"Remembering The Union's First Hero - Colonel Elmer Ellsworth"

REMEMBERING THE UNION’S FIRST HERO-COLONEL ELMER E. ELLSWORTH

Paul J. Loatman, Jr. Mechanicville City Historian

            On May 27, 1861, the New York Times correspondent who had been with Colonel Elmer E. Ellsworth when he was killed at the Marshall House in Alexandria, Virginia, described the young hero’s funeral by noting: “The exercises at the grave were simple but deeply impressive.” Had he lived long enough, he might have used the same wording to describe the gravesite re-enactment of Ellsworth’s funeral that took place last Sunday morning, May 15, at Hudson View Cemetery. In both instances unfortunately, the skies opened up and the rains came down. However, while rain drops served to accentuate the grief and sense of loss the original mourners experienced in1861, the more recent downpour did not discourage a crowd of more than 300 people from turning out to honor our hometown hero.

Sunday’s ceremonies were highlighted by a re-enactment of the original funeral service organized by the local chapter of the New York State Sons of Union Civil War Veterans (SUCWV). Led by the Patriot Guards, the Veterans processed from the Mechanicville High School Parking lot to the Ellsworth gravesite. They were followed by re-enactor groups garbed in Civil War-era uniforms, and included the  2nd District Sons of Veterans, the Rockford (Illinois) and Salem (Massachusetts) Zouaves in colorful uniforms, the “Red Devil” 14th Brooklyn N.Y. State Militia and eight separate units of the N. Y. Volunteer Infantry. “Morgan’s Artillery,” which supplied the cannon-fire salutes, also joined the procession.

Ellsworth’s casket was carried to the family plot by a horse-drawn wagon, accompanied by pall bearers from the Hillcrest and Mechanicville Fire Departments who then carried the coffin the rest of the way to the burial site. The firemen were selected for this honor based upon the fact that Ellsworth had recruited his original band of famed Zouaves from the ranks of volunteer fire companies in New York City. It would be no exaggeration to suggest that the Colonel and his men were the first “First Responders.”

Following Mayor Anthony Sylvester’s welcome, members of the Empire State Youth Orchestra played the Star Spangled Banner to open the ceremonies. After requesting the gathering to observe a moment of silence in honor all of the men and women who have given their lives in the service of their country, the City Historian read the final message Colonel Ellsworth had addressed to his parents on the eve of his death.  The letter, which recorded an all-too-accurate premonition regarding his own fate, had first been read publicly at Ellsworth’s funeral on May 27, 1861. N.Y. State SUCWV Commander Jeff Albanese, who narrated the remainder of the day’s program, next introduced Congressman Chris Gibson, Senator Roy McDonald, and Malta Town Supervisor Paul Sausville who each made brief remarks extolling Ellsworth. Michael Aikey, Director of the N.Y.S. Military History Museum in Saratoga conveyed a message from Governor Cuomo. The Museum will display the uniform Ellsworth wore when he was killed for the next four weeks.

New York State Historian, Dr. Robert Weible, reminded the gathering that New Yorkers accounted for the largest state contingent of recruits to fight on behalf of the Union. Weible further noted that it is inconceivable that the North would have prevailed in the struggle without the support provided by the financial, industrial, and human resources of the Empire State. He also pointed out that Adam Goodheart, author of the most recent historical treatment of the subject, “1861-The Civil War Awakening,” credits Ellsworth’s death with motivating more than 200,000 men to join the Union armies within a few short months. In later years, many of these men went into battle crying, “Remember Ellsworth.” Weible concluded by thanking both the Sons of Union Civil War Veterans and the City of Mechanicville for conducting the ceremony, noting that it was the first significant Civil War re-enactment to be held in the State. He also complimented the large audience for turning out despite the unfavorable weather conditions.

Lincoln re-enactor, Jack Baylis, next read the well-known letter of condolence the President sent to Ellsworth’s parents on May 25, 1861. Lincoln regarded the Colonel as a younger brother and invited him to live in the White House for a time. He was crushed by the Zouave officer’s death, and subsequently ordered his body to lie in state in the East Room of the White House. Re-enactor Baylis was accompanied by his wife who, dressed in period costume, could easily have been mistaken for Mary Todd Lincoln herself. Additional color was added to the scene by Mayor Sylvester and his wife and Commissioners Tim Hipwell and Mark Seber who were also outfitted in Civil War period dress. 

At this point in the program, Gold Star Mothers led a procession of groups laying wreaths at the gravesite under the watchful eyes of the Ellsworth family and mourners, and Frank Bronwell who avenged Ellsworth’s assailant. The Colonel’s parents were portrayed by Lance Ingmire and Melissa Trombley, Brownell by Timothy Huebner. Rifle and cannon salutes were then fired by the West Point Honor Guard, the Saratoga National Cemetery Honor Guard and “Morgan’s Artillery” 1st NY Volunteer Artillery. The Empire State Youth Orchestra followed with renditions of “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” and “Colonel Ellsworth’s March.” That piece, subsequently adopted as the local high school’s alma mater, had been commissioned in 1937 to mark the centennial of Ellsworth’s birth. The day’s program concluded, appropriately, with buglers Bruce Crandell and Steve Desadore playing “Taps.”

Commander Albanese was ably assisted in organizing the commemorative program by his local subcommittee chaired by SUCWV Ray LeMay, along with local Commander David Dziewulski and Brother Robert Keough. Mechanicville’s efforts were spearheaded by Mayor Anthony Sylvester, Police Chief Joe Waldron, Commissioner Tim Hipwell, M.F.D. representative John Dunn, Hillcrest Fire Department President Robert Hopeck, Chamber of Commerce Board Member Barbara Zecca, Larry Whalen, President of the John H. Ahearn Rescue Squad, and the City Historian.

Matt and Tom Salvadore provided the Colonel with a suitable 19th century coffin, while also aiding in securing the participation of the Saratoga National Cemetery Honor Guard. Nicky Izzo performed a number of critical functions in providing the sound system and bandstand. Jack “Bushwhacker” Messore spent more than a few afternoons in recent weeks clearing out the undergrowth which had threatened to obscure the gravesite completely, and VFW Post 91 had sent a large detail of volunteers on a cold and rainy day a few weeks earlier to clear the detritus that had accumulated throughout the Cemetery over the course of the winter. Last, but not least, Cemetery caretaker Jim Doty performed the Herculean task of keeping the grass under control during one of the wettest Spring seasons on record. 

At the conclusion of the ceremony, the U.S. Postal Service manned a special “station” at the Cemetery, offering a commemorative Ellsworth stamp cancellation for sale to collectors and the general public. Earlier in the day, the Sons of Union Civil War Veterans and re-enactors had been treated to a continental breakfast, compliments of McDonald’s, served by members of the local Chamber of Commerce. Throughout the day, City buses conveyed people to and from designated parking areas in the City to alleviate congestion in the cemetery.

Despite the dreary weather, many people lingered at the gravesite following the ceremonies, taking photographs, exchanging e-mail addresses, and relating stories of how visitors from as far away as California and other points East and West had come together  to promote the memory of Colonel Elmer E. Ellsworth, the first Union officer killed in the Civil War. Some who gathered here were distant Ellsworth family relatives; others were Civil War buffs, and many more were simply local residents who were determined to do their part in paying the local hero the due respect his sacrifice has earned him. Mechanicville native Chris Carola, who writes for the Associated Press out of Albany, attended the event and filed an extensive report outlining Colonel Ellsworth’s life and an account of the funeral re-enactment. At last count, 219 newspapers and other media  outlets throughout the United States have carried Chris’s story, among them The Washington Post, Newsday, The San Francisco Chronicle, The Boston Globe, The Orlando Sentinel, The Arizona Sun, and a host of television station websites, including one in India. All in all, it was a memorable day, one that should make all Mechanicville residents proud.