Roberts - John H. - Putnam

By leave of the Greencastle Democrat, I offer the following for those who care to read it: Early in April 1846, the President of the United States called on the Governor of Indiana for three regiments of Soldiers to go to Mexico to right for “Uncle Sam.”  The patriotic people of New Maysville beat their drums and called for volunteers to go to the front.  John H. Roberts, Notly M. Sanders, JH Johnston, Abe Stringer, Bob Walls, Merrit Redding, JA Shepherd, Floyd and Wesley Mills and JH and DT Summers all of New Maysville met a number of volunteers in Greencastle and organized a company of 101 men, with JH Roberts, Capt; DA Farley, 1st Lt; R Wiles Jones 2nd and AL Morrison 3rd and early in May we started on foot for New Albany.  Wash Walls beat the drum and Clint Walls drilled us. The writer with one comrade stayed the last night in Greencastle with Hon EA McGaughey, MC and lady in the finest style. Their house was in the second block from the northeast corner of the Square was built of brick and plastered on the outside and cut in squares, resembling a stone house. Think it stood where Major Beckett’s new establishment now stands.  The citizens of Greencastle furnished some provisions and cooking utensils and one wagon to haul them.  The citizens of Leesville gave us a free dinner and we reached New Albany in due time and went into camp two miles up the Ohio River just across Silver Creek. Governor Whitcomb came down in a few days and we organized three regiments with 10 companies each.  Ours was Co A, First Regt I Vols, with JP Drake of Indianapolis as Colonel and Joe Lane as Brigadier. Our regiment had DR Eckles as quartermaster. On the 17th day of June 1846, we were mustered into the US Service and on the 5th day of July we took a boat called the “Cincinnati” for New Orleans. We ate what we could get and drank water out of the Mississippi and in due course of time was landed at the lower market-house in New Orleans. We went into camp for about one week.  Then we boarded a sailing vessel for the mouth of the Rio Grande.  On the second day out we encountered a cyclone with plenty of rain and lightning that lasted four days. After a two days calm we succeeded in landing in bad shape at the mouth of the Rio Grande on a sandbar.  We had to dig holes a foot deep in the sand to soak the salt out of the water. The miracle was how any of us lived to dig the holes. We stuck it out until Mexico gave us the west half of what is now the US and half of the gold of the world to quit and come home.  We traded.  Early in May 1847 we broke camp at Walnut Springs near Monterey and about the 1st of June we were again crossing the Gulf of Mexico. On the 16th day of June 1847 we were mustered out of service at New Orleans and got home the best we could.  Uncle Sam gave us one blanket, a suit of $7 clothes for the term and $7 per month.  Some of our boys came home by way of Madison and took the railroad to Edinburg, walking from there to Indianapolis. At Indianapolis we hired a wagon to bring us to New Maysville early in July 1847. We left Notly Sanders in the sandbar at the mouth of the Rio Grande.  Capt. Roberts died at Matamoras early in January 1847 and we brought his body home with us on our return.  He is buried at the New Maysville cemetery.  JH Johnston and Floyd Mills also sleep their last sleep in the same hallowed ground. JH Summers is living at Belloit, Kansas; Bob Walls in Illinois; JA Shepherd died in Winterset, Iowa last winter; while R Wiles Jones, AL Morrison, John Ford, Jesse A. Hamrick and Mace Vermillion are living in or near Greencastle. Floyd Mills’ widow lives two miles north of New Maysville and draws $12 pension as do also Tom Bridges’ widow near Putnamville and WL Farrow’s widow in South Greencastle. Bob Glover of Roachdale and Capt. Smiley of Greencastle are Mexican veterans from the KY cavalry.  All of the boys over 62 years of age draw a service pension of $8 a month.  Goodbye until we meet again.  Daniel T. Summers, Co A 1st Regt Ind Vol. Groveland, Ind – kbz