George Alexander Forsyth (1837 - 1915)

Born 7 Nov 1837 in Muncy, Lycoming, Pennsylvania, United States

Ancestors

Died 12 Sep 1915 at age 77 in Rockport, Essex, Massachusetts, United States

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Biography

Gen George Forsyth served in the United States Civil War.
Enlisted: April 19, 1861 Chicago, Illinois
Side: USA
Regiment(s): 8th Regiment, Illinois Cavalry/Chicago Dragoons/9th Regiment, Cavalry

Military

United States Civil War and Later Pension Index, 1861-1917

Name: Geroge A Forsythe

Event Type: Pension

Event Date: Dec 13 1915

Event Place: United States

Military Regiment: 4

Military Unit: Cavalry

Military Rank: Lt. Col.

Shipping Company:

File Name: 24448971

NOTE: "Barker's Dragoons was organized at Chicago, Illinois on April 19, 1861. It served at Cairo, Illinois and later West Virginia, serving as George B. McClellan's escort. It participated in the Battle of Rich Mountain and was mustered out in September 1861." (wikipedia.com) ^{[citation needed]}

"Civil War Union Brevet Brigadier General. At the outbreak of the Civil War he enlisted as Private in the Chicago Dragoons and was one of the first Illinois troops to move into the field with 600 militiamen. In September 1862, he was appointed 1st Lieutenant in the 8th Illinois Volunteer Cavalry. He attained the rank of Major and throughout the war, he served with the Army of West Virginia, the Army of the Potomac and the Army of the Shenandoah. For gallantry at Opequon and Winchester, he was brevetted Brigadier General m US Volunteers on March 13, 1865. After the war he remained in the Regular Army, was appointed Major in the 9th United States Cavalry and went on frontier duty. Under his command on a little sandbar in the river the combined forces of the Northern Cheyenne, Arapaho, and Oglala Sioux were defeated. They lost over one-third of their men killed and wounded, while the Indian loss was many times as great. These Indians had been murdering the settlers and travelers in western Nebraska and Kansas for months. Soldiers were sent to pursue them but always arrived on the scene of their action after the Indians were gone, finding nothing but the melancholy duty of burying the murdered citizens.

For his services in the Indian Wars he was brevetted Brigadier General US Regular Army in 1868. From 1869 to 1873, he was Military Secretary to General Philip Sheridan and in 1878 to 1881, Sheridan's Aide-de-Camp. He retired from the Army in March 1890, as a Colonel. During his life he wrote "A Frontier Fight," for Harpers Magazine 1895, "The Story of the Soldier," 1900 and "Thrilling Days of Army Life," 1902." (bio by: John "J-Cat" Griffith)

(From Find-A-Grave and the website "The Battle of Beecher Island, Colo.)

Death

Burial: Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Arlington County, Virginia

Location:Plot Section 1, Site 188

Sources

1. ↑ Troy Daily Times, Friday Nov 14, 1873, Troy NY, Page 2, 5th col., Geneaogly Bank, Paid Link: accessed 11 June 2022

1. "United States Census, 1910," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M2JN-KJC : accessed 13 April 2016), George A Forsyth, Rockport, Essex, Massachusetts, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) ED 450, sheet 3B, NARA microfilm publication T624 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,374,600.
2. "District of Columbia Births and Christenings, 1830-1955," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F75L-QY4 : accessed 13 April 2016), George Alexander Forsyth in entry for Forsyth, 05 Jul 1894; citing Washington, District of Columbia, reference 77510; FHL microfilm 2,114,656.
3. "United States Veterans Administration Pension Payment Cards, 1907-1933," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:K64D-J1R : accessed 13 April 2016), George A Forsyth, 1907-1933; citing NARA microfilm publication M850 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 1,634,795.
4. Find A Grave: Memorial #11355588

1. Battle of Beecher Island