Amanuensis Monday: The Civil War Pension File of Isaac Carter: Document #23

Isaac Carter filed this affidavit, along with those previously transcribed here, with his original pension claim form.

If you have been following the testimony, you will note that this affidavit includes some additional supporting details which enhance the timeline of events. If not, you can follow the transcriptions of this Civil War Pension File by clicking on the page tag above.

NOTE: The specific details that did not come out in the full testimony of Isaac's comrades and neighbors are highlighted in yellow.

Document #23: Affidavit: Isaac Carter, 10 May 1892

State of North Carolina)
County of Craven         )
In matter of original Invalid claim
No. 662812 of Isaac Carter Late Sergeant
of Co. B & G 14 Regt U.S.C. H Arty
on this 10th Day of May A.D. 1892
Personally appeared before me a
Notary Public for and
Within the County and State
afore said, Isaac Carter age
51 years Resident Harlow Craven
Co. N.C. well known to be
Reputable and Entitled to credit
who being Duly Sworn
according to Law Discloses

as follows. I enlisted a Privat
of Co. B 14 Regt U.S.C.H. Arty
March 12, 1864, and Promoted
Second Sergeant of Co. B 14
Regt U.S.C.H. Arty on about
Sept 1864. and was Transfered
to Co. G 14 Regt U.S.C.H. Arty
as Duty Sergeant on about the 
month September 1865 and
was Honorable Discharge Duty
Sergeant of Co. G 14 Regt U.S.
C.H. Arty December 11th 1865
and I Gone Lived at Harlowe
Craven Co. N.C. The First
Disease I contracted while I was
in Co. B. 14Regt.U.S.C.H. Arty
was the Rheumatism. At Caroline
City, N.C. on or about the month
of December 1864 The Regiment
was Taken from Warm Baracks
at New Berne N.C. on about the
Last of November 1864 and
carried to Carolina City N.C.
and we Layed out some
Eight or Ten Days with out
Tents, and it Sleeted and snow
and Rain and we was Expose
to the Weather and I was taken
with Pains in Feet and Legs and
I have been growing worse
Every Since with the Chronic
Rheumatism, at times Down
in my Bed not able to help
my self in the Spring 1865
I was taken with Chronic
Diarrhea by Drinking Bad
Bad water which Resulted
in to Piles and the Doctor
Treated me in Hospital at
Carolina City. I also was taken
with Deep Cold. and Asthma
in the Spring of 1865 and
inlargement of the Stomache
of which I have been greatly
Trouble with Each and Every
Year Since, Cough and Lung
Trouble at times have be Prop
up in a my Bed. xxxxx me xxxxx
unable to Do Manual Labor
and my wife and children
works out to take xxxx of
me. I thought that I would
Die once or twice at Carolina
City N.C. in Spring of 1865
I was Down in Hospital
with the afore said Disabilities
I have furnish worth and competent
witnesses who was of my Company
and Regimene and this affidavit
and filed with my claim to
wit Sergeant Albert A. Elliott
Sergt Silas Fenner, Privet Samuel
Keach of Co. B. 14 Regt U. S.C.H.
Arty and Privet Sharper
Williams of Co. G 14 Regt U.S.
C.H. Arty these men was with
me and I have furnish Neighbor
Witnesses as to my Present
Condition and I ask that my
Case be made Special according
to the Rules. and Regulations of
the Pension Department. I
am now suffering for the
Necessary of this Life and
unable to work. I ask that
Commissioners to Please Consider
my poor condition now while 
I am Living.
Witness           )                      his
EW Carpenter )             Isaac  X  Carter
[  ] E Hudson  )                     mark

                                               sworn & sub-
scribed to before me this
10th day of May/92 & I certify
that the foregoing was
read to claimant before
making his mark to
same & that he is the
identical person he claims
to be & in credible & worthy of
belief.                       EW Carpenter
                                 Notary Public

First Steps in Organizing a New Project

This post originally appeared on the Adventures in Family History Writing (blog) and has been edited.

At this stage in my life, I have established and purged my personal library several times over. However, this time I'm rebuilding my collection based on my research and writing goals. Many of the books I select are not new releases, found in the genres of African American history, biography and memoir,  fiction and historical fiction, local histories, and published genealogies. And for that reason, I have been fortunate to find used, like-new hardcover editions at a significant discount. This is the library that I will leave to my children. Should they desire to preserve even a portion of it remains to be determined.

In addition to these books, there are the volumes of binders containing my genealogical research, plastic file boxes of loose papers I gathered, and genealogical files I inherited. Somewhere among the boxes are artifacts...my parents' musical wedding album...the letters, post cards and photos my father sent my mother when he was in the Air Force...items my cousins passed on to me which had belonged to their branches of the family...boxes of loose photos, envelopes of negatives, boxes and binders of slides my father took to inspire his painting.

All these things must be labeled, preserved, and archived. I have read about family historians who never received their legacy because the executor of an estate didn't recognize the value of unidentified photos or other cherished items that could have potentially given those left behind more clues to their family's past. And for this reason, I want to prepare them so they are available to inspire my writing when I need them, and store them, indexed, so they are easily found when the need arises. But more importantly, so that our children will have a greater understanding and appreciation for these artifacts when they become the trustees of the family legacy, because of the careful archival treatment they received during my lifetime.

Available on Amazon.com

Today I ordered, How to Archive Family Keepsakes, by Denise May Levenick, also known as The Family Curator. I've been following her blog for a couple of years now, but her latest book seems to assemble all the different aspects of caring for various types of family archival collections that she has shared with us over the years. I've been following her Blog Book Tour, and you can too! My copy is scheduled to ship tomorrow (Monday), and I should have it in hand by Thursday! I can hardly wait! 

The Civil War Pension File of Isaac Carter: Document #22

Domument #22 is an affidavit sworn by Rufus L. Carter, Isaac Carter's first cousin.  You can see from the pedigree to the left how they are connected within the Carter Family Tree.

The only difference I can see in testimony between Rufus L. Carter and other affiants is that during the time he spent with Isaac Carter in Carolina City, they stayed in a tent.

This was reportedly during the Fall of 1864, while the time when they reportedly had worked and slept in the winter elements was in November of the same year. This was sworn testimony by his comrade, Samuel Keach Windley. Sharper Williams, also of his same Company, stated that in February 1865 he was in the hospital and treated by the Surgeon. While the onset of his illness was in  November 1864, he was hospitalized during February 1865...from Fall through the winter months.

Below is the exact transcription of Document #22, sworn by Isaac Carter's first cousin, Rufus L. Carter. Any spelling or punctuation errors are as they appeared in the original document.


State of North Carolina)
County of Craven         )
In the matter of Original Invalid pensions
Claim No. 662812 of Isaac Carter Late
a Sergent of Co. G 14 Regt U.S.C HArty
on this 10th day of May A.D. 1892
Personally appeared before me a Notary
Public for & within the county
& state afore said Mr. Rufus L. Carter
age 48 years Resident of Harlow N.C.
well known to be rebtable & entitle to
credit who being duly sworn accor-
ding to Law. says has been Well
and personally acquainted with

the claimant Isaac Carter for
48 years and have lived in the same
Neighborhood with him Partially Raised
up together before the Late War he was
a well and a harty man and I
Remember on or about the time
he Left home to enlist in the
U.S. Army which was some time
first of the year of 1864. he enlisted
in the 14 Regiment U.S.C HArty. I Well
Remember that on or about the Last of the
fall of 1864 I Went down to Carolina
City N.C. and I Saw Isaac Carter
with other Soldirs and I Stayed with
Isaac Carter in the Tent with him
One Night. I Remember Seeing
the claimant Teo or Three times after
he enlisted in the U.S.Army and
when he was Discharge Dec. 11, 1865.
I saw him Very soon after he was
discharged & he was complaning of
Rheumatism in feet and legs and
he complaine of Pains in side and
Breast and he complaining of the
Diarrhea & Piles and he has continued
to complain from date of Discharge
up to the Present. & he has growed
worse & worse each yeare he has
not been in the Military or Navail
Services Since he was Discharge Dec. 1865
I Live within a halfor mile of him & and continues to
See him Weekly & some times daily
and still complaine of Diarrhea &
pl Piles & Rheumatism pains in
Breast & left side I have known him
to be down in Bed confine Two &
Thee Weeks at a time with the Diarrhea
& Rheumatism & weakness of the Back
and he is down about Two Thirds of
his time he can not do any Manual
Labor Whatever at times he suffers
and continues to grow worse and worse each
yeare. I Remember Sept 1891 while was at
Work the claimant was trying to work
& he was complaining of the Dirrhea
& Piles then & said he could not Work
& could not do any heavy work and
He stope work & went to the sink
and when came Back from the sink
he give out & fell and I went and
taken him up & put him in my
Sciff & got a man to carrie Isaac
Carter home to his wife for he was a
Bad off with Diarrhea & Piles and
he had not been able to do anything
of any account Since & continues
to have Severe attack of Diarrhea and
Piles & Rheumatism he is more than
Two Thirds disable. he suffers for
Medical aid by being not able to
Empoloy any Physecoin he is a
Poor Invalid soldire & suffers
for the Necessaries of Life. he can not
work his wife work & dose the Best she
can for him I am no concern
in the prosecution of this claim
My PO address is Harlowe N.C.
Withess          )
EW Carpenter)    Rufus L. Carter
J.P. Godett     )

                                 Sworn & Sub-
scribed to before me this
10th day of May/92 & I certify
that the foregoing was
read to affiant before
signing same & that he
is the identical person
he claims to be & is credible
& worthy of belief.
                              EW Carpenter
                              Notary Public

Gearing Up to Meet the Challenge

This post was originally published on the Adventures in Family History Writing (blog) as part of the 2013 Family History Writing Challenge, and has been edited.

Since moving to a larger apartment in our Woodfin, North Carolina community this past November, I have shelved most of my surname binders, along with some of the histories, published family genealogies, historical novels, and memoirs that I've read within the past year. But until this afternoon, the plastic file box containing most of the journals, newspaper clippings, books, and memorabilia related to this year's topic sat amid several stacks, pushed into the back corner of my office.

Fortunately, the box needed was found third from the top of the stack, closest to my desk! However, when I opened the box, I discovered that these items did not escape the mildew problem we had at the old apartment following the flood when a joint in the pipe to our water heater sprang a leak. That means I will need to digitize EVERYTHING pertaining to this year's challenge and discard the damaged items.

Last year, I began working on the family history memoir related to my husband's great-grandfather, Sergeant Isaac Carter, who was a Free Person of Color, serving as a Sergeant in the 14th Regiment USCT Heavy Artillery, stationed at Fort Macon, North Carolina. This has been a vast undertaking, and you can follow my progress on transcribing his Civil War Pension File. I've also been journaling about collateral reading.

This year's project stems from a promise I made to my husband's Cousin Hattie the last time we visited in 2009, just months before her death. It's a story that a dear friend had told me I should write many years ago. I have started several times, but never got very far...mainly because it involves a traumatic event that changed my family's lives forever.

The Civil War Pension File of Isaac Carter: Documents #20 & #21

Before we get started today, I just want to let you know that I have updated the Civil War Pension File page on the blog. Here I have each post listed by three criteria: the document number, the type of document (claim, affidavit, correspondence, or analysis), and the person responding.

I hope you'll take a look and follow the links to previous posts related to the Civil War Pension File of Isaac Carter.

The next document I'm sharing is abstracted below, based on salient information that can be used for writing a character description in the family history memoir. It is interesting to see how Isaac's disability was broken down into fractions.

Take a look...

Document #20 in the Civil War Pension File of Isaac Carter is a medical report and Surgeon's Certificate for a physical examination performed on March 23, 1892 in Beaufort, Carteret, North Carolina, by J. B. Davis, U.S. Ex'g Surg.

From this document we find that Isaac, at the age of 51, stood five feet eleven inches and weighed 162 pounds. There are other details relating to his specific claims of disability; specifically, the surgeon concluded that

He is, in my opinion, entitled to a 6/18 rating for the disability caused by Dyspepsia, 4/18 for that caused by Disease of lung, and 8/18 for that caused by --Rheumatism. 

So, in all, the physician rated Isaac Carter as 18/18, or 100% disabled.

Document #21: An Affidavit sworn by Theophilus George.

A question concerning dates of birth: Isaac's brother-in-law had already given testimony in an affidavit sworn on 3 June 1890. This document is dated 10 May 1892. He was aged 40 years in the first document, and reported as 41 years here. According to his death certificate, it had been reported that his date of birth was 10 July 1850. The informant was his brother-in-law, Oscar Frazier. The evidence resulting from comparing sworn testimony in these affidavits, however, makes it appear that perhaps Theophilus George was born between May 10th - June 3rd. Otherwise, he would have given testimony of his age being 42 years. 

Affidavit #2 of Theophilus George
NOTE: The following is an exact transcription. All spellings and marks of punctuation are as they appear on the original document.

State of North Carolina )
County of Craven          )
In the matter of Original Invalid
Pension Claim No 662812 of Isaac
Carter Late a Sergeant of Co G 14 Regt
USCH Arty
On this 10th day of May A.D. 1892
Personally appeared before me a
Notary Public for and within the County
& state afore said Mr. Theophilus George age
41 years Resident of Harlow N.C. well
known to be reputable and entitl to
credit who being duly sworn
according to Law declares as follows
I have been acquainted with Isaac 
Carter all my life and he always was a
well & a harty man & when he enlisted
in the U.S. Army he was a well man
I Never heard him complain of any
thing, not until he was Discharge &
com home, which was on or about
December 1865 I Saw him Very soon
after he com home to Harlow Creek
N.C. & he was complaining, not well
& he was complaining of Rheumatism
& Diarrhea & Piles of which he has
continued to grow worse & worse
each year


I have known him to be down
about 2/3 of his time and he is not
able to Do any Manual Labor
and at times he is helpless I also
Remember that on or about fall of
1891 Isaac Carter while off 
Trying to work one of those attack
com on him & he fell & was Brought
home & We all in the Neghborhood
Was expecting his death and he has
continued to grow worse with the 
Diarrhea & Piles & Rheumatism
and has Severe attacks often I
see him at time weekly & som
times Evry other week and he is
Now more then 2/3 Two Thirds disable
and he suffers for Necessaries of &
for medical and By reason he is
not able to Do any thing in the way
of any Manual Labor he is in
a destitute condition and needs 
some assistance

I am no Relation to the claimant
& I have no interest in the claim
My PO is Harlowe N.C.
Witness           )    Theophilus George
EWCarpenter ) 
JP. Godett      )

sworn & subscribed to before
me this 10th day of May/92
& I certify that the foregoing
was read to affiant before
he signed same & that he
is the identical person he 
claims to be & in credible &
worthy of belief
                            EWCarpenter
                            Notary Public



Analysis
One thing that stood out to me was that his brother-in-law stated that "Very soon after [December 1865] after he com home to Harlow Creek, N.C...."

Craven County Recreation & Parks, Paddle Trip #24--Harlowe Canal
SR 1391 Bridge to Siddie Fields Recreation Area

Inland water-way between Beaufort and New Bern, N.C. (1891)
Repository: Outer Banks History Center

As you can see from the map above, Harlowe is across the county line, situated in Carteret County. Also, Harlowe Creek is located at the end of the Clubfoot Creek and Harlowe Creek Canal, as depicted in the map to the right.

This will take some additional work with plotting the locations of property found in the family land deeds, and requires enlisting the assistance of family members who live in that area who have knowledge of the family history.

Conclusion to: The Mystery of Samuel Keach Windley

The response to my query arrived seven days ago...but because I have been so busy with other things, I just now found what I was looking for. Thanks to Victor Jones, Jr. at the Kellenberger Room, I now have the obituary for Samuel Keach Windley, who had testified on behalf of Isaac Carter's Civil War Pension Application.

I say the mystery is solved...perhaps only so far as to give a glimpse of who he became following the war. Below is a transcription of his obituary. You will note that a further mystery is about to unfold...but most likely will remain a mystery unless anyone privy to the results of a coroner's inquest released information in another location. Take a look...

Foul Play Suspected
Samuel Keach Windley, a negro
Baptist preacher residing in Rei-
zensteinville, died early yesterday
morning.
It appears that Samuel found his
life in a compromising position a
short while ago; and since that time
he has been failing in health, until
his death. It was suspected that
the deceased had been foully dealt
with, and therefore the coroner was
summoned.
The coroner has impaneled his
[j]ury and taken preliminary steps in
the matter. A further investigation
will take this morning at 10
o'clock.
(Windley, Samuel Keach. 10/30/1896. New Bern Daily Journal, page 4, column 1)

Victor states that the next day's newspaper is missing. The Weekly for that week survives, but the news evidently was pushed out by the election returns for the 1896 Presidential election.

My next step is to look up information related to Reizensteinville, the Jewish section located in the Five Points area.