Thursday, April 30, 2020

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.








Wednesday, April 29, 2020

Department of the Interior May 5, 1897

This form is found in the Civil War Pension file of my paternal third great-grandfather.  He had served at the end of the Civil War with Company I of the 215 Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.  He enrolled on April 8, 1865 and was discharged on July 31, 1865.  During that time he served as a private and a sergeant.


Tuesday, April 28, 2020

Declaration For An Original Invalid Pension May 12, 1893

This form is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  It was filed on May 12, 1893 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania by his attorney, Samuel J. Brown, who had an office at 911 Walnut Street in Philadelphia.  

At the end of the Civil War, my third great-grandfather enlisted in the Union Army in April 1865 and was commanded by a Colonel Rush in Company I of the 215th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry.  He was discharged from the army at Fort Delaware on August 15, 1865.

He stood five feet, eight inches tall.  He had a light complexion and brown hair and blue eyes.  He was 61 years old and was living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia.

He was claiming that in the line of duty while at Fort Delaware on or around July 20, 1865 that he was helping some other men with some powder.  The cart was going very fast in circles.  One of the shafts of the cart struck him and ruptured him.  He was discharged the following month and had suffered with cataract of the eye, rheumatism, and the rupture (hernia).  He was also claiming that he had contracted his varicose veins at the same time he suffered his rupture.

The time my third great-grandfather spent in the Union Army during the Civil War is the only time he spent in the military.  He was stating that he was now wholly disabled and unable to work as a machinist, his normal occupation.



Monday, April 27, 2020

Surgeon's Certificate of May 29, 1901: EXAMINATION--Continued

This form is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  He was seeking an increase in the monthly pension he qualified for by serving in Company I of the 215th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Infantry at the at the end of the war.

The doctor doing this exam believed the cause of my third great-grandfather's impaired vision was due to a failed previous cataract surgery, as there was still some of the cataract remaining.  The doctor believed that eye strain caused by astigmatism would have been a cause of the cataracts.  He recommended that another operation might improve the cataract.

My third great-grandfather also complained of rheumatism in both of his shoulders.  His lower limbs were also stiff and his joints were limited in movement.  This is somewhat expected since he was 70 years old at the time of this exam.

He also had a double inguinal hernia and he wore a double truss.  On his right side, he had a pigeon's egg sized protrusion from the hernia and an even larger protrusion on his left side. Both could be clearly felt when my third great-grandfather coughed.  The truss that he wore would have pushed in the protrusions and helped ease some of the discomfort.

The surgeon noted that my third great-grandfather's face appeared flush, but he could find no evidence of alcoholism or other vicious habits.

My third great-grandfather was a patient at Wills Eye Hospital, under the care of a Surgeon Thompson, two years prior.  That is when he had his first cataract surgery.  He had another one a year prior to this exam.  Both procedures were done with an iridectomy, which would have removed part of his iris.



Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Surgeon's Certificate of May 29, 1901

This Surgeon's Certificate is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  He had qualified for a monthly pension from the United States Government by serving in Company I of the 215th Regiment of the Pennsylvania Infantry at the end of the war.

At the time of his exam, May 29,1901, he was living at 1416 South 15th Street in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.  The exam took place at 1636 Walnut Street in the same city.  This would be a less than 10 minute car ride today.

My third great-grandfather's cause of disability was impaired vision due to cataracts, followed by operations, which were only partially successful.  These disabilities allowed him an $8 a month pension, about $250 today.

About five years prior to this exam, he noticed a deficit in his vision.  A year later he had to relinquish his work as a machinist on account of his cataracts.

My third great-grandfather, an Irish immigrant, was 70 years old at the time of this exam.  He stood five feet, eight and a half inches tall and weighed 160 pounds.  He had a ruddy complexion and had gray eyes and hair.  He was a married father of seven children, five of which were still living.

His external eye appearance seemed normal, but the oblique examination showed a dark membrane with few white streaks remaining after a cataract operation.  These findings called for another operation according to the examining doctor.





Tuesday, April 21, 2020

Department Of The Interior, Bureau Of Pensions May 25, 1901

This form from the Department of the Interior is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  It lists special instructions for the doctors who were examining him and who would give a recommendation as to  if his pension should be increased.  He qualified for a Civil War Pension by serving in Company I of the 215th Pennsylvania Infantry at the end of the war.

Special attention was to be given to the claim of impaired vision.  the Bureau of Pensions wanted to know the conditions of all his eye structures.  They also wanted the actual degree of impairment and cause of the impaired vision of each eye determined.

They were looking for cataracts or evidence of their surgical removal from my third great-grandfather's eyes.  They also wanted to know if his impaired vision was caused by "vicious habits."



Monday, April 20, 2020

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.



Wednesday, April 15, 2020

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.



Tuesday, April 14, 2020

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.





Monday, April 13, 2020

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.


Bills of Repairs September 24,1904

 This cover sheet is found in the Civil War Pension File of my paternal third great-grandfather.  The bills were submitted by a pension atto...