Invalid Pension - REJECTED

This form is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  It was originally submitted by his attorney, E.J. Lindsay, on March 27, 1902 and then again on March 30, 1910 by my widowed third great-grandmother.  They were both seeking an increase in the amount of his monthly pension.

He had qualified for the pension from the United States Government by serving as a private in Company I of the 215th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry at the end of the Civil War.  He enlisted on April 8, 1865 and was discharged on July 31, 1865.

My third great-grandfather claimed that while in the Union Army in July of 1865 at Fort Delaware, he incurred a rupture (hernia) and varicose veins and that he had suffered with that along with a cataract of the eye and rheumatism ever since his discharge.

At the time this form was originally filed, he lived at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  That address is crossed out and 3101 Madison Street was written.  This address is where my third great-grandmother was living at the time she filed for an increase in the monthly pension.

The pension increase was rejected because there was no medical record or other satisfactory evidence of existence of the hernia and varicose veins while he served in the Union Army nor at his discharge, and my third great-grandmother was also unable to establish the origin of these injuries.  The cataract and rheumatism were dismissed as they were not claimed at the time of military service.

Index Sheet

This is an Index Sheet found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  The list begins on 2 September 1890, when he originally filed for his pension under the Act of June 27, 1890, which provided a pension for any veteran of the Civil War that served for the Union Army.  He had served for a short time at the end of the war with Company I of the 215th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.

This Index Sheet lists all of my third great-grandfather's increases and requests for increases in his Pension.  The list ends with the date of 27 November 1901, with the testimony of two of his acquaintances, William White and Willet Walton, on his behalf.

Increase Invalid Pension

This Increase Invalid Pension Form is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  At the time of the filing of this form in 1902, he was living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He was receiving a Civil War Pension of $12 a month from the United States Government for his total inability to earn a support by manual labor.

He was eligible for the pension because of his service as a private in Company I of the 215th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry at the end of the Civil War.  He enlisted on April 8, 1865 and was discharged on July 31, 1865.

My third great-grandfather's attorney was James B. O'Neill, who had an office on West 6th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  There was a $2 fee to file this form, which would be about $60 dollars today.

He had already been approved for an incomplete right inguinal hernia and impaired vision.  He was asking for an increase in his pension due to the new ailments of a left inguinal hernia, total loss of sight in his right eye, rheumatism, and senility.

Instead of signing his name, my third great-grandfather signed with his mark.  I know from other forms in his Civil War Pension File that this was due to his failing eyesight and shaking of his hands.

This form was filed two years before his death, when he was 68 years old.

Accrued Pension Form of 13 September 1909

This Accrued Pension Form is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  My third great-grandmother filed this on 13 September 1909, over five years after his death.  At this time, she was living at 1201 East Chelton Avenue in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, over 11 miles from the home she shared with her husband and different than the address at which she was living when the 1910 Census was taken.

According to this document, she was awarded her late husband's accrued pension.

General Affidavit of 15 January 1902

This General Affidavit is a part of my my third great-grandfather's Civil War Pension File.  This was filed in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on 15 January 1902, when he was 70 years old.  At this time, he was living at 1416 South 15th Street in the same city.  He had to explain under oath why he sometimes left his mark instead of signing his name.

The Affidavit states:

Affiant states that he is the identical person who is applying for an increase pension by ctf #700375 James Odgers and in answer to the Commissioner of Pensions letter hereto attached wherein he is required to state under oath as to why he sometimes signs his name and at other times makes his mark.

Affiant states that at times he is able to write his name and at other times through extreme nervousness and affection of the eyes he is unable to write his name and so has to make his mark.

 My third great-grandfather's response to this inquiry was that at times his eyesight was bad and his hands shook too much for him to be able to write his signature.  At 70 years old, he was elderly and these could have just been symptoms of his age.

His symptoms must have been present at the time this Affidavit was taken, because instead of his signature, he left his mark.