Featured image:  Ipswich men boarding a train at the Ipswich Depot, on their way to the Civil War, as described by Thomas Franklin Waters:

“The citizens of Ipswich assembled in the Town Hall evening of April 22. Stirring speeches were made by leading citizens, the pastors of the churches, and by Dr. D.S. Allen of Hamilton, who roused great enthusiasm when he declared, “If I could not defend the flag in the hour of country’s peril, I would bite the dust.” The call for volunteers and for funds to equip them and provide for their families met with a prompt and enthusiastic response.

After a brief period of drilling in the Town Hall, the Ipswich Company, called the “Heard Guards” in recognition of the generous support of Augustine Heard, Esq. left town on June 24, 1861. A great number of citizens assembled in the depot to cheer the departing soldiers and General James Appleton, who had been prominent in military affairs all his life, made a patriotic speech.”

Ipswich in the Civil War

Edited by Scott A. Jewell, Copyright 2012 by the Ipswich Museum. The following is an excerpt from the introduction:

It has been over ninety years since the last time a historian has written and published information on the involvement of Ipswich, Massachusetts in the American Civil War. There is a story that has been lost over the years that needs to be told.

Four-hundred-sixty-two men who lived in Ipswich before, during or after the war served in the military. Sixty of these men died during the Civil War, twenty-five were killed in action and thirty-five died of disease. Seventy-five men were wounded, ten deserted, eighteen were captured and seven of those died in prison. Ninety-two men were discharged for disability, which means they were not able to perform their duties as a soldier due to wounds or illness.

The aim of Ipswich in the Civil War is to continue Thomas Franklin Waters and Luther Wait’s work and be a bridge for some future scholar who would like to learn more about Ipswich and the Civil War. This book has been mostly compiled of excerpts from books written by the veterans of the Civil War whether regimental histories, personal war sketches, official reports, letters sent home and local history.

Download the entire book: Ipswich in the Civil War (149 pages, PDF)

Ipswich soldiers and veterans posing for a photograph on South Main St. The Choate Bridge is directly behind them

The James Appleton Post, reunion of Civil War Veterans, circa 1900.

Related Posts:

A complete list of Ipswich enlistments in the Civil War - This list of enlistments of men who served in the military from Ipswich during the Civil War was produced by Scott Jewell in his book, Ipswich in the Civil War. The list was compiled and cross checked from Grand Army of the Republic records, regimental histories, and Civil War records.

Ipswich, Slavery and the Civil War - In 1765, Jenny Slew, a slave in Ipswich, successfully sued John Whipple Jr. for her freedom. In the mid-19th Century, divisions between ardent abolitionists, moderate anti-slavery people and those who avoided the discussion divided families, churches and the town of Ipswich.

The Caning of Senator Charles Sumner - Shortly after the Senate adjourned on May 21, Congressman Preston Brooks of South Carolina. attacked Sumner, yelling out, “I have read your speech, a libel on South Carolina.” and began slamming his metal-topped cane onto Sumner's head.

Ipswich in the Civil War - In his book, Scott Jewell updates the story of Ipswich in the American Civil War, much of which had been lost over the years and needed to be re-told.

Col. Nathaniel Shatswell and the Battle of Harris Farm - At Harris Farm the First Massachusetts Heavy Artillery Regiment, assembled with Ipswich soldiers, drove the Confederates into the cover of the woods, eventually ending with a Northern victory. The battle claimed over 2000 lives.

Joseph Stockwell Manning, a Civil War hero from Ipswich - Private Joseph Stockwell Manning grew up on High Street in Ipswich, and was awarded the Congressional Medal of Honor on December 1, 1864, a year and two days after an incredible act of bravery at Fort Sanders, Tennessee. in November, 1863.

Ipswich at war - Links to two dozen wars that Ipswich men fought in from the town's settlement in 1633 through the Vietnam War.

The Civil War Monument - By Harold Bowen: The monument was first erected by the town in 1871 as a memorial to those who died in the Civil War. It had an iron fence all around it and inside the enclosure was a stack of cannon balls in each corner where a flag was inserted.