Surgeon's Certificate of November 21, 1900

This Surgeon's Certificate is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  He was asking for an increase of his $8 monthly pension.  A pension that he earned while serving in Company I of the 215th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Infantry at the end of the war.  Those $8 would be about $250 today.

This certificate was filed on November 21, 1900 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania .  At that time, my third great-grandfather was living at 1416 South 15th Street in the same city.

He was claiming that a hernia, impaired vision, rheumatism, varicose veins, senility, and blindness were the causes of his disability.  He was unable to do any manual labor and was being supported by his children.  He was a machinist by trade.

At the time of this examination, my third great-grandfather was 66 years old.  He stood five feet eight and a half inches tall and weighed 178 pounds. He was noted to be a healthy looking, well nourished muscular man, and despite him having been a machinist, he had soft palms.

He had a double complete inguinal hernia on his right side, which had caused a tumor the size of a black walnut.  The hernia was well supported by a truss.  This would have kept his protruding tissue (the tumor) in place and relieved some of his discomfort.

My third great-grandfather was blind in his left eye due to a cataract.  His right pupil was immobile.  He was able to discern light from darkness in that right eye, but that was all he could see.

He had a severe varicose vein in his right leg that ran from his upper thigh to his ankle.  He had a brownish discoloration around the lower third of his leg.  This was all marked on the included diagram.

As for his rheumatism, he had marked creaking in his shoulders and knees, which would cause him difficulty and pain.  Other than that, he had no other muscular or joint deformities.

At the end of this exam, the doctors recommended an increase of the pension to $12 a month, due to all of my third great-grandfather's disabilities, which left him unable to perform any manual labor.  That $12 would be about $370 today.

Surgeon's Certificate of November 28, 1898

This Surgeon's Certificate is from the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  He was trying to get an increase in the pension that he qualified for as he had served at the end of the Civil War as a private in Company I of the 215th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.

At the time of this exam, November 28, 1898, he was 65 years old and living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He was receiving a monthly pension of $8, which would be about $250 today, for a right hernia, impaired vision, rheumatism, varicose veins, and senility.

I notice that my third great-grandfather's weight had gone up 38 pounds since he was examined on March 28, 1894 and he was considered well nourished at the time of this exam.

When his hernia was examined, a tumor was found.  It was the size of a hen's egg.  It was noted that the hernia could be supported by a truss.  This garment would have been worn under his clothing and would have kept any protruding tissue in place, thus helping with any discomfort.

Due to a cataract, my third great-grandfather was able to distinguish light, but unable to see any objects.

Surgeon's Certificate of March 28, 1894

This Surgeon's Certificate is from the Civil War Pension File of  my paternal third great-grandfather, who had served as a private at the end of the war in Company I of the 215th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.  This was an application for a revision to his pension, and it is the first type-written from that I have come across in the file.

This examination took place on March 28, 1894.  At that time, my third great-grandfather was living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He was claiming that an incomplete right inguinal hernia, impaired vision, rheumatism and varicose veins were getting worse and he was unable to do manual labor.  A welder by trade, he was not working at that time and he was being supported by his sons.  He was receiving a Civil War Pension of $6 a month, which would be around $180 today.

At the time of this examination, my third great-grandfather was 62 years old.  He was five feet, eight and a half inches tall and weighed 178 pounds, which caused the examiners to say that he looked obese.  He was also noted to be "florid looking," which means he was flushed.  His hands showed some evidence of work.  These are some great details that help me put a picture to someone I have never seen.

He wore a truss for his inguinal hernia and was convinced it would protrude if he were to not wear it. An inguinal hernia occurs when tissue, like the intestine, protrudes through a weak point or a tear in the abdominal muscle.  This hernia could have been very painful.  The truss would have kept the protruding tissue in place and relieved some of the discomfort.

My third great-grandfather also wore a muslin stocking for his varicose veins.  This would have compressed the veins and helped them to perform properly.

He had a slight creaking in his left shoulder joint, but no evidence of rheumatism in any other muscle, joint, or tendon.

One good thing he had going for him was his heart, or so it seemed at the time of this exam.  He was noted to have a heart rate of 84 while standing and 98 after doing some sort of exercise.

He wore glasses and was totally blind in his his left eye due to a cataract.  It was noted that he had another cataract forming in his right eye.

There were no other disabilities found and he had no disabilities due to any "vicious habits."

He was found to be wholly disabled when it came to manual labor due to the cataracts in both of his eyes, the varicose veins in his right leg, his age and obesity.

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.

Invalid Pension Form December 28, 1891

This Invalid Pension form is from my third great-grandfather's Civil War Pension File.  At the time of the filing of this form, he was living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  He qualified for a Civil War pension because he served as a private in Company I of the 215 Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.  He did a short term of service at the end of the Civil War, from April 8, 1865 to July 31, 1865.

As of September 2, 1890, he was receiving $6 per month from the United States government.  That increased to $8 on December 4, 1891.  He was claiming disability from a right hernia and impaired vision.

His attorney was W.V. Sickel, whose office was at 729 Walnut Street, also in the city of Philadelphia.  Mr. Sickel's attorney fee was $10 to file this form.  Ironically, this was more than what my third-great grandfather was getting as his monthly pension.  Those $10 would equal about $284 today.

Increase Invalid Pension December 18, 1899

This Increase Invalid Pension form is from the Civil War Pension file of my paternal third great-grandfather and was submitted on December 18, 1899.  He was living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and he was 66 years old.

His lawyer at the time of the filing of this form was James B. O'Neill, who had an office in Philadelphia.  The cost to file this form was $25, which would be about $777 today.

My third great-grandfather had enlisted in the United States Union Army at the end of the Civil War.  He served as a private in Company I of the 215 Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.  He served from April 8, 1865 to July 31, 1865.  This short time he served during the Civil War qualified him for a pension from the government.

At the time of this filing, he had already been approved for $8 a month for an incomplete inguinal hernia and impaired vision.  He was asking for an increase in this monthly amount due to rheumatism, varicose veins, and senility.  There is also a mention of a heart problem, which was attributed to possibly being related to his rheumatism.

This request for the increase in my third great-grandfather's monthly pension was rejected in February of 1900.

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.