Atlas Twp.-Carol Powers has four ancestors who fought for the Union in the Civil War.
James B. Hatch, her great-grandfather, was a captain? he married and had six children before the war; When his first wife died, he married Powers? great-grandmother and had seven more children, including Powers? grandmother, the next to youngest. James E. Hatch, her great-uncle, was a private who died shortly after the war ended. Both Hatches were from New York. Powers is also the great-great-granddaughter of John Cross and Huston Nelson, both Union soldiers from Tennessee with interesting stories. Cross was a prisoner of war at the Cahaba Confederate Prison in Alabama and was one of the 500 survivors of the Sultana disaster, in which 2,500 people were killed by an explosion while riding the riverboat bringing Union soldiers back to the north. Nelson had slaves before the war and released them, but they stayed and lived with him after the war.
‘He must have been a pretty good guy because they wanted to stay anyway,? notes Powers.
The township resident joined the National Society Daughters of the Union 1861-1865, Lt. Edwin Terry Carrington Chapter in Flint about a year and a half ago, inspired by her ancestors.
‘After someone told me about this group, I thought it would be a great way to honor all of my relatives who fought in the Civil War as well as the other soldiers who fought,? Powers said.
The patriotic organization’s objective is to honor the memory of the men and women who contributed toward the preservation of the Union during the Civil War and foster the spirit of patriotism, loyalty and love of country. The group cares for the graves of Civil War patriots, and also takes up collections for the veteran hospitals and the Lincoln Memorial University in Harrogate, Tenn.
The Flint chapter currently has about 36 members, which besides Powers also includes Goodrich resident Dawn Bastian, the great-great-granddaughter of George Pettit, a private in the 23rd Independent Battery, New York Artillery. Pettit was discharged in 1865, married, and later moved to Michigan so two of his sons could attend the Michigan School for the Deaf. He died in 1924 and is buried in Avondale Cemetery. Bastian and the National Society Daughters of the Union will rededicate his grave next year, but for now she is focused on the rededication this May of the graves of 40 Civil War soldiers buried in the Goodrich Cemetery.
‘We want to get new members and get them excited and maybe we can get the public excited about this,? said Bastian.
National Society Daughters of the Union members must be 18 or older and a descendant of a Civil War patriot, which is verified through genealogy. The group meets about six times a year. Their next meeting is planned for 3 p.m., March 8 at the Stockton House, 720 Ann Arbor St., Flint. The Stockton House was built by Col. Stockton after the Civil War and a Civil War collection is gathered there.
For more information on becoming a member, call 810-636-2161.