Diehl family: Amos Diehl, Hamilton Diehl, Almira Ohler Diehl & Lura B. Diehl.
See also The Biographical Record of Linn County Iowa, Illustrated, Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1901, pages 115-116.
---- Obit:
The Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette,
Sat., Oct. 19, 1912, p. 1, col. 3-6.
Amos Diehl, Four Score and Ten, Fought For Country and Dedicated Life to Memory of Boyhood Love
__Faithful unto his last breath to the memories of two persons, General George Brinton McClellan under whom he fought in the civil war, and the sweetheart of his youth, whose grave he found in a churchyard cemetery when he returned from the great conflict, Amos Diehl, for years a well known character in Cedar Rapids, died last night in a local hospital. He was 90 years old.
__With the death of this aged veteran the secret of a long, lonely life was unfolded. Hundreds of Cedar Rapids men who were aquainted with the old man had wondered at the unusual traits in his character which permitted him to live an absolute hermit in the midst of the clang and clamer of the city. The secret of this man's career was wrapped up in one simple word and that was "faithfulness."
__Before he was called to defend the Union in the civil war conflict which threatened the country when he was a young man and in his prime, Amos Diehl fell in love with a girl who lived a few steps away from his home in Oxford, York county, Pennsylvania. He loved with an earnest sincerity that was an inkling of the charcter he was to develop in later years. Just as the young couple had decided upon marriage Diehl was called to the battlefield.
_Known for Bravery in Wartime.
__In a few skirmishes during his early days in the army young Diehl became known for his bravery and wisdom. He was rapidly advanced along the official line. He fought for three days at Suffolk, Virginia, and at all times he was under the commnad of General McClellan. His experiences with that famous soldier made him a devotee of the federal leader. When on the evening of August 8, Mr. Diehl was found almost dead in his lonely room on First street over the Haman drug store, only one ornament adorned the walls. That was a picture of General McClellan.
__Although Amos Diehl and his brother Hamilton Diehl, 521 South Third street west, were in the thick of numerous battles and fought in the same regiment, the 165th Pennsylvania militia (Amos served in company D.), neither received a scratch. The tragedy in the life of the former did not come until the war was over and he had received his honorable discharge. Rejoicing over the cessation of conflict and the return of peace, the brothers wended their way to the old homestead; Amos with his mind made up to marry the young girl about whom he had dreamed when lying by the campfires.
_Stricken by Sweetheart's Death.
__When the soldiers reached home Amos Diehl went at once to the residence of his sweetheart. There a sorrowing mother told him that the daughter was lying in the graveyard at the little church, two blocks down the meandering street. The grief stricken man covered with flowers the grave, wherein his lost hopes lay and left forever the town of his boyhood. In 1868 he arrived in Cedar Rapids. That was almost forty-five years ago. During all this time the figure of Mr. Diehl had been a familiar one here.
__Never tiring of work, and thrifty, the veteran became comfortably situated but always insisted on living alone. He never gave marriage a thought after leaving the grave of his dead sweetheart. Because he seemed so lonely and was known to have money some people thought the old man was a miser. After he was found helpless from the effects of a paralytic stroke and taken to a hospital it was learned that many had benefitted from Mr. Diehl's charity. Numerous persons tell of the aged man's kindness. They said they never had known of a single instance when the veteran had refused to grant a request from a needy individual. If the lowliest beggar proved he was in real need, he always received a coin, never less than a half dollar, say the people who knew the benefactor.
__Many men who knew Mr. Diehl for years paid tribute to his thrift and honesty. He never was known to make a purchase when he did not pay with cash and he expected others to do the same with him. Among his effects was found a pile of receipts, yellow and worn with age.
__In years gone by it may have been that some people glanced askance at the figure of this old man as he trudged down the street, looking neither to right or left and tapping his way along with a gnarled stick, but they did not know his history. Nobody knew it until he died and trinkets and notes found in his trunk told their mute story. An old tin type picture of the sweetheart of years ago was found, carefully wrapped, in the bottom of a trunk.
__Mr. Diehl was a member of T. Z. Cook post G. A. R.
__The funeral will be held from the Turner undertaking parlors, Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock. The services will be in charge of the G. A. R., and Rev. W. G. Crowder will officiate. Interment will be in Linwood cemetery.
----
From Dennis Brandt:
__The son of George [#39774996] & Elizabeth (Mickley) Diehl [106014451], in 1860, he was a farmer living in Berwick Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania. He stood 6' 1" tall and had light hair and gray eyes.
__A Civil War veteran, he was drafted in Adams County October 16, 1862, mustered into federal service at Gettysburg November 6 as a private with Co. F, 165th Pennsylvania Infantry (aka "Drafted Militia"), promoted to 1st corporal, date unknown, and honorably discharged with his company July 28, 1863, at Gettysburg.
__NOTES ON THE OBITUARY: Typical for its time, the obituary exaggerates in places and is just plain wrong in others. For instance, his sweetheart - which is a true story - did not live and die in "Oxford, York County" because the town is New Oxford, and it is in Adams County some six miles from the York County line. Neither did he "rapidly advance along the official line" while in the army because he only attained the rank of corporal, albeit 1st corporal. And while Amos may have admired George B. McClellan, Abraham Lincoln effectively ended McClellan's military career the day before Amos mustered into federal service. Amos served under Burnside's, then Hooker's, commands but not one day under McClellan. Neither were Amos and brother Hamilton "in the thick of numerous battles" because the 165th Pennsylvania did not fight "numerous battles." The regiment had only one battle death during its nine-month tenure, and there is some question whether that man actually died of disease. The regiment's function was garrison duty. They did skirmish with Longstreet's forces at Suffolk, Virginia, and that did offer opportunities for bravery, although I have found no contemporaneous reports of that.
__However, the obituary apparently does not exaggerate Amos's hermit-like lifestyle and generosity. A variety of depositions in his pension file offer glowing accounts of his magnanimity.
See also The Biographical Record of Linn County Iowa, Illustrated, Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1901, pages 115-116.
---- Obit:
The Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette,
Sat., Oct. 19, 1912, p. 1, col. 3-6.
Amos Diehl, Four Score and Ten, Fought For Country and Dedicated Life to Memory of Boyhood Love
__Faithful unto his last breath to the memories of two persons, General George Brinton McClellan under whom he fought in the civil war, and the sweetheart of his youth, whose grave he found in a churchyard cemetery when he returned from the great conflict, Amos Diehl, for years a well known character in Cedar Rapids, died last night in a local hospital. He was 90 years old.
__With the death of this aged veteran the secret of a long, lonely life was unfolded. Hundreds of Cedar Rapids men who were aquainted with the old man had wondered at the unusual traits in his character which permitted him to live an absolute hermit in the midst of the clang and clamer of the city. The secret of this man's career was wrapped up in one simple word and that was "faithfulness."
__Before he was called to defend the Union in the civil war conflict which threatened the country when he was a young man and in his prime, Amos Diehl fell in love with a girl who lived a few steps away from his home in Oxford, York county, Pennsylvania. He loved with an earnest sincerity that was an inkling of the charcter he was to develop in later years. Just as the young couple had decided upon marriage Diehl was called to the battlefield.
_Known for Bravery in Wartime.
__In a few skirmishes during his early days in the army young Diehl became known for his bravery and wisdom. He was rapidly advanced along the official line. He fought for three days at Suffolk, Virginia, and at all times he was under the commnad of General McClellan. His experiences with that famous soldier made him a devotee of the federal leader. When on the evening of August 8, Mr. Diehl was found almost dead in his lonely room on First street over the Haman drug store, only one ornament adorned the walls. That was a picture of General McClellan.
__Although Amos Diehl and his brother Hamilton Diehl, 521 South Third street west, were in the thick of numerous battles and fought in the same regiment, the 165th Pennsylvania militia (Amos served in company D.), neither received a scratch. The tragedy in the life of the former did not come until the war was over and he had received his honorable discharge. Rejoicing over the cessation of conflict and the return of peace, the brothers wended their way to the old homestead; Amos with his mind made up to marry the young girl about whom he had dreamed when lying by the campfires.
_Stricken by Sweetheart's Death.
__When the soldiers reached home Amos Diehl went at once to the residence of his sweetheart. There a sorrowing mother told him that the daughter was lying in the graveyard at the little church, two blocks down the meandering street. The grief stricken man covered with flowers the grave, wherein his lost hopes lay and left forever the town of his boyhood. In 1868 he arrived in Cedar Rapids. That was almost forty-five years ago. During all this time the figure of Mr. Diehl had been a familiar one here.
__Never tiring of work, and thrifty, the veteran became comfortably situated but always insisted on living alone. He never gave marriage a thought after leaving the grave of his dead sweetheart. Because he seemed so lonely and was known to have money some people thought the old man was a miser. After he was found helpless from the effects of a paralytic stroke and taken to a hospital it was learned that many had benefitted from Mr. Diehl's charity. Numerous persons tell of the aged man's kindness. They said they never had known of a single instance when the veteran had refused to grant a request from a needy individual. If the lowliest beggar proved he was in real need, he always received a coin, never less than a half dollar, say the people who knew the benefactor.
__Many men who knew Mr. Diehl for years paid tribute to his thrift and honesty. He never was known to make a purchase when he did not pay with cash and he expected others to do the same with him. Among his effects was found a pile of receipts, yellow and worn with age.
__In years gone by it may have been that some people glanced askance at the figure of this old man as he trudged down the street, looking neither to right or left and tapping his way along with a gnarled stick, but they did not know his history. Nobody knew it until he died and trinkets and notes found in his trunk told their mute story. An old tin type picture of the sweetheart of years ago was found, carefully wrapped, in the bottom of a trunk.
__Mr. Diehl was a member of T. Z. Cook post G. A. R.
__The funeral will be held from the Turner undertaking parlors, Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock. The services will be in charge of the G. A. R., and Rev. W. G. Crowder will officiate. Interment will be in Linwood cemetery.
----
From Dennis Brandt:
__The son of George [#39774996] & Elizabeth (Mickley) Diehl [106014451], in 1860, he was a farmer living in Berwick Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania. He stood 6' 1" tall and had light hair and gray eyes.
__A Civil War veteran, he was drafted in Adams County October 16, 1862, mustered into federal service at Gettysburg November 6 as a private with Co. F, 165th Pennsylvania Infantry (aka "Drafted Militia"), promoted to 1st corporal, date unknown, and honorably discharged with his company July 28, 1863, at Gettysburg.
__NOTES ON THE OBITUARY: Typical for its time, the obituary exaggerates in places and is just plain wrong in others. For instance, his sweetheart - which is a true story - did not live and die in "Oxford, York County" because the town is New Oxford, and it is in Adams County some six miles from the York County line. Neither did he "rapidly advance along the official line" while in the army because he only attained the rank of corporal, albeit 1st corporal. And while Amos may have admired George B. McClellan, Abraham Lincoln effectively ended McClellan's military career the day before Amos mustered into federal service. Amos served under Burnside's, then Hooker's, commands but not one day under McClellan. Neither were Amos and brother Hamilton "in the thick of numerous battles" because the 165th Pennsylvania did not fight "numerous battles." The regiment had only one battle death during its nine-month tenure, and there is some question whether that man actually died of disease. The regiment's function was garrison duty. They did skirmish with Longstreet's forces at Suffolk, Virginia, and that did offer opportunities for bravery, although I have found no contemporaneous reports of that.
__However, the obituary apparently does not exaggerate Amos's hermit-like lifestyle and generosity. A variety of depositions in his pension file offer glowing accounts of his magnanimity.
Diehl family: Amos Diehl, Hamilton Diehl, Almira Ohler Diehl & Lura B. Diehl.
See also The Biographical Record of Linn County Iowa, Illustrated, Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1901, pages 115-116.
---- Obit:
The Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette,
Sat., Oct. 19, 1912, p. 1, col. 3-6.
Amos Diehl, Four Score and Ten, Fought For Country and Dedicated Life to Memory of Boyhood Love
__Faithful unto his last breath to the memories of two persons, General George Brinton McClellan under whom he fought in the civil war, and the sweetheart of his youth, whose grave he found in a churchyard cemetery when he returned from the great conflict, Amos Diehl, for years a well known character in Cedar Rapids, died last night in a local hospital. He was 90 years old.
__With the death of this aged veteran the secret of a long, lonely life was unfolded. Hundreds of Cedar Rapids men who were aquainted with the old man had wondered at the unusual traits in his character which permitted him to live an absolute hermit in the midst of the clang and clamer of the city. The secret of this man's career was wrapped up in one simple word and that was "faithfulness."
__Before he was called to defend the Union in the civil war conflict which threatened the country when he was a young man and in his prime, Amos Diehl fell in love with a girl who lived a few steps away from his home in Oxford, York county, Pennsylvania. He loved with an earnest sincerity that was an inkling of the charcter he was to develop in later years. Just as the young couple had decided upon marriage Diehl was called to the battlefield.
_Known for Bravery in Wartime.
__In a few skirmishes during his early days in the army young Diehl became known for his bravery and wisdom. He was rapidly advanced along the official line. He fought for three days at Suffolk, Virginia, and at all times he was under the commnad of General McClellan. His experiences with that famous soldier made him a devotee of the federal leader. When on the evening of August 8, Mr. Diehl was found almost dead in his lonely room on First street over the Haman drug store, only one ornament adorned the walls. That was a picture of General McClellan.
__Although Amos Diehl and his brother Hamilton Diehl, 521 South Third street west, were in the thick of numerous battles and fought in the same regiment, the 165th Pennsylvania militia (Amos served in company D.), neither received a scratch. The tragedy in the life of the former did not come until the war was over and he had received his honorable discharge. Rejoicing over the cessation of conflict and the return of peace, the brothers wended their way to the old homestead; Amos with his mind made up to marry the young girl about whom he had dreamed when lying by the campfires.
_Stricken by Sweetheart's Death.
__When the soldiers reached home Amos Diehl went at once to the residence of his sweetheart. There a sorrowing mother told him that the daughter was lying in the graveyard at the little church, two blocks down the meandering street. The grief stricken man covered with flowers the grave, wherein his lost hopes lay and left forever the town of his boyhood. In 1868 he arrived in Cedar Rapids. That was almost forty-five years ago. During all this time the figure of Mr. Diehl had been a familiar one here.
__Never tiring of work, and thrifty, the veteran became comfortably situated but always insisted on living alone. He never gave marriage a thought after leaving the grave of his dead sweetheart. Because he seemed so lonely and was known to have money some people thought the old man was a miser. After he was found helpless from the effects of a paralytic stroke and taken to a hospital it was learned that many had benefitted from Mr. Diehl's charity. Numerous persons tell of the aged man's kindness. They said they never had known of a single instance when the veteran had refused to grant a request from a needy individual. If the lowliest beggar proved he was in real need, he always received a coin, never less than a half dollar, say the people who knew the benefactor.
__Many men who knew Mr. Diehl for years paid tribute to his thrift and honesty. He never was known to make a purchase when he did not pay with cash and he expected others to do the same with him. Among his effects was found a pile of receipts, yellow and worn with age.
__In years gone by it may have been that some people glanced askance at the figure of this old man as he trudged down the street, looking neither to right or left and tapping his way along with a gnarled stick, but they did not know his history. Nobody knew it until he died and trinkets and notes found in his trunk told their mute story. An old tin type picture of the sweetheart of years ago was found, carefully wrapped, in the bottom of a trunk.
__Mr. Diehl was a member of T. Z. Cook post G. A. R.
__The funeral will be held from the Turner undertaking parlors, Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock. The services will be in charge of the G. A. R., and Rev. W. G. Crowder will officiate. Interment will be in Linwood cemetery.
----
From Dennis Brandt:
__The son of George [#39774996] & Elizabeth (Mickley) Diehl [106014451], in 1860, he was a farmer living in Berwick Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania. He stood 6' 1" tall and had light hair and gray eyes.
__A Civil War veteran, he was drafted in Adams County October 16, 1862, mustered into federal service at Gettysburg November 6 as a private with Co. F, 165th Pennsylvania Infantry (aka "Drafted Militia"), promoted to 1st corporal, date unknown, and honorably discharged with his company July 28, 1863, at Gettysburg.
__NOTES ON THE OBITUARY: Typical for its time, the obituary exaggerates in places and is just plain wrong in others. For instance, his sweetheart - which is a true story - did not live and die in "Oxford, York County" because the town is New Oxford, and it is in Adams County some six miles from the York County line. Neither did he "rapidly advance along the official line" while in the army because he only attained the rank of corporal, albeit 1st corporal. And while Amos may have admired George B. McClellan, Abraham Lincoln effectively ended McClellan's military career the day before Amos mustered into federal service. Amos served under Burnside's, then Hooker's, commands but not one day under McClellan. Neither were Amos and brother Hamilton "in the thick of numerous battles" because the 165th Pennsylvania did not fight "numerous battles." The regiment had only one battle death during its nine-month tenure, and there is some question whether that man actually died of disease. The regiment's function was garrison duty. They did skirmish with Longstreet's forces at Suffolk, Virginia, and that did offer opportunities for bravery, although I have found no contemporaneous reports of that.
__However, the obituary apparently does not exaggerate Amos's hermit-like lifestyle and generosity. A variety of depositions in his pension file offer glowing accounts of his magnanimity.
See also The Biographical Record of Linn County Iowa, Illustrated, Chicago: The S. J. Clarke Publishing Company, 1901, pages 115-116.
---- Obit:
The Cedar Rapids Evening Gazette,
Sat., Oct. 19, 1912, p. 1, col. 3-6.
Amos Diehl, Four Score and Ten, Fought For Country and Dedicated Life to Memory of Boyhood Love
__Faithful unto his last breath to the memories of two persons, General George Brinton McClellan under whom he fought in the civil war, and the sweetheart of his youth, whose grave he found in a churchyard cemetery when he returned from the great conflict, Amos Diehl, for years a well known character in Cedar Rapids, died last night in a local hospital. He was 90 years old.
__With the death of this aged veteran the secret of a long, lonely life was unfolded. Hundreds of Cedar Rapids men who were aquainted with the old man had wondered at the unusual traits in his character which permitted him to live an absolute hermit in the midst of the clang and clamer of the city. The secret of this man's career was wrapped up in one simple word and that was "faithfulness."
__Before he was called to defend the Union in the civil war conflict which threatened the country when he was a young man and in his prime, Amos Diehl fell in love with a girl who lived a few steps away from his home in Oxford, York county, Pennsylvania. He loved with an earnest sincerity that was an inkling of the charcter he was to develop in later years. Just as the young couple had decided upon marriage Diehl was called to the battlefield.
_Known for Bravery in Wartime.
__In a few skirmishes during his early days in the army young Diehl became known for his bravery and wisdom. He was rapidly advanced along the official line. He fought for three days at Suffolk, Virginia, and at all times he was under the commnad of General McClellan. His experiences with that famous soldier made him a devotee of the federal leader. When on the evening of August 8, Mr. Diehl was found almost dead in his lonely room on First street over the Haman drug store, only one ornament adorned the walls. That was a picture of General McClellan.
__Although Amos Diehl and his brother Hamilton Diehl, 521 South Third street west, were in the thick of numerous battles and fought in the same regiment, the 165th Pennsylvania militia (Amos served in company D.), neither received a scratch. The tragedy in the life of the former did not come until the war was over and he had received his honorable discharge. Rejoicing over the cessation of conflict and the return of peace, the brothers wended their way to the old homestead; Amos with his mind made up to marry the young girl about whom he had dreamed when lying by the campfires.
_Stricken by Sweetheart's Death.
__When the soldiers reached home Amos Diehl went at once to the residence of his sweetheart. There a sorrowing mother told him that the daughter was lying in the graveyard at the little church, two blocks down the meandering street. The grief stricken man covered with flowers the grave, wherein his lost hopes lay and left forever the town of his boyhood. In 1868 he arrived in Cedar Rapids. That was almost forty-five years ago. During all this time the figure of Mr. Diehl had been a familiar one here.
__Never tiring of work, and thrifty, the veteran became comfortably situated but always insisted on living alone. He never gave marriage a thought after leaving the grave of his dead sweetheart. Because he seemed so lonely and was known to have money some people thought the old man was a miser. After he was found helpless from the effects of a paralytic stroke and taken to a hospital it was learned that many had benefitted from Mr. Diehl's charity. Numerous persons tell of the aged man's kindness. They said they never had known of a single instance when the veteran had refused to grant a request from a needy individual. If the lowliest beggar proved he was in real need, he always received a coin, never less than a half dollar, say the people who knew the benefactor.
__Many men who knew Mr. Diehl for years paid tribute to his thrift and honesty. He never was known to make a purchase when he did not pay with cash and he expected others to do the same with him. Among his effects was found a pile of receipts, yellow and worn with age.
__In years gone by it may have been that some people glanced askance at the figure of this old man as he trudged down the street, looking neither to right or left and tapping his way along with a gnarled stick, but they did not know his history. Nobody knew it until he died and trinkets and notes found in his trunk told their mute story. An old tin type picture of the sweetheart of years ago was found, carefully wrapped, in the bottom of a trunk.
__Mr. Diehl was a member of T. Z. Cook post G. A. R.
__The funeral will be held from the Turner undertaking parlors, Sunday afternoon at 2 o'clock. The services will be in charge of the G. A. R., and Rev. W. G. Crowder will officiate. Interment will be in Linwood cemetery.
----
From Dennis Brandt:
__The son of George [#39774996] & Elizabeth (Mickley) Diehl [106014451], in 1860, he was a farmer living in Berwick Township, Adams County, Pennsylvania. He stood 6' 1" tall and had light hair and gray eyes.
__A Civil War veteran, he was drafted in Adams County October 16, 1862, mustered into federal service at Gettysburg November 6 as a private with Co. F, 165th Pennsylvania Infantry (aka "Drafted Militia"), promoted to 1st corporal, date unknown, and honorably discharged with his company July 28, 1863, at Gettysburg.
__NOTES ON THE OBITUARY: Typical for its time, the obituary exaggerates in places and is just plain wrong in others. For instance, his sweetheart - which is a true story - did not live and die in "Oxford, York County" because the town is New Oxford, and it is in Adams County some six miles from the York County line. Neither did he "rapidly advance along the official line" while in the army because he only attained the rank of corporal, albeit 1st corporal. And while Amos may have admired George B. McClellan, Abraham Lincoln effectively ended McClellan's military career the day before Amos mustered into federal service. Amos served under Burnside's, then Hooker's, commands but not one day under McClellan. Neither were Amos and brother Hamilton "in the thick of numerous battles" because the 165th Pennsylvania did not fight "numerous battles." The regiment had only one battle death during its nine-month tenure, and there is some question whether that man actually died of disease. The regiment's function was garrison duty. They did skirmish with Longstreet's forces at Suffolk, Virginia, and that did offer opportunities for bravery, although I have found no contemporaneous reports of that.
__However, the obituary apparently does not exaggerate Amos's hermit-like lifestyle and generosity. A variety of depositions in his pension file offer glowing accounts of his magnanimity.
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1825 - 1912
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