May 7, 1823 Butler County Pennsylvania, USA Death: Jun. 27, 1862 Gaines Mill Hanover County Virginia, USA Civil War casualty. He died at Gaines' Mill, VA. COMPANY C, ELEVENTH REGIMENT PENNSYLVANIA RESERVE VOLUNTEER CORPS. This company was recruited at Sunbury, Butler Co., Penn., in April and May, 1861. During its term of service, it was actually engaged in the following battles, with casualties as follows: Gaines' Mill, Va., June 27, 1862, killed and mortally wounded 5; wounded, 20.

James Thompson, born 5-7-1823 in Cherry Township, Butler County, died 6-27-1863 in Gaines Mills, Va., married 11-30-1843 Rose "Ann" Covert, daughter of Jacob and Mary (Cornelius) Covert, born 1-10-1820 in Worth Township and died 6-16-1902 at Grove City, Mercer County, Pa. Burial: Gaines Mills Battlefield Hanover County Virginia, USA Created by: Jim Fry Record added: May 28, 2014 Find A Grave Memorial# 130487492